Customer Reviews

Civilians

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This album is amazing. I continue to be mystified as to why every Dylan fan is not also a Joe Henry fan, although Joe is probably more frequently compared to Tom Waits, if only because they both write short stories in their lyrics. Civilians has stellar lyrics, like all Joe Henry albums (I also recommend his trio of perfection: Tiny Voices, Fuse, and Scar).

There are some really well-written, 4 star reviews of this album out in the blogosphere now, so go do a google search on some of those, because they do this album more justice than I ever could.

But, how to describe this album? Someone said "folk-noir" and I think that about sums up Joe's sound as best anyone could. Civilians is quieter than Tiny Voices -- less of a jazz sound if you will, more stripped down. The production is gorgeous -- there are some quiet spaces on these songs where everything just breathes, and I *love* the instrumentation on it -- pump organ, amazing piano, and some gorgeous strings on the epic "Our Song," which is the centerpiece of the album. This album will definitely grow on you.

Now Joe just needs to tour more!

As an added bonus, like all his other albums since Fuse, the art direction/layout (with photos by John Cohen) is more deserving of a gallery show than to be simply on a cd rack.

Some lines from "Wave," my favorite track:

"And all the while I kept your name beside me
I wrote it, but refused it on my tongue,
Believing you a song still there inside me
I feared your loss if ever it were sung"

Joe Henry's Civilians is a stirring, sincere and thoughtful work of simple brilliance. Henry has said he did not intend to make a political record yet did, but it's politics is timeless, rooted in civilian struggle of the simple meandering hardships and graces of life, regardless of whatever "current administration" of whatever year. The record could have been recorded 50, 30, 20 years ago and the same political references would have been relevant.

Beyond the politics, the music and lyrics are rich and vivid, the songs are never let go, held tight yet given enough room to breathe. Civilians could be described as a mix between "Kindness of the World" and "Tiny Voices". And although many will think it hyperbole, Civilians is not just the front running candidate from album of the year, Henry has delivered what could easily be a contender for album of the decade.

You know the way that the album that introduced you to an artist retains a special place? The first Dylan album I bought on its release was "Street Legal" and nearly 30 years on it remains one of my favourites. Similarly, my Joe Henry introduction was through a Minneapolis/St.Paul newspaper profile in 1992 that sent me off to my then local store in Madison, WI to get "Short Man's Room"; that record (get it now if you don't have it) is still a gem.

Joe Henry had released three albums before then and has released a half dozen or more since. He doesn't seem to rush these things, and they sound relaxed and easy, and they are constantly worth revisiting. "Civilians" has just eased itself into a seat at the top table; a warm, inviting, funny collection of gloriously played songs (played by a band sounding like a band having, as Grandpa Bob would have it, a whomping good time).

Henry has a knack of writing a lyric and melody that snags in your head that keeps you company on a window-down late evening drive or dancing with your partner as the wedding party winds down and the autumn bonfires are glowing orange on Mayo beaches. That's fine and dandy, but does this stuff swing and sway? Oh yeah. This is a cracker of an album, something that should be played loud, played quiet but played, again and again.

Album of the year? Quite possibly, and not just of this year.

I'll throw two more cents in among all the beautiful words people have written on the subject of Civilians. In my view, Tiny Voices might have made a pinnacle of a great career, but somehow Joe Henry keeps getting better, stronger, just keeps growing, as a storyteller, as a lyricist, an instrumentalist. By god, I think he is even breaking new ground in the art of production: who can make something so beautiful and complex sound so natural? This guy is an artist, seriously, of the entire process, from pen-to-paper to CD.

There are a lot of comparisons to Tom Waits, but I don't see such an active similarity. Sure, they both spin a mean yarn, and they are both moving forward as artists. But Waits occupies a unique place in music and art, and Henry is moving his own direction, distilling a whole genre to meet his great strength -- the songwriting -- the sensitivity, uniqueness, humor, sadness, all sparely mixed up like a concentrate of life itself:

I saw Willie Mays
At a Scottsdale Home Depot
Looking at garage-door springs
At the far end of the 14th row
...
The sun is unforgiving and there's
nobody would choose this town
but we've squandered so much of our goodwill
that there's nowhere else would have us now
we push in line at the picture show
for cool air and a chance to see:
A vision of ourselves portrayed as
younger and braver, and humble and free
This was our country
This was our song...

It's heartbreaking, all of it. "Sing it like a song," goes the title track, which along with "Time Is a Lion" are some of the most purely fun songs to sing to I've heard in a long time. The fun, the sadness; something about the relentless picking-it-up-and-laying-it-down gives Henry the authority to speculate on the concept of song itself. Through all the speculation and storytelling, the turns of phrase, and those weird Joe Henry images, he's shining new light on what it means to sing in an age that, with every passing year, more and more resembles the worlds he's been creating all along.

