With a recording career spanning close to 30 years and a devoted cult following behind him, it’s only fitting that Mark Lanegan finally gets the lavish anthology treatment his understated work deserves. From his formative years fronting the psychedelic hard rock band the Screaming Trees, one of the underrated forces in the Seattle grunge scene; to frequent collaborations with such versatile artists as Queens of the Stone Age, Isobel Campbell, Greg Dulli, Soulsavers, Mad Season and Moby amongst many more, Lanegan’s under-appreciated but much loved career has established himself as one of the most prolific and essential singer-songwriters in contemporary music.
Aside from his higher profile escapades, Lanegan has released a steady stream of quality solo albums stretching back to 1990’s Winding Sheet. Has God Seen a Shadow? focuses on this vital part of his career and features a beautifully packaged double album containing a score of choice cuts from his various solo albums (excluding his most recent efforts: Imitations & Blues Funeral) on the first disc, before fans are treated to 12 previously unreleased songs comprising disc two.
Although never labelled as such, the first disc essentially serves as a ‘Best Of’ collection of songs spanning the bulk of his solo work, whilst forgoing the rockier edge of some of his post-millennium tunes. I assume the decision not to include the likes of ‘Methamphetamine Blues’ or ‘Driving Death Valley Blues’ was based on sticking to the bluesy downbeat and acoustic driven balladry of his solo roots, rather than being a slight on the rock dynamics that infiltrated his superb 2004 collaborative solo album, Bubblegum.
The 20 tracks on disc one represents a thoughtfully chosen song selection, strangely sequenced in a roughly reverse chronological order. Whilst this isn’t a huge blight on the overall package it does seem a baffling choice to chart Lanegan’s career this way. Beginning with the haunting lo-fi acoustics of his Winding Sheet debut, and progressing through to the sophisticated production and song-writing traits of later albums, such as 2001’s Field Songs and Bubblegum, would have created a more cohesive and logical flow. Nevertheless it doesn’t take away from the depth and dark beauty of Lanegan’s song-writing, or the fluency of the album.
Highlights are plentiful; from the gorgeous ‘Kimiko’s Dream House’, to the down in the dumps soul searching of the sublime ‘One Way Street’, and creepy acoustics of ‘Carnival’. Lanegan’s song-writing has a remarkable depth and timelessness, marked by the layered subtleties of his compositions and the rich and occasionally sparse instrumentation that forms the moody backdrop for his smooth yet gravelly vocal delivery and darkly poetic and personal lyrics. Overall, disc one offers a nice overview of Lanegan’s solo career up to Bubblegum, and despite the absence of several notable songs (‘Hotel’, ‘Bell Black Ocean’, ‘Don’t Forget Me’) these omissions are compensated by the quality likes of ‘The River Rise’, ‘One Hundred days’ and ‘Creeping Coastline of Lights’.
With the exception of the excellent Bubblegum sessions B-side ‘Mirrored’, the first disc doesn’t offer any material that the avid Lanegan fan won’t already possess, so it’s very much in the treasures of disc two that this anthology shines. Amidst the unreleased tracks, the vocal version of ‘Blues For D’, an unrecognisable early version of ‘Grey Goes Black’ (featured in much different form on Blues Funeral), and the raw bluesy stomp of ‘Leaving New River Blues’ are several standouts. The unreleased tracks jump back and forth in a scattered timeline, most recorded between 1998 and 2005. The musicians deployed feature regular cohorts Mike Johnson and Ben Shepherd, alongside numerous other collaborators, most notably Alain Johannes, Duff McKagan and Troy Van Leeuwen.
Has God Seen My Shadow? isn’t everything it could be as an anthology, however it does contain a generous amount of songs (32 tracks in total) with the sprinkling of quality unreleased gems on disc two sealing the deal for diehard Lanegan fans. Meanwhile the first disc delivers a solid timeline and overview of Lanegan’s brilliant solo career, which would serve as a nice introduction for the curious investigator. Hopefully a part two will arrive in the future honing the spotlight on Lanegan’s many collaborations, and his frequent contributions to various soundtracks and tribute albums; another essential component in Lanegan’s prolific career.
8/10
Reviewer: Luke Saunders