Warren Zevon - Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School

1. Bad Luck Streak In Dancing School
2. A Certain Girl
3. Jungle Work
4. Empty-Handed Heart
5. Interlude No. 1
6. Play It All Night Long
7. Jeannie Needs A Shooter
8. Interlude No. 2
9. Bill Lee
10. Gorilla, You're A Desperado
11. Bed Of Coals
12. Wild Age

The majestic strings and the successive gunshots that announce the opening of “Bad Luck Streak In Dancing School”embody the contrasts Warren Zevon so skillfully navigates on his fourth album – a record that brought his witty, neo-noir-influenced songwriting to a wider audience. Released in 1980, the album was created as the Chicago-born musician was struggling to overcome his addiction issues and move beyond a failed marriage. It reveals both his interest in classical arrangements and his gift for sharp observation, wry humor and heartbreaking emotion. “Bad Luck Streak In Dancing School”, co-produced by Zevon and his longtime studio partner Greg Ladanyi, became a Top 20 album thanks in no small part to contributions from top-tier musicians including Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, Ben Keith, Waddy Wachtel, J.D. Souther and Eagles members Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Joe Walsh and Don Felder.

Dedicated to crime novelist Ken Millar, who helped Zevon through his rehabilitation, “Bad Luck Streak In Dancing School” reveals the singer-songwriter at his most personal. Zevon combines this with two striking string interludes reminiscent of chamber music, reflecting his admiration for composer Igor Stravinsky, whom he had once visited in Russia. Thematically, the recently divorced Zevon promises change in the title track. The high, lonely-sounding “Bed Of Coals”, co-written with T Bone Burnett, reinforces that promise. And the stirring, piano-driven ballad “Empty-Handed Heart” shows Zevon at his most conciliatory and tender. In the coda of the latter track, a beautifully sung descant by Ronstadt lifts the melody into another realm and confirms the deep-rooted complexity and finesse that run throughout Zevon’s entire body of work. Together with his friend Jorge Calderon, Zevon delivers one of his classic mercenary tales in “Jungle Work”. Dense and dark, the song radiates a fitting desperado atmosphere through a macho military-style chorus and forceful tones, intensified by Joe Walsh’s memorable lead guitar work. For the socially critical “Gorilla, You’re A Desperado”, Zevon presents a melody that moves like a compressed accordion. Henley and Browne join in on the chorus, and the collective seems to dance through a lively landscape shaped by the absurdity of rubber masks, humor and turmoil.

MFSL now presents “Bad Luck Streak In Dancing School” for the first time in reference-grade high-fidelity quality. Mastered from the original tapes at MoFi’s California studio, pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing, and issued as a numbered 180-gram 45 RPM double LP, it comes housed in a luxurious gatefold jacket by Stoughton Printing and delivers the finest sound quality the album has ever received on vinyl. This collectible reissue sets new standards in spaciousness, transparency and dynamics. No previous version offers the warmth, clarity and impact of this new MoFi edition. Turn your amplifier all the way up and let this unforgettable 1980s classic play all night long.