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 | Title : Time (The Revelator)
Author : Gillian Welch
Release Date : 20010731
Binding : Audio CD
Regular Price : $16.98
Amazon.com Price : $12.79
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Editorial Reviews :
The considerable promise carried forth on Gillian Welch's first two albums is thoroughly fulfilled on Time (The Revelator). Welch has traded the guidance of her previous producer, T Bone Burnett, for the sympathetic studio skills of her longtime guitarist-harmony singer David Rawlings, who loosens the reins just enough to allow moments of spontaneity to sparkle within the duo's spare, eloquent playing. 'Revelator' is an instant classic, perhaps the first great folk song of the 21st century. 'I Want to Sing That Rock and Roll' is three minutes of Louvins/Everlys-style bliss. 'April the 14th, Part 1' haunts its historical context with an achingly melancholy melody. It all leads up to the epic 14-minute 'I Dream a Highway,' one of the finest closing tracks ever put on record.
Buyer Reviews :
So far, I have a tie for Best Album of 2001 between Dylan's 'Love and Theft' and Gillian Welch's 'Time.' In my fantasy world, Gillian Welch and David Rawlings will walk on stage in front of millions of people and receive the Grammy for Album of the Year. That's not going to happen, but it should. Here's why:
'Time' is one of the most complete 'concept' albums (for lack of a better term) that has come along in many years. The opening cut, 'Time' sets the mood for everything that follows. Time is indeed a revelator. It reveals evidence to us that we can't ignore or dismiss, if enough of it passes by and we're honest with ourselves. People have complained that this opener is too long and too slow, but that's the way time works. Truth is often revealed very slowly over a period of days, months, years.
Gillian and David may disagree with me (would love to hear from them), but in my mind, all of the remaining songs (with maybe one exception) deal with the concept of time. After the title track, 'My First Lover' looks back in the past to a bad choice in a relationship the singer made early on. Again, the passage of time has revealed to her all the wrongs in the relationship, but has also left her with selective memory about other parts. Forgetting her first lover, 'Dear Someone' looks to the future with a lovely, lonely, yet hopeful waltz. The first up-tempo song 'Red Clay Halo' is a humorous look at hard work, rejection, and a hope for the future that extends beyond this life. 'April the 14th Part I' is a staggering song full of images from the past and present. 'I Want to Sing That Rock and Roll' again looks with longing to the future with a style that is grounded in old-time folk music. (This track was recorded live.) 'Elvis Presley Blues' again takes a look in the past and marvelously chronicles the reason that Elvis was and still is the King. 'Ruination Day Part 2,' although quicker in tempo than 'April 14,' is much more somber, almost sung in despair. Again, the past is important as a bridge to the present. The only song that doesn't quite fit in with my time theory is 'Everything is Free,' a song that deals with the problem (for the artist) of music floating around on the internet for everyone to take. Finally, 'I Dream a Highway' is a song that will probably be analyzed by many for years. It is an extended, dreamlike vision that can't be described in concrete terms...but it's fascinating. It has a little of everything, past, present, future.
From the first ache of dissonance from the opening guitar on 'Revelator,' I knew that this was not going to be a normal listening experience. I had heard of Gillian Welch before, but I had only heard her singing harmony or back-up for others, so I thought I'd take a chance. I'm glad I did. Welch is an unusual talent. She has a haunting, melancholy, yet down-to-earth voice that softly tugs at your sleeve and pulls you into her world. Most of the time that world consists of only two guitars, two voices (Welch and David Rawlings, who also produced). She almost sounds like she could be sitting on a small-town porch in her flowered dress, singing and playing to people as they pass by. I hope more people who pass by stop for a listen. And, like I said earlier, in my little world, the people from the Grammys stop by, give her an award, and are captivated. Don't stop now, Gillian. Time won't wait.
(by Andy Wolverton)
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