Texan
Charlie Robison
built up quite a following in his native state and around the country with his first two Americana-bleached albums.
Robison
's balls-out, hardcore troubadour image and music were as real as the scuffs on his boots. As his career was gaining steam, the singer/songwriter married
Emily Erwin
of the
Dixie Chicks
.
released two studio albums while married to
Erwin
, 2001's
Step Right Up
and 2004's
Good Times
, but his music took a backseat (in the media at least) to his marriage. After
,
vanished for nearly five years before resurfacing in 2009 with
Beautiful Day
, a ten-song collection that was written and recorded during his divorce from
. The singer's marital split clearly influenced the songwriting and song selection for
channels the ghost of heartache on tracks like the saturnine
"Down Again"
and the equally melancholic
"Reconsider."
The latter, a jingle-jangle country number with whimpering steel guitar and rippling organ, is a pain-soaked tune that cuts to the core of loneliness.
"Yellow Blues"
borrows the backbone from
Steve Earle
's
"I Feel Alright,"
and marries it to a pointed set of lyrics. "Promises are overrated/vows have just become outdated, ain't it true,"
sings. It's not all black clouds and thunder on
"Feelin' Good"
is a ray of Americana sunshine.
bangs out a folky rhythm on his acoustic guitar as mandolin and accordion punctuate the cheery melody and lyrics. Other than a pedestrian cover of
Bruce Springsteen
"Racing in the Street,,"
is a solid effort from one of Americana's most underappreciated singer/songwriters. ~ Todd Sterling