You’ve all heard the saying about death and taxes. Many a songwriter has written a story about someone’s journey to make the most of life given the inevitable end. Grammy-nominated Austin musician (and former front man for Wood & Wire) Tony Kamel took that a few steps further and centered his new album, We’re All Gonna Live, around the idea. It was influenced heavily by his late grandmother who instilled in him the idea that you have to fight all the crap life throws at you with a smile. In a walk-it-like-you-talk-it move, Kamel then gathered his musical mates in Bruce Robison’s all-analog studio and laid down the tracks as a complete band. None of that remote, digital layering that anchors many modern recordings, this was about just getting in the room and having fun making a record.
Makin’ It Work opens the project with a bluegrass number, with Josh Blue’s driving drums and Kym Warner’s electric mandolin giving it a rock and roll attitude. Damn Good Ride is a specific tribute to the aforementioned grandmother who “saddled up this big ole world and took it for a spin.” Dedicated to someone who must have been a lot like his grandmother, Sue is a Cajun waltz about a fan with an undying support for all the musicians she knew. It features Noah Jeffries on fiddle and suggests there’s no better goal in life than to “be more like Sue.” One of two covers, Little Bitty Town is a Danny Barnes not-quite-country, not-quite-bluegrass number about living in a small town. The other cover, Old Dangerfield, is an unplanned instrumental jam the band quickly put together for a photo op. It was written by Bill Monroe, but this is a decidedly un-Monroe version.
Another of Kamel’s inspirations was his young daughter. Some Ole Day is probably the folksiest song on the record about the eventual time when she leaves the nest. All Around This World is a progressive bluegrass cut lamenting all the time spent away from the family. A Father and A Daughter is an a cappella tune promising his daughter that no matter what the obstacle or problem, he’ll be there for her. The final cut is the title track. It neatly ties things up with a bluegrass ballad with a heartwarming wrinkle. It’s a true story about Kamel having given a homeless man $10 when he just asked for the $2 bus fare. The man shared the extra with his fellow down-on-their-luck travelers and then, as he boarded his bus, grabbed the sign from a doomsayer preacher and yelled, “you’ve got it all wrong my brother, we’re all gonna live!” Hallelujah!
Tony Kamel is one of a handful of musicians who are setting the tone for roots music in Austin these days. He’s a gifted storyteller on top of his musical talents and, in my experience, frequently captures the zeitgeist of the event he’s playing. In the case of his new album, We’re All Gonna Live, that spirit is a full-on assault on life with the goal of capturing all of it you can. It’s what you need for musical inspiration in these unsettled times.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.