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Well sir, Bob Campbell certainly
isn't your average boomer. No gloomy musings on his
own mortality or bittersweet looking back to an idealized
past for this Cowichan Valley singer/songwriter. On
his first solo CD ditchflowers the former Acoustic Steward
comes to terms with his chequered past and looks forward
to the future with unalloyed optimism and purpose. "I've
stumbled through life/Here I am today/Standing proud
and tall/Just a touch of gray" he sings in Never
Too Old and we believe him. Campbell's credo is stated in the liner notes ("Clean up your own backyard, maintain hope for a better tomorrow and dance whenever possible") and reflected in lyrics that celebrate the poetry of everyday life in vivid plainspoken images. Home is "where I talk to the cat/And sing in the shower/It's where I ponder and putter/Hour after hour" (Home Is Where The Heart Is). An idea for a song can come at the breakfast table: "I write my morning pages/they bring back the past/all those things I did/when I was a kid/or just how life goes by so fast." (My Morning Pages). |
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Listening to this CD is like peering over Campbell's
shoulder as he writes in his journal. Crooked Path
is a stubborn statement of individuality. ("I
walk that crooked path every single day . It's not wrong
. It's just my way"). Money Burns A Hole In
My Pocket is a wry meditation on his love/hate
relationship with the do-re-mi ("ain't saved a
dime/in quite a long time/guess I'll never see Disneyland.")
The Future Is Here captures the nervous energy
of our wired world in terse imagery: "Calculate/Communicate/We
got a date/Don't be late/ dot com disaster". You
Were There is a heartfelt tribute to the folks
("You were there/at the lost and found/held my
hand on that merry-go-round"). Have trouble telling
your parents how you really feel about them? Buy the
CD and this track will do it for you. Of course, to
fully appreciate the lyrics you have to listen to the
way he sings them. Campbell approaches each song like
an old friend and, when you least expect it, inserts
a spoken word or phrase into the vocal, like a pool
shark sinking the 8 ball into the corner pocket.
The 13 original tunes on this CD hint at an intriguing
range of influences. Who Could Have Known has
a zesty Spanglish feel, like vintage Marty Robbins or
Cowboyography- era Ian Tyson. Other tunes recall early
Gordon Lightfoot. Bricks and Mortar could make
Lucinda Williams envious. With its grainfed harmonies
and sturdy melody it could be an outtake from Car Wheels
on a Gravel Road except for that fresh breeze of Island
air blowing through the studio. (In this case C&W
stands for Cowichan & Western.)
The arrangements provide plenty of room for Campbell's
deft fretwork and he has recruited some first rate Valley
pickers to add extra color and texture to the tracks.
Andy Ruszel's mandolin licks playfully at the edges
of Never Too Old. Sam Torrance's lively flute
lends a lilting Celtic air to Change in the Weather
that makes me want to reach for the Guinness (and Campbell's
drumming on the track makes me wish I knew how to step
dance.) Home Is Where The Heart Is reunites
Campbell with Acoustic Stew bassist Freda Eckstein;
Jolene White's expertly mixed backup vocals
provide subtle emotional shadings to the introspective
lyrics on I Closed My Heart. (A lesser writer
might have spent half the song building up to the shivery
hook on this somber little gem of repressed emotion.
Campbell opens with it and the understated power implicit
in the lyric just builds from there.)
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With a name like Campbell, you'd expect a shrewd sense
of economy and sure enough not a note is wasted. Co-produced
with Zak Cohen at The Woodshop Studios, ditchflowers
serves as a role model for prospective recording artists
on how to get a lot for a little. Nestled away in rural
Duncan, The Woodshop has earned an enviable rep for
quality work in a few short years and after listening
to this CD it is easy to see why. When you book a project
with Cohen you do more than simply hire a savvy young
producer and engineer : you get a friend, fan, sideman
(he plays lead guitar, keyboards, mandolin, hand drums
and shaker on various tracks on this CD) and - if you
want it - a creative collaborator. Combine Campbell's
emotionally resonant vocals and assured songwriting
with fine supporting players and Cohen's empathetic
production touch and listen as these flowers bloom in
your CD player.
Check out Bob's web site: members.shaw.ca/ditchflower/welcome.htm. |
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