Customer Reviews

Straightaways

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I played this record nearly every morning in the summer of 1997 and can attest that (like most great records) if you give it several good listens it will capture you. I have both this one and Trace and strongly prefer Straightaways for several reasons: superior melodies, better playing (acoustic work is tastier), better vocals, more interesting lyrical themes, a better rocker (Caryatid Easy is surely one of the hardest rocking alt-country song of all time), and greater emotional depth.

Like many alt-country records, this one is about missed chances, lost love, loneliness, alienation, and wounded men yearning to recover. There isn't an obvious radio hit like 'Windfall' from Trace, but these songs are a little more earnest, in my view, and they're also a little better written. Many have disagreed in the previous reviews here, but I'm sticking to my guns: I almost never pull out Trace, but I've revisited Straightaways nearly every year since I bought it, and I haven't yet stopped enjoying it. I should clarify that I'm not really arguing against Trace, which is also a great record and a must-have if you're an Uncle Tupelo or Jay Farrar (or alt-country) fan, but I think this one is also a must-have, and I think it's a better record than Trace.

It adds up that the monster debut "Trace" by Son Volt (with a bona-fide hit single) would shade future releases, no matter how earnest and eclectic and far-reachingly successful in extending that initial vision. But the fact remains that many of the "Straightaways" songs were performed by Son Volt on their initial tour (which dilutes the critique of the songwriting as sub-par), and many of them were written on the road (which encapsulates the Son Volt vision rather explicitly, being that they are sort of road-weary travelogue types anyway). In other words, I'd give the nod to country music performed by non-urbanites, and this album likewise shimmers with self-confidence and cheer.

Highlights: the riff to "Picking Up the Signal"; the opening vocal of "Caryatid Easy"; the low-down slidy pedal steel whine about 10 seconds into "Left a Slide"; you know, the typical Son Volt stuff (I sure miss it). This band had a handle on something that many emulated but few could equal, and I consider this the second volume of a darned good trilogy, and a masterpiece of stately music in its own right.

Fact: while performing the tour for this album throughout the Southern United States, Son Volt deliberately slowed the songs down to a crawl, the tempo as languid as those summer nights themselves. A great album from a very vibrant and exciting band.

For those who were disappointed in "Straightaways" -- at first, I was, too. Fortunately, the Jayhawks outstanding "Sound of Lies" was released the same day. I bought both and taped them back-to-back. I must admit that only sheer laziness kept me listening to "Straightaways" through to keep getting back to "SOL." Funny thing -- after 20 or so listens, it all fell into place. Songs that seemed to go nowhere at first listen were now complete and compelling. Songs like "Left a Slide," which had filled me with frustration for seeming to fall so short of their potential now seem perfect. My advice -- invest the time, listen some more. You'll be glad you did.

Is what it was like hearing "Caryatid Easy's" searing opening riff, and then getting blown away by the impact of those badass drums. I'll give Jay and Co. one thing, he wanted the second album to be kicked off with a bang. Well done.
And while there are the obligatory rockers here ("Caryatid", "Straightaways", "Cemetery Saviour"), the real english is in the mourning. "Creosote" alone makes the record; I haven't heard a pedal steel as sweet as Eric Heywood's in quite a while, in addition to "Left a Slide".
Don't believe all of the alt-co. geek badmouthing of this record. It's good, it's real good. Here's to hoping Jay eventually finds his way back to the Brothers Boquist and Mr. Heywood. The World needs more son volt.

Gotta say that I'm quite addicted to Son Volt. I line 'em up on the CD changer (or iPod) and play 'em back to back. Great for windshield time - I'm always singing harmony. Sebastapol (Farrar's solo effort) is also delightful.

Farrar's writing appeals to me, but then I've always been the cathartic type.

The follow up disc to the outstanding "Trace" of 1995 is the beautiful journey of "Straightaways". Jay Faraar is a song writing genius who will take you on back roads of lonliness and to the freedom of the open road. This record is very acoustic based and Faraar tells the story of a desperate man in search of something. The thing about the band that started it all Uncle Tupelo is that it has produced two brillant bands in Sonvolt and Wilco. Sonvolt remains true to it's backroad roots on "Straightaways" while pulling the listener in to a distant highway that leads nowhere but goes on forever. Buy this cd and you will not be disappointed. I think it is the best cd Sonvolt has released.

I'm not sure if this album was rushed, or if Jay Farrar wanted to repeat the success of the earlier masterpiece, 1995's Trace. Either way, this album is something of a dissapointment. While it does have some of Son Volt's best work, it is cluttered with forgettable material and seems to drag along much slower than the previous album (which is really saying something, considering that both albums are about 40 minutes.)

The good side is that it contains some of the best work that Jay has put on tape. Caryatid Easy is a fun blast of a rock song, with a jangly chorus straight out of the Counting Crowes' book of hooks. Back Into Your World is another fantastic song, with a very introspective chorus. And even though Picking Up The Signal is a retread of the rockers on Trace, it's still a good commitment.

Too bad the rest of this album drags on. It's a lot more acoustic than Trace, and while I do enjoy the ballads and slow folk songs that Jay does, it gets old after a while. In fact, the rest of this album seems to drag at a mollasses-type pace. The instrumentation is great, and there really isn't any other band that does this type of sound, but it gets very old very quick.

Still though, it's a good add-on from Trace, and the best songs could easily fit on Trace were they recorded at the same time. Pick this one up later, you'll be glad you did.

I got into Wilco & found this album while searching Amazon. This album is fantastic & really grows on you. Great Alt-Country... Back Into Your World, Picking Up The Signal & Left A Slide are really the prefeft trifecta of songs (as another reviewer put it). They just flow one into the other. I love this whole album, especially the afore-mentioned & also Cemetary Savior & Last Minute Shakedown. When I first heard it (it was my 1st Son Volt experience), I admit I picked a few out & skipped some - but after a listening, I realized this album is great - buy it - it will grow on you & you will enjoy it.

As soon as I heard "may the wind take your troubles away" I was a Son Volt lifer. Nothing on Straightaways changes that, but I'm wondering if maybe this ex-band is one whose sound -- ringing Byrd-like or weeping guitars -- and vision -- man alone, small and often morose in the empty spaces of prairies and skies -- is so unvarying from album to album that the first one you hear inevitably remains your favorite.

Trace was my first; Straightaways doesn't quite match up, even with lines like these that open Creosote -- "Passin' under barren skies/waiting for our worlds to collide/and there you are...". The strongest songs here are the middle three -- Left a Slide, Creosote, and Cemetery Savior--, followed by No More Parades and Way Down Watson. The strangest cut would be Been Set Free, a very hard listen, which sounds like it could be about the unspeakable practice of bride burning in India, certainly an odd subject for an alt.country band to tackle.

No question there is plenty of good stuff here, and it's way better than average, but in the end I feel like I knew this music before I heard it -- and that's a bit disappointing.

I just bought this CD...I love it. Much, much better than the famous TRACE. The music is a hurtful sweetness and draws you in more and more at every listen. It's almost Country and it has lots of guts. For ALTERNATIVE Country....this is the real deal. Also....Whiskeytown's Faithless Street.