Tindersticks

Working for the Man: The Greatest Hits (Koch)

Though London’s merry-widow sextet jumped labels two albums ago, this previously overseas sampling of the Tindersticks’ first four releases still marks its boundaries like a bleached skeleton. One bunny slipper from the Nenette et Boni soundtrack only hints at the ‘Sticks tributaries (Lee Hazlewood, Townes Van Zandt), but when the Peter Gunn drama of “Her” meets the stringed elegance of “Tiny Years” in “Bathtime,” Stuart Staples’ impossibly rich narration leaves no doubt who’s the Man.

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This article appears in December 30 • 2005.

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San Francisco native Raoul Hernandez crossed the border into Texas on July 2, 1992, and began writing about music for the Chronicle that fall, debuting with an album review of Keith Richards’ Main Offender. By virtue of local show previews – first “Recommendeds,” now calendar picks – his writing’s appeared in almost every issue since 1993.