I’m not old enough to have grown up during the turbulent ’60s; a time when “Fortunate Son” by Creedence Clearwater Revival first brought to images of soldiers and Vietnam, or in 1970 when Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young released “Ohio” as a result of devastating campus bloodshed. I remember, though, learning about the songs in history classes and how they helped shape American politics and culture. These songs stir up images of sadness, fear, anger, unthinkable crimes.
We’re living in a time where information is literally at our fingertips – we can follow the Twitter feed of a small-town student just the same as the Twitter feed of a famous Hollywood movie star. We are connected more than ever and every once in awhile a song or two jumps out of the crowd and reminds us that we’re in this together.
Enter musician Alvin Harrison.
It’s very easy to tune out when watching the national news – the gap between American’s wages has never been larger in US history. But, something about singer Rocky Whitaker’s delivery and lyrics drive home this epidemic in “Rough Times in America.” The words are very straight forward, he’s not using obscure metaphors and hidden prose. He’s real.
The feel to “Rough Times In America” is gospel, jazz and I would say even some folk. You won’t hear an acoustic guitar or a harmonica, but this song is very uplifting. I felt a profound sense of hope after listening, even though the words do make you sad.
In “We Ain’t Buyin” the music bed is a bit more upbeat. It’s not as gospel sounding, but there’s heavy saxophone. My favorite part of this song was the moment Harris sang “Why not here, why not now.” Whitaker’s voice breaks – ever so slightly – there’s a split second that his melodic delivery almost sheds a tear. It’s moving and I feel as though his voice pierced my heart.
“Do You Wanna Go” is gritty, axe-heavy riffs. It’s way more rock and roll than the previous tracks. The vocal delivery is completely different – it’s way more reminiscent of a “montage” scene from an 80s action movie. This was my least favorite track of the EP.
Overall, ‘The 99′ is a remarkable project. I give high props to Alvin Harrison for “Rough Times In America” and “We Ain’t Buyin.’ The third track is a bit weak, but I’m a sucker for the guitar music bed mixed with a fun keyboard.
