The album opens with “A Dog
Named Freedom,” a moving, kind of sweet folk song that mentions both Bob Dylan
and Willie Nelson. “We’ve got a long way
to go/But, good lord, don’t you know/There ain’t no quit in either one of us.”
There is something delightful about this
odd tune, and it features some good work on both harmonica and accordion.
That’s followed by “Copper Love,” which has a classic folk sound and a
friendly, intimate vocal delivery. It also features some nice stuff on mandolin,
which helps give this song a bright, positive vibe.
“Jesus In Pajamas” is a
delightful song. I am not sure exactly why, but the phrase “ancient town of Dallas” made me burst
out laughing the first time I heard this song. There are several other humorous
lines and images, yet this song also ends up moving me, particularly because of
lines like “Where the only whole heart is
a broken one/And the only true love an unspoken one.” Then “Circus Of Life,”
the album’s title track, has a much different vibe, and is a beautiful song. “On the phone she told him/She’d really like
to hold him/But sometimes she said she wished that she were dead.” While
the previous song had me laughing out loud, this one had me fighting back tears.
Oh man, lines like “He’d slipped right
through the angel’s tiny hands” destroy me. What an excellent song.
“Autographs In The Rain (Song
To Willie)” will cheer you up with its rhythm. I dig that bass line. “Nothing in this world is quite as easy as it
seems/When you struggle half a lifetime to catch up with your dreams.” This
song includes a bit of Willie Nelson’s “On The Road Again,” the second track on
this album to make reference to that particular tune. I like this song, though
I have mixed feelings about the sound effect of the crowd cheering, and the end
seems a bit drawn out. That’s followed by “Back To Grace,” a song that has a
serious sound but a certain humor in lines like “They said, do you want salvation?/I said I’d rather have a beer.” I appreciate the humor of that line, but as
the song goes on, we learn that alcohol has destroyed him. “She said, I’ll be there at your funeral and
I’ll wear my wedding dress.”
In “Sister Sarah,” the line “Sister Sarah, full of grace, help me find a
parking place” makes me smile. And anyone who knows me knows exactly why. I
also love these lines: “She could have
been an angel/She could have been a whore/Or maybe just a girl who left her
halo at my door.” And these: “Things
aren’t as dark as they appear/Nor are they quite as bright as they might seem.”
Then the opening lines of “Song About You” are beautiful and heartbreaking: “I walk by the ocean where I once held your
hand/And I think of all the things we didn’t do/I wonder why you’re not here,
making footprints in the sand.” It seems like a song of regret, yet has a
feeling of hope. “Zoey” is a kind of sweet folk tune. “Zoey, Zoey/I know you’ll never be my wife/Zoey, Zoey/I want you always in
my life.” The album then concludes with “Sayin’ Goodbye,” which seems a
fitting closing number. The percussion gives this one a different vibe, a
different style. “Sayin’ goodbye isn’t
easy/For a fool with a tear in his eye/All of my life I’ve been busy/Dreaming
of sayin’ goodbye.”
CD Track List
- A Dog Named Freedman
- Copper Love
- Jesus In Pajamas
- Circus Of Life
- Autographs In The Rain (Song To Willie)
- Back To Grace
- Sister Sarah
- Song About You
- Spitfire
- Me & My Guitar
- Zoey
- Sayin’ Goodbye
Circus Of Life was released on July 6, 2018 on Echo Hill Records.
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I love the record and your review does it justice. Thank you.
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