Customer Reviews

Paper Airplane

5 star:		(64)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I guess I'm fortunate I still buy CD's and do not download. I went to the Target Store today and purchased the new Alison Krauss and Union Station CD. I bought the last one they had in stock with the 6 Bonus Tracks. I especially love "These Days". It is actually better than some of the other 11 tracks originally released. There are 3 additional new tracks in all, and 3 live performances from their live concert CD from 2003. Tracks I really enjoy from the main 11 songs are, Paper Airplane, My Love Follows You Where You Go (Very Upbeat), Dimming of the Day, Sinking Stone, and My Opening Farewell. Of course, Alison displays that Angelic voice in "Dimming of the Day". This will surely be a major hit. Buy the Target CD, it is very much worth it. All three of the new bonus tracks has Alison on lead.

(Note: A 17-track version of the album - including three songs that did not make the cut of the standard CD - is available at Target stores as of this writing.)

In the simplest terms, Alison Krauss and Union Station have once again made an immaculate, blissful crafted record with "Paper Airplane," their first studio release in over six years.

This may be the most notice a Krauss album gets - solo or with Union Station - thanks to the unprecedented success of "Raising Sand," her Grammy-guzzling 2007 collaborative effort with Robert Plant. Happily, this has not given rise to a more commercial sound. There is no noticeable alteration to the gorgeously textured bluegrass palettes or evergreen melodies that are by now synonymous with Krauss and Union Station.

The profoundly beautiful title track is buoyed gently by Krauss's honeysuckle voice, as is the calming lullaby of "Dimming of the Day." The overall sound of the album is more aggressive in tone and feel, however, exemplified by the haunting, pungent "My Love Follows You Where You Go" and "Sinking Stone," which just avoids country music cliches with its end-of-relationship goodbyes thanks to smart, thoughtful lyrics, buttery harmonies and, as always, intense, well-oiled instrumentation.

"Lie Awake," an examination of being stuck at a major crossroads, accentuates the album with a great deal of tension yet, as with quieter selections such as "Lay My Burden Down," the end result is intoxicating - a pleasure for the ears even without considering the lyrics.

Three selections are sung by Union Station member Dan Tyminski with control and a sincere, unstudied quality that is most pleasing. They keep the pulse of the listening experience invigorated and free-flowing. In fact, as a whole the album is a tight, fast-moving one that rounds the bend very quickly. It gives the intended effect and is gone.

Some will say that "Paper Airplane" does not offer insightful, provocative themes or new ground for Alison Krauss or Union Station, and while that is not incorrect that is also not a valid reason to be critical because track by track, the album is close to flawless. It is on par with the best of what these gifted musicians have offered us before, which says a lot. This is not music made for sales' sake but for the pleasure of real music making, and the results handsomely reflect that.

How can Alison Krauss and Union Station go wrong? Impeccable talents all, their fantastic ensemble skills are very much in evidence here. And of course there's Alison's gorgeous voice. Why then only 3 "It's OK" stars? Well, Alison has set the bar so high over her long career that I just expect much more from her. Her spectacular fiddle skills have largely gone by the wayside since her early hard-core bluegrass days -- a shame, in my opinion -- but I guess somebody decided it's not ladylike for a country diva to wail on the fiddle like her male counterparts might get to do (if there ARE any male counterparts who both sing AND play fiddle as well as she does.) So what we've got here is a beautifully performed but middle-of-the-road album with occasional high moments but, on the whole, a monochromatic effort. Dan Tyminski contributes a few good lead vocals, and Jerry Douglas on dobro is always welcomed. But Alison phones it in. I miss the soulful wailing of "Oh, Atlanta." Overall, the song choice is not inspiring, certainly not as interesting as it has been on albums like SO LONG SO WRONG, for example. And on a great song like Richard Thompson's "Dimming of the Day," the result is pretty, but lackluster. Listen to Bonnie Raitt or Linda Thompson sing this haunting tune and understand its true meaning. It's all there in the poetry, but Alison sounds like her mind was on something else. On a positive note, I kind of like "Sinking Stone," and the last cut, Jackson Browne's "My Opening Farewell," has a message I can relate to.

I've been following Alison's career since she was a teenager and have seen her in person more times than I can count. She's one of my all-time favorite artists. In conjunction with Union Station she has produced some of the finest bluegrass and bluegrass-crossover recordings ever made. Perhaps she's been hanging around Nashville too long. Please Alison, stretch out and return to your roots, if only for a short time, and give us some of that hot fiddle playing that put you on the map, and round up the band for some high and lonesome bluegrass harmonies.

