No Deeper Blue
If Townes Van Zandt is known at all, it may be only for writing the Willie Nelson/Merle Haggard hit "Poncho and Lefty" a decade back. But the voice and music of this care-worn country-folk veteran (who passed away in January 1997) connotes something more sublime. With his warm folkways and dark ruminations, Van Zandt is like a lost wanderer who can link generations of songwriters, from Woody Guthrie to Nick Cave.  OnNo Deeper Blue, his first studio release in seven years, Van Zandt strings a trail of small and intimate folk-blues numbers that lead us down paths both empty and bright. With "The Hole," a ghost story works as a metaphoric battle with personal demons, whether they be alcohol or depression; in "Billy, Boney and Ma," the graveyard tale takes a comic turn. Songs like the poetic "Hey Willy Boy" and the whimsical "If I Was Washington" build on simple folk conceits and wordplay, while others such as "Goin' Down to Memphis" make effective use of the basic blues form. If, perhaps, the thin, dry voice of the Texan troubadour has limited Van Zandt to being a cult songwriter instead of a recording star, it is that same quiet and understated vocal delivery that adds weight and dignity to his tunes. He's living proof the songs of yesterday's ramblers hold their mystery and charm through the years and despite changing musical fashions.--Roni Sarig