What does one expect from an album that covers one of the truest artists of our time? I guess that depends on who is doing the covering. In this case, we have Phosphorescent, aka, Matthew Houck, taking the reins of some of Willie’s familiar and not-so-familiar tracks and then leading us to the countriest part of his mind. There is no doubt that Houck has demonstrated the ability to mold sound layers to match his sincerity on previous recordings, and this album proves to be no different. One listen to Houck’s take on “The Last Thing I Needed (the first thing this morning)” and you would swear he was served his D-I-V-O-R-C-E papers on the way to the studio. Houck’s vocal inflection is like a ticket to every saloon he has ever been in, and on “it’s not supposed to be that way” that ticket places us squarely on a well-worn barstool in a lonely town somewhere in the middle of Tennessee. Who wouldn’t want to be there?
The success of this album lies with Houck’s fresh, yet not overdone take on the songs. He has somehow identified the perfect spots to add his own color, but has safely stayed away from a complete overhaul, which these songs simply don’t need.
Did I mention this album is available on vinyl? …a must-have for any breed of the new retro-audiophiles that i run into at my local record shop. Bottom line? Buy this, take it in, love it and then go buy Aw Come Aw Right and his amazing 2007 release, Pride.
gc
The success of this album lies with Houck’s fresh, yet not overdone take on the songs. He has somehow identified the perfect spots to add his own color, but has safely stayed away from a complete overhaul, which these songs simply don’t need.
Did I mention this album is available on vinyl? …a must-have for any breed of the new retro-audiophiles that i run into at my local record shop. Bottom line? Buy this, take it in, love it and then go buy Aw Come Aw Right and his amazing 2007 release, Pride.
gc
