John McCutcheon – Field of Stars.
John’s PR states that at age 72 he should be retired. Did anyone tell Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Keith Richards, Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney, or Neil Young? No. This collection finds Mr. McCutcheon in a good voice. His repertoire is age-appropriate. This album features a regional singer-songwriter who should be more widely known, Carrie Newcomer – a marvelous, consistently good singer-songwriter who co-wrote & sings with John on “Fields of Stars,” a surprise like this is what I always look forward to.
The Wisconsin-born, Georgia-based John (vocals/guitars) is a 5-time Grammy-nominated artist who is never at a loss for finding creative & original stories to narrate with his beautifully rendered music. This is why at 72 he’s still going to the Well – because unlike so many other artists he still has a deep well of inspiration & with artists like Ms. Newcomer & bluegrass great Claire Lynch he has the necessary motivation.
There are 15 well-conveyed tunes on Field of Stars (Drops Jan. 10/Appleseed/65:18) produced & recorded by John with Bob Dawson in Springfield, Virginia & Nashville, TN. John’s folk style is not necessarily radical, aggressive, or controversial but more reassuring, educational & poignant.
A baseball song is constructed through “The Hammer” with a lovely piano lead. The song names several baseball greats & while songs of this type can be hokey, half-baked & cliché-filled John avoids that for the sake of making the song accessible & imaginative. It’s in the tradition of other great baseball songs like the late Steve Goodman’s “Go, Cubs, Go.”
John explores the belief in the power of history to guide, of faith to heal, of love to abide, of humor to relieve & for music to give voice to the silenced or forgotten. Heavy-duty subjects are the focus of this latest LP – his 45th in a 52-year career.
With “MS St. Louis” John cruises through a style that was once the domain of the late Harry Chapin who often tackled what became controversial through sad & true events. Narrated in a short story manner & supported by Stuart Duncan’s mournful fiddle. At times, John has a good mainstream folky vocal tonality & intonation (“Stubby” & “End of the Day”) akin to the late John Stewart (“Gold”). Especially as applied in well-written storytelling pieces about reminiscing about childhood, memorable people & earlier times.
John has stepped up reliably into the shoes of Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger & all those troubadours who have retired from the spotlight. And so – 72 becomes just a number.
Highlights – “Fields of Stars,” “The Hammer,” “MS St. Louis,” “Stubby,” “End of the Day,” “Tired” & “Peter Norman.”
Musicians – Jon Carroll (harmony/piano/organ), JT Brown (harmony/bass), Robert Jospe (drums), Pete Kennedy (electric guitar/lap steel), Tim O’Brien (vocal/mandolin), Cory Walker (banjo), Mark Schatz (upright bass) with Claire Lynch (vocals “The Only Ones Dancing”) & Windborne (vocals on “Blessing”).
Color image courtesy of John McCutcheon. CD @ https://www.folkmusic.com/store/p472/Field_of_Stars_-_CD.html
Enjoy our interview here: Interview: John McCutcheon on Building “Together” with Tom Paxton
