On Promenade

Artist - Doug Burr
Album - On Promenade
Label - Velvet Blue

Doug Burr is a singer-songwriter in the Springsteen style - songs come out fully formed and ready for some full band attention, but with an intimacy that engages deeply.

From Denton, Texas, (home of Centro-matic) Burr's voice and style is closer to Wilco's Jeff Tweedy, but it is hard to overstate how lush and gorgeous this man's songs are - there isn't an attempt to overemote, no odd falsetto.

Instead, like the early Lyle Lovett albums (think If I Had A Boat), these songs seem like classics, destined for endless covers by less talented writers.

Songs like How Can The Lark and Should've Known lick deliciously at dark places - Nick Cave with a gentle touch.

Burr relies on great songs, not on gimmicks, and pulls on literate wit and poetry to generate the intimate ache that drives the record.

There is clearly something in the water in Denton - that town has produced two of the best records of the past 12 months.

Rating 9/10
Mike Rea

10:28am Monday 28th April 2008

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