Search - Fred Eaglesmith :: Dusty

Fred Eaglesmith- Dusty

J. R. Sheehy | Boston, MA | 11/26/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"
Fred Eaglesmith: Dusty



Do you know what a "mesa" is? If your answer is no, then words

like "rusty," "dusty," "leather boots," "cough," "flies," and "texas"

should clue you in. Right from the start of the record, the road

tested, listener approved Fred Eaglesmith makes it clear that he's

not from around here. He's from Canada. He was a hobo. He's

seen poverty, divorce, and pain pain pain...



This particular album, Fred's 12th? (maybe his 20th... who knows?)

is a willing victim of very stylized production. This kind of

production is a necessity if an album is going to pull the listener in

enough to make him/her listen to the whole disc all the way

through. It seems at first as though this producer decided to make

the theme, "Casio Keyboard Beats." This decision tells me, and

many others that he's just trying ot mix it up, and he's essentially

flushing the album down the toilet. But nope. It's far from being

flushed! The seemingly inexpensive beats lead your ear to the

other instruments and to the beauty of the melodies. There is

something quaint, and at the same time ballsy about using such

cheesy beats as the foundation for a song. Some numbers even

sound like he used a glorified metronome.



In any case, it makes for a fresh album, that will not find its way out

of the cd changer, or the head of its listener for a long time.



Perhaps there are those out there who won't be as enthusiastic

about "Dusty." But I'm willing to bet they are the ones who haven't

been deserted, and have never seen the predictable drama that

comes with poverty. In the second track, "Tunnel" Fred sings about

the way his lady can straighten his paths and be the inspiration for

living the good life, and fighting the good fight. There are two more

songs that lay between this song of devotion and thanks and the

sorrow-filled, moving break-up song titled, "Rainbow." Fred asks

in "Rainbow," '...what are you supposed to do, when your rainbow

breaks in two...?" In just two songs, Fred went from thankful, to

broken... and this change is justified in the songs sandwiched

between the two. In "I-75" (the third track) a picture is painted of

trapped souls trying to escape the personal hell and strain they are

in. They all try to drive down I-75 to get away, only to fade away

like falling stars. And in the next song (the fourth track), Fred is

further lamenting his tough situation and praying to the Lord for a

rest. So there you have it... life is tough, and when its as tough as it

is in tracks three and four, it can take its toll and cause the sad

break-ups we've all seen in track five.



Every song is different story. Each story with common threads:

being strung out, looking for an escape, heartbreak, alcohol, drugs

and the grime of life. This isn't the typical "Woe is me" album that

turns into a whining-fest from the start. This album is bitter sweet,

and it's that ability to mix two unorthodox things together that

makes Fred the talented artist he is. Who else can get away with

putting coedine and cattle in the first line of a song? The question

is important, and the answer is obvious...

"

Fred gets serious

dggfwtx | Fort Worth, TX | 11/18/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This CD was released on Fred's website back in August and I got it then. I'll admit, it was slow to grow on me. It's kind of different for Fred. There are no upbeat numbers here, and the songs are more lushly orchestrated than you'd normally expect on a Fred CD. The songs on this CD are mostly about loss, from a friend to a girl, to a vanishing lifestyle. But Fred really shows his songwriting and singing skills to their fullest. Among the many great cuts are Ship, Crowds, Hey Baby and Codeine. Wichita, about a young man, an old-timer and a stolen racehorse, is one of the finest and most moving cuts on the CD. All in all, one of my favorite CDs of the year. The songs are sad, but beautiful.

"

Workingman's Poet

Lee Armstrong | Winterville, NC United States | 02/17/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Fred Eaglesmith's newest CD is a small affair. But like many small affairs, it's more intimate & immediate. My favorite track is the upbeat "Tunnel" with the little xylophone sounds giving it a sparkling feeling, "Now she's standing in the darkness, a shattered world, she's broken hearted, I light the light at the end of the tunnel." It's hopeful & cheerful. "I 75" is another great song that stands up with the best of Fred's work, "His gearshift is stuck & he can't move his truck & he's lost between low & high & the river of cars, they fall like stars down on I 75." Lyrically, Fred's a workingman's poet. "Hey Baby" is another utter delight, a lustful urgency puts an edge in Eaglesmith's vocal as the track builds with a delightful percussion and then the high-pitched organ almost jumping out of its skin, "You say you love me, you're thinking of me & that you'll always be true; And then you're gone, I'm all alone & you're with somebody new & it makes me blue." The other tracks are also good with "Rainbow" and Fred's 7-minute "Wichita" that is the centerpiece of this set of particular note. Another great set from one of North America's best! Bravo!"