"Wendy" is the one that was always practically sitting up and begging to be a single from JESSE MALIN'S excellent debut album "The Fine Art Of Self-Destruction", so while it's slightly predictable to find it becoming the Mothership's second single, the song's more than earned its' spurs.
It's a great, wld-eyed rush of a song, too, cramming a vivid, whistle-stop narrative - with rapid-fire references to Tom Waits, 60s Kinks and Jack Kerouac - into a melodious, 3-minute headlong rush that manages to sound bruised, heartbreaking and totally stimulating all at once.
The two stark, piano-led B-sides aren't half bad, either. You might initially have reservations when I tell you the first is a cover of The Clash's "Death Or Glory," but full marks go to Jesse for stripping it back to the bare bones and, what with Joe Strummer's recent passing and the current world unease he scores an unlikely, dignified victory in taking this one on.
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The real gem, however, is the closing cover of Graham Parker's "The 3 Martini Lunch", where Jesse's ultra-vulnerable vocal relates an unbearably poignant rags-to-riches-to-rags-again LA story that's easily the equal of anything on his album. It's maudlin, sure,but I defy anyone not to be moved by the time he gets to the "wasting another afternoon, punching a hole in my life" kiss-off line. It may be tucked away as a passing shot here, but it's among the best things he's recorded, thus rendering this as the album's second essential counterpart.
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