January 20th marked the 20th anniversary of Cat Power’s masterpiece “The Greatest”. The occasion delivers us the “Redux” EP, featuring three stellar tracks recorded with her touring band The Dirty Delta Blues, featuring the vast experience of Judah Baeur (The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion), Gregg Foreman (The Delta 72, Jesse Malin), Erik Paparozzi (Lizard Music), and Jim White (Dirty Three, The Hard Quartet).
The EP bursts into life with “Try Me,” a wonderful re-recording of James Brown’s solid-gold anthem. Cat Power (aka Chan Marshall) has a long standing reputation for delivering excellent interpretations of existing tracks and she hits the mark again here. It should stand deservedly tall as a perfect embodying of the love and passion that goes into the music of Cat Power. Incidentally, it’s also a fantastic indication of how she would later go onto embody Bob Dylan for her monumental live album, “Cat Power Sings Dylan: The 1966 Royal Albert Hall Concert”.
However excellent the cover versions may be, the EP also features a reworked version of Marshall’s own “Could We,” a true testament to how well her own material continues to sound 20 years down the line. It’s the stomping sound of the blues given a new lick of paint.
The Redux EP concludes with a very special tribute, a magnificent rendition of Prince’s iconic “Nothing Compares 2 U” (made famous by the late Sinéad O’Connor). You would be hard pressed to argue against this version more than matching the pure genius of the original. Marshall’s genius breathing new life into everything she touches (covers).
This inclusion is bittersweet as it was recorded in tribute to the late, great guitarist Teenie Hodges, a legendary member of The Memphis Rhythm Band that backed Cat Power on “The Greatest” and with whom she formed a close bond before his passing in 2014.
This year will see Cat Power perform “The Greatest” in its entirety with a series of 20th anniversary live shows beginning in North America in February and reaching the UK in November.
The Fat Angel Sings 