Wing and a Prayer
Marv Hamilton
Best Dog Records
2000
11 tracks
It's difficult to describe this thing that Marv Hamilton does. Whatever else it may be, it's a study in contrasts. The music feels somehow dated, most often harking back to the acoustic blues of the mid-Sixties but sometimes feeling more like the Twenties, yet it also has a timeless ambience that places it outside any one time or place. The credits list ten musicians, including three harmony vocalists, yet the arrangements are so subtle that, however full the supporting instrumentation and vocals may be, every song still feels like it's just Marv and his guitar. The sound here is ephemeral and hard to grasp.
The music of Marv Hamilton wanders effortlessly through the territory occupied by easy going country flavoured blues with an occasional touch of popular MOR music for variety. His vocal style is laid back and comfortable, well-suited to a small folk club or house concert or perhaps a romantic evening with wine in front of a crackling fire. His guitar complements his voice with lazy day rhythms that set a calming air to carry the songs softly forward.
While Marv Hamilton has a vocal style that is distinctly his own, one is tempted to make comparisons. I played this music for a friend of mine, who had that same reaction as I did at first. He listened to a couple of verses and then said "He sounds like..." then stopped in mid-sentence with a puzzled look on his face. Another contrast. Marv Hamilton sounds like Gordon Lightfoot, on some songs very much like Lightfoot used to around the time he released his first two albums. And yet he doesn't at all. He sounds like someone else, and neither my friend nor I could decide who. It's not just the voice that is reminiscent of Lightfoot but some distinctive phrasing that one hears from Lightfoot and nobody else... until now.
As a guitarist, Marv Hamilton is far better than just competent. There is some very fine picking on this release, filled with subtleties and nuances that fill out and support the vocals to perfection. Forgetting that Hamilton is a fine singer and songwriter, it's worth listening to this music just to hear the lovely work he does on the guitar.
Marv Hamilton is also a skilled lyricist, writing not sentimental pop-song verses but powerful well-crafted poetry that he then sets to music. His words are thoughtful and reflective, presenting a variety of reflections on life as it is in our modern world. As with the music, these poems present a contrast. They seem to be of the Sixties and personal, yet they are timeless and universal. These lyrics would have as much appeal in a book of modern verse as they do performed with music.
The songs on this release are of equal high quality, so I won't embark on a prolonged discussion of any one, but there are a few that especially struck me. "Ready to Sail" is a sad, soulful piece about loss and survival with the moral, "...if you lose yourself there's no one to come home to." "When You Call My Name" has some of the most stylish blues guitar I've heard in a long time, overlaid with an emotion-laden country blues vocal that somehow echoes some of the old soft rockabilly songs. Very nice. "Ah Ho" sounds so much like that first Lightfoot album that you might think this was the man himself singing under a pseudonym. Each of the other songs has its own points of interest and is well worth a listen.
Marv Hamilton is clearly an artist who pays close attention to all facets of his art, whether words, music, or performance. There is a polish and attention to detail in this work that is so often lacking in contemporary so-called singer-songwriters. This is work of a quality and class that this reviewer rarely sees. I'd highly recommend to anyone interested in contemporary American songwriting that they give Marv Hamilton a listen.
Those who are interested can find more information about Marv Hamilton and his music on Best Dog Records' marvmusic.com website.
|
|
|
|
Support Sound Bytes |
While you're here, please take the time to check out our sponsors below and on other pages.
on Sound Bytes' Free-For-All Links page... Click Here.
Designed by The Communication Centre (R. D. MacKenzie Associates,
Kingston, Ontario K7K 6T9)
This web site, all pages, original content & images copyright © 1997-2005 R. D. MacKenzie.
Some web site functions developed and provided by Bravenet Web Services.
Review written: February 25, 2005
Page modified: February 25, 2005
Proudly Canadian
Send mail to the Sound Bytes Webmaster
if you have questions or comments about this web site.