Nobody to blame

Chris Stapelton - Traveller (2015) ** 

Nominated by: GK

Music club: Wander to Wozza's

Playlist addition: When The Stars Come Out

GK mentioned in his preamble how much our children have embraced American country singers like Luke Combs - two of my children attended his recent tour gigs in Australia and Nu Zild. I'm not sure if they have also embraced Chris Stapelton, but I somehow doubt it.

The first song on Traveller (the title song) made me sit up and pay attention. Yes, it follows a long tradition of rambling man songs, but it is an upbeat variant and country songs have retreaded archetypal narratives forever.

So, I thought - yes, I like this. But then for his debut album it seems he retreats to the bottle and getting stoned for what seems like the rest of the album. Once or twice? Sure. But more than that - no thanks.  

I refuse now to read rock star autobiographies that just trot out the drug and booze fueled escapades for chapter after chapter. Eric Clapton's book is a prime example. It was a dizzying litany of bad behaviour, and I ended up skipping whole chapters. A yawn fest.

But I digress (sort of). The recurring hard drinking motifs are what ultimately turned me off from fully embracing Traveller, but I did enjoy his singing and the mixture of styles that he embraces throughout the album. I like bluegrass, southern rock bands, and blues, so the hints at those styles kept me focused and listening.

Best songs for me were the title track and the lovely When The Stars Come Out. It's an excellent singalong and who doesn't love the sound of a pedal steel? Hmm. Maybe my kids would like Chris Stapelton after all...