Alison will always be welcome in my home, but PAPER AIRPLANE barely takes off and will, for the most part, be relegated to the hangar (shelf).

First, a caveat: I'm hopelessly in love with Alison's voice, one of the great musical instruments of her generation. She could sing the grocery list and it would be a pleasure to hear, so I am biased. However, in context with the previous AKUS records, I'll try to be objective.
I immediately decided tracks 3 and 5 are my favorites, the former written by Krauss' brother Viktor. A haunting, moody piece of mild paranoia, exquisitely arranged and produced. In fact, ALL the tracks have a lush, multi-layered production sound I enjoy. Track 5, an uptempo number called "My Love Follows You..." is in the same mold as "So Long So Wrong", "Take Me For Longing", and "My Poor Old Heart" which pretty much define the sound of Ron Block-era AKUS at its best. The title track is beautiful with its soaring chorus, and the 3 Dan Tyminski vocal showcases are performed with a hard-edged old-timey sound and slightly angry vocals ("Dust Bowl Children").

The album as a whole (the 14 new studio track extended version) has a very polished, if somewhat less dynamic feel overall. "Dimming of the Day" is a good choice of covers (there's only one original, by bassist Barry Bales), but the tempo it's played in is too lugubrious for my taste.
There are also some unfortunately missing pieces: no foot-stomping Jerry Douglas instrumental, no contemporary bluegrass-gospel number by Ron (whose banjo is in less evidence than his guitar), and Alison's fiddle is almost completely absent throughout. Fans of her more trad sound from the 1987-96 period will miss that for sure.

Despite these "flaws" I still love hearing the 14 new tracks, and have this CD in heavy rotation in my car stereo. The musicianship, production quality, beautiful melodies and thoughtful lyrics make it a winner in my book. Oh yeah, there's that Voice too. Makes me wonder if Alison made the same deal Robert Johnson did at the crossroads to be able to sing like that. Just one wish though - Alison, pick up that fiddle! It's getting lonely!

Alison is my favorite, but this album is not up to her usual standards. The only number on the CD that I bothered to rip for my MP3 player was "Dimming of the Day", which is really good. I should have downloaded that song and passed on the rest....

I recieved Paper Airplane and So Beautiful or So What in the same shipment. (not a bad way to start the week)I also saw them on Letterman last night. They looked different but the music isn't. It is what we have come to expect from her and her mates. Good songs --very well done. It doesn't break any new ground. These great musicians have settled in. Consider if you will her last project with Plant. It stretched her as an artist. In comparison check out Paul Simon's release and see if it sounds unique to your ears. It does to me. He is still expanding-exploring stretching as an artist. Check her rendition of Dimming of the Day--a Richard and Linda Thompson cover--beautifully done. But...check out the original recording --side by side-- and the original has that sound that you know is something special. (even from around 40 years ago--it still sounds great) This is a very nice record but it will take it's place in my collection with their other recordings--to be pulled out occassionally but not constantly demanding my attention.

Read some of the initial reviews here which were mixed. Being a AKUS fan thought I'd give it a shot. 1st couple play throughs my impression was unenthusiastic. I wasn't sure if I liked the music. After listening a few more times I got hooked. This is a somewhat dark CD but the songs here portray the skill of the musicians. Several cuts are haunting and seem to stick with me such as "Sinking Stone". I keep on coming back as if addicted. No doubt, this album will have its place among the best of the year. It is "artistry". When considering much of the other music out there, this album is a break from the mediocrity found in many today's top albums. Recommended.

I'm not sure what happened here, but the energy and creativity just doesn't seem to have made to the final product. I've been a big fan for years of these folks, both separately in three or four directions, and together, but this one seems destined to sit on the shelf as there's just so much more interesting material to choose when my tastes are thinking of Alison and Union Station

Alison Krauss has a very good voice & I enjoy most of her albums but just as the price of this one suggests, this is a lesser album. The new songs here are weak on melody & the covers are good but "same Ole." Seems to be some sort of interm album until the next real album comes out. I expect better than this from AKUS & hold them to their own standards.

This is such an easy review to write.
I bought Paper Airplanes.
It arrived.
I have not listened to another CD since Paper Airplanes arrived.
That was six months ago.
It's my all-time favorite CD.