Bruce Hornsby - Spirit Trail

From its unusual jokey cover of his Uncle Charles to the diverse amalgam of styles (jazz, R&B, pop) covered over its two discs, Spirit Trail is Bruce Hornsby at his most difficult to pin down. Whereas his work with the Range set standards for '80s adult-contemporary pop, Hornsby is now determined to move from the middle of the road to new territory. The unusual piano breaks throughout the first disc ("Resting Place" detours into fuzak), the sprightly hip-hop rhythms, the horns that punctuate "Line in the Dust," the simple, playful pop pleasures of "Shadow Hand" prove Hornsby can grow. He's still a super technician with ambitious production and arrangement designs, but his singing has grown more soulful with age. He'll never cut a convincing barrelhouse tune, as "Preacher in the Ring Pt. 1" attests, but his journey into Steely Dan-type sophistication brings his approach new life. --Rob O'Connor Amazon.com

MAGNUM OPUS

Spirit Trail is a pattern used in the Native American tradition by weavers which believe spirits trapped in evil can escape, and this pattern usually includes a "way out" for such trapped spirits. Bruce's songs are about such spirits. Bruce "has produced a set of intricate tapestries, bringing together disparate themes." "The MAESTRO weaves a rich fabric, a tour-de-force magnum opus which warms the soul and curls the tongue." (see insert)

This is a compilation of richly intelligent and well-done songs in a 2 CD set. In his examination of the various elusive, subtle, insidious & infectious natures of evil and OUR relationship with it & our need to escape from it, Bruce comes forth with several really good themes that really make you think even if you don't know what this CD is about. Now if you don't like to think, this is a wonderfully executed CD as far as sound goes--it is richly-packed & sophisticated music. The studio recordings are perfect. Some of these songs I already heard on Intersections & they just blew me away they were that good (and I played them over and over). Like good wine that takes a few years to reach perfection, perhaps some live renditions of the same songs heard on Intersections are even better than on this CD (when I heard them on Intersections, I thought that they just COULDN'T get any better than that), but these songs are nevertheless superb.

I started with side 2 (it's just me that can't do things from start to finish) and I heard "Line in the Dust" for the first time that just floored me completely right away with both its magestic and exotic sound, music mix & texture. Since I already heard some of the best on this CD previously, this song so struck me that I was playing it non-stop for hours and hours each day for two weeks--quite literally. I love it and can't get enough of this exotic melody with its exotic sounding organ, guitars & other instruments. Some excellent songs on these CDs were either on Intersections or on his Greatest Hits, but I haven't said anything yet about Swan Song that tells about an ending: The song and especially the piano solo is so very very beautiful, so sad but oh so beautiful. When Bruce touches that keyboard, you can bet he is beyond perfection.

For those still so much in love with "The Way It Is" (the original melody available on the album The Way It Is and Bruce's Greatest Radio Hits) and who are unable to escape its spell and accept anything else from Bruce, PLEASE give Bruce a chance because I was equally in love with that song and I am still in love with it, but Bruce has really outdone himself lots of times since then--please really listen because such a musician with such unbelievable talent will come up with more masterpieces and he HAS.

After recently returning from Europe in 1986, I had a small radio in the office at the college where I spent just a few hours a day (the only link to music was this little radio--I had nothing at home), and due to the overwhelming things going on, there was NO space for any interest in music at that time. In 2005 I discovered a box from 1986 that I had left in an attic in which I found three 45's that were none other than The Way It Is. I had bought them at that time and put them away for a later time. When I found these records, I already had his Greatest Hits CD, and I had no memory AT ALL of buying the three 45's. I find that remarkable, because like a massless particle, I must have heard The Way It Is and his song & piano playing penetrated so many impenetrable layers and hit the center core of my soul. And now that I am looking Bruce up, I have discovered so many other songs that hit the core of my soul.

Can the Maestro sing TOO? Oh yes! Bruce has a gorgeous voice and has a sensous way of singing. Many musicians view these albums here and one review mentioned Bruce's voice fails to hit a certain level (note), (he was brilliant enough to notice) but these petty observations and judgments are none other than jealousy camoflaged w/ a halo.

Brucey baby, remain calm under fire, they're VERY jealous of you! June 17, 2008

syncopated songpoems from Spiderfingers

Bruce Hornsby is difficult to categorize; too jazzy for blues, too bluesy for pop, too classy for rock, with a bit of a country feel thrown in, he stands alone. He brings us tales told to the background of a syncopation so addictive that it almost makes your heart adopt the rhythm; stories of shattered loyalties, faded loves, and grainy everyday people looking for redemption any way they can.

With "Spirit Trail", Bruce gives us a gift with a two-disc set of songs as American as anything I can think of. Much comes to mind in listening to this work; all the oddball characters I ever brushed up against, all the less-popular kids at school, glimpses of seediness; that shadow of a man you saw ducking down an alley last Saturday night, barely seen, is here in this music. This is the other side of the coin, the ones that didn't make it to the top; the unfortunates, but with still a glimmer of hope.

Nothing here is your run-of-the-mill love-story type music. In "Preacher in the Ring I & II" he tells a tale of religion from one of the oddest Southern sects, those whose preachers use snakes to show devotion and faith. "Funhouse" takes us where we all secretly want to go - beyond the boundaries we've grown up with...the temptation to be reckless, at least once. "King of the Hill" is a man in the lower echelon, looking up at the boss with envy and enmity. "Line In The Dust" - my personal favourite - tells of a man wondering where a friendship went wrong, and whether it was his friend who changed or he himself. "Sad Moon" is about that girl from school that faded out of the picture, only to be found years later and much reduced in luck. "Fortunate Son" - another favourite - is a man struggling with life but still hanging on to what good he has.

This is a masterful work. Interspersed with the intricate stories ia some of the best keyboard work you will ever hear, and a wonderful voice - in some songs I found myself thinking, if Bonnie Raitt was a man, this is the voice she would have - making this by far my most favourite of Bruce's works, in a career of work where there are no duds. He just keeps getting better. May 7, 2008

10 years old and still awesome

I can't believe this album is already ten years old. Given that aging, I would definitely rank it among my favorite albums of all time. Some of these songs can still make me cry, and some are wonderfully funky. If you only buy one Hornsby album (but you should buy more), buy this one. April 23, 2008

2 Great CD's for the price of one

2 Full CD's of great music. I listenend to this for 3 straight days. Never gets boring. Excellent work. November 8, 2003

Unbelievable Double Disc!

Wow, I was shocked when I thought that Bruce didn't have it in him to release two discs at once, because I was totally wrong!

This set is UNBELIEVABLE and everyone should have a copy. The songs cover everything on here from ballads, to short stories, to explorations of characters in society. Best of all, it contains FORTUNATE SON which was based a lot on COMFORTABLY NUMB by Pink Floyd. It's a great matchup for that song!

You won't be disappointed at all with this one, this is one of the best CDs out there.

GET IT! January 6, 2003

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