Just Another Town


“One of the best albums of the last twenty years, bar none.”  John MacKenna, Songpeople, RTE Radio 1

 
RISH MUSIC MAGAZINE Volume 13. No. 9 June 2007 CD Review Nicky Rossiter JOHNNY DUHAN Just Another Town Bell BLCD 07 Remember the days of the concept albums of the 1970’s or 1980’s where we got collections of songs built around a single idea? In Ireland we have a modern maestro of the genre but we have to look closely to identify the concept in his work. The Voyage was a fantastic example taking family and relationships as his motif. Duhan has returned with an even better collection of songs on this new album where the town and its inhabitants are at the heart of the wonderful compositions sung in his own inimitable style. Opening with the beautiful Another Morning we awake into a musical landscape that will be familiar to all. The one track I recall from another performer is the enthralling and absolutely profound portrait of urban life called Always Remember. If the adage that Dublin could be rebuilt from Ulysses then in a few centuries this song could show students of social history the very real ingredients of any town and its people. Johnny Duhan not only gives us exceptional quality, he is generous in the quantity of songs on offer with seventeen tracks on this CD. In The Garden reminds the listener of the ordinary innocent pleasures of adolescent life in unsentimental lyrics. A lush string arrangement introduces us to the title track. Again Duhan draws lyrical portraits of very real people with their flaws and foibles. Listening to the track you can feel the chill of evening as he sings of the sun going down on the myriad scenes of town life. A simple track listing will give an indication of the diversity of songs on offer. And these include, Mary, Benediction, Daredevil and The River Shannon. One of my favourites among 17 favourites is One Hundred Miles. Like all Duhan’s songs it is simple and deep in equal measure. The language is simple but the musical arrangement and accompaniment combine to make even this four-minute tale of a person living away from home memorable. Listen to Young Mothers and you are transported to the reality of everyday life once more. We all know these people but could never express the vision as Johnny Duhan does. This is one of the best albums that will be on sale in 2007 and it is all the more valuable in coming from Ireland and from the genius of one songwriter who is sadly underrated in his own land. If enough airplays were given to any single track here he would be a superstar. As for now you have the chance to acquire a masterpiece ahead of the crowd. Nicky Rossiter ___________________________________ http://192.168.1.254/shapeimage_2_link_0