899 John Prine - John Prine (1971)

 899 John Prine - John Prine (1971)

Studio album - Country Folk




About the Act:

John Prine may be the most famous country singer I had never heard of. He was from Illinois, and his career as a singer, guitarist and songwriter stretched from 1969 until he died, in 2020, of Covid. He was "discovered" while singing as a club performer in the Chicago Folk revival by Kris Kristofferson, and his first album, John Prine, launched him into a distinguished career spanning 50 years and 18 albums.


About the Album:

This was Prine's first album, which catapulted him into the public eye. It was mostly recorded with people who had worked backing Elvis, and produced by legendary producer Arif Mardin.


My History with this Album:

None


Review:

So, Country is one of the major areas where I feel outside my comfort zone in these reviews. Some of the previous country albums I have reviewed dod not go down well with me. This one did.

So, firstly, to be fair, it's a mixture of styles including Country, Folk, Bluegrass, Americana and elements of Rock. Musically it's not bad at all, mostly fairly straightforward stuff but nicely done, and sensitive. My favourite track musically is "Paradise" which is reminiscent of "old tyme" Americana, especially the "sawing on the string" fiddle. It's not hugely impressive, apart from one quality, which is that as I listened to it for the second time, I felt already very familiar with most of the songs. They are memorable.

The lyrics is where the quality really comes. Like much of Country and Folk, these are story songs, about and from the points of view of various people. However, it manages to avoid cliche, and mostly focuses on people on the fringes of society. SOme of the songs are comic, others are melancholy, and some are down-right tragic. All are observed with genuine tenderness and affection, and realness. As every good storyteller knows, it is not just about having a good story, it is about how you tell the story, and John Prine, at the grand age of 25, does this masterfully. I am blown away enough to compare him favourably to Paul Simon, probably my favourite observationalist songwriter. 

So, if you are in favour of good songwriting, especially if you like Bob Dylan, you may love this. I did. In two listens I came to the conclusion that this is an astoundingly good album.


8/10


Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/5t4FHrIAHI8nolSAOBRgPp

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lHkugF0nyI

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Prine_(album)


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