If a guest list of marquee names is what it takes to finally bring
Bill Kirchen the attention he deserves, then so be it. This Telecaster master has never made an album that's less than outstanding, but hopefully the presence of
Elvis Costello,
Dan Hicks,
Nick Lowe,
Maria Muldaur, the late
Norton Buffalo,
Paul Carrack, and others on
Word to the Wise will do the trick.
Kirchen began his career as lead guitarist for
Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen in the '70s, and the ol'
Commander himself,
George Frayne, returns to engage in some fancy boogie-woogie ivory tickling on "I Don't Work That Cheap," a
Kirchen original (co-written by guitarist/vocalist Blackie Farrell, who also guests) that posits an alternate universe historical travelog.
Costello's star turn comes in the blues-infused "Man in the Bottom of the Well," and it's one of the more riveting vocals he's laid down in some time.
Dan Hicks co-wrote and co-sings the title track with
Kirchen, and it could easily have been a prime-era
Hot Licks staple.
Chris O'Connell, former
Asleep at the Wheel vocalist, engages in a weepy duet with
Kirchen on
Roger Miller's "Husbands and Wives,"
Muldaur's trademark bawdy blues style lights up the barroom shuffle "Ain't Got No Time for the Blues," and
Lowe and
Carrack team up
Everly Brothers-style on "Shelly's Winter Love," borrowed from the
Merle Haggard songbook. The set ends on a semi-sad note with
Kirchen's "Valley of the Moon," not because there's anything gloomy about the song itself, but because it's one of the last times the always-stellar harmonica of
Norton Buffalo would be heard in a recording studio. So much for the guests -- what about the host? As always,
Kirchen's guitar work is faultless. He's a player who always knows exactly what to play when, never overstays his welcome, enjoys the element of surprise, and keeps things invitingly simple and clean. As a vocalist, he's never going to be
Sinatra, but he embraces his material and delivers it with panache and assuredness, just as he's done for the past four decades, and that's more than good enough. A word to the wise: if you've yet to fall prey to the proto-Americana charms of
Bill Kirchen, this is as good a place to start as any. ~ Jeff Tamarkin