4/2/2023 0 Comments Ryley walker tour![]() The last three tracks of this album continue in a more sullen direction. Walker returns to his roots with my personal favorite “Sweet Satisfaction.” Love-lost, passionate lyrics like “I’d rather be dead babe then see you cry,” combined with intricate fingerpicking make this beautiful song a must-listen. ![]() Although the lyrics are sparse and simple, this nostalgic track makes me feel like I am basking on the banks of the majestic Old Kishwaukee. This song serves as an ode to the baptisms he witnessed while walking the banks of the river. Walker’s next piece, “ On the Banks of the Old Kishwaukee,” introduces the shot of Americana that slightly deviates from the artist’s specialty. This song is essentially an impressive jazzy jam session between the two musicians, almost feeling cathartic in nature, with Walker providing a background fingerpicking outlay. Walker follows with another instrumental called “Love Can be Cruel” that highlights the talent of both his drummer, Frank Rosaly, and pianist, Ben Boye. The first being the fast-paced folk piece called “Griffiths Bucks Blues.” Named after a local artist and botanist in Walker’s hometown of Rockford, Illinois, this upbeat mix of acoustic fingerpicking and lively fiddle makes me want to join hands with a group of close friends in a circle and dance the night away. Intriguing, surreal images are meted out by "I Will Ask You Twice", like a malfunctioning slide projector and, perhaps best of all, the stunning finale, "Age Old Tale", which spiders out from an Alice Coltrane-inspired reverie into a sustained rapture that very few artists have managed to achieve.After establishing his jazzy ability, Walker creatively introduces a duo of instrumentals. Soft, slo-mo explosions of melody intermittently burst through the distant thunder of the verses on "A Choir Apart". Perhaps more than any other song on the record, the somnambulant sun-dappled intimacies of opening track "The Halfwit In Me" most audibly bear the imprint of Ryley's improvisational sessions with Wilco multi-instrumentalist, Chicagoan and producer Leroy Bach, while "Funny Thing She Said" is an unflinching study of separation set to a shimmeringly supple ensemble performance. On the album, "The Roundabout" represents a symbolic return to Chicago, while other songs are directly wedded to Ryley's actual return there. A sprawling tour of the USA around Primrose Green presented a perfect chance to workshop ideas for what would eventually become his third studio album, Golden Sings That Have Been Sung. Robert Plant declared himself a fan - as did double-bass legend Danny Thompson, with whom Ryley would later embark on a British tour. In March, his second album, Primrose Green, emerged to critical hosannas from the likes of NPR, Village Voice, Uncut, and Mojo - in the process, earning admiration of musicians who had chalked up no shortage of turntable miles in Walker's life. The preceding years have been extraordinary for Ryley Walker.
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