“Absence makes the heart grow fonder.” I’m pretty sure the original intent of that comment was directed to relationships. I’ve observed it to be true about almost anything someone is passionate about, though. Step away from it for a while, and when you come back you rediscover what attracted you in the first place along with a new appreciation for why you love it. If the sound is any indication, that’s what happened with Clay DuBose on his new album, Father Time & Mother Nature, his first in 20 years.
The meat of the record is rock and roll, laced with influences from his 40 years in the music business. The CD opens with When Heroes Say Goodbye, a classic rock-sounding number paying tribute to musical heroes who have passed. When he sings that “in the dark the only light was my stereo,” it’s rite of passage many of us of a certain age can certainly relate to. The title track features Janiva Magnus on vocals and guitarist Neal Casal in one of his last sessions. It starts as a relatively simple ballad, but soon builds to a Rush-like complexity. Growing Wild has a faster tempo in one of those tunes you’re going to get caught steering-wheel drumming to at a light, where DuBose laments on how fast kids grow up. Dreams Come Untrue is a simpler arrangement, with temptation played by a demon paving the road to Hell with good intentions.
DuBose’s Texan musical roots shine brighter on I Hope You’re Watching. The pedal steel gives a solid country feel in a song directed at his father, in a clearly heartfelt soliloquy about his new daughter and desire that he’s doing his dad proud. The first of two covers, the Kris Kristofferson-penned New Game Now looks at the all-in commitment in a relationship to “cast my fortunes with you.” CD closer Scotch & Soda is the other cover. It’s a Kingston Trio number, with producer Ted Russell Kamp’s acoustic bass sealing the deal on a jazz lounge sound. It also serves as a final reminder on the range and velvet texture in DuBose’s vocals, perfect for comparing the buzz of booze with how you feel in love.
Clay DuBose can lay claim to being one of the early practitioners of the not-quite-country, not-quite-rock sound that became Americana, including a collaboration with The Band’s Garth Hudson back in 2005. With strategic input from producer Kamp he’s back to that genre with a passion that’s wholly on display with his first album in two decades, Father Time & Mother Nature.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.