Earl Musick "Duck & Cover" (Reload Record Company 2007)

Duck of Earl and there’s no need to head for cover

Earl Musick’s latest release ‘Duck & Cover’ according to the press release ‘is not a protest album, but it does address some of the problems we face in this country and around the world’….and inside the sleeve notes from Musick tell us, ‘As I write this the great minds in our country are putting their heads together to figure out a way to bring a conclusion to the war in Iraq’.

Musick sounds like Steve Earle mixed in with a touch of J.J. Cale – and for Musick being a prolific tunesmith with original works numbering in the hundreds I guess he has now learnt the tools of his troubadour trade.

All the twelve songs on this record are self penned and Musick is no slouch as a musician playing guitar, bass and handling all the vocals. A full band enhances the sound, most notably by the superb slide and dobro sound supplied by stable mate Mark Merritt. Musick tackles many subjects from his own childhood, returning war veterans in his homeland & and the cover features a photograph from Hurricane Katrina at Venetian Isle, New Orleans which clearly shows where he is coming from with the visible inertia that gripped the US during that disaster.

There’s plenty to enjoy here; the music is immersed in American themes although I’m not too sure how well some of these themes will travel - but on this evidence he is at the least worth some of your time.

Date review added:  Sunday, March 18, 2007
Reviewer:  andy riggs
Reviewers Rating:
Related web link:  www.rockhousestudio.com