Greg Copeland: "Empire State" (2024) CD Review

Greg Copeland released his first album, Revenge Will Come, in 1982 on Geffen Records (both Jackson Browne and Rick Vito play guitar on it), and didn't release his second, Diana And James, until 2008. It then wasn't quite as long a wait before his third album, The Tango Bar, which came out in 2020. And then in 2024, he released Empire State, an EP containing five original tracks (though one is not a song). This release features Val McCallum on guitar and slide guitar; Tyler Chester on bass, keyboards and piano; Jennifer Condos on bass; Jay Bellerose on drums and percussion; Greg Leisz on pedal steel guitar, guitar, mandolin and mandocello; and Sara Watkins on violin.

The EP opens with "Boon Time." After a nice, even pretty, introduction on guitar, this song's first lines grab us: "One day/All alone/Feather bed/Long gone/Gun shot ringtone/Honey, what do we do now?" What do we do now? There is a good bluesy edge to the song as he sings, "Boon time/Bound to come and go." And at one point, as he sings that line, his voice is supported mainly by some interesting percussion by Jay Bellerose, who also played on both Diana And James and The Tango Bar. "Had a wife/Had a plan/Had a job/I could stand/Somewhere in dreamland/Honey, what do we do now?" What a cool song to start this disc. It's followed by "We The Gathered." This one kind of creeps in, creating an interesting atmosphere, one that soon envelops us. There is a somewhat haunting vibe, and an intensity to the rhythm. "Peace and brotherhood/Where could they be/Somebody's gonna tell you/Might as well be me/You're gonna want that machete/Better leave your heavy load." The rhythm begins to become more insistent, more prominent, and soon it becomes our own rhythm as we find ourselves immersed in this intriguing number. The guitar work seems to twist the air around us, until we can feel it pressing against our arms, our necks. "Nation in pieces/People in pain/Systematic bullshit/Thick as sugarcane." It is a powerful number featuring some excellent drumming.

Then "4:59:59" has a softer folk sound as it starts, and features an intimate vocal delivery, which works so well as Greg Copeland begins the song by telling us it is just about quitting time. Greg Leisz plays guitar, mandolin and mandocello on this one, and his playing is key in creating the song's tone. And Sara Watkins plays violin on this track, delivering some beautiful work. There are some darkly playful elements to this one, as when Greg sings, "Oxy-cotton candy," a combination of "Oxycontin" and "cotton candy" that seems just right for many people. And I love these lines: "I burned other people's bridges/So I could be alone." Another line that stands out is "You just tip your hat and tell him the time of day," because of its double meaning. There is the meaning of paying attention to someone (usually used in the negative sense of ignoring the person), as well as the literal meaning of telling him what time it is. That is followed by "Coyotes," a short track, featuring animal sounds as well as some distant city sounds. I see coyotes more and more here in Los Angeles, even in places where I never saw them before. The other day I saw a pair of them strolling down the street right outside my apartment building in North Hollywood. And there are times when it sounds like they are surrounding Prospect Studios, where I sometimes work. The EP concludes with its title track, "Empire State," this one featuring some wonderful work by Greg Leisz on pedal steel, helping to set the tone at the beginning. There is a strangely comforting vibe to this song, a sound you just want to wrap around yourself, even if a darkness is in there with you. "Fire in the firehouse/Fire at the pearly gates/City girl signing off/From the Empire State/See you out west/If you want a new mistake."

CD Track List

1. Boon Time
2. We The Gathered
3. 4:59:59
4. Coyotes
5. Empire State

Empire State was released on September 6, 2024.