Charlie Sexton Albums (4)
'Cruel and Gentle Things'
Release Date 1/1/2005
Tracks 10
Label Narada
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
It's been a decade since Charlie Sexton issued the sprawling, ambitious Under the Wishing Tree. But Sexton has been anything but idle. He's produced recordings by Lucinda Williams, Edie Brickell, Los Super Seven, Shannon McNally, and Double Trouble. He also played guitar in Bob Dylan's studio and road bands for over three years. Cruel and Gentle Things is only the fourth album issued under Sexton's own name. It was recorded, in many sessions over a number of years, whenever he got a break from his other occupational duties. It is a close and intimate affair that finds the songwriter and producer playing nearly everything over ten songs. There are a few guests who appear -- mainly bassist George Reiff and drummer J.J. Johnson, but overall this is truly a solo affair. The set opens with "Gospel," a slippery, languid acoustic blues testament to faith in times of trouble. The sheer skeletal beauty of the track is striking, and Sexton's vocal is full of a relaxed conviction that gets right at the heart of the lyric. Daniel Lanois would kill to have written this. Rock & roll enters on "Burn," a, dreamy and seductive nocturnal groove that stands in sharp contrast to the sheer lost-love desolation in its lyrics with a killer backing vocal by McNally. The rootsy country-folk stroll of "I Do the Same for You," with its lap steel and layered acoustic guitars, inspires with its gritty sense of dedication. "Once in a While," though another broken love song about moving on after a breakup, is bright bouncy pop fueled by a simple bassline and a layer of guitars. Dobro, ringing electrics, and skittering drums envelope the other instruments in a buoyant swirl around the singer. They seem to give him the courage to step out and state his willingness and truth. "Dillingham Lane" was written with Steve Earle and features Sexton's brother Will on backing vocals. A droning, open-tuned guitar piece, it narrates a look back to the street the pair grew up on. There's no romance in the lyric -- simply a statement of what was, looking at it as it informs the present. Ultimately, Cruel and Gentle Things is a series of postcards from various places and people in the songwriter's life. It comes across as an interior kind of travel record, one that charts, exposes, lays bare, and celebrates the years as the revelations of everyday life, lived in space and time but not bound by them. It is easily the finest and most poetic and musically realized record in Sexton's catalog. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Jimi Hendrix circa 1968 -- swirling guitar leads, banging chords, and a chaotic, psychedelic sound. That's what "Neighborhood," the opening cut on Charlie Sexton's Under the Wishing Tree, calls to mind. Before the listener can get comfortable, the album switches gears with the whimsical, Celtic-flavored "Wishing Tree," slowing the pace down a notch and reining in a small bit of the previous song's musical anarchy without becoming the least bit dull. Fresh from the breakup of Austin supergroup Arc Angels, the critically acclaimed Texas guitar slinger formed the Charlie Sexton Sextet and recorded the most adventuresome album of his young career in 1985 with producer Malcolm Burn. Sexton's work on Under the Wishing Tree stands miles apart from the six-string pyrotechnics exhibited on "Living in a Dream" and other Arc Angels favorites. Assembling a band of relatively unknown but talented players -- including keyboardist Michael Ramos, bassist George Reiff, and drummer Rafael Gayol -- Sexton mixes raging blues riffs and big rock guitar with acoustic folk, New Orleans jazz, and Celtic influences on songs like "Spanish Words" and "Sunday Clothes." The 12-minute story song "Plain Bad Luck and Innocent Mistakes" is the album's centerpiece and defining moment, a tale as grand as the desert wasteland with Sexton pulling out the stops in a grandiose interplay of poetic lyrics and somber instrumentation. Collaborating with fellow Texas songwriters Tonio K, James McMurtry, and brother Will Sexton on Under the Wishing Tree, the younger Sexton's songwriting chops improved significantly from his earlier efforts. Under the Wishing Tree delivers on Sexton's long-promised potential, the album a portrait of a young artist caught in the throes of his growth pains, willing to experiment musically and lyrically in order to reach the next level of artistic maturity. Sexton would later gain further seasoning as a member of Bob Dylan's late-'90s touring band, adding his blazing guitar to the rock legend's acclaimed 2001 release Love and Theft. ~ Rev. Keith A. Gordon, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Like many teenagers, Charlie Sexton lusted after rock stardom -- the only difference was, he had a chance to pursue his dream. Sexton certainly looked like the part, with his high cheek bones and pompadour, but since he was living in the '80s instead of the '50s he worshipped, his producers decided to push him toward new wave for his debut album, Pictures for Pleasure. The teenaged guitarist had been bashing out blues and roots-rock around his native Austin, Texas, but the market for that music was limited -- hence the decision to layer the record with drum machines and synthesizers. Through sheer dumb luck, they came up with a classic MTV hit with the moody "Beat's So Lonely," where Sexton comes on like James Dean in Duran Duran clothing, crooning with Bryan Ferry's voice. There's nothing nearly as good on the remainder of Pictures for Pleasure, not only because the material is uneven, but because none of the other material benefits with the new wave treatment. That said, it's still a more interesting and entertaining record than many of Sexton's straitlaced latter-day blues efforts, where he often sounds just a bit too respectful.~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
An about-face, with more emphasis on Sexton's guitar playing and Texas roots. ~ Cub Koda, All Music Guide
