Has Been William Shatner Shout Factory, 2004   Reviewed by David Middleton	The publicity material that came with Has Been claimed that it was the highly anticipated CD by William Shatner. Anticipated by who exactly? Masochists? Shatner's accountant? Critics that just want to make fun of him? I don't even think that this album was highly anticipated by Trekkers. (Or is it still Trekkies? I can't keep up). After the fiasco that was his 1968 solo debut album Transformed Man, everyone was anticipating that Shatner would stay away from the recording studio pretty much until his star date calendar ran out of numbers. I mean, after 35 years, you tend to stop anticipating and, you know, move out of your parent's basement and just get on with your life. But a funny thing happened when I grudgingly put Has Been into my CD player and apprehensively hit the play button. I liked it. It was fun. I played it again. Then I thought this can't be right. Am I getting old? Senile? Have I been smoking crack? Nope, none of those things. I genuinely liked the album. Shatner did a smart thing: he teamed up with Ben Folds and together they created an album that altogether bypassed the novelty recording you might have been expecting and went straight to funky, quirky pop. With guest performances from Aimee Mann, Joe Jackson, Brad Paisley, Henry Rollins, Adrian Belew and a host of others, this album is treated seriously. That may be an overly obvious statement, but this is William Shatner we're talking about. A man who's musical career has been taken about as seriously as a beaver at a spelling bee. Who is William Shatner? Other than the man who lately has been parodying himself in such movies as Showtime ( I love when he turns to his assistant and says of Robert Deniro's character, " This guy is the worst actor I've ever seen") and Miss Congeniality and those wireless ads and commercials for bran. The man who was part of the most successful television series ever aired -- and I'm not talking about T.J. Hooker . Who is the real William Shatner? The man whose trademark stilted delivery has been satirized by just about every comedian and actor from John Belushi to Jason Alexander. William Shatner is a modern day icon and, whether he likes it or not, with that icon status comes both praise and ridicule. Doing something like this puts him out there for potential scorn, especially considering what happened with his first foray into the musical arena 35 years ago. The less said about that , the better. This time 'round we get to see a more real William Shatner. The man who has feelings and shortcomings and failures and questions about his own mortality. While Has Been may not be a complete picture of Bill Shatner "ordinary guy" I think it paints a more accurate portrait than some of us may have seen in the past. He lets his guard drop a little and allows us to get a peek at his heart: if only for the 40 minutes this album lasts. We see Shatner's humor in songs like the title track "Has Been" -- Shatner's response to being called such in a tabloid -- , "Ideal Woman" and "I Can't Get Behind That" a heavily percussive three minute shouting match with Henry Rollins on the everyday things that generally piss off just about everyone. Shatner gets a bit maudlin on "What Have You Done" a poem about the drowning death of his wife. But its not as if we are listening to some barely-out-of-their-teens singer go on about the pain and anguish of a love they barely have the experience to understand. This is a man in his seventh decade. A man who has lived a full and sometimes painful life. He has the right to get a bit maudlin, but not too much. We are not forced to wallow very long in Bill's misery and he quickly moves on to the more upbeat and ambient "Together." One of my favorite tracks, and the one that starts the album, is a cover of Pulp's "Common People." And, while I'm not a big fan of the country genre, Has Been 's final track "Real," written and co-performed by Brad Paisley, poignantly sums up Shatner's feelings some people have of him as a performer and public figure: I'd love to help the world and all its problems But I'm an entertainer, and that's all So the next time there's an asteroid or a natural disaster I'm flattered that you thought of me But I'm not the one to call And while there's a part of me In that guy you've seen Up there on that screen I am so much more And I wish I knew the things you think I do I would change this world for sure But I eat and sleep and breathe and bleed and feel Sorry to disappoint you But I'm real Maybe I'm biased because I happen to like William Shatner. Not because he played Captain Kirk but because he takes risks and because he seems to be a genuinely nice guy (he is, after all, Canadian). I love Shatner's voice. It has a laconic quality to it; an authority, even a touch of humor in his richly timbered delivery. He still has that slightly hesitant style, but that's what makes him unique. There is no mistaking Shatner's voice for that of anyone else and he has used that one-of-a-kind voice to good effect on Has Been. He doesn't try to sing, he just delivers the lyrics -- most of which he wrote -- in often very personal, matter of fact soliloquies punctuated perfectly by Ben Folds' pop-driven tunes. OK, so the album may never be nominated for a Grammy: unless, of course, they have a category for Album by an Actor Who Used to Play Everyone's Favorite Starship Captain. Even then, Patrick Stewart just might come up with a cover album of Motorhead tunes and all bets would be off. | October 2004   David Middleton is the art director of Blue Coupe magazine. He never wanted to be Captain Kirk but he did want to be Scotty -- except with an authentic Scottish accent.	1: Common People (with Joe Jackson) 2: It Hasn't Happened Yet 3: You'll Have Time 4: That's Me Trying (with Ben Folds and Aimee Mann) 5: What Have You Done 6: Together (with Lemon Jelly) 7: Familiar Love 8: Ideal Woman 9: Has Been 10: I Can't Get Behind That (with Henry Rollins) 11: Real (with Brad Paisley)