| CD REVIEW Lynyrd Skynyrd |
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Band : Lynyrd Skynyrd What a nice surprise this new Lynyrd Skynyrd turned out to be! Admittingly, I completely missed out on their 2003 album Vicious Cycle (issued through Sanctuary, whom since went belly-up), but the preceeding 2000 mini-album Christmas Songs turned out to be a complete bummer! In the new millenium, Lynyrd lost no less than 4 of its (former) members: bassist Leon Wilkeson was the first to go in July 2001, due to emphasema and chronic liver disease. Guitarist Hughie Thomasson (who’d left Lynyrd in 2005 to reform his band Outlaws) followed in September 2007, dying of a heart attack. In January 2009 keyboardist Billy Powell also got a fatal heart attack, and eventually bassist Ean Evans (who’d been Wilkeson’s replacement) died of cancer in May 2009. Is it the replacements (third guitarist Mark Matejka, bassist/ backing singer Robert Kearns, and keyboardist Peter Pisarczyk) which have given Lynyrd a new breath of life, or have the veterans of the band (lead singer Johnny Van Zandt joined in 1987 replacing his brother Ronnie, guitarist Gary Rossington was with the band from the beginning, guitarist/backing singer Ricky Medlocke had played the drums at one point – prior to the plane crash which caused the band to stop back in 1977…and drummer Michael Cartellone’s been with the band since the aforementioned Christmas themes album) simply remembered what it was all about? Point is, tthis is the best Lynyrd album in years, and puts ‘em back on a level from their heydays in the ‘70’s! Well, at least in my book. True, there’s a quite lot longing for the good ole days of The South, on this album (tracks like “Simple Life”, “Southern Ways”, “That Ain’t My America”, “Unwrite That Song”, and the album’s title song – which is a direct comment to a speech Pres. Barack’s gave at one time about small town America clinging to their “God and guns” ethics - serving as statements rather than just simple songs). But in spite of that nostalgia, there’s also some optimistic songs, like album opener “Still Unbroken” (first single of the album and already used as the official theme song for the WWE Breaking Point Pay-Per-View event on Sept. 13th of last, it is also to be featured on the game WWE SmackDown Vs. Raw 2010), the party-track “Skynyrd Nation” (an ideal show opener), and “Comin’ Back For More” all exhuding a positive enthousiam! Yeah, baby, this is Lynyrdthe way it’s supposed to be: great sing-along songs, catchy tunes, and great three-way guitar play making for a slight complexity underneath thanks to those two lead guitarists! And when the band go moody and emotional for a semi-ballad (the beautiful “Unwrite That Song”), it’s that underlaying current which makes the song stand tall after all! In essence, and as I said before, this is a return of sorts to the band’s musical creativity of the ‘70s, and as far as I’m concerned, Lynyrd is back, completely!!! 98/100 Tony. |