Jeff Crosby – Another Petal Falls Off the Rose
There’s a surprising lack of Americana music from the interior Pacific Northwest. With its small towns, natural beauty and wide-open highways, you’d think Idaho and Montana would inspire the kind of soul-searching songs produced seemingly at will in the Deep South. So when an artist like Jeff Crosby breaks through from the relative, mountain-bound isolation of that beautiful but sparsely populated part of our world, my ears perk up, ready to hear stories from a fresh perspective. The 36-year-old singer-songwriter already has a long list of musical credits and a half-dozen albums under his belt. His seventh, Another Petal Falls Off the Rose, finds Crosby rapidly approaching middle age while still dealing with the decisions (and mistakes) made by a man who’s been chasing musical dreams for more than half his life.
Crosby enlisted Widespread Panic bassist and founding member Dave Schools to produce Another Petal Falls Off the Rose, and, while not exactly jammy, the new record feels a little looser than 2022’s Waitin’ on a Miracle. Beginning with opener “Out in the Country,” which starts off with a good, chunky guitar riff and a description of Crosby’s homeland – “11 miles from civilization/Just outside the middle of nowhere” (having driven plenty in Idaho and Montana, this description is 100% accurate) – Another Petal gives its tunes enough room to stretch out a bit. The title track is a mid-tempo, 80s-tinged rocker with nice organ work that has Crosby looking looking at the troubles of others in his orbit – “Finding excuses that will cover the bruises/And put another 100 bucks up your nose” – and wondering if his own wilder days are ebbing – “Don’t tell me to enjoy it/To enjoy it while it lasts/It just makes me push the envelope and wonder if the best part of me’s already passed.”
Lead single “Silver Lining,” paced by Crosby’s guitar riffs and pedal steel from John Keane (Crosby handles the guitars across the record, but he’s expanded his core band to include Keane and keys and synths from Jason Crosby and Mookie Siegel), counters the quickly fading road warrior lifestyle – “These happy hours don’t live up to their name” – with a simple mantra: “Keep mining for that silver lining.” “Lose Ya” is a stripped down, acoustic ballad that has an almost-demo feel and features some of Crosby’s best lyrical work, from the urge to flee – “A thumb out on the freeway would feel better than this barstool” – before resolving to stick things out – “I don’t wanna lose yet/I don’t wanna lose ya.” That survivor mentality carries over to the pretty, pensive album closer “Don’t Wanna Die Young,” with Crosby pitting his younger self – “Clearing out this closet full of memories…Keep stepping on the nail of what I could’ve done or how it used to be” – against today’s version, trying to find a not-unhappy medium – “Sometimes it hurts to admit/This is as good as it could get.” Crosby doesn’t exactly find resolution, which has really come to define modern, mid-30s adulthood – where am I, and where do I go from here? Turns out, there’s no one, definitive answer, but Crosby has begun by asking the right questions.
Song I Can’t Wait to Hear Live: “Out in the Country” – as always, I’m a sucker for a good road song. This is a reworked tune from an album – 2014’s All Nighter – with Crosby’s previous band, the Refugees. The original version was more frenetic – this take definitely benefits from the space and pace given to the entire album. It’s got Idaho roadie written all over it.
Another Petal Falls Off the Rose was produced by Dave Schools, engineered by Jason Reed, mixed by John Keane and mastered by Fred Kavorkian. All songs written by Jeff Crosby. The Jeff Crosby Band is Crosby (guitar, vocals), Matt Fabbi (bass guitar, vocals) and Michael Mitchell (drums). Guest musicians include Jason Crosby (piano, keys), Mookie Siegel (keys, synthesizers) and John Keane (pedal steel, shakers, vocals).
Go here to order Another Petal Falls Off the Rose (out July 26): https://jeffcrosbymusic.com/shop/
Check out tour dates here: https://jeffcrosbymusic.com/tour/
Enjoy our previous coverage here: Interview: Jeff Crosby on his career, new record, and adapting to COVID-19
