Dusty

I love Fred Eaglesmith. I have 14 of his CDs. I want an Eaglesmith soundtrack at my funeral. In short, I am complete Fredhead.So, having said all that, it hurts me to have to say that DUSTY is the worst Eaglesmith CD I've ever heard, and I have no idea what Fred was thinking when he made it.The instrumentation is basically a Casio keyboard playing what I can only term twink organ. Fred's singing, always so strong, feels enervated, as if he's just going through the motions. Missing is the strong live playing of his regular band (a programmed beat is provided by the cheap sounding keyboard) and there are none of the gorgeous harmonies of Willie P. Bennett. A few, or maybe more than a few, of the cuts might actually be good songs. I can hear I-75 and Wichita, for example, being great if they had been recorded on any of Fred's other CDs.Because this is Fred Eaglesmith, I have listened to DUSTY four times hoping I'd grow to like it. I haven't and will probably never listen to it again. Fortunately, his other CDs are nothing like DUSTY and we can hope that this was a one time mistake.

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!

A great collection. "Rainbow" is a perfect breakup song."Crowds" is a beautiful, wistful, first-love torch song, with just the lightest touch of Fred irony. ("I should have kept in touch/Don't know what I was thinking/But it got to be too much/And I sort of took to drinking.")"Hey Baby" is bittersweet, and sung to an entirely different woman."Ship" will click with anyone who has gone through or is going through one of those series of life's trials that seem unending when you're in the middle of them. And "Wichita" just makes the horselover in me cry.

When I first listened to this album, I thought it was a bit dry. But that changed. It just took a few listens to get my head around what was going on here. The arrangements are simultaneously sparse and lush. Majestic in simplicity. More intricate than is apparent. Great beauty all around. The songs are brilliant.Fred Eaglesmith continues to evolve and defy expectations. I wouldn't want it any other way.

When an artist goes out on a limb, hear him out. Fred is the real thing an here he's put himself out there. Some of his best tracks ever, some that don't work for me.If you want the truly excellent you'll have to try something different. Here it is...

Good stuff

I have more cd's of him, and this one is not on top of the pile; bit too slow and doesn't hold my interest. Not bad but not great either.

Received an album that from the cover and cd looked correct, but when I listened to it, was clearly a burned copy of lipstick, lies, and gasoline.