In Same Life Let Gone - Anthology: 1977-2007

Along with his on and off again collaborator the late Nikki Sudden, songwriter Dave Kusworth is one of the great rock & roll troubadours who showed up too late in the music's history to claim his true mantle of glory. As one can see from the cover, Kusworth looking like a cross between Keith Richards circa Exile on Main St and Johnny Thunders. But looking the part is only half the story. As the Jacobites, Kusworth and Sudden wrote some of the most memorable, truly classic — if wonderfully ragged — love songs (and other ones too) in late 20th century rock & roll, and precious few ever heard them. While Sudden may no longer be with us, Kusworth soldiers on, and this compilation provides the evidence for his own particular brand of...well...genius: simple, pure, poetic, and always basic. The 31 tracks on these two discs track Kusworth from his time(s) with Sudden through his other groups, most notably the Bounty Hunters, the Tenderhooks, and his Dave Kusworth Group. Some of these bands overlapped, and while their essence was always the same, there were subtle differences in their execution and output. The three Jacobites tracks — there are two LP cuts — "Heart of Hearts" and "Shame for the Angels," and a rare 12" single version of "Country Girl," that appeared on the Glass Records imprint — are stellar, but what's more interesting is that Kusworth chose Bounty Hunters versions of some of his best tunes from the Jacobites era, such as the version of "Queens & Kings" with a full horn section. Other Kusworth notables are the tender and one presumes autobiographical "Dandelion Boy," and the storming "Stevie's Radio Station." The balance is between shambolic rockers and wasted yet elegant ballads, and makes for a righteous portrait of a criminally under-appreciated poet and artist.