MP3: Adam Cohen – “What Other Guy” from Like A Man, due April 3 on Decca (UMG).
Who would’ve guessed? I can only thinkf of a handful of good musicians whose parents were famous artists. The Nelson twins? Nope. Wilson Phillips? Nope. Arguments could certainly be made for Jeff Buckley, Rufus Wainright, and Charlotte Gainsbourg. Maybe even Jacob Dylan. But it’s rare enough that when the apple falls fairly close to the tree, we notice.
Based on “What Other Guy” Adam Cohen seems to have inherited his dad’s deadpan delivery of wickedly honest lyrics. “I can draw you with my eyes closed / See you with nothing on but the radio / I know how many years of French you took / Your favorite movies, your favorite books.” He’s even got the senior Cohen’s knack for subtle arrangements featuring acoustic guitars, tasteful strings, and delicate female background vocals.
The album was released back in October in Europe and Canada but has been held up for a US release until this April. I’m looking forward to hearing the whole thing.
I hope Adam — and everybody else! — adheres to Leonard Cohen’s Seven Immutable Laws of Business, especially number three: “There’s nothing you can do behind your desk that can’t be more effectively accomplished with a beautiful, long-haired, chain-smoking woman lying naked next to you in bed.”
Video: Adam Cohen – “What Other Guy” (live)
Hold on! What do you have against Wilson Phillips?