Customer Reviews

Evidence

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4 star:		(4)
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I still have the original, so I can't make much for comments about the extra track. But if you have yet to discover this little gem from 1989, it's never too late to make up for lost time. "Evidence" was the joyous sounds of two similar cultures coming together for one superior album. Boo Hewerdine was the front man for a British near folk band called The Bible ("Eureka" is still at least listed on Amazon) and Austin, Texas country/folk singer Darden Smith (best solo album is "Trouble No More" on Sony). Together, they made the kind of open and airy folk music hybrid that people like Bruce Hornsby and 10,000 Maniacs were popular for at the time.

But how much do I like this album? While "Evidence" is still in my collection, I've lost my Bible CD's. I had to go back and dig through a few used stores to find Darden's music again (though the duo still do the occasional tour, and Darden has some new material out). The brainstorming the pair did together brought forth some fun and catchy songs like "All I Want is Everything," "Under The Darkest Moon" and "Love Is A Strange Hotel." ("Hotel" was also covered wonderfully and made the title to a Gregson and Collister CD.) There are a couple of darker songs (the title track and "A Town Called Blue") that will bring Lyle Lovett to mind, or maybe Steve Earle in his less radical days (The Bible's early sessions were produced by Earle). That combination has been enough to always make "Evidence" a keeper.

Much like Any Trouble's debut album, this is smart acoustic music that is being brought back into print. Don't let this "Evidence" get overlooked again. Also recommend, Any Trouble, Gregson and Collister, Smith's "Little Victories" and "Trouble No More," and Hewerdine's "Baptist Hospital."

Boo Hewerdine and Darden Smith combine to create an outstanding pop/folk/country stew. This one has it all -- catchy hooks, quirky lyrics and lasting images. "All I want (Is Everything" and "Reminds Me (A Little of You)", in a just world would both have been huge radio hits. If you're a fan of Paul Kelly, John Hiatt, Jackson Browne or other similar singer-songwriters, you should buy this album. Though both have gone on to create some wonderful music separately, the only sad thing is that this is their only collaboration. Enjoy it.

This is a wonderful selection of songs by two (relatively new at the time) artists who were put together by the record companies and came through marvelously with catchy tunes and enthusiastic vocals. I saw Darden and Boo a couple of years ago at a venue with barely 20 people. They were wonderful.

BOO&DARDEN great little album very nice arranging now go and buy darden smith little victories cd also with boo great,great music

It's criminal how overlooked this wonderful album has been in garnering the praise it deserves. Smith and Hewerdine, according to the narrative on the album's label, were thrown together by record management types to collaborate on this work. (If you purchase this album, read the label. It gives an incredibly humorous account of the divergent viewpoints held by Smith and Hewerdine about the musicmaking process of "Evidence.") In a total matter of weeks, they did all the composing and recording for "Evidence." From the end result, you'd think at that point they had been friends and collaborators for years. There are some songs on this album that are best described as subtle masterpieces. For example, "First Chill of Winter" is a heartbreaking and beautiful piece, with the artists' voices blending and building off each other in a seamless duet. The lyrics are also breathtaking: "I believe/I believe/I believe/...I just felt the first chill of winter/Was it you/Was it me/That let the coldness in?" "Evidence" is also a powerful song that perfectly captures the ironies and edginess of infidelity and betrayal: "We go dancing./Your eyes are always on the door.../Here comes the punchline right across the floor./He breaks in./We won't be dancing anymore." Not all of the songs on the album reach the heights of these two incredible numbers. However, if "First Chill of Winter" and "Evidence" are the two grand slams of the album, the rest of the work still pulls off an amazingly high ratio of home runs.

Even if the line "a purty face was made for missing" turns you off, you'll find something to like about "Evidence". It is understated to the point of disappearance, but the melodies are so damn catchy they stick in the craw. Gravitating toward folk and country, songs like "Evidence" and "Oil on the Water" talk about sin and redemption in love ... a subject hardly out of style. In my opinion this whole is greater than the parts - both Hewerdine and Smith have released disappointing albums since.