Rock with strings

Spencer,

Just a little heads up: Boxing Mirror is IMO an incredibly powerful record, but it won't necessarily grab you on first listen. It's both very honest and direct and, at the same time, deliberately artful. Escovedo's later stuff - whether the Chuck Prophet collaboration "Real Animal" or "Street Songs" or "Big Station" may be more instantly appealing, but they're not really quite in the same league as his earlier material, IMO.

Boxing Mirror may take a few listens to get under your skin, but hang with it. It's powerful in a low-key, brooding way. The earlier Escovedo solo records like "Gravity" and "With These Hands" work similar territory in a more accessible (IMO) way. I'd usually tell people unfamiliar to Escovedo to start there before jumping into the deep end with Boxing Mirror.

BTW, Escovedo also did cow punk with both Rank and File and True Believers, as well as screaming garage rock with Buick McKane. You might also enjoy his song cycle called "By The Hand of The Father" that I find quite touching in an understated way. All of the solo records are worthwhile, even tho IMO - in the ten years since Boxing Mirror - he's never reached the level of his earlier material.

George W Bush gave him a moment when it turned out that Escovedo's song Castanets was on the presidential iPod and Springsteen made gave Escovedo another 15 minutes of fame when he covered Real Animal in concert, but I think you're starting at the top.

Bottom line: Don't necessarily expect to be blown away at first listen, but Boxing Mirror is IMO great, great stuff...given time.

Escovedo has a great Boxing Mirror era performance on Austin City Limits that uses the string section if you can find it on some kind of archive site.Like Marty said, this is a far cry from Procol Harem or the Moody Blues, but it is really powerful in its' originality. "Roomful of Songs" is much more laid back and sounds fantastic on a decent system by the way.

Excellent job by Jafant. Well done sir, or madam.

The song Madman across the waters by Elton John has strings in the end.

James Taylor's Fire and Rain has some beautiful cello work going on. Never noticed it when I was young, but heard it later on a more resolving system. James had some of the best musicians, engineers and production people working with him.