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Description:
1. You Are The Best Thing 2. Let It Be Me 3. Sarah 4. I Still Care For You 5. Winter Birds 6. Meg White 7. Hey Me, Hey Mama 8. Henry Nearly Killed Me 9. A Falling Through 10. Gossip In The Grain
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47 of 52 found the following review helpful:
You Are The Best Thing, BabyNov 02, 2008
By prisrob
"pris,"
Ray Lamontagne, is an enigma. His voice is breathy and rich and his trademark. His songwriting is brilliant at times. He is a genius at his craft. But, he is not reaching the masses. I found him, oh, several years ago with his first CD, 'Trouble' and his voice and lyrics stirred my soul.
"The Jesus-bearded troubadour is sort of a recluse. He doesn't enjoy doing interviews, refuses to make music videos, and hates reviews of his work--be they positive or negative. But for all the coffeehouse hacks trying to emulate Bob Dylan's verbosity and Van Morrison's impassioned croon, there's the soft-spoken Ray LaMontagne, singing his own wistful tunes without the weight of pretension and the hype of MTV." Joe Tacopina
This CD brings Ray Lamontagne to the fore. He is including a full orchestra. As he said in an interview, "It was time to open up a little bit more, not be quite so reserved in my choice of songs that I wanted to record." His choices in these ten songs are somewhat similar to his first two CD's but tell a story of their own. These songs are richer and more complete.
'You Are The Best Thing'-Best song of the ten and my favorite- backed-up by vocals and this is Ray at his best.
'Let It Be Me'- A traditional Ray song-showcasing his beautiful voice.
'Sarah'- One of the most beautifully written songs- many say he sounds like Nick Drake in this saga.
'I Still Care For You'-The big band background with Ray barely speaking.
'Winter Birds'- The poem like wording is exquisite. The best writing of his career.
'Meg White'- Such a complete sidestepping of his usual fare. Feet stomping good- a tribute to Meg White of the 'Stripes'- you either love it or hate it.
'Hey Me, Hey Mama'- Folksy singing- absolutely love this new Ray- 'Where ya been so long?'
'Henry Nearly Killed Me'-Fast paced song with a story line to be followed.
'A Falling Through'- A quiet, thoughtful song.
'Gossip In The Grain'- Soft, listen carefully to the lyrics- beautiful musical background.
Ray Lamontagne is a musician who has not reached his prime. He has stepped out of his footprint with this CD. Gaining new ground and new fans. He is quietly taking his place along side the greats of his genre.
Highly Recommended. prisrob 11-02-08
Trouble
[[ASIN:B000GPIPVU Till the Sun Turns Black
15 of 18 found the following review helpful:
Touches your soul.Oct 15, 2008
By Kelly N
"folk girl"
I love Ray LaMontagne and I've been a fan of everything he's done, but Gossip in the Grain is so unique and personal...I was amazed! People who call the songs filler or mush are not able to appreciate the art of the composition and the poetry that are these lyrics. I agree that this is not Trouble, but why would you want it to be? That's been done already! He has grown and evolved into something even more beautiful on this album. Winter Birds could be published poetry as far as I'm concerned. And every song has a hint of a different style and a different time in the history of American music. Please buy this album and keep an open mind.
5 of 5 found the following review helpful:
Sold! New Fan.Dec 01, 2008
By Scott Carpenter I had never heard of Ray LaMontagne before Amazon's recommendation engine pointed out to me that people frequently bought Martin Sexton's "Solo" along with "Gossip in the Grain." I'm a huge fan of Martin Sexton since about a year ago, and looking for more amazing folk/rock music to experience.
So I sampled a few tracks before downloading mp3s for "You are the Best Thing" and "Let It Be Me." Repeated playings of these tracks quickly lead to buying the rest. (And then regretting not buying the physical CD.) Love the whole album, listening to it many times the past couple of days, and now waiting eagerly for his first two albums to be delivered.
The songs really move me. Emotional, honest, real. Ray's voice is superb. "I Still Care For You" didn't click right away, but I quickly grew to appreciate it along with the rest. I don't understand the hate for "Meg White" in other reviews -- it's another good tune and a nice change of pace. "Winter Birds" also good. Mellow, yet engaging. (I don't really know what that means.) All the tunes are awesome. So glad to have found this artist and that I have more to look forward to.
11 of 14 found the following review helpful:
More Ray GoodnessOct 15, 2008
By Jeffrey M. Gavin
"Jgroover"
"Gossip In The Grain" builds off of both of Ray's older albums. It has the beautiful soulful simple vocals of "Trouble" combined with the amazing instrumentation of "Til The Sun Turns Black". In true Lamontagne style, Ray provides moving beautiful song after song on this album. He also experiments with a more traditional folk sound in tracks such as "Hey Me, Hey Mama". The song "You Are The Best Thing" will become an instant classic and go down as one of the all time greats. If you too have fallen in love with the moving soulful work of this modern master don't hesitate to buy this album. You will not be disappointed!
6 of 7 found the following review helpful:
More Musically, But Somehow Less InterestingOct 14, 2008
By G. Willms Sure, he's expanded his sound a bit on some of these songs, but I find the album as a whole really flat and sort of forgettable. There are a few stand-outs such as the single, You Are the Best Thing, the soulful Let It Be Me, and the back-country porch rocker Hey Me, Hey Mama. Other than those, everything seems to kind of blend together into a whispery mush.
I've heard a lot of Ray's live and rare material that hasn't been included on any of his studio albums and it just leaves me wondering, "Why?" A lot of it is better than anything Gossip In The Grain. Dig 'em out, shine 'em up, and record 'em, Ray. No more gimmicky songs about talentless female drummers please.
based on 83 reviews
( 83 customer reviews )
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