Roadsongs (Sugar Hill)

The liner notes of Roadsongs alone are worth the price of admission, or sticker price, as the case may be. The music is simply the cherry on top. Townes Van Zandt recorded the tracks heard here on his travels over the course of a few years. His band came and went, but that didn't seem to matter. It's always a curious matter when a songwriter as amazing and noted as Van Zandt chooses to tip his 24-gallon hat to his own musical heroes. That's what Roadsongs is, a nod to other songwriters. Lightnin' Hopkins scores four tunes, Bob Dylan two. A couple of traditionals make the cut, as well as pieces by Bruce Springsteen, Joe Ely, and Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. It's an interesting array of talent, brought together by Van Zandt in all of his good-old-boy glory. A snapshot of a true American troubadour doing what he does best: singing about heartbreak in some joint somewhere to folks who know about such things. Van Zandt was quoted once as saying "The world's got enough blues that nobody needs to hear." Thank goodness he kept on singing anyway. ~ Kelly McCartney