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Hey, you---yeah, you, with the Shiner in your hand--can
you name me one singer from New York state that we oughtta be
listening to down here in Texas? No, no, Jerry Jeff doesn't count.
Most of the college kids who love him don't even know he started
as a Yankee. The rest of us, those who cut our teeth on "Viva
Terlingua" and "A Man Must Carry On Vols. 1 and 2,"
forgave him a long time ago for his unfortunate origins. So give
me another guess. Nothing? Nobody? Let me tell ya, I've got one.
Andy Scheinman's "Make Amends" disc.
I'll admit I was real skeptical when Rockzilla sent me this
CD to review. Strike one was the New York address on the back
jacket cover. Strike two was the Nashville studio listed inside
the cover where the CD was recorded and mixed. Strike three was
put on indefinite hold when I hit the Play button on my stereo.
The first song, "Slow Down," struck a chord in me from
the beginning notes. Sounded like a cross between old Springsteen
and Guy Clark. Now I had to listen close. There's a fondness
in this reviewer's heart for The Boss and the simple truths and
eloquent pain in his music. He wasn't any kind of country, but
he was the voice of working men everywhere. He, and John Cougar
Mellencamp as well, knew that honest heartfelt music is the soul
of the land we live in. Real people, real stories. Guy Clark,
Townes van Zandt, and the country/Texas artists who followed
them knew the same thing. Andy Scheinman must be added to that
list.
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Andy Scheinman |
The fourth track on this disc, "Texas Travelin' Hero,"
has a line that proves it. Tim McGraw, you might want to take
a listen to this excerpt from the story of an old honky tonk
hero at the end of the line: "stayin' in cheap motels, he
didn't care if that song didn't sell." The song draws word
pictures of West Texas highways and lonely honky tonks in the
middle of nowhere, the places real people come to have their
spirits reborn on a Saturday night. This is music for the love
of the music, not mindless pap for the love of the dollar. Here
are Andy's words on the song's origin:
"Jimmie Dale Gilmore's "Spinning Around The Sun"
was a big key to what I started to
listen to. From there, even though I had already heard about
these folks, I began to listen to Townes, Steve Earle, Guy Clark,
and Tom Russell. These were the guys from Texas that influenced
me the most. That's when I decided to write "Texas Travelling
Troubadour". I wanted to pay homage to these writers in
that song." Not bad for a New York boy with punk rock roots
who moved to Vermont to fly fish and find himself. Not bad at
all.
This is an exceptionally well done CD for an artist new to
the Americana scene. Andy has paid his dues in the small clubs
and coffeehouses of America, and opened for the likes of Iris
Dement. The CD is produced by Tommy Spurlock, who adds an authentic
Texas feel to Andy's alt-country vocals and the mandolins, dobros
and pedal steel evident throughout the song list. The disc as
a whole is easy on the ears, at first perhaps almost too accessible,
but a careful listen turns up lyrical nuggets that even Johnny
Cash would be proud of. This reviewer's personal favorite, at
least for today, comes on the third cut, "I've Been Thinking."
Against the subtle but powerful background of the music Andy's
voice,
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reminiscent of Billy Bragg and Wilco, rises up like a vision
proclaiming to his best girl that "Drinkin' hard and smoky
bars, that's just part of my past. I knew it couldn't last when
I met you." The song continues with an introspective and
moving look at the changes every man faces when that one woman
appears in his life, and sets the tone for the remainder of a
powerfully poignant CD.
One of the hardest parts of reviewing any performer's music
is the simple fact that music is a fluid thing; it means different
things to each person who hears it. For this piece, Andy Scheinman
made himself extremely accessible via email to provide background
information on his early musical styles, his influences, his
interests, and his basic personality. After corresponding with
him several times, this reviewer feels safe in saying that Andy
has made a CD that displays not only his talent but his personality
and depth as well. Andy's web site notes that he is an avid student
of American history, particularly the Civil War period, and that
he also is a certified boxing referee. He's seen New York City
and left it behind, he's fly fished in Vermont while writing
songs in his head, and he has drawn from his varied background
and interests to produce music that we should all hear at least
once. "Make Amends" shows the influence of many of
Americana music's greatest, but it stands solidly on its own
as an album of tried and true music. In short, Andy Scheinman
makes New York and the heartland meet Texas in the place where
Nashville should be.
You can find out more about Andy at his label's site, www.tangible-music.com,
and at his own site, http://members.aol.com/Flyfolk/andy.htm.
That second site provides upcoming concert info as well as contact
and booking information for Andy. This is one non-Texan artist
that you will never regret finding out about, I promise you.
If you must make comparisons, listen to Bruce and Charlie Robison
and then slip Andy's disc in the player. It'll never come back
out, and you'll find that Bandera and Vermont might not be as
far apart as that War Between the States still makes us feel
at times.
Contact Dave Pilot at:
tailgunner-at-rockzilla.net
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