Daryl Mosley – Long Days & Short Stories
This Daryl Mosley set touches upon everything from Gospel, Christian, bluegrass, Americana to country. Performing for 3 decades Mr. Mosley is no stranger to the music business & has been showcased at the Grand Ole Opry among other elite stages.
Mosley came to these new songs after being a member of the bluegrass group New Tradition, then a member of The Osborne Brothers & formed his ensemble The Farm Hands. The Waverly, TN native has been recording solo since 2020 & this 11-cut 4th solo album Long Days & Short Stories (Drops Oct 4/Pinecastle Recordings/39:28) was produced by Daryl (bass/vocals) with Danny Roberts (mandolin/vocals) recorded in Ashland City, TN.
While Mosley doesn’t have a distinguished voice like Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, or Kris Kristofferson. He does possess a country-classic smooth voice with just enough tonality & range to be authentic, committed & impressive. The same way George Strait is. His storytelling is creative & the backup singing & musicians know exactly how much spice to add to make each tune a tasty nugget. There’s seldom anything remotely filler on Daryl Mosley’s albums.
The genre has gone through many changes, dipped in many pots of influences through the decades that it gets hard to present material originally. When this happens, it relies on the individual voice & musicians to frame songs in a more indulging manner with broad strokes of imagery in the lyrics with poignancy. All elements that allow the music to become personalized. “When I Can’t Reach Up,” & “I’m Still Here” both have this flair without getting too preachy.
With a touch of John Prine in his pen “A Friend Like You” has the playfulness that Mr. Prine’s acute storytelling & lyrics built a career on. Mosley continues the tradition with skill though a little sarcasm or satire at the end could’ve added some vinegar to the tasty morsel to conjure a grin or two.
Unlashing a more rock-oriented arrangement Daryl provides “Me & Mr. Howard” with some nice tight & fiery mandolin wrestling with a fiddle. Quite cool in a somewhat Shel Silverstein manner (“A Boy Named Sue”). Mosley & his reliable musicians strike the flint & steel on this tune.
Highlights – “Everything That’s Right,” “When I Can’t Reach Up,” “A Friend Like You,” “I’m Still Here,” “Me & Mr. Howard” & “You Never Gave Up On Me.”
Musicians – Tony Wray (guitar/banjo), Jamie Harper (fiddle), Sarah Davison (piano), Jaelee Roberts, Jeanette Williams (harmony vocals), Jeff & Sheri Easter (bgv) with New Tradition on “Still The Solid Rock” – Daryl, Danny, Richie Dotson (banjo/vocals) & Ken White (guitar/vocals).
CD cover photo courtesy of P. Hohen Damesworth. CD @ Amazon & https://darylmosley.com/
Enjoy our previous coverage here: REVIEW: Daryl Mosley A Life Well Lived
