Scuffletown

Eric Taylor | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 20, 2001)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Eminent Records
• ASIN: B00005A8OK
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #16,822 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #78 in Music > Indie Music > Country > Country Folk

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tying Up Loose Ends, March 20, 2001

By 

Gridley (asheville, north carolina USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Scuffletown (Audio CD)

Eric Taylor obviously has faith in life's dichotomies. When the well comes in in Happy Endings, "Mother bought a house in Bangor, Maine and Carl hit the road again." In All the Way to Heaven, a shooting is superimposed over Charlie Rich's soulful singing in a picture he knows will take you all the way there. And then there's Bread and Wine, Taylor's wry glance at the Last Supper, in which "He wants forgiveness for you all," a counterpoint to Game is Gone and "You need forgivin', not mine." Lest you begin to believe that Taylor holds no hope for a fragmented world, he ties up all the loose ends in Townes Van Zandt's Nothin': "Brother our troubles are locked in each other's arms." It's a beautifully orchestrated work, as subtle and as spare as a confidently concieved work of art can be. There's humor in Chicken Pie and a sad beauty in Blue Piano and yet another Townes song, Where I Lead Me. In Delia/Bad News, he takes this traditional blues lament a few more steps down the road with some words of his own. And there's retribution and redemption and ecstasy and loneliness in these eleven songs, too. Scuffletown is good. Real good. Taylor will take you all the way home as he keeps tyin' up those loose ends.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ERIC NEVER SOUNDED BETTER, March 26, 2001

By 

Larry L. Looney (Austin, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Scuffletown (Audio CD)

Eric Taylor is a songwriting master whose releases have never failed to live up to my expectations -- and he just keeps getting better and better at what he does. And what he does is create some of the most eloquent, beautiful and poetic images ever to come from a songwriter's pen. The first track pulls the listener into the world of Taylor's imagery and doesn't let go. Taylor's voice mesmerizes, and the arrangements are all just what they should be -- they never get in the way of the song. Denice Franke, a long-time Taylor friend and musical contributor (and a fine singer-songwriter in her own right) adds her incredible voice to several tunes, shining in her own way at just the right moments -- and all of the musicianship is excellent, showcased by a crystal-clear, unmuddied recording. It's great to see Taylor released by a nationally-distributed, respected label with this new cd -- now the rest of the country will have a better chance to learn what we've known in Texas for years -- this man is a treasure. There's a movement currently underway in Texas to fill the long-vacant position of Poet Laureat -- here's the man.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Never an easy listen, but that's exactly why it's great, October 8, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Scuffletown (Audio CD)

Having seen at least two reviewers completely fail to "get" this album, I thought a brief defence of Scuffletown would be in order. It is unabashedly, unfailingly bleak - no question about that. If you want frequent changes of pace and mood, look elsewhere. But this is great, intense, absorbing songwriting that is proud to be stretching and wilfully introspective. It is a little wearying over the space of a whole album (and when performing live Eric may well relate how one much big-name singer-songwriter in this genre came up to him and said, "I love your songs, but the trouble is you've got no hope) - but nothing says you have to digest it all at one sitting. There is a definite synergy with Townes van Zandt, but Eric's melodies are much darker, and his lyrics more literary; liking van Zandt doesn't guarantee you'll like Eric Taylor, or vice versa. If I have a criticism, it's that the production, already fairly sparse, could have been even simpler: Eric is a wonderful guitarist, and more use of the plain combination of his gruff, deep vocals and moody guitar-picking would have made this an even finer achievement.