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And whadda ya know? The rest of the tracks are not only dissimilar to the opening cut, they are as diverse a group of tunes that has ever inhabited a twelve-track album. A paean to Lois Lane - “You Could Be My Lois Lane” - is a weird mix of Americana and Wreckless Eric, no less; the following “My My”, if played with a more straight pop feel, could well be a great lost Monkees tune; a direct country rock take comes next – “New Orleans” - and so it goes, each track a revelation. Well, almost… the honky-tonk “Lipstick And Dynamite” doesn’t hit the spot, and the attempt at emulating Jerry Lee Lewis on “Wheel Like The Wind” doesn’t make it for me, either. What is pretty startling is the breadth of writing here. Trying to compare “Welcome To Havana, Mr. Hemingway” and “My Old Hometown” you have to think Calexico for the former, Steve Wynn for the latter. Not that diverse, I suppose (I could have suggested Metallica and Moby), but two totally beautiful songs with quite different treatment, and these are the album highlights for me. And guess what? That first track actually gets better when you allow it another chance, although it might have been a good idea to place it somewhere else on the album, rather than have it as the opening track. “It’s What You Take Away”, or the aforementioned “My My” would have been perfect in that first slot. Despite not having the strongest voice on the planet, and occasionally doing it off-key in an endearing manner, I think someone, somewhere, should get Andy Hawk ‘National Treasure’ status before he disappears off the musical map. |
