Lyle Lovett Album: “My Baby Don't Tolerate”

As a huge LL fan, I must say I was disappointed in this release. Maybe it was the wait, maybe it's the slower pace of most of the songs. Whatever it is, it's just not LL at his best. Many songs are repetitive - have you heard "Cute as a Bug"? I can't honestly see myself reaching for this CD over "Ensanada" or "Large Band" perhaps ever.

With all of that being said, he's still Lyle Lovett! The voice is as good as ever and the variety of music and moods will probably give you a few songs you'll like.

I couldn't be missing more than one of Lyle's CDs from my collection, but I think I will give My Baby Don't Tolerate a miss and simply download to my computer -- legally of course! -- the half dozen or so favored songs from it. His live performances seem to my ears to be better than ever (especially his voice, the full breadth of which projects much better live than on disc), but My Baby Don't Tolerate has a real heard-this-before quality in too many places. Cute as a Bug is a prime example; unappealing in so many ways, story, lyric, same old same old arrangements, it is the worst opening cut I can remember from any of his CDs. My Baby Don't Tolerate comes next and offers little improvement. Its roots go all the way back to She's No Lady on Pontiac and other better variants can be found on Road to Ensenada (Her First Mistake) and I Love Everybody (Record Lady).

But since Lyle is Lyle, there are plenty of gems here too. The best include two road and roaming songs, The Truck Song and Nothing But a Good Ride. He has few peers as a writer of love songs and worn-down-love songs and proves it again with In My Own Mind, Working Too Hard, and San Antonio Girl. On Saturday Night is a funny dig at Nashville and the CD ends magnificently with two gospel rousers, I'm Going to Wait and I'm Going to the Place.

Wait, just realized I listed 8 songs -- out of 14 -- as terrific. What does that mean? For most anybody else that constitutes a great CD. But for Lyle...it just shows how high a bar he's set for himself. Fine as My Baby Don't Tolerate is by others' standards, we expect still better from him, don't we?

All right, so this probably isn't Lyle's best album. All right, it's true, no Lyle album recaptures the experience of seeing him in concert. And yes, he has recycled two songs that were previously released on his "Cowboy Man" collection. But for those of us who have been waiting seven years since his last studio album of his own material, it sure is good to hear Lyle doing what Lyle does best. This is classic Lyle - the quirky but captivating songwriting, the inimitable vocals, and the whole smirking Lyle attitude.

My feeling as I listened to this CD for the first time was like becoming reaquainted with an old friend you haven't seen in years, and being remined of what you liked about him. If you're one of the loyal Lyle fans, go ahead and get this one, you'll be happy you did.

It's nowhere near as good as The Road to Encenada. But then, few things are. It's also not as good as Pontiac. But Lyle's average work is better than other people's best work.

So yeah, this isn't a classic, but it still blows the doors off of posers such as Chesney, Keith, McGraw, Brooks, and any other pseudo-country dork you can think of.

Lyle Lovett never ceases to amaze me.

My favorite CD was always "The Road to Ensenada". (And I have all of them.)

This CD 'don't disappoint'. If you don't get up and dance to "Wallisville Road", you're just silly!

I was lucky enough to see him at Carnegie Hall on 11/6/03, and he brought in the Harlem Gospel Choir for "I'm gonna wait"! And then "Hallelujah"!

Lyle Lovett has the wonderful ability to appeal to folk, gospel and country music fans. He's a simple man, but so soulful and can make a grown man weep with his combination of lyrics and crooning.

Buy this one!!