2013-10-10
Quiet, beautiful, thoughtful reflection that takes stock of life's ups-and-downs and concludes "Pushing my way out of the ground/I'm ready for it/I've grown too old to die young now/I'm better for it." In other words, take what you've learned, understand you can't control everything and keep moving forward. Joined by Sufjan Stevens (you can hear his musical touches throughout) and other friends, the record eases one into a wine-sipping, feet-up, life's-highlight-reel mood--but not in a melancholy or cloying manner. Witmer hits his targets without being melodramatic or wordy. My favorite selection is "Right Behind You," in which he sings, "I don't see the point in waiting/Half my life to say/All of the things I'm thinking/Starting with today." This is a set of music that makes you better for having listened to it, start to finish. 10/13 Michael J.
THE WOOD BROTHERS
Ways Not to Lose
Eddi Reader
Sings the Songs of Robert Burns
Brett Martin Hoerner
Somewhere in Sonoma
STEVE FORBERT
Strange Names & New Sensations
Black Jake and the Carnies
Sundry Mayhems
Clumsy Fingers
Only A Fool Would Try
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