Take Me Back To The Country by Alex Walsh

This is the happily every after, some years down the road when as the song "Drifting Apart" suggests:

"The dishes are dirty the house is a mess

The laundry is piling the bills are distressed

The landlord is calling, creditors too…"

But don't get me wrong, this is not a bunch of songs that's going to get you down. It is the fly on the wall seeing it all unfold, both in public and private. The CD opens with the playful blues rocking of "Making Sweet Love to You" where Walsh proclaims: "Everybody wants to know who’s been getting some of that". From there this collection takes the listener on a journey through the ups and downs of a daily life, sometimes skipping back a few years to decades ahead as what unfolds is the story of a courtship, the wedding, the arrival of children, domestic bliss, slow withdrawal into separation and eventually looking back to where things went wrong, and maybe the hope of turning it around.

On "The Little Things" domestic life in all its rich tapestry is explored from the point of view of the office worker longing to be at home with the family:

"…Dental floss in every cupboard…Breakfast for two on an Autumn Sunday

Watch the girls play their pianos…Take out your contacts and wear your funny glasses."

Then there is the gorgeous "After the Wedding Bells", a song Walsh wrote for his wife for their wedding that asks the question:

"When the wedding bells are through, what will we have to talk about?

When the children have all grown, what will we have to laugh about on Christmas Morn?"

On each song Walsh is accompanied by his acoustic guitar with minimal but effective electric making appearances here and there. The instrumentation on the album ranges from full on arrangements with bass, drums, piano; to the additional orchestration of cello, violin, French horn, harmonica, mandolin and even a choir to flesh out some songs. On this recording he has also surrounded himself with a crack team of expert musicians, ranging from Jazz Pianist and bassist Art Ku (of Jacqui Naylor fame), to the surf rock swing of Taylor Still (The Lava Rats) on drums.

If you are looking for comparisons to other artists then it might be difficult at first. Walsh possesses a delicate voice and at times his lyrics can be Psychedelic, and at other times cut straight to the matter at hand. Stylistically, "Take Me Back To The Country" also traverses the tradition of American Roots music, from Blues to Pop, to a Texas Swing to African Hi Life, and even the Psychedelic. This is a recording made by a grown man for other grown people and anyone open to noticing the little things that make our lives rich enough to write about.

-- Patrick Simms

Average Customer Review: