Reviews

Artist: The Happy Soul
Album: The Modern Day Composer Refuses To Die
Label: Self Released
Tracks: 10
Website: http://www.myspace.com/happysoulmark

There are some albums that would definitely suit the imperfections of vinyl; the hissing, the rhythmic clunks, the occasional jump etc, and 'The Modern Day Composer Refuses To Die' is one of them.

It was raining when I decided to scrutinize the music of The Happy Soul, and then I started to enjoy it (not the rain - the music, or maybe both). It has that authentic quality, with musical inflections of the past. It's more or less blues in it's early stages, before blues got touched by the hand of Eric Clapton and the age of digital. And it's not 12 bar either, with lyrics containing the words 'suitcase' and 'this morning'. At times I heard the pleasantries of medieval, and also a campfire cowboy moment or two, but it seldom stops being blues! If I said Skip James, Nina Simone, Al Boley, Jeff Buckley, and a barber shop quartet, then that is something like what I think I'm hearing. With song titles such as 'A Lacklustre Appraisal Of The Essential' you may feel you are about to listen to a lecture in philosophy. And maybe you are?

I suggest anyone who likes to revel in good old fashioned jazz and blues to give this album a listen. However if your kind of music is the type that your average teen/twenty-something uses for their ring tone, then don't bother, as you'll be horrendously disappointed, and probably confused too.

I'd like to end my enjoyable scrutiny by saying that whilst reviewing this album I looked forward to opening the decent bottle of red wine I'd bought earlier. I also thought it would be nice to have rocking chair, a porch, a sunset, an old dog, and a broken heart, but you can't have everything, can you!

Miss James

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