Ron Sexsmith [Eponymous]Ron Sexsmith has been around a while now, this is his first album, released in 1995, i think he now has eleven studio albums, so that's an album every 16 months!, i bought this album because i heard that he was the new baby Jackson Browne, and there is a similarity in the voice.
Most people have probably never heard of him, he's certainly a low key Artist, and here's where he stays a secret, he's certainly no Bruce Springsteen or Bob Dylan, and he doesn't grab hold of you on first listen, in fact he doesn't really grab hold of you at all, but it's a very slow seeping into your consciousness.
One of the things i find about Ron Sexsmith, is that he has strange keys/meters, plus his words don't seem to fit the music exactly right, and things don't rhyme like they're supposed to, it can be offputting initially, but once you get over that hurdle, there's a world of Sexsmith-isms waiting for you!, i've had this disc since 1998, but only now am i beginning to see his worth, maybe i'll even buy another album of his!.
On this listen i really liked tracks 1 & 13, track 13 especially 'Galbraith Street', i've never really read the words, so it was really refreshing to study them a bit,
I woke up on Galbraith Street
Where the houses stood like twins
Oh and even though the door's been closed
I can find a way to get back in
For daydreams my mind returns
Like a ghost upon the hill
As i knock upon old doors again
And find my friends all live there still
So many good times to speak of in a life
But none compared to the good times i had there
The world looks so much brighter when
You believe in every word
Now i'm holding on to all those years
Like a tear before it falls unheard
So many goodbyes to speak of in a life
But none compared to the goodbyes i said there
The sun went down on Galbraith street
I saw it from my childhood bed
As the red and gold brick houses stood
Underneath a crimson sky that bled
Basically he returns to his childhood dwelling where he grew up, starting with waking up, and ending with going to sleep, juxtaposing his life now, with his life then, almost a world that's not changed [he's moved on, while his friends still live in the same place], basically speaking of memories that you can't really hold onto, 'Like a tear before it falls unheard', that's got to be the best line of the song!, important tears should be heard, but they don't make a sound!, Ron Sexsmith is a great lyric writer, his poetry can be interpreted so many lovely ways, the deeper you look the more you see.
Here's Ron Sexsmith singing 'Galbraith Street' live on YouTube.
