CALLING ALL WHITE PEOPLE!

By: B

The 16th annual Cities 97 Sampler CD came out today, and if you haven’t picked it up already, you’re most likely out of luck. This ϋber-popular charity album of in-studio acoustic performances historically sells out in less than an hour, and this year promised the same. Evidently, the unplugged stylings of music’s most radio-friendly performers makes white people from Minnesota oh-so hot under the collar.

The theme chosen for this year’s collection seems to be song popularity. The performers vary from old to young and the song release dates go back as a far as 1993 (Big Head Todd’s “Bittersweet”), with the common trait being each track has received significant air time. With a few exceptions, each song on Volume 16 has been played ad nauseum both on Cities 97 and everywhere else.

Luckily, there are a few genuinely bright spots on the Sampler. The Jayhawks “Save it For a Rainy Day” plays particularly well, with a refreshing harmonica breaking up their trademark harmonies. Jason Mraz’s “You and I Both” is usually rather bland for my tastes, but the acoustic performance is energetic and fun, showing Mraz’s vocal talents. And though Maroon 5’s “This Love” is lost without its funk-infused backbeat, the acoustic version allows us to hear lead singer Adam Levine’s surprisingly stellar vocals.

The rest of the disc, though… very forgettable. Most performances fail to deviate enough from the original version, resulting in a performance likely found at a neighborhood coffee shop. Each musician is obviously vocally gifted, but the vocals didn’t stop me from wanting to skip over most of the tracks out of indifference.

To be fair, I’ll admit I’m not the best person to review this album, for the simple reason that it clearly wasn’t made for someone like me. I don’t dig hearing slightly different versions of songs that have been making me turn the dial for years. I couldn’t even get through the opener, Sting’s “Fields of Gold.” The same can be said for Alanis Morrissette’s “Ironic” (one of my ten most hated songs ever) and Five for Fighting’s “100 Years.” So don’t take it from me.

Just know what you’re getting into: 18 acoustic songs, at least 14 of which have been received an inordinate amount of air time. And while there are a few notable performances, and yes, I understand this would play well in the background of your next dinner party, it’s no better or worse than previous Cities 97 Samplers. At least older Samplers gave the listener the opportunity to hear new music, which is more can be said about Volume 16.

POP RATING: 8

CRITICAL RATING: 4

B'S RATING: 5

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