Jack White is the new, er, White

Score from Kyle at Big & Sharp — the first single from The Raconteurs, the latest in the Jack White musical collaboration oeuvre. White's teamed up with fellow Motor City musician Brendan Benson and friends Brendan Keeler (drums) and Jack Lawrence (bass) (yes! There is bass!) to, er, racont. Kyle's got "Steady As She Goes" up on his site, and rightly points out that it evokes the first few chords of "Is She Really Going Out With Him?" by Joe Jackson, if it had thrashier guitars and was played in a minor key and was recorded in a Detroit attic. Look over there. Where? Yes, exactly.

Nerds will love the Raconteur website, which is a throwback to old-school Commodore 64-style DOS-style screens in a typically Jack White neo-Luddite style. Your mouse is no good to you here; you have to go search out the "H" key for "Home" or the "B" key for "Back." Kind of funny, though annoying if you're in a hurry.

More to the point: I took this pic of Jack White at the White Stripes concert in Union Square in October 2002, and was struck by two things: (1) He's smiling. How often do you get to see that? and (2) Is it me, or does he totally look like Meg Ryan? That shaggy 'do, those dimples, that pert, mischevous smile. Look, and then look again. It's true.

If you haven't already clicked to hear the song above, you can do so here too (I know, Mom, blogs are confusing).

p.s. If anyone out there felt like sending me mp3 of the White Stripes covering "Jolene" I'd be very pleased.