MAYER’S TAKE: SHADES OF WOODY GUTHRIE
It’s interesting how artists get influenced by their surroundings, particularly when they uproot from familiar territories and move to new locales. It usually sends their music into different directions, sometimes for the better and sometimes not. When Justin Townes Earle moved from Nashville to New York City, I’m sure that I wasn’t the only one wondering which fate awaited Earle and his music.
Well, Harlem River Blues holds the answer. New York City has brought out the Woody Guthrie in Earle’s music. Songs like “One More Night in Brooklyn†and “Working for the MTA†contain the simple melodies and working man storytelling that was a Guthrie hallmark. It’s the title track, however, that stands out the most to these ears. The simple tale of a man giving up on a troubled life set against a timeless musical backdrop that mixes equal parts folk and gospel is a modern classic.
SHAWN’S TAKE: SHADES OF SUN STUDIOS AND MEMPHIS
I think I believe in reincarnation now. On Harlem River Blues, Justin Townes Earle isn’t channeling his namesake, but rather Sam Phillips and the Sun Studios sound of the mid-50’s. It’s probably best exemplified on “Move Over Mama,” where Earle snarls “give me that love” just like Elvis in his prime. “One More Night In Brooklyn” features a doo-wop, syncopated keyboard that calls to mind early Ike Turner. And “Wanderin'” leaves the mental image of somebody slappin’ the stand-up bass back in the corner against those cheap acoustic tiles while James Cotton wails on the harmonica.
Memphis touches this collection of songs about Earle’s current home of New York City in ways besides Sun Studios. There’s a clear gospel bent to the title cut and its reprise. “Slippin’ and Slidin'” has a touch of Stax horns tastefully accenting a number that’s all cheap garage amp on the guitar. And “Working For the MTA” calls to mind Jimmie Rodgers. Earle is his usual fine self writing and performing. But regardless of the age of Earle or any of the other musicians here, there are some old souls playing and they do the record good.
ELI’S TAKE: FIVE BIG REASONS
Justin Townes Earle is an Americana fan’s wet dream. The pedigree, the history, the sound, the 3 (and a half) excellent records recorded at an album-a-year pace, it’s like we built him from scratch to fulfill the fantasies of every ‘kicker, trucker, and cowboy angel’ out there. On top of that, he just gets better and better with every release. Harlem River Blues is a new high for him and easily my favorite record released this year (thus far, but I doubt anyone will top it). Here are 5 things that make it so.
1) I like everything Jason Isbell adds to this record. Isbell was an excellent sideman during his time in the Drive-By Truckers, but he outdoes himself here. The electric guitar work sprinkled throughout the record and is uniformly sublime– bluesy, soulful, and rocking. Each track could be a standout, but for my money his work on the R&Bish “Slippin’ and Slidin’†takes the cake.
2) I like the Nebraska-Era Springsteen-like harmonica work on “Wanderin’†(courtesy of OCMS’s Ketch Secor). The song itself has both some great autobiographical lines from Earle as well as a chorus that embodies the Woody Guthrie troubadour archetype.
“now my father was a traveler and my momma stayed at home/ and she cried the day that he walked out and left us on our own/ now I’m older than he was when I was born and I don’t know which way is home/ so I’m Wanderin’
3) I like the way that both the piano and lead guitar in “Rogers Park†remind me of “Laylaâ€. The song itself doesn’t (in fact the song, like much of the album, has that perfect 3am late night wandering the streets feel), but those two dominant instruments both remind me of “Laylaâ€. Just saying.
4) I like that I was in a record store the other day and “Move Over Mama†came on the radio and the whole store unconsciously started grooving to it. Sandwiched amongst Elvis’s “Baby Let’s Play House†and other Sun Session classics, it was a standout.
5) I love the way that, when I’m listening to the record in my car, the CD player runs it in a loop. The “Harlem River Blues Reprise†(acepella gospel rendition of the chorus) funnels perfectly back into the beginning of the record, the full-length version of “Harlem River Blues.â€
About the author: Mild-mannered corporate executive by day, excitable Twangville denizen by night.