Allow Me
Being a cult favorite is not something most recording artists aspire to, since it generally means that beyond a small, devoted circle of critics, fellow artists and fans, your records don’t get much attention. Jules Shear is not most recording artists, though. After all, Shear once titled an album of inventive and catchy power pop he made with his band the Polar Bears Bad For Business. “I’m not interested in getting that one big hit and then being able to retire” Jules says matter-of-factly, “I still want to be making records when I’m an old guy. I kind of realize I’m not gonna end up on the cover of Rolling Stone, and that I’ve got a deeper reason for doing this.”
Shear’s latest collection of pop masterpieces reveals his deeper reason is his commitment to writing timeless songs, and Allow Me is full of them, and is also his most upbeat work in years. “I’m sure this happier record than the last one, because I’m happier” he relates, “But even when I’m happy, I’m still always feeling like the axe is going to fall”.
That attitude is what gives songs like “The More That I’m Around You”, with its’ infectious “sha-la-la” background vocals, their magical charm. Shear’s famous lyrical skills, which played a big part in his songs becoming big hits for Cyndi Lauper (“All Through the Night”) and the Bangles, (“If She Knew What She Wants”) are as sharp as ever on “Allow Me”. Songs like “The Judge and Margaret Brady” and “Soul Of A Child” contain images any novelist would be proud to author. Paired with his gift for a great pop hook, these songs are destined to become Shear classics.
It even seems possible while listening to something like “The More That I’m Around You” that this record could appeal to a whole new generation of Shear fans, but when sings the chorus, “The more that I’m around you/the more that there is to love”, it makes you want him all to yourself. Whether the world decides to pay attention or not, Jules Shear has just scored another number one on his career hit parade.>>
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