Wicked Grin is the album you would run in to save if your house were burning down. Everything you need is on this record. It's that good. It's called music.
John Hammond covers several Tom Waits songs on Wicked Grin, but that's not explaining enough. He makes them his very own flesh and blood. Not that Waits has been left at the station; he plays guitar or piano on several songs. Charlie Musselwhite, Augie Meyers, Stephen Hodges and Larry Taylor have formed a tight band of musicians.
I won't go over every single song because they're all excellent. "Heartattack and Vine" sounds great with a Hammond organ. "Till the money runs out" is a bluesy shuffle with Augie Meyers on piano. "2:19" is so sad while "Shore Leave" is lonesome and mournful. "Jockey Full of Bourbon" is as ominous now as it was before.
"I Know I've Been Changed" is the perfect way to end this record, with Waits howling and hands clapping. Because that's what will happen, pure and simple. It's time to come back and listen to these songs and abandon the sounds of the cash registers in the mall we've gotten so used to.
John Hammond: Wicked Grin
