Time The Revelator

This is a gorgeous album. Like many people, I first learned about Welch & Rawlings through their work on "O Brother Where Art Thou" and "Down by the Mountain." Despite having little previous interest in bluegrass, I was instantly hooked. I finished collecting their albums this year, and was delighted to find out that "Time (The Revelator)" was the best of a very good body of work.I'm especially fond of the eerie title track, "Revelator," a contemplation of Welch's own success. The songwriter successfully walks a fine line between invective and self-pity, and her refrain -- "Time's the revelator" -- is at once fierce yet chilling. Rawlings's guitar accompaniment is equally fantastic; he's an astonishing musician. Together, they make the song into a small masterpiece.(Incidentally, I saw the two of them play this at a venue in Atlanta several months ago. When they got to a particular four-letter word towards the end of the song, the seemingly grave audience cheered with delight).Other highlights:The sweetly seductive "Elvis Presley Blues" will get to you even if you've never cared for Elvis. It seems like pure heartland at first, but has a touch of Lou Reed-like suggestiveness."I Want to Sing That Rock And Roll" was the first Welch/Rawlings tune I ever loved, and it's still a good one. Like other reviewers, I wish they had re-recorded the track for this album; the ovation at the end is a little disconcerting."My First Lover" is the album's most leisurely and enjoyable song; thudding power chords recall a lazy, stupefying roll in the hay."I Dream a Highway" is the album's other masterpiece, a 14 minute ballad with a narcotic, haunting intensity. Despite its length and repetitive melody, it never gets boring; instead, it invokes an eternal road trip through loneliness and revelation. It's a great song -- the thrillingly slow finish to a marvelous album.

Gillian and partner David Rawlings take some risks with "Time (The Revelator)" and succeed by keeping things fresh while maintaining their sound. "April The 14th" is divided into two parts with two songs separating them, the second titled "Ruination Day" and the whole song is a rumination on the assassination of Lincoln, the Titanic and the fate of the 'Okies' among other things. And then there's "I Dream A Highway" but more about that later. The title track goes down easy with lovely picking by Rawlings and the pair's seemingly effortless natural harmonies. The song builds nicely with intertwined guitars. "My First Lover" is a bittersweet reminiscence enhanced with a reference to an old Steve Miller song. "Dear Someone" is a dreamy bluesy waltz. Gillian and David's ability to infuse a depressing lyric about being poor with a jaunty upbeat melody is wonderful and rich in irony. "I Want To Sing That Rock And Roll" is a joyous live track that's infectious as hell. The next song, "Elvis Presley Blues" is one of my favorites here with a splendid melody and heartfelt lyrics. These blues make me feel good. I like the comparison of Elvis to a chorus girl and a Harlem queen- an interesting take on the King. The woes and hopes of the worker are explored on the understated and haunting "Everything Is Free".The album closes with the epic (in length and thematic scope)"I Dream A Highway". A sort of opposite of Dylan's "Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands" or "Desolation Row" in that it's more hopeful and the narrator of this song is more confident than Dylan's dazed and confused suitor though there are subtle similarities in both songs. "I Dream A Highway" is the perfect final track, leading you gently out of Gillian and David's world. For now. I consider this album and "Hell Among The Yearlings" to be their masterpieces.

This is my introduction to Gillian Welch. I don't pretend to be an authority, so please consider that when reading this. She sings these songs with just the slightest bit of world-weariness, which seems to enhance and deepen their impact. The songs bear repeated hearing well. It seems that every time I listen I pick up some nuance I missed before. What you might not notice the first few times is her excellent sense of timing (rhythm). Listen to "Elvis Presley Blues" for example. My other favorites are "Time, the Revelator" and "April 14th, Part I". These have some very interesting chord changes to go along with the words. At (a very few) times she seems like she could be a red-clay version of Joni Mitchell, but that's beside the point. Welch's songs have a visceral directness that is both refreshing and troubling. The duet work with her collaborator Rawlins is seamless. In a world where so much is fake and short-lived, Welch is the Real Deal. Listen and learn.