Richard Hawley – Truelove's Gutter (2009)

More Richard Hawley picked up in a local charity shop, this one being his 6th studio album from 2009.

I've grown to admire Hawley's songwriting and performance, although at times the country and western influence hasn't worked for me. This album seems more introspective than some others and I've found myself enjoying it more with each listening

We open with As The Dawn Breaks, a dreamy flowing intro (Thomas Bloch on cristal baschet and glass harmonica), which continues its haunting theme, as Hawley's smooth vocals slowly lead us into the morning, with little other instrumentation. Open Up Your Door is more orthodox Hawley, a gentle song with string arrangement, beautifully showcasing his voice and songwriting. By contrast, Ashes On The Fire feels a little more formulaic as a country & western ballad, nice background, but it's not moving me.

Remorse Code is just lovely, never overstaying its welcome in nearly ten minutes, a warm, gentle song with a delightful slow guitar solo at the halfway point. The next two songs, while slow and easy, almost soporific, don't feel to have the same impact after the long piece, until the crescendo in Soldier On, which wakes up the listener after being lullabied, while For Your Lover Give Some Time is another minimal classic. The album ends, as it began, with the haunting accompaniment of Bloch's glass instrumentation on Don't You Cry, a repetitive tune, but beautifully delivered and arranged.

This is a lovely album, possibly a bit one dimensional in tone, but the songwriting and delivery are up there with some of Hawley's best stuff.

Link to full album

4* - For me, this is one of Hawley's finest albums. Highly recommended as a starting point