JOHN DAVID SOUTHER

JOHN DAVID SOUTHER
JOHN DAVID SOUTHER (1972)
REMASTER
320 KBPS

Souther's first solo album, which coincided with the release of the first Eagles album, but offers a much more mature and poetic take on the early 70's Southern California scene, a kind of inward-looking alternative to the Eagles' evolving wide-screen lyricism. Souther is more sharp-edged and less compromising, even though the escapism theme is just as present here as it is in the work of his more privileged Troubadour peers. He re-records Kite Woman, a track which he first recorded with Glenn Frey on their Longbranch Pennywhistle album three years earlier (the album has not been re-released on CD, but the vinyl original runs at about US$100 at well-stocked Greenwich Village Record stores and is otherwise almost impossible to find), and it is here that it becomes most apparent what Souther is doing: he tunes things down, takes some of the country-rock elements and tempo out and thus creates a somewhat deeper texture which is so close to modern singer-/songwriter standards that it almost seems as if Souther was a victim of his own talent since his offerings would remain underestimated throughout his career. Other outstanding tracks include Out To Sea, Some People Call It Music (a song which delivers an elbaborate shift throughout his entire range of muscial expression), and the closing track Lullaby. This is a quality effort altogether which illustrates how far ahead of most of his contemporaries and how close to perfection Souther was even then.

1. The Fast One
2. Run Like A Thief
3. Jesus In 3/4 Time
4. Kite Woman
5. Some People Call It Music
6. White Wing
7. It's The Same
8. How Long
9. Out To Sea
10. Lullaby