Sam Outlaw’s debut full length album ANGELENO was a high
impact release doubled up with the stamina to last an awful load of plays, culminating
with plenty of accolades in the superficial end of year lists. Barely eighteen
months from this record getting released across the continents, the follow up has
appeared in the shape of TENDERHEART. In contrast to his previous offering, the
new album is firmly planted in the grower category, but with the reassuring conclusion
that eventually its true value will surface.
Six Shooter Records is once again the launching pad for this
self-produced album which was an alternative route of music making after
working with Ry Cooder on ANGELENO. The sound is once again angled in a
Californian country direction, and like its predecessor, TENDERHEART is set to
get most of its love from the Americana community. This thirteen track
collection of original material undulates in mood and tempo, anchored by a song
that does have instant impact credentials, even if the whole album requires a
few plays.
An initial digital listening to this record shuffled the
tracks in alphabetical order and the jaw dropped when ‘All My Life’ landed on this listener’s ears first up. This up tempo
classic country number possesses all the aura of an influential Gram Parsons
recording and immediately staked a claim for one of the songs that will shape
2017. When eventually the album was re-arranged in its intended order, this
standout landmark track sits at number ten, with the new opening few songs
getting things off to a more passive beginning.
As you would expect from the singer-songwriter tradition,
this is a record demanding intense lyrical listening and Sam Outlaw is not
going to let folks down looking for this aspect of his music. An interesting
lexicon choice exists in the early part of the record as ‘Bottomless Mimosas’ and ‘Bougainvillea,
I Think’ are amongst a trio of tracks that set out introducing the album
rather than pushing its summit. Four tracks in and the title song raises the impact
with ‘Tenderheart’ getting full marks
for emotive appeal. Humour and irony were always going to play a part in a Sam
Outlaw album and ‘She’s Playing Hard to
Get (Rid Of)’ ticks this box as the album reaches its mid-point.
Apart from the aforementioned standout track, the second
part of the album flickers on the appreciation horizon without fully leaving an
awe impression. ‘Dry in the Sun’
scores high on melody, while album closer ‘Look
At You Now’ is perhaps as low key as the opener ‘Everyone's Looking For Home’.
A full list of musicians appears on a record that is far
from sparse on the production front. Taylor Goldsmith of Dawes plays guitar alongside Danny Garcia who
toured with Sam when he made his UK debut last January in support of Aaron
Watson. Frequently, input from the pedal steel and organ spice up the sound
adding to the record’s sonic appeal.
Time will tell the eventual heights that TENDERHEART will
scale with its undoubted potential to ascend over the duration of a year. Maybe
another UK visit to aid the promotion will expose more light on this set of
songs; the live arena has a tried and tested experience of breathing fresh life
into an album. Sam Outlaw now has an outstanding and a solid release in his
locker since hitting the recording world with renewed vigour. One thing for
certain, there is much more to come from an artist who has a keen ear on making
a style of music that will always get well received here.
www.samoutlaw.com
