Gentle Spirit (Audio CD) [CD]

After reading an interesting, but excellant revue on this Jonathan wilson "Gentle Spirit" cd, in Mojo, I ordered it. On it's first play, I wondered what all the fuss was about, after four plays, I realised that this was the album. the one I've been waiting for since the late 60's. CS&N, Neil young, massive Country Joe & The Fish, even Pink Floyd, they're all in there some where. I'm totally into that period, therefore I absolutely love this cd. Still living the dream!

3.5 stars

The heat and noise surrounding this album has been quite intense and reflects a view that on his second album North Carolina native Jonathan Wilson has produced a startlingly accurate piece of musical archaeology by uncovering a lost vibe from 1970s Laurel Canyon and tapping directly into the laid-back Californian aesthetic of singers like James Taylor, Jackson Browne and Neil Young. What you have to decide dear listener is whether "Gentle Spirit" builds upon that legacy in a meaningful and progressive way or alternatively is a piece of high end hippy bilge from a singer locked into another time. The issue with this album is that it actually plays into both narratives although the balance is generally well on the side of the righteous. One issue to address immediately is that if your musical bus is seeking out exciting times make sure you please don't get off at this stop. This album is so laid back it makes the Cowboy Junkies sound like death metal. And yet like Bon Iver's "For Emma" it whittles away at your musical sensibilities and very occasionally gently beats some of them into total submission. That said at 13 tracks on a double album size disc with many songs stretching over 8 minutes it is a very long and languid album requiring a saintlike degree of patience and perseverance plus the right ambience to fully appreciate the best of these songs and equally discard the worse (albeit most are excellent).

There are tracks which standout from first listen not least the lovely eight minute tour de force "Desert Raven" which reminds you of the band America at their best and which is made for watching the light go down over a sun drenched Californian sunset. Its that peerless West Coast soft rock that used to turn mere musicians into uber rich white powder sniffing ego maniacs languishing from the weight of dollars that flowed from achieving 20 million album sales. When it comes to the gently rolling acoustic "Ballad of the pines" you can almost hear the wind chimes and feel an immediate urge to cross your legs and contemplate higher beings. Hardly surprising then that the album contains an excellent nine minute song entitled "Natural Rhapsody" which starts off sounding like a mix of Radiohead and "Tomorrow never knows" but settles into an almost Pink Floyd style lament infused by liquidly guitar lines alia Jerry Garcia and a dreamy vocal by Wilson. You will either love it or it will bore you senseless, indeed this reviewer can't really go into into much detail on the albums longest track the 10 minute plus "Valley of the Silver moon" because I fell asleep listening to it, although I recall a Neil Young "slower than slow" guitar coda and some good vocals before the land of nod beckoned. Alternatively the much shorter surreal acoustic blues of "Can we really party today" is strangely enticing and immediately recalls the work of David Crosby. It is here we also discover the touchstone since "Gentle Spirit" does owe a huge debt to Crosby's trippy masterwork "If I could only remember my name" a superb evocation of Californian counter culture packed with great songs. True there are songs on here that Wilson could have left to languish on the cutting room floor such as the slightly silly "Dont give your heart to a rambler" which is mercifully short and "Woe is me" which is horribly long. You can however forgive him these indulgences particularly when it comes to songs as good as the spacey title track or the excellent "Magic is everywhere"

All the tracks from "Gentle spirit" are currently streaming on Soundcloud and try before you buy would be a wise option. In the final analysis it would be easy to ridicule some of the cringe worthy idealism contained in the lyrics which are infused with statements of the "natural world needs our energy" variety. Yet there is enough musical invention and innovation in "Gentle Spirit" to hold your attention and draw you back for further listens. Finally before that ubiquitous Amazon insult "the kings new clothes" is bandied around please re-read the health warnings contained in this review for like the work of Joanna Newsom the songs of Jonathan Wilson will attract admirers and detractors in equal measure. Ultimately hat's off to man for the sheer scale of ambition contained therein and it is over to you herald a gigantic folly of early 70s pastiche or a triumph of cosmic Americana.

Jonathan Wilson is a name i've come across a few times now, mainly as a session musician for, amongst others, Gary Louris and Jenny Lewis. His album 'Gentle Spirit' comes from a similar place. Very much of a different time, the lineage of 1970's Laurel Canyon singer-songwriters runs through its veins, but i think it avoids being merely pastiche. It's an album, in the traditional sense, that there are standout tunes, 'Desert Raven', but really it's the overall mood and vibe that matters. Songs slowly unfold, building from hushed vocals, piano's and acoustic guitars into Neil Young-like hazy jams, with a few country-tinged folk tunes inbetween. Ok, it's probably overlong at 78 minutes and at times loses a bit of focus, but overall it's an ambitious piece of work that requires a bit of patience, but is worth the effort. I've found that it's an album to put on at the end of the day and listen to through your headphones, like you would've in the old days!