Jason Plumb and the Willing - All Is More Than Both

Jason Plumb and the Willing – All Is More Than Both
2012, Soccer Mom Records

Saskatchewan-based singer/songwriter Jason Plumb got his start in the early 1990’s as the front man for The Waltons.  Touring with Barenaked Ladies early in their career, The Waltons became a fan favorite across Canada and parts of the Northeast U.S, largely on the strength of Plumb’s songwriting and his voice.  The band waned with the 1990’s, and Plumb has gone on to become one of the most respect Indie songwriters in Canada.  Both as a solo artist and with his band The Willing, Plumb historically brings a quiet intensity and subtle melancholy to his songwriting that is compelling.  Plumb turns a corner on his latest album, All Is More Than Both, his third turn with The Willing.  With Canadian super-producer Michal Phillip Wojewoda at the helm, Plumb finds the anger and the joy embedded in his melancholy and lets it rip on what is his most vibrant album to date.

Recapturing a sonic vigor not seen since his earliest work with The Waltons, Plumb begins a full-on aural assault with “First Time”, a wondrous blend of 1980’s rock and Americana that recalls the glory days of a teenager and first love.  This is easily the most commercial single Plumb has produced in some time, but he does so without giving up a bit of quality in his songwriting.  The chorus is infectious and will inhabit your head for days; you won’t be able to help yourself from dancing and singing along.  “Losin’” has a much darker and heavier feel.  Co-written with Ed Robertson of Barenaked Ladies (who also contributes vocals here), there is a palpable anger to the song that may surprise longtime fans.

“What You Leave” is quite another matter altogether, a wonderfully melodic take on growing up, aging gracefully and coming to terms with what is important in life.  Former Barenaked Lady Steven Page lends his golden pipes in support of the most aurally appealing track on the album.  “Alone With You” is a catchy, mid-tempo anti-love song with a chorus that sounds like it belongs on 1970’s classic rock radio (Eagles, anyone?)  Plumb’s brilliance shines here in simple things, and you’ll find it hard to get this song out of your head.

Jason Plumb returns to gentle, melodic melancholy on “Hold On”, a gorgeous rumination on not being taken in again by love.  The vocals here are sublime, and Plumb builds the song in small measures to a chorus you simple cannot shake.  Listen for vocal support from Alexa Dirks, whose voice could light up a room.  “All By Myself” finds Jason Plumb and the Willing muscling up for a buoyant mid-tempo rocker full of the sort of hooks that make radio programmers drool.  Don’t be surprised if this song finds its way to the airwaves as we move into the summer months.

“On A Chain” blends pop and Americana in a brilliant reflection on not being able to break away from an old love.  The chorus is full of gorgeous vocal harmonies spread out around an edgy melody line; the contrast is appealing, and the mix of voices is pure magic.  Plumbs dips into romantic territory with “Falling Star”, which sounds as if it might have been left over from his Beauty In This World sessions.  It would, in fact, be surprising if this were a leftover, as the song is Plumb at his finest blend of poetry and melody.  It’s a beauty, and builds into a symphonic sounding chorus that leaves an impression on the listener.

"Under A Gun” finds Plumb sticking with his more lyric side, crafting a subtly beautiful melody line drenched in an ethereal, country-tinged arrangement that wraps you u and rocks you gently in its arms.  “Sweet Misery” starts with the simplest of piano lines and builds into an ode to the mix of suffering and joy that so often makes up love.  The twist here is that Plumb is looking back at someone from the past and realizing how good it was even if he couldn’t see it at the time.  Plumb reasserts his status as one of the finest working songwriters of his day right here.  You’ll have this song on continuous repeat.  Jason Plumb and the Willing close things out on a pragmatic note with the incredibly upbeat country/rock of “Naturally (Ain’t Up To Me)”. The chorus will invade your brain and refuse to leave as Plumb waxes poetic on a newfound acceptance of our ultimate place in life.

I’ll step outside the role of reviewer for a moment and offer a disclaimer: I have been a Jason Plumb fan for years.  I saw him with the Waltons back in the day when they opened for Barenaked Ladies in Ontario and small clubs in Buffalo.  I have followed his career as he has branched out; first on his own and later, with Jason Plumb and The Willing.  It’s not surprising that a fan is going to like the work of one of his favorite artists.  (Reviewer hat back on.)  What is surprising, however, is when a well-established songwriter who is respected by his peers remakes himself and raises the bar twenty-five years into a successful career.  Some credit has to be given to Michael Phillip Wojewoda for overseeing the same sort of transformation he has wrought with acts such as Barenaked Ladies, The Rheostatics, Spirit of the West and Ashley MacIsaac.  But the bulk of the credit goes to Jason Plumb and the Willing.  All Is More Than Both is brilliant from first note to last.  This is Prairie Music Award worthy, Juno Award worthy, and yes, GRAMMY Award worthy.  It’s also one of the easiest selections ever as a Wildy’s World Certified Desert Island Disc.

