Cordovas – The Rose of Aces
On their latest album The Rose of Aces, their fourth, country rockers Cordovas continue to display their amazing ability to seamlessly synthesize the introspective lyrics of The Band, the rising melodies of the Allman Brothers, and the overall feel-good nature of the Grateful Dead into creating their own distinctive sound. The result is a sparkling record that exists somewhere between country, straight-out rock and roll, and bluegrass that also just so happens to be one of the best listens of the late summer of 2023.
Leading off with the anthemic and best singles of the year “Fallen Angels of Rock n’ Roll” which contains the wonderful lyric and rhetorical question we could all ask ourselves – “How many times did music save your soul ?” and ends with the equally anthemic “Somos Iguales” (We Are Equal) the band in between these two wonderful bookends deftly crafts a collection of songs which recognizes the commonalities of all of human existence with empathy, wit, and positivity.
The characters move through the band’s musical stories giving a nod to the realities of sadness and the heartbreaks of life while recognizing the necessity of staying anchored and appreciative of living in the moment.
Besides the aforementioned bookends highlights include the euphoric “Sunshine,” the compassionate “Sky, Land & Sea,” the emotive “Deep River” with its brilliant lyric “Deep River, Deep Sorrow / Let’s Forget It Until Tomorrow,” the beauty appreciating “Skyline” and the signature song of the record “Love Is All It Takes.”
Ultimately The Rose of Aces is one of those records best listened to while driving down a winding country road on a sunny day with the wind in your hair which I believe was the producers’ intention. Their deft production on the record gets out of the way of the band and lets them be who they are – a band with the magical talent to give the listener instantly singable songs that stay in your head for days.
Musicians: Joe Firstman – Vocals, Bass, Piano, Synthesizer, Rhodes, Acoustic Guitar, Wurlitzer, Lucca Soria – Electric Guitar, Vocals, CH McCoy – Piano, Organ, Rhodes, Colton Stephens – Drums, Percussion, Cory Hanson – Vocals, Vibraphone, Electric Guitar, Smith Curry – Pedal Steel, Kelsy Lepperd – Vocala, Tyler Nuffer – Pedal Stee, Lap Steel, Heather Lockie- Vocals, Viola, Marisol Hernandez, Jimmy Messer – Acoustic Guitar, Drum Programming, Percussion
The Rose of Aces by Cordovas was produced by Cory Hanson, Wolfgang Zimmerman, and Jimmy Messer and will be available on the band’s website this Friday, August 11.