If you’ve never heard of Kevin Gordon, then he might just have had a hand in some of your favorite songs. His work has been covered by everyone from Keith Richards to Levon Helm, Ronnie Hawkins to Todd Snider, Irma Thomas to Hard Working Americans; he’s been raved about by Buddy Miller and Lucinda Williams (the later of whom he duetted with on ‘Down To The Well’), and he’s been praised in NPR, the New York Times, Rolling Stone and USA Today. At the time of writing he’s cultivated a twenty-five year career of writing, recording and touring that has seen him amass a huge set of critically-acclaimed albums, the last of which was the much-loved ‘Gloryland’ in 2012 (which also marked the end of a six-year hiatus). Now, Kevin is back with a new dozen track collection titled ‘Long Gone Time’ and due for release on September 4.
This record continues the narrative Kevin has been building for much of his career, with a twist. On the “electric” tracks he utilizes his band of 20+ years (producer Joe V. McMahan, Ron Eoff, Paul Griffith) for a selection recorded live with minimal overdubs, while on the acoustic offerings he brings in Lex Price and Bo Ramsey, again recorded fully live. Throughout he further explores a post-Civil Rights Act American South (leading on from ‘Gloryland’), finding personal perspective from his own Louisiana upbringing, allowing his raw sound and poetic lyricism to paint very real and poignant pictures. On ‘Shotgun Behind The Door’, for example, Kevin peels back the curtain on lingering racial tensions that continue to exist in the conflicted south (particularly now given the controversial lowering of the Confederate flag), while the rollicking stomp of ‘Immigrant’ reflects on the poor conditions afforded to those moving to the United States for a better life.
On the swampy, semi-psychedelic ‘Cajun With A K’, Kevin explores ethnic relationships and racism within Louisiana itself, as he references Johnny Rebel’s 1966 song ‘Kajun Ku Klux Klan’; Rebel was a Cajun country musician who often voiced sympathy for Jim Crow-era segregation and the Ku Klux Klan, and ended up releasing several racist titles through 1970. Rebel isn’t the only historic figure that Kevin references, however, and ‘Goodnight Brownie Ford’ serves as a far gentler tribute to cowboy singer Brownie Ford and includes personal reflections upon his death. A Native American rodeo balladeer who spent most of his life in Louisiana, Ford died in 1996 at the age of 92.
And although much of ‘Long Gone Time’ lives in the folk rock vein, it’s clear such traditional country folk tunes made a lasting impression on Kevin, as did the state he was born and raised in. ‘Walking On The Levee’ spends a hungover morning walking through the sleeping quiet of a town full of memories, while ‘Letter To Shreveport’ takes a harsher sonic approach for a stream of consciousness directed at the legendary musical town. We get the sense that this album provided Kevin the opportunity to mull over his upbringing and influences, and ‘Crowville’ is another example of his own reflections on real places. Crowville is an unincorporated community in Franklin Parish, Louisiana, and the song that bears its name serves as a series of vignettes based on life there. Meanwhile, ‘GTO’ tells the story of his father’s stolen car.
But as with any album focused on the American South, ‘Long Gone Time’ also includes reflections on the Bible Belt and its religious nature. ‘Church On Time’ is a classic rock ‘n’ roll number that describes how, despite his best efforts, he gets distracted and never makes it to church on time. It has wider metaphorical use for a look at the South’s struggle between saint and sinner, and the way that some congregations become overinvolved in the “saving” of others. ‘All In The Mystery’, the bluesy opener, continues this thread with a track of sexual innuendos that completes the picture of moral tensions present.
Ever-raw, ever-honest, Kevin Gordon proves once again that he is capable of producing a fantastic record steeped in thematic observation. Exploring ideas and events through the eyes of his Louisiana raising but also from the point of view of someone who has left, Kevin manages to find balance in his subject matters and balance in how he presents them musically (half of the album is acoustic, half electric). Most of all, he has made an album that connects but also challenges, and what more can we ask from an artist?
Originally posted here.
