Wow. This album starts out so hot with “Last Train”. It starts the album rolling and doesn’t give any indication of stopping. I favorited this song right away. I’m on a New Orleans music kick right now, and there’s good reason: there’s so much good music from that region. Toussaint plays such a great piano piece in the song that is complimented by the slick chops and swishes of the guitar, plus his voice is so distinct in the album, I keep looking forward to the next lyric.
“Worldwide” is a great little tune that hops and bops along in a sort of jazz-blues fashion and really calms down for a smooth transition to the next track. “Back In Baby’s Arms” is so loving and caring while also a bit bittersweet, and the piano sort of caresses the listener while the smooth guitar and vocals spin around you. That jazz saxophone is so warm too. The song keeps building on itself and really sweeps the listener away, if you weren’t already.
“Country John” starts with a little southern flare, Allen Toussaint’s roots really shine here. It’s the type of song you could picture a group like Jerry Garcia Band covering back in the day – its got that jam type of vibe happening with a nice story to go with. The piece ends with a beautiful piano piece that sounds so lovely with some sort of distorted vocals and its really interesting and awesome at the same time.
“Basic Lady” is a great simple – or basic – tune. Pretty simple melody but pleasing to listen to, and it transitions to a great outro to the track that reminds me something of The Beatles/John Lennon. That outro once again transitions to the next track very well.
The vocals in “Southern Nights”, the album’s namesake, are sort of distorted/filtered and the creates a sort of hazy daydream mindset while the piano played by Toussaint fills the air with a sort of curiosity, imagination, and wonder. It’s a different vibe from some of the previous tracks, but its really exciting to listen to. The rhythm section is also just a simple gentle clapping of some small cymbals that really add to the wonderful simplicity of the track.
“You Will Not Lose” brings an air of confidence and hope to the album – the deep low notes of the bass and the piano really give a type of platform for the music to stand on that works quite well at this point in the album for the message. The piano has a really sweet little solo part out of nowhere that continues to play off that bass well. The song ends with another smooth transition to the next track, “What Do You Want the Girl to Do?” and it’s a nice smooth sort of soft rock piece, that sort of reminds me of a Paul McCartney sort of tune.
“When the Party’s Over” signals the end of the album is near as the groove is starting to slow down a bit, but definitely not stopping as Toussaint plays little flourishes of piano over the nice baseline that carries the song with side parts by the saxophone and little swishes of guitar here and there, it really is a nice song.
“Cruel Way to Go Down” has a lovely weight to it that is sort of bluesy but loving at the same time. This album has reminded me a lot of my favorite artists that many regard as some of the all time greats – Jerry Garcia, John Lennon, and Paul McCartney. Suffice it to say, the album is truly great. The final song reminds me of a solo Lennon song honestly. Out of nowhere it has a great little change at the ending that changes the mood to something positive after all that weight earlier. If you want great music to listen to, check out this neat 36 minute album by Allen Toussaint.
-A