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Rating: THE REVIEW
Ante scriptum: this is not a real review, just an explosion of thoughts.
"Sometimes I think I’ve almost fooled myself"
We cannot live without music. Like it or not, we are all surrounded by sounds. On the street. In the car. In shops. At the disco. At concerts. At the supermarket. Music envelops us, and the sounds become embryos of future memories.
Everyone experiences it in their own way. Some think music is just a pastime. Some believe it can decorate a room. Others live their daily catharsis within it. Everyone has a different relationship with music. Sometimes it's superficial, other times intimate and very personal. I want to belong to the latter category of people because in what I listen to I seek the emotion of living in all its facets: love, pain, anger, enthusiasm, joy, sadness...
Last night I was searching for music that would touch my heart. I needed it. So I started to scan my CDs with my eyes, both those lined up like little soldiers and those scattered in disorder all over.
My eyes stopped on Scar by Joe Henry.
Scar... Scar. What better metaphor for my state of mind.
I inserted the CD into the player. Darkness...
The beginning of the album ("Richard Pryor Addresses A Tearful Nation") is a slow shiver. A soft ballad developed between drums, bass, piano, and guitar. After 3 minutes and 25 seconds, Ornette Coleman's sax enters.
Blinding evolutions of notes that provoke a pleasant pang in the heart.
The album is all a sway between light and darkness. Joe Henry's voice recalls a forgotten Bob Dylan. Brad Mehldau plays the piano superbly, while Marc Ribot embellishes the background with the echo of his guitar. Different inspiring spirits hover: Tom Waits and Randy Newman. The sounds are well balanced, blended, and they evoke a romance never vulgar.
I let myself be enveloped by the music. The album ends. I feel drained of all thoughts. I don't want to get up to turn off the player, and I don't realize that the CD is still spinning, and after a couple of minutes... again Ornette Coleman from the darkness... suddenly.
Another pang in the heart.
A ghost track I had never heard before. Another emotion before the silence.
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Summary by Bot
The reviewer shares a deeply personal experience with Joe Henry's album Scar, highlighting its emotional resonance. The blend of instruments and vocal style evokes comparisons to Bob Dylan and other influential artists. The presence of Ornette Coleman's saxophone adds unexpected poignancy, making the album a profound and moving listen.Tracklist Videos
Joe Henry
Joe Henry is an American singer-songwriter and producer active since the mid-1980s. He began in alt-country/Americana and later wove jazz textures into his records. He has produced acclaimed albums for artists including Solomon Burke, Bettye LaVette, Allen Toussaint, Ani DiFranco, Aimee Mann, and Elvis Costello, and co-wrote Madonna’s “Don’t Tell Me.”06 Reviews
