TIM GRIMM : GONE

  1. A Dream
  2. Carry Us Away
  3. Cadillac Hearse
  4. 25 Trees
  5. Laurel Pearl
  6. Joseph Cross
  7. Gone
  8. Dreaming Of King Lear

Label : Vault Records

Release Date : September 10, 2021

Length : 36:59

Review (Exystence) : During the past 25 years or so, Tim Grimm has built a reputation as a troubadour for our times, continually touring and performing – even with a little acting on his days off – and, as a result of building a catalogue of perceptive and beautiful songs, is often referred to as the songwriter’s songwriter. His latest album, Gone, does absolutely nothing to change any of that. Grimm hadn’t even planned to release another album in 2020-21, but as with so many other artists, with concert halls and theatres closed for the duration, put pen to paper and documented his reflections of the world as he watched the ravages of the pandemic take its toll. ‘A Dream’ uses haunting strings and piano to build beautifully into the almost perfect way to open… 87 MB 320 ** FLAC …an album, before gently rolling to a close, this dream maintaining all the while an upbeat vision of the future….“I dreamed we were walking up a hill in tall grasses/out of the darkness and into the light.” The simple guitar and banjo of ‘Carry Us Away’ is a poignant love song, full of angst and melancholy, before the great fun which is ‘Cadillac Hearse’, a fun road trip of a song, styled a little like Johnny Cash’s ‘A Boy Named Sue’, with similar pace and phrasing. This tells tale of a hearse that doubles as an ambulance on a racing mission to deliver a baby, which delivers a feeling of rural North Carolina in 1964 with “beans a-cooking” and “bread a-cooling.” There are songs about the books and trees made more relevant during the pandemic, but the real meat of the album comes in the songs reflecting on loss, particularly those lost during the past year or so that greatly influenced Grimm. Standout track ‘Dreaming of King Lear’ is a tribute to three songwriters who inspired him; Michael Smith, Eric Taylor and David Olney. These three were giants of song to Grimm and have left some legacy since their sad passing in 2020. Grimm writes “Each of you were jesters, but none of you were fools” and “all of you were preachers and prophets without fear/your talismans were bottles, books and dreaming of King Lear.” Grimm pays further tribute to Eric Taylor with a beautiful rendition of Taylor’s song ‘Joseph Cross’, the story of a dying Native American, with more of that haunting violin, and he also asked Taylor’s widow, Susan Lindfors Taylor, to sing harmonies on the track. The title track feels an authentic song of the pandemic, how things have changed for everyone so dramatically because of the impact of the virus. “I’d like to call you brother but the bridges have all burned/and the things you say without a mask bring darkness to the world.” And the line “….the man who brought us Paradise has laid down his guitar” references another of his lost heroes, John Prine. This is very much a family affair with wife and children contributing with banjo, guitar, mandolin, bass, harmonica and vocals and the quality of musicianship is of a high order throughout. Grimm has created a strong collection here and while reflecting on dreams past and present, on personal and community loss, still manages to produce a smile on the listener’s face.

