THE COAL MEN

BEAUTY IS A MOMENT

2010-05-13

The Coal Men inhabit the same mid-tempo, soft rocking space as Jackson Browne, Bruce Cockburn and the Bodeans. While they occasionally turn up the guitars, for the most part the emphasis is on the vocals which, in the case of this disc, are focused on days gone by, "Beauty is a Moment", missing the boat on a relationship, "Outside Looking In", falling prey to a siren call, "Pretty Girls", looking for a second chance, "Sweet in the Pine" and other tales of heartbreak and regret. While the lyrics could find their way onto a blues disc, the musical backdrop is mostly buoyant and, with all three permanent band members contributing vocals, there’s plenty of harmonic ear candy to make this an enjoyable listen. Standout tracks include "Cleveland Sky" with its silky smooth slide guitar, "Outside Looking In" which sounds straight from the Bodeans catalogue, "Sweet in the Pines" with its Muscle Shoal vibe and "Louisiana" which uses accordion to evoke a sense of longing for the state, not as just a place, but as a frame of mind. Smitty

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