Stepping back from the swooping avant-garde touches of
Starsailor for a fairly greasy, funky, honky tonk set of songs, the opening lines of
Greetings from L.A. set the tone: "I went down to the meat rack tavern/And I found myself a big ol' healthy girl." Sassy backing vocalists, honking sax, and more add to the atmosphere, while
Tim Buckley himself blends his vocal acrobatics with touches not unfamiliar to fans of
Mick Jagger or
Jim Morrison. The studio band backing him up might not be the equal to, say,
War, but in their own way they do the business; extra touches like the string arrangement on "Sweet Surrender" help all the more. The argument that this was all somehow a compromise or sellout doesn't seem to entirely wash. While no doubt there were commercial pressures at play, given
Buckley's constant change from album to album it seems like he simply found something else to try, which he did with gusto. "Get On Top," one of his best numbers, certainly doesn't sound like something aimed for the charts. The music may have a solid groove to it (
Kevin Kelly's organ is worth a mention), but
Buckley's frank lyrics and improv scatting both show it as him following his own muse. ~ Ned Raggett