This is not the first time The Waterboys has paid tribute to the late, great, Dennis Hopper. Why would they not? A fascinating man who gifted Bob Dylan the coat which featured on the cover of Desire, a creative powerhouse who embodied the spirit of the 1960s and 1970s, letting it live that little longer. Hopper’s On Top kicks The Waterboys into new gear ahead of their upcoming album, the aptly titled Life, Death and Dennis Hopper. Hopper had already been a part of The Waterboys’ sound, their Good Luck, Seeker rip, Dennis Hopper highlights this early obsession. Few actors can be truly obsessed over but the storm and power the late actor left in his wake is mesmerising. No wonder The Waterboys are banking on the larger-than-life man for their upcoming album. Lead single Hopper’s On Top must make good on this fragile promise of biographical-like learning.
Mike Scott may feel the arc of this life is the story of their times, and he is right. Such details can only be felt when they spend their lives gripping the coattails of an artist of influence. But in paying tribute and tribute alone to the “genius” of Hopper comes a difficulty in separating fawning love for anything of particular brilliance. The Waterboys are willing to play second fiddle to the life of an interesting man and it is the instrumental bliss which comes from the guitar work that keeps Hopper’s On Top going. It stands and will forever stand as an utterly insane choice for an album development, but it has happened before and the fruits of this labour are not to be judged just yet. There is a respectable tone to these moments but the praise must come in waves, rather than in the hand-wringing way heard here.
An all over the place song which feels quite cringe-inducing in its dedication to Hopper, but then The Waterboys is bold enough to try anything. Hopper’s On Top may as well be the ghost of the man straddling the band into a place of infinite praise but its tone and dedication works so well. We have all found ourselves, at some point, praising those with complete, blind faith. How few have added a guitar solo to that and come out the other end with an effort they can be proud of? Lacklustre lyrics may be an issue but this feels like a stop-gap song in a massive love letter of an album. Bruce Springsteen is in there on Ten Years Gone, yet to be released but surely stronger than Hopper’s On Top.
Hopes of Hopper being top of the charts or at the high of his artistic game again are impossible given his death in 2010. But some want to see him continually thrive, to plant him at the very apex of culture, and The Waterboys see it as not only their duty but as a chance to celebrate a great artist. Documenting his life may not be the point of Hopper’s On Top but the blank cheque the late Hopper could cash with praise like this is endearing. Heartwarming work is few and far between and for The Waterboys to adapt a man of influence, to charm their way through his life, feels relatively nice. Its shortcomings come lyrically and instrumentally, but there is time to turn it around, a chance to experience Hopper through the eyes of those who feel moved by him.
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