Search - Derek Trucks :: Songlines

Lisa B. (Lisa) from CTR TUFTNBORO, NH
Reviewed on 11/6/2009...

I love the Derek Trucks Band, and this is my favorite of my three Derek Trucks CDs. All great music - the songs aren't too long like on Joyful Noise - just the right length. The group's definitely evolving - highly recommend to any Derek Trucks fan.

The Song Meets the Jam in Blissful Harmony

J. Chasin | NYC, NY | 02/22/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Derek Trucks is one of the two or three most distinct and recognizable instrumental voices in popular music today. He's like Carlos Santana, in that he can toss in a 2-note lick and instantly you know its him.



This record is truly a "band" record. That might disappoint some, who were hoping to hear the songs as vehicles for Derek's extended shredding. Instead, the song is king, and Trucks uses his Jedi guitar is the service of the song.



Using Santana as a reference point, that makes this record more like Supernatural than Borboletta. Its easy to listen to, easy for the casual fan to get his or her ear around. "Revolution," for example, is as close to a radio-friendly single as Trucks has ever come. Yet the record is steeped in spirituality, in the healing power of music, and ulitimately the distinctions between the song and the jam seem to melt away into the sea of musical redemption.



The percussive work of Count M'Butu, enmeshed with drummer Yonrico Scott, gives the whole record a unified feel, a sort of World Music, African shimmy that ties together the middle-eastern-flavored numbers (the extended set piece, "Sahib Teri Bandi/Maki Madni"), the straight blues ("Crow Jane"), the R'n'B ("I Wish I Knew"), and the rockers ("Revolution.") The music hops genres, but the essential underpinning-- what the Aborigines thought of as "the labarynth of invisible pathways which meander all over Australia"-- is the deep network of "Songlines" that tie all the music together and lead to the heart. Trucks and company weave a magical web that revels in the interconnectedness of all things by embracing different musical forms and faces, connected at the root by these ancient, mystical songlines.



"Volunteer Slavery" serves as an incantation, a welcome into the record, flipping over into "I'll Find My Way;" here, vocalist Mike Mattison makes his entrance and establishes himself as a player to be reckoned with; Derek lays down his first significant solo about 4 minutes into the record, and its a quick hit-and-run. "Crow Jane," a jaunty 8-bar blues (a la "Key to the Highway"), starts as a bluesy call-and response between Derek's guitar and Mattison's vocals before the band kicks in.



"Sahib Teri Bandi/Maki Madni" is a segueing of two concert staples, 10 minutes of middle eastern vibe where Kofi Burbridge's flute steps to the fore to add color and texture. Derek takes several extended jaunts, and this is probably the piece on the album that most evokes the feel of the band's live performances.



"Chevrolet" is another blues, the rich percolation still present undrneath; "Sailing On" is a sweet melody that will bring a smile to your face; Mattison sings the hell out of it, Derek lays on the fire and ice. "Revolution" wants to be a million-selling duet with Santana; "I'd Rather Be Blind, Crippled and Crazy" is a percolating, funk of a shuffle, with bassist Todd Smalle laying down the groove, Derek's dobro slapping out twang over the top.



On "All I Do," the album begins its home stretch. "All I Do" is funked-up blue-eyed soul with a touch of church, and some of Derek's most inventive, jazzy playing on the record. "Mahjoun" is an instrumental track that harkens back to the opener, while charting a course for the two closing numbers, further on up the songline. "I Wish I Knew" is a soulful, joyous rave-up, almost gospel; Derek spatters a rainbow of joy across the sky on the outro.



The entrance of the closing "This Sky" is almost sacred, riding in the pocket where blues, jazz, soul, funk, and gospel flow together to become music of the heart. Derek's sublime play-out at the end puts the record to bed, Burbridge's flute providing a serene cushion, Mattison singing "Fly, fly away" in wistful tones as Derek's guitar does just that, gently ascending to the heavens.



At this point, you might be tempted to hit "play" again."

Record of the year

J. Johnson | Manassas, VA | 02/22/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It doesn't matter what is released the rest of the year. Unless someone makes the new Layla or Exile on Main Street, this is the best record of 2006. It finds Derek Trucks at the peak of his powers as a guitarist and shows that he is mastering a new instrument-the studio. Songs that are exended in live performance are shortened significantly, leaving the listener wanting more. While the record may disappoint those who evaluate a record by the length of the jams, those who appreciate an artist with a mature vision will love this record.



Songlines is the most accomplished and accessible of Trucks projects to date. It begins with an understated take on Rahssan Roland Kirk's Volunteered Slavery. Where the live version is a high octane romp, with a feeling much like Peter Green's "O Well", this one is subtle, almost subversive. It sets a tone for the record. Instead of pushing the edges of emotion, Trucks chooses his points to burn-thus emphasizing them.



The second tune I'll Find my Way introduces vocalist Mike Mattison . Mattison can move from soul shouter to the gentle falsetto of a soul man with the dexterity of the late Curtis Mayfield. Arguably this disc features Mattison as forcefully as it does Trucks. On tunes like Chrvrolet, Sailing On and Crow Jane, Mattison shines.



Sahib Teri Bandi/Maki Madni and Mahjoun throw an eastern curve to the record. I suspect the late Mike Bloomfield is smiling somewhere, seeing the East/West fusion coming together in Derek Trucks music. Revolution is the most commercially accessible record this band has done and in better times would be a monster single.



The highlight of the record is the closer, This Sky. A beautiful Mike Mattison vocal over ethereal guitar, this song shows the growth of the band as a studio entity. Live this is a pretty good song, but here each listening finds a new layer and something new slipped in for the listener. Perhaps just as importantly, it seems Trucks is learning how to play the silences as well as the notes.



Where Joyful Noise showed the emergence of a major new talent, Songlines shows Derek Trucks maturing as a musician and finding a way to make a singular musical vision accessible. An absolutely astounding record"