| You Need to Live a Little | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1995 | |||
| Recorded | March 1994 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 63:33 | |||
| Label |
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| Producer | John Snyder | |||
| Larry Garner chronology | ||||
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You Need to Live a Little is an album by the American musician Larry Garner, released in 1995. [1] [2] Garner's contract with Gitanes/Verve Records allowed him to quit his day job in order to promote the album. [3] He supported it with United Kingdom and North American tours. [4] [5]
Garner was signed to Gitanes/Verve after successful shows at the Parisian nightclub New Morning. [6] You Need to Live a Little was produced by John Snyder. [7] Willie Weeks played bass on the album. [8] David "Fathead" Newman played a saxophone solo on "Miracles of Time"; Garner wrote a letter to Gladys Knight, his favorite singer, to ask if she had listened to the song as he wanted her to cover it. [8] [9] The Legendary White Trash Horns contributed to a few tracks. [10] Garner considered his lyrics to be of an observational nature, touching on problems in his own life that were also universal. [11] "Four Cars Running" describes the financial burden of supporting grown children. [12] "Rats and Roaches in My Kitchen" is a cover of the Silas Hogan song, on which Sonny Landreth played slide guitar. [13] The album is dedicated to Hogan. [8]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [14] |
| MusicHound Blues: The Essential Album Guide |  [7] |
The Times Colonist wrote that "Garner's gifts for songwriting, singing, guitar playing, and arranging shine through the recording's unpretentious stance." [8] OffBeat determined that "the moody urgings of the title track open with a minor-key arrangement that recalls the jazzy 1eanings of the Allman Brothers classic instrumental 'In Memory of Elizabeth Reed'." [15] The Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph noted that "although his roots are in Louisiana swamp blues—characterized by bleak guitar grooves and shuffled backbeats—Garner's music is surprisingly fresh and soulful." [16] The Home News & Tribune listed You Need to Live a Little among the best blues albums of 1995. [17]
The Chicago Tribune said that You Need to Live a Little "showcases a witty, innovative writer and tasty guitarist who refuses to limit himself to standard 12-bar forms." [18] The Michigan Chronicle opined that "Miracles of Time" "may be among the decade's most enduring songs." [19] The Record labeled Garner "a wittier version of Albert Collins." [20] The Miami New Times stated that "Garner's guitar playing services the song, rather than vice versa, although he squeezes off some clean B.B. King-like solos." [10]
AllMusic called Garner "a witty, imaginative songwriter, crisply concise guitarist, and convincing singer". [14] MusicHound Blues: The Essential Album Guide considered the title track, "Nobody's Special", and "Another Bad Day" to be "moody, minor-key masterpieces". [7]
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