Last year the Quireboys celebrated their 30th Anniversary with a series of festival dates, as well as electric and acoustic tours as well as releasing just what might have been their second best album in ‘Black-Eyed Sons’. For a band that traditionally has been less than prolific here we have a second album in two years and indeed a third in three!
Originally the new release was destined to be a collection of re-worked older songs with a few new acoustic numbers thrown in for the fans but the strength of the material apparently prompted second thoughts and the band decided to release a full set of new material. You can see why when you listen to album opener ‘Gracie B.’
As a fan of the band it’s a great start and whilst ‘Land of My Father’ that follows floats along in a familiar style, the sweet acoustic guitar is a nice counterpoint. The song itself is topped with a memorable chorus and whilst it never reaches the crescendo that you might have hoped for it’s nice to see the style further developed on ‘The Promise’ which follows the bar-room swing and Stones-like treatment of the title track.
Best here though is perhaps ‘Can’t Hide It Anymore’ which is odd as it features a lead vocal by Guy Griffin, it’s a song that makes you think of Bowie meets Bolan and has a kind of mournful ‘Spaceball Ricochet’ vibe though with a certain smoothness that is more akin to Oasis in their most languid moments.
The album takes a laid back turn with the rather generic ‘Out of Your Mind’ which probably would sound great electrified and with a faster tempo, but it’s a rather small misstep. ‘The Hurting Kind’ is interesting enough coming across like Isaac meets Waits in a soft bed of seventies singer-songwriter bedding. ‘Adaline’ adds that vintage Quireboys touch and the closing tracks round out the album in a similar mellow vibe. ‘The Best are Not Forgotten’
Again as far as value for money goes the Quireboys come up trumps again with the release adding 3 additional CD’s – One a reissue of the acoustic ‘Halfpenny Dancer’ from 1990 and two live ‘Halfpenny Dancer’ discs.
