The Coolest Songs In The World! Vol. 7

They Say...

Review by Mark Deming, All Music Guide

Little Steven Van Zandt's ongoing series of compilations tied into his excellent Underground Garage radio show have been getting more eclectic with each successive volume, but number seven is where things really start to veer off the beaten path. The Coolest Songs in the World, Vol. 7 is easily the most star-studded installment in the series to date, featuring tracks from R.E.M., John Fogerty, Elvis Costello, Tom Petty's reunited Mudcrutch, Green Day (posing as Foxboro Hot Tubs), Primal Scream, and Kaiser Chiefs. If you're thinking that most of those acts don't have much to do with a purist's view of garage rock, you're right, and while several of the lesser-known bands on board more easily fit the template, even among the supporting cast Van Zandt is bucking formula -- the Mother Truckers throw some updated Southern rock swagger into the mix, Hawaii Mud Bombers are a surf combo from Sweden, and Flogging Molly offer up Celtic punk like a more cheerful version of the Dropkick Murphys. All of this would be well and good if more of this stuff rocked as hard as a typical installment of Van Zandt's radio show, but such is not always the case -- neither R.E.M.'s "All the Right Friends" nor Elvis Costello's "American Gangster Time" sound like high-water marks in the careers of bands that would merit the attention of any fan of '60s style rock, the languid folk-rock of Mudcrutch's "Shady Grove" is just a little too laid-back, and "I Predict a Riot" by Kaiser Chiefs sounds awfully mannered in this company. But John Fogerty's "Longshot" is an overlooked gem, the late lamented Rocket from the Crypt are well represented with "Heart of a Rat," and the Doughboys, Big Midnight, and the Catholic Girls should please the serious garage fans on board. Despite the big names, this isn't one of the top-ranked volumes in the Coolest Songs in the World series, but there's still plenty of good rock & roll fun to be found here.