Charlie Winton – Shadowland
Another Scott Mathews (Brian Wilson, Van Morrison) produced effort, recorded in Mill Valley, CA, showcases the raw-voiced Northern Californian-native Charlie Winton’s 8-cut Shadowland (Drops May 1/Independent/31:15). It starts with some vigorous music from the well-arranged & performed “Dreamin’s The Best.”
By the time he slides into “Never Say Never” & “Shadowland,” his Springsteen-tinted tone is high octane. But he’s not emulating Bruce; Winton’s presentation is wholly his own. His songs are not composed in that Jersey boy Del Shannon head-on rock style. Instead, he’s hooked into an enthusiastic dose of retro flair – some Spanish-flavored swipes embedded in a glorious bedrock. Nice touch.
Toy piano tinkling arrives with “Lost Youth” loaded with a wall-of-sound arrangement that is gut-level rock. There are several old school rock voices who come to mind, but I’m impressed with how Charlie maintains his own potpourri of sounds – the vocals that come to mind are the late singer-songwriter Tony Powers, John Hiatt, John Dee Graham & Canada’s Tom Wilson. Charlie has a good grip on how he wants to unroll his satisfying wallops of rock that come just short of bombast. His growly voice trawls the undercurrent of powerhouse rock dressed in gutsy guitars, snappy drum beats, rough-hewed backing vocals & “Rising Tide” is meticulously heavy-duty & ambitious. This isn’t ginger ale; this is whiskey.
Changing gears, Charlie slows things down for “Illusions,” a pensive contribution. Laid back up close & personal in a near-late career Mitch Ryder tone savored in a Garland Jeffries soulful process. Lyrically, Charlie keeps the songs free of cliches & distills the typical with creative presence in each composition, adding guitar clarity, sprinkling of piano notes & thudding drums.
Charlie veers away from the Springsteen clinch & provides a cool upbeat ‘60s jubilant “Your Eyes,” that is radio friendly with catchy jangly guitars, excellent backup voices & a jukebox (do they still make those) perfect spin. The contrast between the music & Charlie’s less-than-glossy vocal is absorbing. It’s what made rock music with intelligence so appealing.
This is a great, smoky & soulful album, wonderfully recorded & intriguing to say the least.
Highlights – “Dreamin’s The Best,” “Never Say Never,” “Shadowland,” “Lost Youth,” “Rising Tide,” “Illusions” & “Your Eyes.”
Musicians – Charlie Winton (guitar and lead vocals); Scott Matthews (keyboards, drums, percussion, backing vocals) Tom Lukens (violin on “Never Say Never”) Tom Lukens (engineer)
A 12pp stitched lyric insert enclosed. Color image courtesy of Pat Johnson. CD @ Amazon & Apple + https://www.charliewintonmusic.com/