  When
I grow up, I want to be Sam Payne!
Well,
not really. I'm happy being me. Really.
But,
I would really like to put out a CD as good as "Coming Just
to Go". And that will be no easy task. One that I will work
on for a very long time. In order to accomplish that goal, I'll
have to do three things:
One:
I'll have to learn to write songs better. This is difficult for
me to admit in many ways, because I'm quite proud of my songwriting
ability. But Sam is my hero. He's capturing emotions and images
and many multiple layers of meaning like nobody I've ever heard,
and I'm including the big time.
In
the past, I had a hard time understanding what his songs were about,
but everything was clear on this collection. Maybe it was the short
one or two sentences of commentary above the lyrics of each song,
or maybe it was just that the songs were clearer.
Some
of my favorites are "Shazam", which is about fantasies
and realities, "Freight Train" about who's really in charge
of your life, or at least who should be, and "Holy" which
actually brought this old man to tears.
He's
got some cool tricks up his sleeve, too, like rhyming "pajamas"
and "ram us", or "mystery" and "kissed
her". He's a master.
Two:
I'll have to learn to sing a lot better. His voice is the centerpiece
of this compilation. He can just do so many cool things with it.
Without changing it too much, he's got country and a bit of rock,
and a bit of Sting in him.
Three:
I'll have to hire some killer musicians to back me up. Where "Railroad
Blessing" was listed as a solo CD, this one is credited under
"The Sam Payne Project". The guys in the band really bring
a lot of pizzazz to the recording. Precise, yet free, tightly arranged,
yet improvised. It's all there. The songs are all Sam, but the group
turns him up to 11.
In
all the time I've been reviewing CD's, I've never given any one
5 stars. There's a number of reasons for this. One is that there's
this nagging feeling like that CD would become the best. The standard
by which all others should be judged. I mean, what if a CD came
along that was better? You gonna give it a six?
But
giving a CD a 4.5 or a 4 would imply that there was something wrong
with it. That somewhere in the bits was a flaw. What if a CD came
along, and I couldn't find anything wrong with it. Wouldn't it deserve
a 5 star rating?
So,
with that in mind, I'm giving this one a full 5 stars. Your mileage
may vary, but I think you'll have as difficult a time finding the
flaws as I did. Better still, don't bother. Enjoy "Coming Just
to Go" on its own merits and let other people worry about mistakes!
OH!
One more thing-
Four:
I'd have to learn to scat! Sam, can you help me out, here
------------------------
Mark Hansen
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