Another album that largely escaped me: Odelay in 1996, the Imperial Bedroom of its era in terms of rock-critical falling in line, except this time Robert Christgau was on board too. In fact, he about nails my own reservations while at the same time generally liking it more than I do: "Not quite forbidding, it embeds its lyricism in soundscape, and only prolonged, well-intentioned exposure will enable outsiders to get inside its skilled flow and ramshackle sonic architecture." It left me cold, to be perfectly honest about it, though the wearying years have also had the evident effect of helping me warm to more of these insinuating little concoctions all the time, basically the ones that creased my attention as a result of being released as singles, "Where It's At," "Devils Haircut," "Sissyneck," and "The New Pollution." Except for "Jack-Ass," which peaked at #73 in the U.S. charts and instantly at #1 in my heart, always now and forevermore. I see at Wikipedia that it's based on a sample of a cover of "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" recorded by Them in 1966, which until this moment I had not known. But yes, sure enough, checking now for myself (listen). That's where the trembly guitar figure that opens "Jack-Ass" comes from and is indeed one of its highlights. But Beck's falling-face-forward-from-a-chaise-longue melody is all his, as far as I can make out, and it's the main point here—sad, tentative, relentlessly feeling itself into existence. A real beauty. It also doesn't hurt that he ends it on a flourish straight out of Au hasard Balthazar, although I did not actually become familiar with the 1966 Bresson movie until years after Odelay came out. My favorite song by Beck by miles.
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