Sammy Brue – The Journals (Bloodshot Records)
The young troubadour from Utah, Sammy Brue, delivers a new moving and stripped-down album, The Journals, produced by Ben Tanner and mastered by Kimberley Rosen. The album will available via Bloodshot Records on January 23.
Armed only with his guitar, a crystal-clear voice, and, most importantly, a song notebook (hence the title The Journals) inherited from his mentor and friend, the late Justin Townes Earle, who was tragically gone far too soon in 2020.
It all began with a song Sammy wrote, “For Justin,” which he sent to Earle’s widow, Jenn, presented as a song written by a fan for fans. Jenn loved it so much that she gave him a journal of unfinished Justin Townes Earle songs. After discovering and reading the song sketches and fragments of lyrics, Brue had an idea. “I never got to write a song with Justin. Maybe I could co-write with him, and it turned into a whole record of that.”
Sammy Brue and Justin Townes Earle became friends around 2013, when Brue was busking on the streets of Ogden, Utah, only 11 years old, and met his idol in front of the club where Justin was playing—a show he wasn’t allowed to attend because of his age.
Throughout the ten songs, Brue embodies the myth of the hobo, traveling across the USA from rattlers to hitchhiking. His music envelops the listener with an autumnal sweetness, almost twilight-like, and perfectly highlights Justin Townes Earle’s songwriting. Some songs are based directly on lyrics Brue found in the journal (“You Tell Me,” “Love at a Glance”), others are co-written (“Lonely Mornings,” “Promise to Keep”), or built from unfinished ideas (“Older Than I Ever Thought I’d Be”). “Jenn kind of let me use my imagination and put my own twist on stuff.”
The opening track, “Lonely Mornings,” driven by a freight train–like rhythmic guitar, captures the author’s solitude: “Grab a pen and paper, sipping coffee on the porch / I’m jotting down my memories, while I’m humming out the chords/ We’re moving to the evening and I wonder what I’m really writing for.” The song channels the influence of the Carter Family, as well as the youthful, almost naïve energy of Bob Dylan’s early recordings.
Sammy Brue also shows that, beyond his soulful voice, he is a master of country and folk guitar. The shimmering fingerpicking of “Older Than I Ever Thought I’d Be” is embellished by a subtle tremolo-drenched electric guitar that creates a sense of distance and underlines his high, perched voice. The love song “Promise to Keep” is equally striking, with stirring lyrics carried by a chiming guitar: “Rain’s coming down, yeah it’s clearing out the streets / There’s no one out, they’re all probably still asleep / So let’s take this time for you and me / Hold my hand, we’ll let the rain hold the beat.”
The album’s most moving song, “For Justin,” could easily bring tears to the eyes, showcasing Sammy Brue’s gift for storytelling and placing him firmly in the lineage of songwriters like Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt.
Find more details here on Sammy’s website: https://www.sammybrue.com/
Check out our previous coverage here: Key to the Highway: Sammy Brue and also here: Video: smallsongs: Sammy Brue
Sammy Brue sings and plays guitar solo on all the songs.