Ian Thomas
Live At Rockwood Music Hall
© 2006 Ian Thomas (634479343667)
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One night in October at one the of the best rooms in New York City.
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Ian Thomas
Live at Rockwood Music Hall
I’ve seen Ian Thomas live several times and I don’t say it
lightly when I proclaim that one of those performances was
the most powerful and awe inspiring sets I have ever seen in
my life. That was live and in person however, and it’s hard
to capture something like that on a CD even if it’s a live
recording. This recording from Rockwood Music Hall gives
you a glimpse of what I’m talking about. If you have grown
accustomed to how some of his songs sounded on his first
release “A Young Man’s Blues” then you will be surprised
(perhaps pleasantly, perhaps not) to find him playing some
of those older songs a bit differently. It’s not that they’re not necessarily as good versions, they’re just different, and not necessarily better.
If you have never heard of Ian Thomas before then this CD will floor you regardless. Some may call Thomas’s music a throw back, but that is near sighted and unjust. He is first off perhaps the best young songwriter in or out of New York. His guitar playing is so masterful it comes off sounding like two people playing at the same time. In fact when I first heard him on CD I was almost convinced that he double tracked some guitar parts; later when I saw him live I understood just how good he was.
On this recording he showcases all that and his ability to rip the reeds off a harmonica; not to mention he can also play a mean kazoo. Thomas takes the melodies and sensibility of timeless American folk and blues and brings them barreling into the 21st century. On songs like “Lonesome Blue Ocean” and “Halfway Gone” he captures love lost as well as anyone can. His voice on tracks like “Open Letter To A Lover” and “Ain’t Gonna Dredge” can send a chill up your spine. There is something about the delivery of these songs that gives you the feeling that he is not simply singing them to you so much as he is revealing some secret gospel. Don’t get me wrong though, Thomas can also throw down some powerful stoppers that make you wanna get up, clear the floor and start a f***ing hoe down.
Urban Folk Issue 6, March/April 2006
www.urbanfolk.org
reviews
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NY Press Best of NY-Best Nostalgia-Free Revival Act
author: New York PressI wrote this for the Press, and I was at this show, and it all holds true-- All it takes to prove that songs about rambling, romance, longing and loss don't need to be revived is someone who can write and play as well as Ian Thomas. Ian, fool that he is, seems to think that with enough humor and talent he can get away with playing honestly. It's not that he's trying to sound like a sharecropper—he is definitely hanging his own modern hat on the old coat rack— but he doesn't dull the natural power of the form by dressing it up in too much keen appreciation. You shouldn't need refined sensibilities to appreciate these lyrics from his song "I Ain't Lonesome": "But I ain't calling out anybody's name,/ Nor whining for the trees above to bend./ And I ain't lonesome 'bout any one girl,/ I'm just lonesome 'bout being in this world." Listen to the song, which you can hear on his first album A Young Man's Blues or at his website. The melody is mournful, beautiful and sung with a sharp resolve that keeps it from self-pity. Unlike a lot of the musicians from the anti-folk scene that Ian came out of, there's no dolled-up primitivism or preening folk-punk, just a rare combination of musicality and lyricism, intelligence and directness.
Running and Rambling
author: Son InstituteThe man is a wraith. He has a shamanic ability to channel energy from the world and spin in into songs that fit like worn in boots. I once heard a story of Ian Thomas running and rambling into Haiti to steal back the souls of blues legends long gone. Like a whip cracking in the face of the devil, pressing hat on head with one hand, guitar in the other, screaming out songs to boot.
Running and Rambling
author: Son InstituteThe man is a wraith. He has a shamanic ability to channel energy from the world and spin in into songs that fit like worn in boots. I once heard a story of Ian Thomas running and rambling into Haiti to steal back the souls of blues legends long gone. Like a whip cracking in the face of the devil, pressing hat on head with one hand, guitar in the other, screaming out songs to boot.
Running and Rambling
author: Son InstituteThe man is a wraith. He has a shamanic ability to channel energy from the world and spin in into songs that fit like worn in boots. I once heard a story of Ian Thomas running and rambling into Haiti to steal back the souls of blues legends long gone. Like a whip cracking in the face of the devil, pressing hat on head with one hand, guitar in the other, screaming out songs to boot.
lyrical monster
author: JudsonIan Thomas........a one man orchestra.......this cd is the closest thing to seeing him perform......i highly recommend this cd to anyone that aspires to write soulful lyrics to a charging song......everyone should take notes from this jedi........
The musicianship is pure fun and the lyrics are inspiringly incredible!
author: GregThis CD is really amazing. I don't have the opportunity to see Ian play live very often, so I was excited to see this Live CD available. This live performance truly showcased the musical growth that Ian has achieved from the years of performing. If you want to be entertained and blown away, buy this CD.