Artist of Extreme Maturity
M. Gaines | Alabama, United States | 12/17/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
""People will be playing this in fifty years and it still won't seem out of place, a timeless classic is what we have here.."
-Les Linyard-So many new albums make their way into the musical network on a weekly basis it's difficult for the avid musical fan to keep track of it all. Some are quite good, others cater to specific genres, while others just seem to be everywhere trying to catch that million dollar sound, appealing to as many folks as possible. Every once in a while there's something special that slips through the cracks, goes unnoticed to the listening public at large. Due to lack of promotional funds from record companies, lacking distribution in the corporate network, or just ignored by a misinformed music press, those rare moments of musical beauty are thrown to the winds perhaps finding home to appreciation and admiration. After encountering Adam Masterson's new offering "One Tale Too Many" I whole heartly agree with Mr Linyard's statement. Accompanyment from studio personal such as Van the man's alumni Kate St John (oboe/coranglais) and Johnny Scott (guitars) plus Richie Buckley (flute/sax), Liam Genochey (drums), George Hall (keyboards) and Dudley Phillips (bass) with masterful production from Mick Glossop, Mr Masterson's first offering to the musical community is a beauty to behold. Masterson's vocal abilites far exceed his age and one would speculate upon first encounter that this is a work of someone much older with a wide scope of the world at large. As Mr Linyard states: "His vocal is particularly hard to pin down, a breathy, sardonic strut that hauntingly hangs over the breathtaking and lavish arrangements. It does sit perfectly over the flowing music that dwells below and should guarantee critical acclaim." The musical accompanyment fits Mastersons vocal abilites beautifully, soaring oboe, magesticly fleeting flute add to the intensity and poetry of his artistry and remarkably place this first offering in the "Classic" catigory of contemporary works. Perhaps the most breathtaking pieces, in my opinon, the centerpiece of the album is "Into Nowhere Land" a 6:00 journey that pays homage to Springsteen's "If I Were the Priest", Elliott Murphy's "Anastasia" and Van Morrison's "Vanlose Stairway" followed by "Beneath The Moon" a journey into the never-never land of poetical brillance and lyrical integrity that will have the critics stumbling all over themselves proclaming the blinding brevity and importance of this first work.It will be interesting to see where Masterson's journey will take him as he ages like fine wine, only getting better, exploring avenues of musical adventure and poetry hoping that the world will take notice.
For that we'll have to see, for now I'm basking in the magnifigance that is "One Tale Too Many" and imagining what the future will bear..................................... -Mystic-"
A soothing debut from an artist to watch
Maria | Hong Kong | 05/23/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Unashamedly going back to the basics, Adam Masterson's wistful, slow-burning debut could have been recorded in an era when the term 'singer-songwriter' was still accorded a modicum of respect. As well as being heavily influenced by Neil Young, Van Morrison, early Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan, the 22-year-old Londoner reveals shades of the Wallflowers and the Counting Crows - hence the not-unjustified comparisons to Ryan Adams. Rejecting trendiness for a direct simplicity that translates itself as timelessness, there are no big surprises here, but that's not the point. Masterson's whiskey-soaked vocals set a rustic mood, like driving with the top down through rolling golden cornfields. But that doesn't mean it's all country-hick mawkishness because, for the most part, the exuberant lyrics are redeemed as Masterson refrains from over-emotive singing. A flute bobs in and out through What Yesterday Brings, weaving a jaunty thread through what would have otherwise been a strum-your-guitar-on-the-back-porch tune. The songs effortlessly coast along, but Sarah Queen of England is the one place where Masterson overreaches: it's an epic, overblown affair, overly ambitious in its troubadour zeal, with Masterson comparing the heroine to a "moonstruck, earthbound angel". Thoughtful longing permeates Same Sad Story, but it's Sunlight Song that captures the spirit of the album - an entreaty to slow down and enjoy life. "The air is so sweet, my mind, it melts in the heat, I dream away, in the sunlight haze", rasps Masterson, "I'll take life at my own pace." Despite the declaration, with eight tracks One Tale Too Many is frustratingly at least two songs too few."
Track Listings (8) - Disc #1
