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Scattered, Smothered And Covered
11/14/2000 4:52 PM, Yahoo! Music
Bob Gulla
All Hootie ever wanted to do was be your friend. Instead, you derided them and made them the butt of many jokes. No matter, in the end, it's the band that wins out. They've amassed a legion of devotees, many of whom had a hand in compiling Scattered, Smothered And Covered, the band's fourth Atlantic release and first odds and sods collection.
The album is the result of an online campaign asking fans to participate in shaping the disc's song list. As a result, the album's a casual pleasure--better, in fact, than any of their studio efforts. It's raw and lean, with a stripped down, organic rock sound reminiscent of Hootie heroes like Radney Foster, R.E.M. , the Who, and Tom Petty. There are covers of Vic Chesnutt's "Gravity Of The Situation" (with Nanci Griffith on vocals), the Silos' fine "I'm Over You," and Tom Waits' "I Hope That I Don't Fall In Love With You," all done in the band's inimitably warm style, led by Darius Rucker's cozy blanket of a voice. A surprise, and a real pleasure.
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