Joe Walsh – So What

His best stuff. Was sad when he ed that other band.

I Was A Teenage Joe Walsh Fan. This is in the early 90s, so I was not cool. Friends didn't get why I would listen to some dinosaur. But I learned to play guitar playing along with the James Gang and JW records. Time has come around. Now that any band with guitars look like something out of the Cambrian Period, folks who still care about that kind of thing are onboard with JW.

Along with Barnstorm and TSYD,TPYG, So What is Joe Walsh at this finest. The hard rockers here - Time Out, Welcome To The Club, the revamped Turn To Stone - are among Joe's best and the best of the 70s. They're wryly funny and rocking without being plodding. County Fair I have loved since I heard seconds of the fadeout on late-night FM rock radio, back when they still had live DJs and let them play whatever they wanted after 12am. It's the central epic jam.

There's some sadness on So What. It was made after the sudden death of Joe's infant daughter from influenza. Pavane, Help Me Through The Night and Song For Emma reflect that sadness.

Again, Bill Szcymcyzk's (I'm tired of spelling his name) production is perfect. Joe Vitale lends more than just drums with flute and keys/synth playing.

Joe ed the Eagles after this. Bill produced. The Eagles became bigger than ever. Hmmmm......

Joe teamed up with a great group of musicians for the recording of So What, and album where any track could have easily been inserted into the legendary James Gang Rides Again, making it both a step forward, and at the same time securely in line with some of the greatest music Joe has ever laid down.

Hooking up with Randy Meisner, Glenn Frey and Don Henley of the Eagles, it’s easy to hear why Joe was tapped to to replace founding member Bernie Leadon, though here, Joe lays out some exceptional tracks that any gunslinger would be proud to have written, songs such as “Welcome to the Club” and “Turn to Stone,” songs that were instant classics, songs that still retain that irresistible urge to simply crank up the volume. With that in mind, there’s a musical purity to this record that is resoundingly clean, dynamic and sonically full of life. Much of this is due to the stellar harmonies, Eagles style deliveries, propulsive infectious guitar oriented chord changes, which at times, even for flat-out rockers, are infused with an apparent soulfulness.

Surprisingly, “Turn to Stone” was initially found on his album Barnstorm, with this newer version coming across as Joe being more self aware of both himself and his playing, suggesting that an increase in restraint resulted in an increase in his musical dynamics and drama. Oddly enough, most people rate this album as rather middle of the road, though I find So What to be consistent, strong and of the highest quality. That being said, Walsh takes those 70’s inspired guitar roots and manages to turn them into timeless bits of wanderlust, sounding as fresh, intoxicating and exciting today as ever, using his infectious creative style of guitar harmonizing, rhythmic hooks, along with his signature move, where he’s able to build a song up to dizzying heights, before fading it down, and then simply laying waste to your soul. One aspect many people miss when considering Joe’s guitar prowess is that he often, nearly side by side, duels his six strings with that of a slide guitar, delivering a full bodied romance of intricate sounds that have haunted me for my entire life.

*** The Fun Facts: Original releases feature an album jacket and inner sleeve that are embossed.  Also the run-out grooves have hidden messages inscribed on them that you will not find on other releases: Side A: THAT'S NO BANANA, THAT'S MY NOSE - Side B: 2 C.H.

As to the album’s artwork: On his first album he picked the title Barnstorm. Barnstormers was name for pilots who flew for the thrill and the show. On the cover of The Smoker You Drink, The Player You Get is the image of a Barnstorming Biplane, while on So What. we’re given a picture of the pilot himself, Joe Walsh, decked out in his finest Barnstorming outfit. Nicely done Joe, you’ve managed to tie the music and the artwork together perfectly.

The odd facts: “Song for Emma” was written as a memorial for Walsh's three year old daughter who had been killed in a car crash the year before. The accident was caused by a drunk driver who hit a Porsche driven by Joe’s girlfriend with Emma in the car. Stevie Nicks would go on to pen “Has Anyone Ever Written Anything For You” for Joe after visiting Emma's grave with him.

Review by Jenell Kesler

Picked this one up thinking it would be more of what I love about Joe Walsh and found that it was more what I hate about the Eagles.