That's right, the shock jock will release The Imus Ranch Record through the venerable New West Records on Sept. 16. Confusion struck the moment I opened the package. At first glance, as in when I spotted the name "Imus" on the jewel case, I foresaw a field day slamming it. But then I read the artist/song-list … and then listened … and now I’m in a pickle.
Granted, the album features several misses, but more hits than is typical for this kind of ad hoc compilation. To complicate matters more, Imus the Blowhard also played a creative role in this rather inspired collection. “The compilation was produced by Imus along with Kyle Lehning (Randy Travis, George Jones) and Tracy Gershon (well known A & R executive),” reads the press release. “Imus selected each song and matched it to a specific artist.”
Imus always annoyed me the few times I viewed his televised broadcast. Then, there was that little Rutgers incident last year followed by, in my opinion the even more damning — as in, yeah, he might be a racist, not just an old-timer idiot — comment he made in June regarding the suspension of Dallas Cowboys' corner Adam Jones:
This article appears in Oct 8-14, 2008.