Review (Real Roots Café) : Tim Grimm is een acteur (hij speelde o.m. in de film ‘Clear and Present Danger’ uit 1994, met Harrison Ford), singer-songwriter (ik tel 8 CDs inclusief deze fantastische nieuweling, ‘Gone’) en boer (hij is actief op de familieboerderij in Indiana). Op muziekgebied heeft hij behalve de CD’s nog een aantal bijzondere projecten op zijn naam, zoals recent ‘Flying Home: Indiana at 200’, een musical vanwege het 200-jarig bestaan van zijn geliefde staat Indiana. Met “Gone’ levert Tim een gevoelige, indringende en tekstueel opvallende CD af. Gevoelig zijn met name de songs over verlies, van een jong meisje in ‘Laurel Pearl’: “You were named fort he loveliness of trees and a luminous gem in the sea. We’re all just a breath in this world, close your eyes and let the mysteries unfuel, you’ll always be our girl, Laurel Pearl”. Het verlies van zijn goede muzikale vrienden die in 2020 het leven lieten horen we eerst in ‘Gone’ (John Prine: ‘and the man that brought us ‘Paradise’ has laid down his guitar, he sang ‘Angel From Montgomery’, ‘It’s a Big Old Goofy World’ and there’s hope in knowing everywhere some people know his words’).In ‘Dreaming of King Lear’ staat hij stil bij het heengaan van Michael Smith (hij schreef de prachtige ode aan Nederland, ‘The Dutchman’), Eric Taylor (van hem staat de prachtige ballade ‘Joseph Cross’ op de CD met zang van Eric’s weduwe Susan Lindfors) en David Olney: ‘Let us go to the banks of the ocean (citaat uit ‘The Dutchman’), If it can happen to you then it can happen to me, we’re headed for ‘Jerusalem tomorrow’ (song van Olney)…. Michael Smith, Eric Taylor and David Olney’. En de begeleiding is ook uitmuntend geslaagd. Belangrijke rollen zijn er voor zijn vrouw Jan Lucas-Grimm op vocals en zijn zoons Connor (bas) en Jackson (elektrische gitaar, banjo, mandoline, gitaar en bas). Ook de vaste gitarist van John Prine, Jason Wilber, speelt mee (op ‘Gone’) en de stringpartijen zijn van Diederik van Wassenaer (roots zijn evident). Laten we hopen dat Tim binnenkort weer in ons land kan optreden. Be there! ‘Gone’ is een kandidaat voor de eerste plaats op mijn lijstje van 2021, wat een magistraal mooie CD!

Review (At The Barrier) : Many people will resonate with the sentiments of the songs on this album which is another compassionate response to these times when the same feelings of loss, despair and hope often found in love songs are enmeshed with political views. All these anxieties inspired Tim Grimm to combine his theatrical and acting career by writing songs for this album. But rather than hurling profanities, Tim uses subtle metaphors and robust mockery to get his point across. Immediately his heartfelt and warm vocals in A Dream lull you in but the honesty of his lyrics take you out of your comfort zone, which is more evident in the stripped down reprise, minus Diederik van Wassenaer’s lavish string arrangements, showing that the sentiments of the lyrics are strong enough without them. Gentle fingerpicking and banjo blend with evocative harmonica to pare down the instrumentation in the next track Carry Us Away. In total contrast, Cadillac Hearse is a cheery old-style country tale of a speedy hearse tearing about like a 60’s musical road movie adventure. One for the good ol’ boys! In a similar mode but of a more contemplative nature is 25 Trees. The value of the natural world has become more valued under restricted movement and he shares this enlightenment with us through his affectionate rural observations. One of his most passionate songs dedicated to lost singer-songwriter friends (Eric Taylor, Michael Smith, David Olney, who he was inspired by and performed with) is Dreaming Of King Lear that tells of a deep contentment folk had in their presence and of the agony suffered in their absence. There is a moving interpretation of Joseph Cross, penned by the late Eric Taylor – a tale that reflects on the struggle for survival of America’s indigenous people had in coming to terms with the ‘white man’s’ world. The title song Gone was an instant hit with us, released as a single last autumn and received deserved notoriety by becoming the Number One Song of 2020 on the US Folk DJ charts. It was also nominated as Song of the Year in the International Folk Alliance Awards. Close family ties are a feature of his songs and, as on the autumn single release, the skilful harmonies and musicianship of Tim Grimm’s wife Jan Lucas-Grimm with sons Jackson ( banjo, guitar and mandolin) and Connor (bass) delicately intertwine with the tunes through the album. Friends James Gilmer (percussion) and Marco Feccio (electric guitar) and Eric Taylor’s widow, Susan Lindfors also accompany him. Tim has the gift of being moving, intimate and robustly honest without being slushy and over-sentimental. Gone is Country/Folk music at its best but don’t let the coziness of the music fool you as there are hard-hitting views and emotions layered into them.