One of the Finest: Review of Excitable Boy (1978) by Warren Zevon
BY CHRIS WOOD I SEPTEMBER 24, 2008
I don't think people enthuse enough over some of the really special things in the world, so I'm going to do so here with one of
my favourite CDs. It's Excitable Boy by Warren Zevon.
Some songwriters carry a wisdom that goes over and beyond what's expected in a song. We can appreciate the great melodies, good
instruments and the lived in, lived out pallor some people just have in their voice. Warren Zevon has all this.
What he has as well, and what shows magnificently in this album, is a wide world view. As the tracks go past, you will be taken on the
kind of voyage that only really great music can offer. The emotions of each song are clear, whether they are funny and dark, deep
and thoughtful, or just melancholy with regret.
It's the regret in this album that gives it an emotional sting. Tracks like "Veracruz" and "Accidentally Like A Martyr" show
someone aching to be out of some situation, yet can't seem to look away.
"One of my favourite lines about Warren Zevon is that he talked up to his audience. That is a beautiful concept, the idea that "We
can take this to a higher level, because we're both capable of it."
If you think of the art that operates this wonderful philosophy, it's my bet you'll be thinking of some of the finest things to
ever move you.
The lyrics on Excitable Boy cover a huge spectrum. The title track deals with a sociopath's first date. Others cover
Woodrow Wilson's invasion of Mexico, tangled love affairs, the ghost of a decapitated mercenary, and most famously, "Werewolves of
London". For anyone who's ever been in deep shit, there's also "Lawyers, Guns and Money".
If that isn't enough, there's also a mother's bittersweet emotions at seeing her daughter ripen to womanhood, a tender apology to
a wronged lover and the introspective lament of an addict surveying some of the train wrecks in his life.
These songs are wise in ways that, I promise you, will enhance your life. The music is magnificent, and it rocks. This album is
pretty much perfect.
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