Sinner

by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, Joan Jett

Overview

Apart from the Japanese-only Naked in 2004, Joan Jett hadn't released an album of all-new material in over a decade when she released Sinner in summer 2006, an amazing gap of time considering how vital and flat-out rocking she sounds on the album. Many rockers of her age and stature might have been content to just throw out a safe and innocuous record to help fill up the merch stalls on the state fair circuit. Not Jett. Her honesty and unyielding toughness has given her enough cred to headline a major alt-rock festival in 2006, and Sinner has both those qualities and then some. Her last album, Pure and Simple, was a step away from the glossy pop/rock her career had devolved into; Sinner is a huge leap toward total honesty, earnestness, and hard rock. The record contains a couple of good-time rockers reminiscent of her glory days ("Tube Talkin'," "Turn It Around"), but even the requisite glam cover, Sweet's "A.C.D.C.," deals with sexual confusion, albeit playfully. Elsewhere Jett delves into heavy or quite personal subjects; she hits on politics on the Bush-sampling "Riddles," raw sexuality on "Fetish," but mostly seems to be wrestling with issues of privacy, self-image, and sexual orientation on tracks like "Naked" and "Five." Luckily for the listener who just wants to rock, she wraps these introspective lyrics up in a tough and punchy style very similar to the classic Joan Jett sound. Even the ballads, like the achingly romantic "Watersign," have gloriously loud and gritty guitars and Jett's voice hasn't lost an ounce of power. There are a few slight stumbles like the catchy but overly earnest and simplistic "Change the World" and the cringe-inducing "Fetish," which seems to have snuck in from a totally different album. Actually it did, since the song first appeared on a 1999 collection called Fetish. In fact, ten of the songs on Sinner first appeared on Naked; only four appear here for the first time. No matter, really, as the album is new to most people, and it hangs together well, resonating both with those listeners who can relate to Jett's struggles and issues, as well as kids of any age who just dig good old hard rock & roll. Hopefully it won't be another decade before the next Joan Jett record, for with Sinner she's restaked a claim as an important artist and it'd be a real shame if she disappeared again. ~ Tim Sendra

Product Details

Release Date:	06/13/2006
Label:	Blackheart Records
UPC:	0748337529923
Rank:	21555

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts   Primary Artist
Joan Jett   Primary Artist,Guitar,Vocals
Thommy Price   Drums
Kenny Laguna   Keyboards
Dougie Needles   Guitar
Enzo Penizzotto   Bass

Technical Credits

Bob Rock   Producer
Thom Panunzio   Engineer
Thommy Price   Group Member
Mike Scielzi   Engineer
Kenny Laguna   Composer,Producer,Group Member
Brian Dobbs   Engineer
Christopher Palmer   Orchestral Arrangements
Frank Garfi   Engineer
Craig Snyder   Engineer
Rudy Yuly   Composer
Billy Crooked   Composer
Billy Crater   Engineer
Dougie Needles   Group Member
Cody Smyth   Photography
Pete Kuperscmid   Engineer
John Aiosa   Engineer,Mastering,Original Mastering
Paul Silviera   Engineer
Michael Rubenstein   Cover Photo,Photography
Duncan Hutchison   Consultant
John Squicciarino   Engineer
Enzo Penizzotto   Group Member
Greg Olliver   Enhanced CD Engineering
Jeff Delbello   Engineer
Carianne Laguna   Design,Layout Design
Tony Bruno   Engineer
Ted Templeman   Producer
Paul Silveira   Engineer
Paul Westerberg   Composer
Peter Anders   Composer
Joe Johnson   Engineer
Joan Jett   Composer,Producer,Group Member
Victor Luke   Engineer
Jeff Hendrickson   Engineer
Greg Calbi   Mastering
Joey Levine   Composer,Producer
Linda Perry   Composer
Randy Staub   Engineer
Jim Vallance   Composer
Kathleen Hanna   Composer