He's holding up a mirror, and I am both overjoyed and horrified by what's in it. I want to cry and dance. That's art.

"Civilians" is an albumn that should go down in history as one of the greatest. It's the equivalent of Don Delillo's "Underworld," and if that's too obscure a literary reference, I urge everyone to read the book as well as buy and listen to Joe Henry's albumn. He's a gifted singer/songwriter.

I am puzzled that I didn't know who Joe Henry was until now. If it wasn't for the TMC Remembers 2008 where they feature his song, "God Only Knows, he would have passed me by and it would have been my loss. Suddenly, I can't stop hearing "God Only Knows" enough and thankfully this compact disc saves the best song for last. Joe Henry is an acquired taste. If you like Bob Dylan or Bruce Springsteen or both, you might like Joe Henry, he's brilliant.

His masterpiece vocal interpretation of "God Only Knows" is sheer perfection. It's slow moving and poetic. You're mad that it's done and over with. His other songs on this compact disc are similar in interpretation but the last song is his best. I wished that he would perform it at the Academy Awards. Look, I didn't know much about Joe Henry until now. There is a lovely pamphlet with his lyrics for the songs and a biography.

Joe Henry is not well-known enough in my opinion but maybe it's best that way. I like to think of him as singing in smaller venues where he would be appreciated. Sometimes, his songs are a little dark to be considered folk music in my opinion. But then again, my opinion doesn't really matter in this case. Joe Henry's voice has a range of his own. His voice can be soothing and at times comforting.

I would like to think of Joe Henry's music playing in a small bar in the dark where the patrons are too busy thinking than drinking. That is how I like to picture it. Thank God, he's not commercial like some people. He's truly a gifted musician and artist as well as vocalist/singer. His music can also comfort us in distressing situations and after a long day of work or searching for work.

After listening to this intensely for several months, I have to say that this is Joe Henry's best album. Considering his past output, that comes as quite a statement. I'd also say that this was the best CD released in 2007, a year that in my opinion contained a bumper crop of exceptionally strong releases.

CIVILIANS signals a coming back towards home in the trajectory of Henry's music. From the Americana troubadour of his earlier work, Henry went to the stratosphere in his last couple of releases (SCAR, TINY VOICES) and achieved a unique, challenging style of music, that defies description. Here, he turns back and approaches a more down to earth style that while still challenging to the listener, is more rooted in the conventions of his earlier work.

This is a very subtle work of art, with songs unfolding after many listens to reveal their grace and beauty. On his last couple albums Henry has been able to employ a virtual fantasy band in each outing, but here outside of guitar wiz Bill Frisell, he employs his studio band to provide backing. They perform strong ensemble playing that highlights the music rather than diverting the listener's attention from the songs. And what songs they are. This is in my opinion the strongest set of songs that Henry has brought together in an album. From the jaunty opening title song through the last notes of GOD ONLY KNOWS, Henry delivers a set of consistently strong sons. My favorites include TIME IS A LION, PARKER'S MOOD, CIVIL WAR and the beautiful OUR SONG, WHICH I NOMINATE FOR THE National anthem for the 21st century. OUR SONG is an extended metaphor involving Willie Mays buying a garage door at Home Depot and the general drift of our nation. It has to be heard to be believed.

A word of note regarding my recommendation of CIVILIANS; this is a work of music that requires concentration to get the maximum satisfaction. That may sound pretentious, and may actually be pretentious for all I know, but I feel that it's true. I own hundreds of CD's and this is one of a limited few that holds up to repeated listens and also delivers a new detail or pleasure with each listening. CIVILIANS is a true classic that is worthy of a five star rating.

This album is solid from the first song on. The tempo is laid back. The music is diverse taking influences from jazz, blues, country, and classic rock. The songs are arranged very well. The tempo and vocals meld together seamlessly. It is a great album to listen too if your looking for something to sooth your mind and relax your body. This album is a lot like comfort food in the form of music. It has great guitar lines arranged to perfection with vocals that fit perfectly. If you are a fan of Amos Lee, The National, or Andrew Bird then there is a good chance you will like this album a lot.

Thank goodness!! After several critically-praised but relatively inaccessible albums, Joe has returned to his strengths - coupling strong melodies, good arrangements, and great lyrics.

Welcome back, Joe. Actually, your talent never was lost on us - it's just that this format shows it far better than where you've been hanging out he last few years.

This album sticks with you, and entrances. I bought this record when it was first released. Two years later, I'm still listening to it frequently. "Parker's Mood" is brilliant. If you fall in love as I have, make sure to check out the two live shows he gave on KCRW (you can listen to them streaming) and the acoustic show he did on NPR. I have only four of Henry's albums, but I love them all. This one, though, is my favorite. So far, that is. His newest record, Blood from the Stars, is new to me. In two years, who knows? I might find myself unable to stop listening to it.