I saw a reference to As Smart As We Are on Neil Gaiman’s blog. I’m a sucker for the musically bizarre (as a teenager I was a great fan of Captain Beefheart), and the idea of a book/CD with lyrics by people as diverse as Margaret Atwood, Paul Auster, Rick Moody, and Neil Gaiman, set to klezmer music (well… sort of) was irresistible.
And it is. It’s bloody brilliant.
Further description could never do it justice. Listen for yourself. There are some MP3 samples on the website. But be aware of what a poor Amazon.com reviewer found:
Alas, while there are indeed some outstandingly clever pieces, a fair number of selections are R-rated, with vulgar and profane language and subject matter. I was looking for Monet and found Maplethorpe ! It is an unfortunate juxtaposition of 19th century instrumentals with the lyrics and subject matter of rap.
And the crowd went wild….