Robyn Hitchcock

In keeping with the now popular tradition of artists recreating their classic albums live, I Often Dream Of Trains In New York is just that: arguably Robyn Hitchcock's finest album, albeit with a few additional songs and a slightly different sequence, performed onstage in New York during a 2008 tour. What soon becomes apparent is that it really is a great record. The songs fall into the quieter, psychedelic, Syd Barrett-esque category of the Hitchcock canon, and they are reproduced relatively faithfully, right down to the a cappella "Uncorrected Personality Traits." The DVD included with the CD has the entire concert, including the surreal and entertaining banter from between songs. The show is broken up periodically by short interview sections (conducted on a train, naturally), which disrupt the flow of the concert in a way that's a little irritating, even if they do add some interesting background to the whole affair. I Often Dream Of Trains In New York isn't going to take the place of the original album, although it will make a lovely souvenir for anyone who caught Hitchcock during the tour. Everyone else should hunt down the 1984 version.