1973 Album Review

 1973 was the last commercially successful release of Michael Jonas' career. Three tracks made it to the top forty ("Hard Enough", "The Burn", and "Paint Me Blue"), but just like the previous release, In the Belly of the Monster, number one status continued to elude Jonas. (Paint Me Blue would eventually make it to number one on the Billboard charts but only as part of the resurgence of popularity and interest surrounding his death in 1988.) Following the release of this album, Jonas' music became much more obtuse and experimental. He would only release one more studio album, but B-sides, demos, and hidden tracks would abound, cluttering compilation after compilation. And while many saw these later recordings as an unexpected departure from his previous work, the foundations of Jonas' rejection of his own mainstream success are on full display in 1973.

            Initially conceived as a nostalgic genre trip through the musical stylings that inspired him in his youth, 1973 became Jonas' love letter to his deceased brother whose death had deeply affected Michael and the trajectory of his career. The pastiche of the 60s and 70s make up the primary thrust of the album on tracks like "Learn How to Die," and the album even includes a cover of Dylan's "Hattie Carroll" which is performed with a striking minimalism and quiet gusto. However, Jonas eventually caved to pressure and included the new wave knock-off "Hard Enough" and other pop-centric tracks to ensure the albums commercial viability. The result is what seemed to critics of the day as a jumbled mess of disjointed threads and confused imagery. But in retrospect, the album is remarkable in the way it helps to inform the anxieties and fears that would lead to Jonas' later incarceration and suicide. Each song brims with the pain and failure Jonas felt artistically, the pop numbers providing striking examples of how a successful top 40 hit can become a failure when the artist's desires run much deeper. 1973 also showcases Jonas' unparalleled skill as a songwriter that so much animosity toward a genre does not diminish his ability to tackle it. As for the other songs that fit into the conceptual mold of 1973, we see how the memory of his brother has left an enormous and insurmountable chip on his shoulder. It really is up to every individual listener to deciding whether 1973 is a piece of self-indulgent garbage or a powerful, unflinching look at a talented mind on the brink of insanity. But I think it's well worth exploring in either case.