Rating:
Genre:
Blues
Release Date: 01/13/2004
The return to CD of New York's favorite sons,
the Holmes Brothers, is a welcome one. Indeed, while fans know what to expect -- a killer mélange of
soul,
blues,
gospel, and
funk -- those combinations are always surprising.
Sherman and
Wendell Holmes and drummer/vocalist
Popsy Dixon have opted to work with producer
Craig Street (
Cassandra Wilson,
Joe Henry,
Me'Shell NdegéOcello) this time out and enlist a few guests in the guise of pedal steel boss
Greg Leisz, bassist
David Pilch from
the Bill Frisell Band, guitarist
Chris Bruce, and the inimitable
Patrick Warren on pump organ. The program is one of the most adventurous the band has ever attempted on record, but all of these songs become vehicles for the rootsy, sweet, and deeply emotional
Holmes Brothers treatment. The covers are revelatory in scope, including easily the most moving read of
Townes Van Zandt's
"If I Needed You" ever committed to tape. But it doesn't stop there; they give a similar -- albeit rowdier -- treatment to
Hank Williams'
"I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry." In addition, the band covers
Willie Nelson's classic
"Opportunity to Cry" and
Gillian Welch's
"Everything Is Free" in a late-night fireplace version that makes the songwriter's version sound clinical. But before one gets the idea that this is
the Holmes Brothers'
alt.country disc, a
Delta blues-styled reading of
Bob Marley's
"Concrete Jungle" and a smoking, roiling, bluesed-out two-step version of the
Smith and
Dixon R&B stalwart
"Big Boss Man" should put those assumptions to rest. But it's
Sherman and
Wendell's songs that bring the most satisfaction.
Wendell's
"We Meet, We Part, We Remember" is the greatest pure
soul tune recorded thus far in the 21st century. With its
Impressions-styled chorus and its
James Carr cadence it rips the skin off. His rollicking electric
country blues number
"You Won't Be Livin' Here Anymore" sounds like an
urban garage version of
"Big River," and the deep blue Mississippi
Delta chamber song
"I'm So Lonely" by
Sherman closes the record on a mournful whisper that underscores the transcendent message in all
Holmes Brothers outings: that no matter who they are and what their circumstances are, people share one great desire, to be loved just for who they are. Sound syrupy? Sound hopelessly out of touch with the times? Then maybe the times need to change, because music like this deserves to be played from every open window. This is the first great record of 2004.
~Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
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