Raul Malo – After Hours / Teddy Thompson – Upfront & Down Low

It’s good fun to hear a superior musician cover great tunes written by others; indeed, before the rock era, interpretations were a singer’s bread and butter. These days, when a singer-songwriter tackles previously recorded songs, the results can also reveal a lot about the artist behind the microphone. New country collections by Raul Malo and Teddy Thompson offer a case in point.

Malo’s mellifluous voice was the soul of the Mavericks, whose unique mix of country, rock and Latin inflections placed them in a precarious spot between commercial country and the alternative side of Nashville. Since his solo debut in 2001, Malo has hit some stylistic peaks with Los Super Seven and applied his superlative voice to multiple cover albums. After Hours follows last year’s You’re Only Lonely, with the set list moving from soft rock to classic country.

Only a crab could complain about Malo applying his operatic pipes to such dulcet country ballads as “Crying Time”, “Welcome To My World”, “Husbands And Wives” and “For The Good Times”. But these selections are low-hanging fruit for a singer with Malo’s gift, especially with minimal arrangements that put full focus on his artfully modulated voice. Yet Malo’s talent is so singular that he can perform these tunes as originally rendered and still give a thrill.

Malo’s uptempo interpretations, spiced with woodwinds, fall prey to his finger-snapping inclinations. Imagine if Bill Murray’s cheeseball lounge lizard could really sing, and you’ve got a hint of how Malo mistreats Dwight Yoakam’s “Pocket Of A Clown”. Even more jaw-dropping is his swinging desecration of Hank Williams’ “Cold, Cold Heart”. The other toe-tappers are only slightly less egregious.

Teddy Thompson, a gifted singer-songwriter with two major-label releases under his belt, has fashioned the artful Upfront & Down Low out of a baker’s dozen of depressing songs. Who could have predicted that the son of Richard and Linda Thompson would have an affinity for sad songs? His parents must be proud that he’s included an original tune, “Down Low”, which fits snugly into a collection of songs originated by the likes of Merle Haggard, Dolly Parton, and the Everly Brothers.

Producer Thompson’s savviest move was to re-imagine these songs not within a typical country framework but as the work of a singer-songwriter. Key to this strategy is a chamber-like string section arranged by Robert Kirby, who did similar duty on Nick Drake’s early-’70s recordings. The strings lend a sweet intimacy to “(From Now On All My Friends Are Gonna Be) Strangers”, while on “I’m Left, You’re Right, She’s Gone”, a violin dances above the percussion like on an old Drifters song, and then darts alongside a gnarly solo by hipster guitarist Marc Ribot.

Special guests slip unobtrusively into Thompson’s arrangements. His dad spices up “Walking The Floor Over You” with a guitar solo that slides like a pedal steel, while Iris DeMent’s harmony vocal and piano lend a gospel spirit to “My Heart Echoes”. “The Worst Is Yet To Come” is taken at a stately country strut, while Thompson’s elegant reading of Dolly Parton’s “My Blue Tears” suggests something by Lyle Lovett. But his boldest move was to sing “She Thinks I Still Care” in a spare arrangement that swaddles his voice in strings. George Jones will always own that song, but you’ve also never heard it quite like this.

Thompson’s voice can suggest everybody from Yoakam to Chris Isaak to Jackson Browne. Malo’s instrument is a one-of-a-kind, Roy Orbison-like classic. Malo lets his voice do the talking on After Hours, an album that’s suited for evening cocktails. Thompson’s more creative collection is one you’re more likely to play later that night, as well as the morning after.