Repossessed/Third World Warrior

AMG Review of Repossessed/Third World Warrior

Thom Jurek
All Music Guide

This reissue of two Kris Kristofferson recordings from 1986 and 1990 might seem a strange project to undertake. These are not regarded by most as his "necessary" recordings; and other titles from his classic period, like Border Lord, Spooky Lady's Sideshow, and the amazing To the Bone (that fetches 129 dollars on the Internet when you find one) are not even in print. But the folks at Oh Boy understand something fundamental: if ever there were a time to hear these records, it's now. In fact, the argument can be made that they need to be heard more now than when they were recorded. The two albums here, Third World Warrior and Repossessed, are placed in this two-CD set in reverse order for aesthetic reasons. One can guess from their titles that these recordings are political in nature and one would be right. These two records take on the topical natures of the day like the rise and fall of the Sandinistas, the waning conflict with the then Soviet Union, the plight of veterans, the "nation building" policies in Central America under Ronald Reagan and George Bush Sr. that made the region a killing ground by armed brutes trained by the CIA as counterinsurgents, pacifism, economic devastation in the U.S., and other topically important themes. Musically and lyrically, the material is top-notch; these are fine efforts by Kristofferson that number among his best outings, though they were virtually ignored at the time of their original issue. His songwriting was creatively taut, his singing was strong and clean, and his band, the Borderlords, was amazing, with cats like Stephen Bruton, Donnie Fritts, Billy Swan, and Danny Timms in the lineup. Listening to them again years later is like a cold slap in the face at dawn. They offer a portrait of America as a country that refuses to learn from history, that refuses to partake in a dialogue that might thwart its military and economic interests no matter who is left holding the bag and how the innocent are often killed or displaced in the process. Take its moral and social instruction -- and Kristofferson was just offering his opinion (he's never wanted to be a spokesman for anybody) -- which were negated to the margin during apolitical times, and combine it with passionate and intuitive heartland rock, and you have an indispensable listening experience and a way, through pop culture -- the best teacher in the mass media age -- to revisit, re-engage, and re-evaluate recent American history, a history that has been all but swiped out under the propaganda of patriotism and might versus right that is post-9/11 America. Highly recommended.