Heart of Stone
(Drifter's Church)
US release date: 2 September 2008
UK release date: Available as import
by Juli Thanki
http://www.popmatters.com/
August 27, 2008
Move over, Steve Earle: Chris Knight is hands down the best alt-country songwriter out there. On Heart of Stone, his sixth album in ten years, Knight’s lyrics are at their strongest. He’s a twangified mix of Earle, Bruce Springsteen, and John Mellencamp in their prime, i.e. minus their current tendencies toward windbaggy proselytizing. Each song is a self-contained vignette, full of hard luck folks and rambling men set to hard-driving guitars and lap steel. In short, this is Americana at its finest.Despite his Kentucky address (can you get any more country than living in Slaughter, Kentucky, population 200?—the answer is “No"), musically Chris Knight seems like he might be more at home in a Texas roadhouse—not the romper rooms of Pat Green songs, filled with baseball-capped frat boys and Shiner Bock, but a Double Deuce-style roadhouse, complete with drunks trying to outrun their miserable lives, and maybe Patrick Swayze in the corner to keep the peace. Fans of Joe Ely and Robert Earl Keen will definitely appreciate Knight’s brand of swaggering roots rock, while Robbie Fulks and Ryan Adams listeners will be drawn to the sharp lyrics.
The standout track of the record—perhaps standout track of the year—by far is “Crooked Road”, a song that could easily be renamed “Coalminer’s Father”. Almost certainly inspired by Knight’s previous career as a strip-mine reclamation inspector, it’s the story of a man and his wife trying to pick up the pieces of their already not-so-great life after their son is killed in a mining accident. In tried and true country fashion, they try to find salvation in the open road, a Sisyphean task if there ever was one. Most heartbreaking of all is the chorus: “Damn these hard times / Damn the coalmines / Damn the good dreams gone cold / And while I’m at it, damn this crooked road”. Producer Dan Baird, formerly of the Georgia Satellites, keeps his hands to himself (sorry, but that joke, however lame, is irresistible), letting Knight’s powerful lyrics and whiskey-raw vocals do the heavy lifting with only an acoustic guitar to accompany them.
On the album’s opener, “Home Sick Gypsy”, Knight vocally channels the Rolling Stones’ “Honky Tonk Women”, emulating Mick Jagger’s raspy howl to a T while singing about country music’s old favorite: the ramblin’ man. Now, Knight’s rambler is nowhere near as plaintive and lonesome as Hank Williams’, but I think Luke the Drifter would have appreciated the straightforwardness of Chris Knight’s lyrics. And we see just how straightforward Knight can be on the album’s closing track, “Go On Home”: “Stupid’s in the water these days”. ‘Nuff said.
This is what Americana is supposed to sound like. It’s free of the redneck chest-thumping and twee sentimentalizing that runs rampant in commercial country music, as well as the semi-recent groundswell of faux-Southern rock, while remaining unflinchingly honest about life, love, and hard luck. Heart of Stone isn’t exactly the feel-good record of the summer, but it’s certainly not one to pass up.
Chris Knight - Heart of Stonehttp://ninebullets.net/
August 27, 2008
I was admittedly late in getting to the altar of Chris Knight. He had already released his fourth effort, Enough Rope, when I first came to know of him. I’ve since countered my tardiness by amassing his entire disc catalog and preaching his gospel every chance I get. Heart of Stone marks Chris’ sixth effort, and his music is still far too good for country radio and far too obscure for good taste.
On Heart of Stone, Chris sticks to what he does best by writing simple songs that carry the weight of the common man. Bringing Dan Baird (who previously produced Pretty Good Guy and The Jealous Kind) back into the fold brings a slightly more rocking edge to this album, but it’s still 100% Chris Knight. If you ain’t liking him at this point, you ain’t gonna like him after hearing Heart of Stone….and you’re pretty much an idiot.
The people of Slaughters, Kentucky (population 200) are lucky to have a songwriter of this caliber telling their story, and we’re lucky to get to hear it. 100% Essential Listening.
Chris Knight - Heart of Stone posted by Chip Frazier in Reviews
http://twangville.com/
Mon, Aug 25, 2008 @ 11:05 pm
Suffice it to say that Chris Knight knows what Nashville has forgotten, that country music is the original narrative of the common man. It grew out of the Great Depression and forged a transcendent bond with its’ fans.
Country music turned the struggles of rural America into poetry that helped ease the pain of fans for decades. Knight hasn’t forgotten the ability of music to sing to the soul of listeners. Probably because he is from coal mining country in Kentucky, which has been in economic upheaval as the rest of America has prospered. Dr. Phil and Deepak Chopkra do not resonate with someone who loses their job or their land or perhaps both. However, the songs on Heart of Stone will speak to them.
There is a certain moral code on this album. Even when times are hard Knight does not glorify people who lose their perspective. Hard times are no excuse to cook meth in your basement ("Hell Ain’t Half Full”), or abandon your family ("Heart of Stone”). Conversly he also sings about hope on “Something to Keep Me Going.” The power of faith and the fight to keep it is at the heart of “Crooked Road.” The latter song is gut wrenching and powerful. In this one song, Knight goes through a lifetime of complex emotions with the central character, who is emerging from the depths with an eye on the future but carrying the scars of the past.
This record also rocks. Knight returned to work with Dan Baird of Georgia Satellites, who produced Pretty Good Guy and The Jealous Kind. In fact, the album comes out of the gate rocking on “Homesick Gypsy.” Another great rocker is the song “Another Dollar” that addresses the greed in our society. When people talk about the great songwriters they need to include Chris knight in the conversation. His body of work has earned him that distinction. He certainly sings to the common man in the manner of Cash and Haggard. The album was released on September 2nd.
Chris Knight - My Old Cars
Chris Knight - Heart of Stone
Chris Knight - Another Dollar
Chris Knight’s Official Site
Chris Knight on myspace
Buy Heart of Stone
I have the CD on order and en route, and your review made me anticipate it that much more.
ReplyDelete(Thanks for the allusion to the wacky political sidetracks that some of the best in the genre are prey to--it's hard as a republitarian paleoconservative fan to listen to these fools some of the time....)
Chris is the best basically-unknown master of Americana out there that I know of.