Bruce Robison – “The New Me”
Posted on | January 13, 2010 | 1 Comment
1. On “The New Me”, the latest track from Bruce Robison’s slowly-leaking new record From the Top, he leads by announcing that the story takes place in a small town. Bruce has a way of depicting small towns, much like Larry McMurtry does in The Last Picture Show — full of hard feelings, and occasionally unescapable. The characters in this song struggle with situations that would be hard to re-create in a more anonymous big city, though the feelings of separation and moving on are universal.
2. Robison makes a small distinction in the first verse that makes all the difference. Though he says he has seen his old flame around town, all of the details come through a friend — that the new boyfriend “ain’t that bad”, and that the old flame is “so happy now”. By separating himself from the news, he drums up that heart-sinking feeling of being left behind, though he admits that the new love “looks good on you”, before wondering if he “can do it all over again”. Many country songs brag about being able to move on, but Robison touches a vulnerable nerve here, unsure of himself.
3. The chorus finds him rattling off a series of common phrases — “40 is the brand new 30/ and 30 is the new 18″, before hoping out loud that “losing is the brand new winning”, and expressing is fear that the new boyfriend is “the new me”. Rather than expressing anger at the broken relationship or bravado at the new relationship he has found, Robison looks inside and wonders if he is now outdated, and unable to try again.
4. Robison’s strength is in the small details that make the song personal — which he showed off in “Travelin’ Soldier”, perhaps his best known song. The main character of that song heard about her fallen love and retreated under the bleachers to react, which perfectly encapsulated the hidden nature of their relationship. Here in “The New Me”, Robison lays out the feelings of uncertainty that hit especially close to home in a small town, and does so with the nuances that have made him one of his generation’s best writers.
Throwback Thursday – Rodney Crowell – “Bluebird Wine”
Posted on | October 29, 2009 | No Comments
1. I started thinking about Rodney Crowell when writing about his recent collaboration with Bruce Robison. Crowell has had a storied career, running with Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt in Nashville before heading to L.A. to play in Emmylou Harris’ Hot Band, then finding mainstream country success in the 80’s and reinventing himself in this past decade. Though his style has varied over the years, he has a deep catalog of songs that run the gamut from political rants to unabashed love songs. “Bluebird Wine” came early in his career, and was brought more success when Emmylou covered it on her landmark Pieces of the Sky record, though Rodney’s live take from Heartworn Highways better shows the guts of the song.
2. Riding some surprisingly ace finger picking, he tells a story of a new friend who straightened his life out…so that he could better enjoy his precious Bluebird Wine. The irony is not lost here, as Crowell comes in off the highway, puts his money in the bank, and gets rid of worry so that he can cut loose. When he hits the chorus, the song “hits its stride” just like he sings, with an exuberant swagger that mirrors the effects of the precious drink. Crowell returns to the irony by relating that his new friend has taught him the joys of staying in at night and listening to the radio, while “drinking all the Bluebird we can hold”. This slight twist on the idea of turning over a new leaf gives the song an indelible splash of character.
3. Crowell has turned out some great work in recent years, records which his guitarist Will Kimbrough calls “his best“. Though much of his more recent work deals with his disgust with politics, poverty, and other heavy subjects, he has always maintained the ability to write uptempo songs about letting go and having a great time. Great songs are expected from someone with his songwriting pedigree. With “Bluebird Wine”, Crowell shows that he was cranking classic songs out from the beginning, and that these later years are just the icing on the cake.
Rodney Crowell – Bluebird Wine
Bruce Robison – “Born To Roll”
Posted on | October 27, 2009 | 2 Comments
1. Bruce Robison defies the term singer/songwriter in the conventional definition. Widely known for writing hits for George Strait, the Dixie Chicks and Tim McGraw, he also cultivates his own following who appreciate the songs that don’t trickle up to mainstream radio. It is this deep catalog of great songs that might never make it to the top of the charts but will never lack for listeners that set Robison apart. On his latest, titled From the Top, Robison partners with Rodney Crowell, who has followed a somewhat similar path. The first single “Born to Roll” heads up a set of songs that are unashamedly Texan and absolutely country. The song’s rapid fire delivery and simplicity make it a sure bet for fans who appreciate the simple, well written music that those genres suggest.
2. Robison puts the pedal down from the beginning of this song to the end, saying he was born “in the steeple of a diesel”and drawing influence from both the hum of the road and the songs from the radio that his parents sang to him. Learning to read from a road map and filling his baby bottle at the truck stop, Robison paints his character as a child of the highway. When Crowell’s agile voice comes in on the second verse, he assumes the second person role of the brother, who takes the “diapers and the mortgage and the Drano” while Bruce takes on the highway “from Boston to Austin”. If there was more to write about the plot, I would have written it. Crowell and Robison know the value of creating a simple song that does its job well and doesn’t aspire to change the world. Clocking in at 2:43, the song is in and out in a way that mirrors a semi barreling down I-35.
3. The track has some of the slick production that Crowell has lent to his recent productions, but a song this simple could be dressed up a million ways and still succeed. The heritage that Robison inherits from Guy Clark, Willie Nelson, and Lyle Lovett has blazed a trail that surrounds great songs with exactly what they need. Basing a career on the strength of a song has created careers for his heroes, and Robison shows no signs of straying from that with “Born to Roll“.
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