A.V. Club: Best of the Decade

Artist Jonathan Richman

Since his days fronting The Modern Lovers, Jonathan Richman has maintained a wide-eyed innocence, whether addressing the explicit rejection of his peers’ recreational activities on the seminal Lovers single “I’m Straight” or just volleying the goofy naivete of a song like “Springtime In New York,” which sounds exactly like its title. Richman is deeply understated, a bona-fide genius working on something akin to children’s songs, and his kidlike charm suits the music, which has a loose-limbed shuffle and frequently delves into genre exercises. All pretensions are left at the door.

Updated 06/04/2009

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