At Dawn

My Morning Jacket | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 5, 2001)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Darla Records
• ASIN: B00005IBZT
• Also Available in: Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #57,877 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

A voice that's both honey & charcoal, deep Southern gothic canvases with gracious acoustic and electric guitars, painterly strokes of harpsichord, harmonica, lap steel, drums swimming in the deepest, darkest widest pools of reverb, dirigible harmonies that will have you weeping, incensed atmosphere so thick, it's absolutely biblical. Darla. 2001.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars New Day Rising April 7, 2003

By Tiernan Henry

Format:Audio CD

A recent MOJO alerted me to My Morning Jacket. Though "At Dawn" is a couple of years old, it has just been released on this side of the Atlantic.

A dreamy, soaring collection of songs, "At Dawn" is achingly beautiful and the title is oh so appropriate; there is a slightly unreal edge to the songs, they seem to shimmer in the new day's light. Beautifully arranged and played the songs are a delight. Melodic, hypnotic and arresting the songs have a lived in, yet brand new, feel. The key, however, is Jim James.

His voice pushes the songs right to the edge, investing them with a thrilling and stirring emotional depth. He has one of those rare voices - part country, part rock, part soul - that is a mix of ability and emotion. Think vintage Rick Danko and Richard Manuel.

CDs can be fraught things: all too often a band with 40 great minutes releases 74 mediocre minutes, because, well, they can. It's rare to find a full length - or as good as full length - CD that sustains through a full hour and a quarter.

"At Dawn" zips by.

Hints of Mercury Rev, Lambchop and Flaming Lips weave in and out of the mix, alongside nods to Neil Young and Bob Dylan (and - in mood, if not in sound - "Music from Big Pink" and "The Band").

A very American collection, "At Dawn" is absorbing, engrossing and hugely, hugely entertaining.

Don't miss this early moring call.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A little bit country, a little bit pop. A lot of talent. May 29, 2001

By M. Lewis

Format:Audio CD

Having seen My Morning Jacket live a couple of times, both as a full band and as the Jim James solo act, I was eager to hear this album. This, MMJ's second full length, is a truly great follow-up to The Tennessee Fire. It is a little more laid back, a little more country-influenced, but not so much as to depart from their signature mix of pop, rock, and alt-country. The best part of this new album is that a second cd is included with the original versions of the songs as laid down by Jim with just his guitar. It offers us the chance to hear how the band sounds as a whole and as Jim's solo project. The bottom line is: if you like melancholy music with just enough fun and happiness to keep you interested, if you like melody and amazing vocal work, if you like good, earthy music, this is for you. However, if you're not very much into country, I recommend you start with their first LP, The Tennessee Fire, and work your way into this one. Wonderful music all around.

32 of 37 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Love Is The Word September 25, 2002

By Jason Bylinowski

Format:Audio CD

Figured this review section could use some non-Kentucky commentary, though it's certainly good to see that the band still has a strong regional following after all this time.

This album [drew] me in, as none other really has in a very long time. I've been very jaded lately about new music, not that any that I listen to is very poor: more like, none of it stands out very far in my mind, lately. This one is different, somehow....first of all, Jim's voice is just about as good as it gets for the kind of twang he puts into his performances. It's utterly fitting of the style of down-home music they play, and yet it's not a pure-country voice by a stretch. (Like the voice of someone who is country whether they like it or not, sort of like I am by heritage.) Anyway, the man has pipes and he makes very dynamic use of it throughout this long (73 minutes!) album. Secondly, the production on this album is superior....fans of the Tennessee Fire will notice a HUGE difference between the way the band sounds here and how they sounded in their official debut. Of course, you should not be too discouraged to get TF if you enjoy this album, for the simple fact of its brilliance will always surpass whatever they were financially lacking during the recording of the album. But, At Dawn is a much better introduction for the new listener in my opinion, and it also has a little more rock action in it.

I digress, as always. Simply put, if you are not completely urbanized beyond your own control, or too fascinated with American Idol to give real music a chance, you WILL find a reason to love this album....& this statement is coming from a HUGE Aphex Twin / Philip Glass fanatic of many many years, so I know what I'm talking about. Good art doesn't require a specific genre or one particular artist, good music only requires real pathos and the raw talent to back it up, and these guys prove that yes, even country-rock can be artful and sincere at its best - although a little reggae never hurt anybody either.