The songs of Lucky Town are much more stripped down, less “produced” and poignant and sharp.
“Better Days” harkens back to “Ain’t Got You”, the themes of which are both what it’s like to be successful and yet that not being the end all be all.
“Local Hero” is apparently about the time he saw a picture of himself in a storefront and went in to buy it only to be told that it was a picture of “local hero”.
For my money, the best track on the album, well, one of them, is “If I Should Fall Behind”. Which is actually better on the reunion concert video, and always better live, and also became one of my wedding songs.
Lucky Town is the anti Human Touch. Clocking in at just under 40 minutes it’s a “record”. At a time when every single album was supposed to use as much CD time available, resulting in 65 minute epics of filler, Lucky Town seems like an EP by comparison. 15 years before and 15 years later it would be the acceptable length (again). It’s brevity, in comparison to the over worked predecessor, is welcome.
As are the songs. There’s nothing “bad” here. When it’s good, it’s really good. When they aren’t, you just move on.
The end is the beginning. In other words, we’re moving.
The Book of Mormon at the Pantages.