Amelia White – Love I Swore
All Eyes Media
Guy Clark once said that it’s not so much about the lyrics, but the place they take you. Love I Swore pleasantly manages to tickle my imagination with fresh crops of verbiage and then transport me to places didn’t know I needed to be. That’s the real wizardry of this craft, isn’t it? Amelia White’s excellent songwriting was executed with the help of a dream team of musicians and producer Kim Richey.
It’s been a while since I heard a record where every song is my favorite. The production is astoundingly sublime and thoughtful. This collection takes me calmly to the dark edge of town where civilization ends are nothing begins, offering no explanation other than the presence of a charitable breeze.
“Something New Comes” kicks off the album by showcasing Amelia’s writing chops and sets the stage for fresh, unexpected chorus melodies, without overreaching: “What happened to this home. The one I’ve counted on. Walk the empty rooms. Like opening a closed-up wound. Opening a closed-up wound. Flowers are in bloom how do they not know the chill of the dawn.”
“I Follow the River” retraces the steps of love gone vacant, with traces of melodies and production like Travis – “Time stops at the river the stars are still – And the black water disappears – Is that your ghost coming to meet me on the bridge – To find what you left right here.”
“Beautiful Dream” is one of my faves dripping with Byrds flavors and colors and recollecting that relationship that was a bit too fun for its own good, partying well into the next day, the next month, maybe the next year. A must for any weekend road trip. “BABY WEREN’T WE A BEAUTIFUL DREAM – ITS HARD TO WAKE UP TO A SETTING SUN – PINKS and REDS CHANGE INTO BLUES – CLOSE MY EYES I’LL GO BACK TO THAT BEAUTIFUL DREAM WITH YOU”
“Nothing I Can Do” is an anthem of letting go and leaning in when the world slips your hands – “I lost that big fish job – Was gonna pay off my debtors – Got a hole in my pocket so big I’m losing everything that matters – My girl’s gone cold – No sweet goodbyes in the mornings -Now the sound of her engine starting up is like an early warning.”
Title track “Love I Swore” is the anthem of a faithful lover when the clouds darken on a relationship: “You caught me by surprise with all those daggers in your eyes. And I see you shiver like a lost domestic bird. Looking for the hand that set her free. FLY BUT DON’T GO FAR. I’ll keep the candle burning and I won’t lock the door. FLY BUT DON’T GO FAR. I swore the love I meant and I still mean the love I swore.”
“Time,” co-written with Mando Saenz, is for me the powerhouse song of the record. A sunrise hit-the-road-and-go melodic gem with lyrical muscles: “Time moves slow and then it flies, bird on wing. With X-ray eyes — sees through me it looks through you. TIME WILL SHOW YOU TIME WILL SHOW YOU TIME WILL SHOW YOU.”
White made her way to her home of East Nashville after years of guitar-slinging in Boston and Seattle. A fixture at the Family Wash, she has become a leader in the Nashville music scene and developed a reputation in the rest of the U.S. and Europe as a celebrated songwriter. Her 2019 release Rhythm of The Rain earned White press accolades, chart success and led to bigger shows and events. Love I Swore continues to cement White’s spot as one of America’s premiere singer/songwriters.
Love I Swore was produced by Kim Richey, and she also contributed gorgeous backing vocals and percussion. Richey and White come together to create a collection of songs with notes of rock and roll, moody folk, alt-country, and pop. “We went through a whole bunch and decided which songs worked for the record,” says Richey. “I think that Amelia’s strongest thing is the songwriting, and she was really amenable to reworking the songs if we needed to.” The album was engineered by Roger Nichols and recorded at Nichols’ studio, Bell Tone Recording, in Nashville.
Musicians on the album are Amelia White on vocals, Billy Harvey on bass, Marc Pisapia on drums, Doug Lancio on electric guitar and octave12 string, Dan Mitchell on keys, Kim Richey on background vocals and percussion; Roger Alan Nichols on slide guitar; Dan Mitchell on B3 and keys; Don Henry on background vocals; Eamon McLoughlin on violin and viola; Mando Saenz on backing vocals; and Michael Webb on accordion.
Find more information and tour dates for Amelia White on her website here: http://www.ameliawhite.com/
The album was recorded at Bell Tone Recording, produced by Kim Richey, engineered and mixed by Roger Alan Nichols, and mastered by Richard Dodd. Executive producer for the project was Andrew M. Rubin.
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