close

Coal Mining Blues - Matt Andersen Album Review

Posted: 22nd January 2012
Review Info
Rating:
4 out of 5
Artist:
Release Date:
13th Feb 2012
Label:
Busted Flat Records
Reviewer:
Matt Fancy
Coal Mining Blues - Matt Andersen Album Review

Album Review

They say that if you compress coal for long enough you can produce diamonds. This latest album from Canadian blues singer-songwriter Matt Andersen certainly contains its fair share of polished gems. A giant of a man with a talent to match, Andersens Coal Mining Blues is a superb mixture of up-tempo rock n roll, acoustic blues and magnificent soul.

Recorded at Levon Helms studio and with guest spots from Garth Hudson and backing vocals from Amy Helm, the powerful influence of The Band is present but not overwhelming. Andersen mines (sorry) similar seams of downtrodden working men and broken hearted lovers as that none-more American band (that were four fifths Canadian).

Stand out songs are in plentiful supply. The title track is up there with the very finest of weary blues; a tale of a life spent below ground toiling for a pitiful living and being rewarded with Sunken red eyes / And lines on my face to an accompaniment of subtle piano, organ and some dazzling acoustic guitar. The highest compliment its possible to pay Matt Andersen is that this song is almost the best song about broken coal miners out there (Kate Rusbys astonishing My Young Man wins by the tiniest of margins).

She Comes Down shows Andersens fabulous Joe Cocker-esque voice at full tilt on a number that could have come straight from the Otis Redding song book. Pure soul, sung brilliantly. Home Sweet Home features the aforementioned beardy Band legend Garth Hudson who provides the sweetest of accordion accompaniments to a tender love song, again sung superbly while Feel Like Going Home is eerily reminiscent of Nick Drakes Saturday Sun and is no worse for that.

A few of the tracks suffer from the Over Clean Production Blues Curse but thats a minor quibble on an otherwise outstanding record. This is a remarkable collection of well crafted songs that show a very talented man reaching for and achieving great things. Look out for Matt Andersen on a UK tour of small venues in March. On the strength of Coal Mining Blues, it wont be long before hes filling much larger ones with ease.

Matt Fancy