The album gets off to a great start with “El Abogado,” which is a lot of fun. Its rhythm will have you smiling in short order. Seriously, this track made me ridiculously happy within moments of my popping in the disc. This one was written by John Shock. “He stands in front of an empty building/Cell phone pressed hard to his ear/Icicles form on the brim of his Stetson/His glasses fog, he strains to hear.” Approximately halfway through, the tone changes for a moment, as he sings, “And as he lies on his back staring up into the sky/He contemplates suing the falling snow itself.” Seriously, this track is a delight, and toward the end we suddenly are treated to a wonderful lead on accordion. The band then revisits “Wilson Comes Home,” which was the title track to the band’s 2017 album. The differences in this new rendition strike us immediately, the song delivered as some sort of twisted urban waltz. Yet there is a touching and moving aspect to this track, perhaps especially felt in the instrumental sections. I love that work on fiddle toward the end. The lyrics are delivered as a kind of spoken word, as was done on the original version. This song was written by Paul Margolis.
“Captain Tomorrow” has a sweeter vibe as it starts, and features some nice work on percussion. “He rides his bike through a puddle/His eyes fixed on a yellow cloud/A Caddy rear-ends a junker at the corner/Ain’t that the way it goes in this town/He asks no one out loud.” The hero of this song is a bicycle courier in the city. “And grant me a super power/To fly above the city/And lift all those who suffer/Up to the thinner, finer air.” That’s followed by “Gray Green Harvey Jackson.” The accordion is a prominent part of this one, giving this song its joyous vibe. I love the rhythm of the vocal line, and the way each lyric contributing a playful new detail. Here the song’s opening lines: “Gray green Harvey Jackson/A man not given to action/A good night’s sleep, his chief satisfaction.” And check out these lines, which soon follow: “He sits low in the saddle/Not inclined to do battle/Very easily rattled.” This track also contains a cool saxophone lead, because this band just wants to make everything fucking right. I also love the way the electric guitar and accordion interact to create an interesting vibe. Have I mentioned how happy this band makes me?
“Someday Soon” is the album’s only song not written by a band member. It was written by Jeff Rymes, who put out his own version of it in November (that version interestingly features The Stone Hill All-Stars backing him). This is an unusual song, and it includes tuba as a prominent element right from the start. “Someday soon/We’re gonna walk on the moon/Raise the flag/In the name of the hag/And the silver spoon.” The work on snare along with the tuba gives the song a certain New Orleans flavor. “Yeah, it’s gonna be great,” the band sings at one point, and I have no doubt of the truth of that statement, at least while this music continues to play. There is a chaotic ending to this one, as we are dropped into the middle of the insanity surrounding a football game, or at least that’s what it sounds like to me. The version by Jeff Rymes concludes with a snippet of a speech by Franklin D. Roosevelt, not included in this recording. It leads straight into “Have You Seen Smitty?” which begins with these lines: “The grass around the house unmowed/A complaint has been filed with the court.” Lines that make me smile each time I listen to this album. And we are engaged in another waltz. Because life should be a dance, shouldn’t it? Regardless of what’s happening, regardless of what we must face, we should be engaged in such movement, such joy. “It wasn’t always like this/James Smith had plenty of friends/And he worked fitting pipes/He was liked by his union brothers/And everyone found Smitty polite.” As the song continues, I can’t help but begin to wonder if something bad has happened to this guy, perhaps in part because I just finished ready a mystery novel. I turn to the fiddle for confirmation and perhaps consolation. “Ed said he saw something in the upstairs window/But that it’s hard to tell figure from shadow.”
As “Our Bows And Arrows” begins, we are immersed in some military action. The music takes us in a somewhat different direction, a western vibe mixed with some other elements, including a Latin rhythm and some interesting work on guitar, to create its own distinctive sound. “We won’t put down our bows and arrows.” That is a strong opening line. “We won’t give up our sacred mission/We hear them sing their altered version.” As I much as I appreciate this song’s lyrics, it is that extended instrumental section that really makes this track something special. The jam has a cool sound, and takes us down some interesting alleys. The track ends as it began, with the sounds of military personnel coordinating some action. “We won’t put down our bows and arrows.” The fiddle then invites us to a dance at the beginning of “Wandering Over An Open Field,” one last waltz before the album is over, a bit of magic moving through the coarse and concrete world, leaving a sparkling sheen even on cardboard boxes and the line at the unemployment office. “Multiple issues with diction and memory and diction.” Ha! I love it. “I drank a jug of it/To see what would come of it” are other lines that have me laughing. If you’re looking for something outside the norm, check out this album and fall in love with this band.
CD Track List
- El Abogado
- Wilson Comes Home
- Captain Tomorrow
- Gray Green Harvey Jackson
- Someday Soon
- Have You Seen Smitty?
- Our Bows And Arrows
- Wandering Over An Open Field
Gray Green was released on July 1, 2024.
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