Search - Josh Ritter :: Hello Starling

Representation Near Perfection

Deryck J. Ramey | 04/22/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Josh Ritter, an artist with little household name recognition, sends as much emotion through his fingers and voice than any artist in recent memory on his sophomore album Hello Starling. Completed in just 14 days, the album could very well be as complete and finished as an album that took months in the studio. But Ritter is simple and needs little time to set himself apart. Matter of factly, he needed no time in the studio as the album was recorded in an old barn on the French countryside using vintage equipment of the legendary Curtis Mayfield.



Hello Starling opens happy and mellow with Bright Smile and continues through subsequent tracks that can be accompanied by passionate love making or a cigarette on the front porch. I often try to relate music to emotions or events and Ritter excels like that of other great albums allowing the listener to appreciate his music at all times of the day and the year.



Wings, perhaps the most important and powerful track, displays Josh Ritter's songwriting talent. Again simple but effective. With a touch of the church and early Willie Nelson, Wings (a song Joan Baez recentely recorded) seems to be a contemporary storyboard for those who love to think of freedom and all of that stuff. Unlike many artists, Ritter shows he can change tune and tone by piggybacking Wings and the subsequent California with Snow is Gone. You can picture Ritter smiling/dancing on stage with this number six and it excretes joy with the smell of a window-down car trip.



An accomplished artist overseas, Ritter seems a distant star in the ears of American listeners. He follows in the footsteps of other now loved musicians like Nick Drake, whom at the release of their albums failed to find sales and fanbase, but it seems that with Hello Starling and his future endeavors Ritter will gather followers of his mellow simplistic vision of guitar folk."

Better than "Age of Radio"

Steve Chernoski | Hoboken, New Jersey United States | 12/28/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Ritter does it again, with great songwriting and overall fantastic tunes. "Kathleen," "Bone of Song" and "Snow is Gone" are the best, but almost every track is golden here (I didn't like "Bad Actress").



The live tracks are good, but I don't think they do him justice. I have seen Josh live with his band and solo. Both should be included for live tracks. The in betweens only somewhat capture his natural interaction with the audience. The funny thing is after all the times I've seen Josh is that no matter how successful he becomes, he always seems genuinely overwhelmed that people love his music and come out in droves for his shows. That totally adds to his on stage persona.



This should have been his breakout album, but we're hoping North America will take better notice with the next one and give Josh his due.

"

Incredible CD

Rockford W. | Arlington, MA | 09/10/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Josh Ritter's CDs just keep getting better. I listened to this album with some friends, and just purchased my own copy. Great stuff!"