Not quite up to snuff
J. Johnson | 07/09/2004
(3 out of 5 stars)
"I normally wouldn't dare to say anything negative about a Guy Clark cd, but all of the rave reviews here need some balance. To put my opinion in perspective, Guy Clark is my favorite artist and I own all of his albums (including the LPs of his 3 warner bros. albums that you can only get on "Craftsman"). That said, this is his "worst" record (none of them are bad), and with the quality of all his other albums, I rarely ever listen to this one. I believe one reason is that ALL of the songs are co-written with other artists. That is not something that Guy did in his prime, although he has been leaning more towards that practice recently, perhaps by design. In any event, my point is, you may want to listen to the album before you buy to make sure the $17 is worth it. As for myself, if I had it to do all over again, I would have burned a copy from a friend. If you a relative newcomer to Guy Clark, begin with Old No. 1, Texas Cookin', and Dublin Blues."
Excellent, deep, satisfying
J. Johnson | Manassas, VA | 10/30/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"The Dark is typical Guy Clark-deep ruminations on life's complexities, touches of lighthearted whimsey, compassion and pure vitriol. A potent mix that when placed with outstanding music and Guy's weathered vocals produces one of the most satisfying discs of the year.
Mud reminds us where we come from and where we go. Songs like Arizona Star, Soldiers Joy, Dancing Days and Homeless sound like they could have been true stories. The title tune is on a par with The Randall Knife-about the highest praise I can give a song.
The only reason this disc is not a 5 star project is that it isn't as good as Keepers, Boat's to Build or Dublin Blues. But its REALLY good. Probably 4 and a half stars is most accurate. Buy this today"
Still writing great songs
jketelsen | Louisville, CO United States | 07/19/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I first listened to Guy Clark in my sister's living room way back in 1977. I was young and did not really absorb the lyrics at that time. Several years later I purchased the Old # 1 CD and was blown away with the lyrics to the songs. Nearly 30 years later Guy is still writing strong lyrics. I just received the The Dark yesterday and I am impressed with the quality of this recording. Every song is vintage Guy Clark and I find myself singing the lyrics to several of the tunes. I think it is Guy's best work in several years. Guy never over produces his work and the accompanying acoustic musicians really help make this set shine. I really like the sound of the mandolin, the occasional dobro, on these songs. I personally believe that Guy is the best of the Texas genre songwriters. I make this statement knowing that Townes Van Zandt (another of my all time favorites) wrote some great songs, but Guy has been doing this for 30 years and continues to deliver quality original material.I must agree that some of Guy's songs begin to sound alike, but when you have written over 1000 songs in your lifetime that probably happens. I strongly recommend this recording, and if you're new to Guy's music, check out Old # 1 and listen to the lyrics"