CALIFIA – THE SONGS OF LEE HAZLEWOOD

Whether or not Lee Hazlewood as a musician was ever respected by the greater public is a matter for debate. Though he may not be a household name, his songs certainly are. The man was responsible for creating a kind of pop music (both as a composer/producer, and later as a singer) that lurked just beneath the surface of morality, cooing the darker side of western culture with his dark and cheeky tales of misguided alcoholics, shiny boots and his most common theme, “messin’ where you/he/she/I shouldn’t have been a-messin'”. This collection serves as a broad picture of his career as a writer and producer, and the songs range from the instantly recognizable finger-snappers (These Boots Are Made For Walkin’), to his more obscure rockabilly tracks (Snake-Eyed Mama). Hazlewood duets on two of the most striking and seductive numbers, Lady Bird (with Nancy Sinatra, of course) and Califia (with Suzi Jane Hokom). It’s his uniquely deviant cowboy chic, and that white-chocolate baritone, that are the most exciting assets of this man’s canon. Hazlewood was a visionary, and this offbeat collection proves it once again.

****