Written
by Craig Bowles, posted by blog admin
We
should always cherish albums like this. Albums like Thunderbolt and Lightfoot’s
Songs for Mixed Company just aren’t that common anymore. Listening to the ten
songs on this release reminds anyone with ears that there are still
singer/songwriters slaving away at their craft for little money and exercising
great care to make sure the songs they share with the world are honed to a fine
edge. The songs have an obvious origin in folk music, but Barry, Fuerst, and
their collaborators have carried that a step further by incorporating a light
roots rock sound as well as utilizing much more unusual instrumentation like
the Mellotron in order to further color their pieces. The lyrics are,
uniformly, top notch. The songs never strain for effect and retain a natural
poeticism that sets them apart from contemporaries who too frequently try just
as hard with obviously overworked results.
“Let’s
Be Friends” begins the album on a pensive, dark note. Lurking at the back of
this song throughout its entirety is the bitter reality that these two one time
lovers really have very little interest in being friends, but they feel
hidebound to attempt something their hearts really do not support. This
emotional position is reflected in the music as well; Barry’s acoustic guitar
manifests the same pensive mood with its shadowy lyricism and the duo’s vocals
pay proper tribute to the seriousness of the situation while still showing
artful restraint. “Miss Mie” is another instance of the duo’s restraint
informing and enriching their performance. This is an exquisite nod to the duo’s
love for classic country music, circa the 1950’s or Sixties, and they pull it
off flawlessly. The lyrics even revisit some familiar genre tropes, like the
narrator who’s crying in his beer, and the music invokes a similar mood. “Can’t
Be Trusted” is another meditative piece with focused, condensed guitar playing
and an appropriately intense vocal from Barry and Fuerst alike.
“Goodbye
is Not the End” brings accordion into the mix and it fits in quite well with
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot’s typical instrumental blend. It gives the song an
improbably jaunty bounce, somewhat incongruous when compared to earlier and
later songs, but it makes for a nice shift in atmosphere. “Year of the Monkey”
is another outstanding track especially for its ability to keep relatively
straight forward guitar and a basic tempo interesting and some of the best
lyrical content on the release. “Sweetest Baby” is the last “key” number on the
album and its good natured grace, relaxed tempo, and immensely likeable vocals
from Barry and Fuerst give the piece its distinctive flavor. They cover Bruce
Springsteen’s “I’m on Fire” to superb effect
and sans the heavy-handed theatrics of the original while the finale, “Dearly
Beloved”, strikes a welcome note of humor on an otherwise serious set of songs.
It’s good and wise that Thunderbolt and Lightfoot end on this note; it’s little
twists like this and others mentioned before that make the duo special.
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