Road house, honky tonk, dive bar. It doesn’t matter what you call the place, across rural America they’re the name for a drinking establishment with live music, frequently located near the crossroads of a couple of (sort of) major highways. The music can be from a few different genres, but the characteristics of the set lists have commonalities. First, it has to be danceable, because of date night. Second, it needs to sound good loud, even if it’s a quiet song. Finally, it has to have a working class spirit–no airs allowed. Current Nashville resident Ben Chapman spent his formative years playing those joints and you can hear it in his new release, Downbeat.
Start with the title track. It’s all about the kind of place that manages to soothe the savage beast of the patrons through music. As Chapman sings, “I’m breaking a sweat and it ain’t even warm.” Temporary High is one of those quiet songs that sounds good loud. There’s kind of a Chris Stapleton vocal power to a country song about loving to be on stage even though everything else about the traveling musician life sucks. Almost Home plies that same sentiment in a tune about working your way back to your sweetheart. The organ and electric guitar give it a Memphis feel where “life ain’t nothing but the 12-bar blues.”
Chapman felt comfortable enough with his songwriting chops to include several songs without a road weary element. Don’t You Dare is a nice ballad featuring his singer-songwriter girlfriend Meg McCree on harmony vocals (as do most of the cuts). It about finding, and realizing you’ve found, a lightning-don’t-strike-twice, once-in-a-lifetime love. At the other end of the sonic spectrum is If I Was You, a driving rock testament to being a shithead, with album producer Anderson East on a shrieking guitar. The CD finishes with Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You. Most everyone reading this will instantly recognize Dylan’s unmistakeable opening line, “throw my ticket out the window, move my suitcase out there too.” Chapman does a really worthy cover, balancing the original vocal phrasing with a heavier dose of pedal steel to turn a folk classic into a country standard.
If you’ve run across Ben Chapman’s music before, it was probably through a song he wrote for, or with, someone else. Or maybe as the organizer of the Peach Jam festival. However, he’s coming around to the idea that he needs to add his own voice, literally and philosophically, to the mix. That spurred him to record Downbeat, and now’s your chance to jump on the bandwagon early.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.