JOE PURDY

JOE PURDY
LAST CLOCK ON THE WALL (2009)
320 KBPS

Arkansas songwriter Joe Purdy has been putting out albums at a dizzying pace. In six years he's penned ten albums of original material, with six of those seeing daylight in the last two years. While his songs have appeared on a number of hit TV shows such as "Lost," "Grey's Anatomy," and "House, M.D.," Purdy opts to release his music independently rather than deal with record companies who would most likely try to impede his torrid pace. Purdy's latest album Last Clock On The Wall was recorded in a castle in Strathaven, Scotland, and most of the songs on the album were written on-site in the span of a week. You have to love the immediacy of the modern digital age. The very day Purdy completed recording and mixing the album, it was made available for download on his website. From the album cover down to the live-on-tape production aesthetic, Last Clock On The Wall has a decidedly old-timey feel. With harmonica, slide guitar, and banjo more prevalent than ever and the welcomed addition of violin, Last Clock proves to be Purdy's folksiest effort. The album opens with "Let Me Sing To You," a banjo-laden track that invokes images of a bearded troubadour in overalls plucking away on the porch of some weathered cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Folk fans will find much to love here, and if you like what you hear, I'd recommend delving into Purdy's extensive discography.

1. Let Me Sing to You
2. Brown Suits and Cadillacs
3. Last Clock On the Wall
4. Been Up So Long
5. Dead End Kids
6. Dress Is Too Long
7. Miss Me
8. Death of a Maiden
9. School Teachers Blues
10. Too Young