Tag Archives: Robert Christgau

Stop, hey, what's that sound?

“I really like musicians who are dicks,” says Chuck Eddy, qualifying his fascination with fellow Detroit natives Kid Rock, Eminem, and Ted Nugent over pints of Stella and various IPAs at the Flying Saucer in Austin. Eddy recently relocated here from New York City, where he was music editor at The Village Voice for a decade. He used to spend his days editing Robert Christgau, the Dean of American Rock Critics. Now the 48-year-old enjoys riding his bike, shopping for $1 vinyl, and raising a one-year-old with his second wife.

He’s also freelance writing, for Rhapsody and Spin, and occasionally for the Voice or Billboard. Meanwhile, he says, he’s prepping a “Best of” anthology, to be published by Duke University Press. Introductory essays will accompany the pieces, which will include the first national interview with the Flaming Lips and a review of Aerosmith’s Done with Mirrors album that apparently inspired Rick Rubin to pair the Boston rockers with Run DMC for “Walk This Way,” in effect resuscitating their careers.

Eddy is all idiot savant stream-of-consciousness, connecting the dots between hip-hop, hard rock, and country with such speed, dexterity, and insight that it makes me feel like I don’t know squat. He’s adamant that Toby Keith is one of the best musicians of the decade, with Montgomery Gentry trailing not too far behind. Fellow rock crits may not agree with Eddy’s unconventional declarations, but one thing any crit who’s worked with Eddy can agree on is that he was an editor who replied to just about every email, usually with a hilariously placed “fuck,” “shit,” or “dick.”