Best of 2017

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OK, decorations are coming down, it’s back to work time but before that here’s a short list of the albums that have stood out over the past year. If there’s a link it will take you a review of the album. Looking back it seems that 2017 wasn’t a bad year for music in terms of releases but a total bummer in terms of Tom Petty leaving us. Here’s hoping next year is as good so, all the best for 2018.

Chuck Prophet, Bobby Fuller Died For Your Sins

cp18cdIn the year of Brexit and Trump, Chuck’s sheer love of rock’n’roll shone throughout this album. Coupled with seeing him play two blindingly great gigs this year the album’s been a regular on the stereo and in the car while Jesus Was A Social Drinker is my song of the year.

 

Jeremy Pinnell, Ties Of Blood And Affection

e2069a_5277bb38e84c4e118495b89d2105a130mv2While Stapleton gets all the notice I think there are numerous others who are bringing out better albums and Jeremy’s second solo album is the best of the lot this year. I was privileged to host a house concert with Jeremy and Ags Connolly and it was a great occasion.

 

Courtney Marie Andrews, Honest Life

cc752a_ccb74ac415f74324bdde66d0b5f81184mv2An album of glacial purity with glimpses of Joni Mitchell in its shadows.

 

 

GospelbeacH, Another Summer Of Love

500x500Jangled sunny California music which stretches from Petty to The Jam in its inspiration.

 

 

Nathan Bell, Love > Fear (48 hours in Traitorland)

love-fear-front-coverOld fashioned protest perhaps but Bell is a powerful writer and as good a champion of “blue collar” folk as Rod Picott. And, in concert, he’s funny with it (just like Rod Picott).

 

Blue Rose Code. The Water Of Leith

the-water-of-leithRoss Wilson continues his journey into the hinterlands of folk and jazz. A wonderful and evocative album.

 

Eric Ambel, At The Lakeside

61ceyom7fgl-_ss500It took 12 years for Ambel to come up with this one, a bunch of songs he imagined could have been on his pub’s jukebox. Guitar album of the year.

 

Don Antonio, Don Antonio

cs646897-01a-bigAside from his band, Sacri Cuori, Antonio Gramantieri has worked with Howe Gelb, Dan Stewart and Alejandro Escovedo. This solo album is a magnificent retro stew of sixties soundtracks and Italian cool.

 

Jaime Wyatt, Felony Blues

jaime_coverA true jailbird, Wyatt’s album is part outlaw country, part Laurel Canyon country rock. For me she just beats Margo Price

 

Malojian, Let Your Weirdness Carry You Home.

a1294981180_16Irishman Stevie Scullion conjures up a slight psychedelic trip with McCartney like melodies and Harrison’s Blue Jay Way vibes.

 

Best reissue/compilation

The Wynntown Marshals, After All These Years

a2597450969_16A perfect introduction to the band if you haven’t heard them before. A perfect keepsake for those who are in the know.

 

 

Also of note…

Slaid Cleaves, Ghost On the Car Radio

Margo Price, All American Made

Danny & The Champions Of The World, Brilliant Light

Ags Connolly, Nothin’ Unexpected

Robyn Hitchcock, Robyn Hitchcock

Todd Day Wait, Folk-Country-Blues

Whitney Rose, South Texas Suite

Norrie McCulloch, Bare Along The Branches

Russ Tolman. Compass & Map

John Murry, A Short History of Decay

Jim Keaveny, Put It Together

Ian Felice, In The Kingdom Of Dreams

Gill Landry, Love Rides A Dark Horse

Amanda Anne Platt & The Honeycutters

Daniel Meade Shooting Stars & Tiny Tears 

The Sadies, Northern Passages

John Alexander, Of These Lands

There are many others which could/should be mentioned here, apologies to those I’ve either forgotten about or overlooked. In the meantime here’s the song of the year.

 

The Sadies. Northern Passages. Yep Roc Records

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It’s always been difficult to pin The Sadies down. They came tearing out of Canada in the 90’s with a fine mash up of instrumental rock and alt country detouring to collaborate with soul singer Andre Williams (and eventually becoming as well known for further collaborations as their own efforts). Gradually the instrumentals took second place to harmonic vocals and their 2007 album New Seasons is generally regarded as a minor classic and with Northern Passages they’ve assembled another album that at the very least deserves to be considered on a par with New Seasons and in this writer’s consideration is a far more assured affair. While they still offer up an agglomeration of influences The Sadies transcend them as they gather together sixties psychedelic country, proto punk aggro, Paisley Underground and college rock; the parts welded into a sleek well tuned machine.

They open with the trippy psych folk of Riverview Fog channelling the Byrds circa The Notorious Byrds Brothers before barrelling into the Detroit metal ramalama of Another Season Again fuelled by snotty MC5 like arrogance. This dichotomy runs throughout the album with dips into country rock countered by all out freakouts with power chords and feedback well to the fore, at times this occurs within the one song, witness the astounding There Are No Words and the powerful The Elements Song which is a wonderful wall of sound infused with incense, peppermints and incendiary guitars. There are wide open vistas on the frantic acoustic drive that is peppered with Morricone like guitar flashes  which is Through Strange Eyes while God Bless The Years is (almost) straightforward country rock with pedal steel almost tongue in cheek here (and recalling again The Byrds on Drug Store Truck Driving Man). The Good Years is a narrative that could have been penned by Paul Simon back in the days and delivered as if Simon and his buddy Art were perhaps on those pep pills so popular back then while As Above, So Below has a sixties like baroque pop groove.

There’s fuzz guitar and feedback. Melody and mayhem. Psych pop and strutting grooves. The curious amalgam of Gene Clark and The Yardbirds that is Questions I’ve Never Asked perhaps the best example of the duality on show here but overall Northern Passages is a thrilling ride and perhaps the best Sadies album so far.

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