The 500 - - #427 - Peter Wolf - Sleepless

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

Album # 427

Album Title: Sleepless
Artist: Peter Wolf
Genre: Rock, Blues
Recorded: Sear Sound, New York City
Released: September, 2002
My age at release: 37
How familiar was I with it before this week: Not at all
Song I am putting on my Spotify Mix: Oh Marianne

Sleepless is the sixth solo record by New York-raised rock, blues and soul songer Peter Wolf (born Peter Blankfield). Wolf is likely most familiar to music listeners as the frontman and vocalist for the J. Geils Band whose 1991 album Freeze Frame reached multi-platinum status, selling over three million copies.

Freeze Frame (1981) by The J. Geils Band

As a teen, I was a J. Geils Band fan. Their 1978 release Blow Your Face Out was my vicarious substitute to live music at a time before I was old enough to attend rock concerts. I listened, awestruck by the raw energy of these blues-rock performances. However, it was the charismatic, exuberant, often comedic performance of Wolf that had me spellbound. His rap about Rapunzel (aka: Raputah the Beautah at the start of Musta Got Lost was part showmanship, part absurdist comedy. And I was hooked. 

Blow Your Face Out (1978) by J. Geils Band

As with many artists from my youth, my interest in J. Geils and Peter Wolf faded. Consequently, Wolf's 2002 Sleepless was a mystery to me before this week. I was aware that he had left the J. Geils band in the mid-eighties but I had no idea that this was his sixth album. Furthermore, I wasn't expecting a record as diverse, soulful and mature. 

Sleepless by Peter Wolf (2002)

I had stuck a pin in "the idea of Peter Wolf" in 1984 and didn't give it another thought. This record made me remove that pin and, as it turns out, he wasn't there anymore...he had grown and moved on. On The 500 Podcast episode for Sleepless Meyer's guest, comedian and actor Bill Burr, summed this up perfectly. 

"When a guy in his twenties dresses like a guy in his twenties, it looks cool. If he tries to do that in his forties, it just looks creepy....it's what I love about The Rolling Stones, their material aged with them, so they never looked foolish."

Wolf himself addressed the eclectic spirit of Sleepless with the following quote:

"I have a lot of different interests, a lot of different roots, and this is the painting I feel like painting right now. And what’s the single? There is no single. I wasn’t thinking of hooks."

Now I have two versions of Peter Wolf residing in my conscience: The mature singer and songwriter who created this terrific album and the leaping, dancing, fast-talking jester of my youth. It's nice to have both flavours.

Addendum

I couldn't fit this into my post but, in case you haven't heard it, check out No Anchovies Please.

This three-minute, absurd, crime-noir style cautionary tale about curious housewives, diabolical experiments, bowling balls and anchovies is a perfect snapshot of Wolf's delightfully absurd sense of humour. The fact that he slipped it on to the end of side one of his band's most commercially successful album is a little bit of genius.