John Prine Album: “Aimless Love”

If I were pressed, really hard, to pick my favorite John Prine record, this would be it. The gentleness and affection with which Prine approaches human weakness is quite moving, as is his skill expressing it. This is a mature and finely crafted album, with mystifying songs of pathetic love ("Maureen"), mildly scolding morality tales ("Unwed Fathers"), a patent-pending Prine-style nonsense song ("Bottomless Lake"), and the ethereal, life-affirming lullaby, "Only Love." Prine took five years to organize his life so that he could make the records he wanted to make, and the results straight out the gate were pretty impressive. Highly, highly recommended.

Prine isn't for everyone (boy, are the others missing out!), but for some of us he is everything. Over 20 years on and this album holds its own. I've been a fan for 40 years now, and he hasn't failed me yet. After all of these years I'll finally get to see him live in June...forth row center...and I can't wait.

This album is not as Joe Sixpack has noted in his review. Perhaps too many sixpacks have clouded his judgemnt. This album at best is a commercial flop and is nowhere near some of Prine's other work. This work cannot and does not rise to the level of Sam Stone, Christmas in Prison or the funny ditty "Let's Talk Dirty in Hawaiian". Prine has had numerous other albums that deserve Grammy recognition but I'm sorry to say this is the weakest link in all his work. I wish him well in his sales of this piece of work but I'm not impressed. He is too good of a talent and entertainer to let this stand as a representative of his music. He really should withdraw this album from the public and redo it with better stuff. I expected more.