Kind of Like Spitting

Learn: The Songs of Phil Ochs (2005)

Jesse Raub

Now, I've never been the hugest Kind of Like Spitting fan. Some of the acoustic stuff I've heard was alright. The full band stuff was alright. Nothing ever really struck me. It wasn't memorable, but it wasn't bad. Was it the delivery or the songwriting?

It must have been the songwriting. On the release of Learn: The Songs of Phil Ochs, Kind of Like Spitting (hereby consisting of Ben Barnett and Daivid J.) shows that they can take nine songs from 60's singer/songwriter Phil Ochs and turn it into an entertaining twenty-two minutes of acoustic fun. From bouncy, fun songs like "Draft Dodger Rag" and "Where Were You in Chicago" to the heartfelt "I'm Tired" and "When I'm Gone" to the political "I Ain't Marching Anymore" and "Remember Me," Ben and David share their harmony-laden warbles with jangling guitars.

The problem is that the album doesn't quite flow very well. While "I'm Tired" or "When I'm Gone" are masterfully taken by Ben and David as their own songs, songs like "Where Were You in Chicago" and "Draft Dodger Rag" are helplessly stuck in the era in which they were written. The clash generated by these different types of songs makes the album feel less like an album and more like a "Best Of…" collection. Which, I guess it sort of is, seeing as how the songs are selected from the entire Phil Ochs catalog.

All in all, this would be a must-have for any Phil Ochs fan or any Kind of Like Spitting fan. If neither is really your bag, than maybe this isn't quite for you.