PJ HARVEY - GLASTONBURY FESTIVAL, 1995

PJ friggin' Harvey! To my senses, she's never put out a shit record and for a musical artist who does pretty much exist in the mainstream she's maintained her consistency by continually changing what she does, and continually doing that well, while keeping her craft distinct enough to be recognizable as herself.

Also, working with other great musicians to communicate what she's attempted so far counts for a lot as well; with Rob Ellis and Steve Vaughn as the 'Rid of Me' band they produced a mainstream punk record that in some ways seems even more meaningful than 'Nevermind'. Harvey's take on Dylan's 'Highway '61' is just about as great as Patti Smith owning Van Morrison's 'Gloria' on Horses.

But holy shit, this isn't about 'Rid of Me'; I'm talking about what she did to engage herself next with 'To Bring You My Love'. She took the punk band and built a cabaret theater around it all so as to become "The Voodoo Blues Queen and the Lovely Evil Band"; imagine if the child of Diamanda Galas and Screamin' Jay Hawkins actually incarnated as a woman from the English countryside who Lovvves Captain Beefheart.

For me, 'To Bring You My Love' is my favourite PJ Harvey "era", and this an excellent representation of that.

Enjoy!

PJ Harvey - Like at Glastonbury, 1995