Rating:  5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Jason Plumb at www.jasonplumb.com or www.myspace.com/jasonplumbandthewilling.  All Is More Than Both is a Canadian release.  If you need a CD, you'll have to go MapleMusic.  Digital versions are available from the e-tailers below.

     iTunes

Please note that the Amazon.com prices listed above are as of the posting date, and may have changed. Wildy's World is not responsible for price changes instituted by Amazon.com.

Review: Barenaked Ladies - You Run Away (single)

Barenaked Ladies - You Run Away
2010, Raisin Records

It's hard to believe it's been 12 years since Barenaked Ladies dominated both US and Canadian radio with One Week, much less that it's been 17 years since I first saw them in an over-crowded and likely illegally packed former truck garage in Buffalo, NY. I've heard Barenaked Ladies go from a jazzy acoustic-Pop sound to brooding new wave to Poppy dementia to mellowing Pop maestros who Paul McCartney himself calls one of the most interesting bands in Pop music today. Co-founder/vocalist/songwriter Steven Page departed the band last year, wanting a larger share/stage for his songwriting, leaving Barenaked Ladies as a quartet for the first time in nearly two decades. The band chose to continue in this fashion rather than trying to replace Page's iconic voice.

Barenaked Ladies will release their 11th studio album, All In Good Time, on March 23, 2010 in Canada with a US release due on March 30th. It will be the first new material as a quartet and has been a source of both agita and excitement for longtime fans. On January 8th, the Ladies released the first single, You Run Away, on their website. It would be hard to call You Run Away a departure for the band, as BNL have ever been moving toward a more developed and nuanced sound, but for years Ed Robertson and Steve Page were yang and yin, respectively, for the band. They served to balance one another, as Page's darker side brought out the lighter aspects of Robertson's musical character. Over the past few albums, Barenaked Ladies have become more and more egalitarian in their songwriting, changing the balance of songwriting duties and influences.

This change in structure started to bring out a fuller texture in the band in general, and Robertson's songwriting in particular. If You Run Away is any indication, the change that has been fomenting for the past decade comes into full bloom in 2010. You Run Away is a mid-tempo, sorrowful ballad. It could be a song about a failed relationship (and I am sure some fans will speculate about the lyrics and Page's departure), but it's not an angry song. The melody is among the finest Barenaked Ladies have crafted in their 20+ years together, and it might be just the tune needed to return Barenaked Ladies to the Pop charts.

Robertson is in amazing voice, and arrangement is serene and melancholy, full of an almost tragic beauty. If You Run Away is representative of the album, All In Good Time could be their finest album yet. On a purely subjective level, as a fan, You Run Away brings me back to a time and place when I used to listen to the band incessantly. Not because it sounds like they used to, but because it sounds like Barenaked Ladies are once again creating like they used to.

Rating: 5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Barenaked Ladies at http://www.barenakedladies.com/. Barenaked Ladies will release All In Good Time (read review here) on their own label, Raisin Records, but recently signed a distribution agreement with EMI Music. The song will be released on iTunes in the near future. For now you can stream You Run Away on their website. You Run Away and All In Good Time were produced by Michael Philip Wojewoda, who previously produced the band's groundbreaking 1993 debut album, Gordon, and their 2008 Children's album Snacktime, as well as albums for Spirit Of The West, Great Big Sea, Ashley MacIsaac and The Rheostatics.

Review: Spirit Of The West - Spirituality: 1983 - 2008

Spirit Of The West – Spirituality: 1983 – 2008
2008, Rhino Records (Canada)

Spirit Of The West celebrated their 25th year in 2008 with the release of Spirituality: 1983-2008, a 2-CD collection of some of their best material from across the years with two new songs thrown in for good measure. Spirit Of The West has traversed Canada many times over the years, and to a lesser degree the United States and Europe. Starting out as a Celtic folk group, the sound has evolved over twenty-five years into a more refined pop/rock/Celtic blend, but Spirit Of The West never forgot their roots. Where you are a long-time fan of Spirit Of The West, a passing acquaintance, or even if you’ve never heard of them before, Spirituality offers much to enjoy and needs to be on your “get” list.

For the fans of Celtic and Scot songs, Spirit Of The West brings much from their glorious past to Spirituality. Doin’ Quite Alright, The Crawl, The Old Sod and Home For A Rest all fit the bill quite nicely. Home For A Rest has been consistently ranked by Canadian music fans as one of the top Canadian New Rock songs of all time. Of course, Spirit Of The West had a distinct social conscience in their music as well. Political, their first real hit, is an amazing song about the imbalance in a relationship caused by an insecure or controlling partner. Long time fans will be happy to know that the original version of Political (from Labour Day) is offered here. (Putting Up With) The Joneses is a tongue in cheek look at the sort of damage socioeconomic elitism can lead to; even touching on the social taboo of Eugenics.

Spirit Of The West happens to have written one of the most amazing songs I’ve ever heard, and it’s included here. Take It From The Source takes on bigotry and hatred with a velvet glove lined with iron. The pen is mightier than the sword by far in this moving and powerful personal answer to one of the darker elements of human nature. Take It From The Source, like Spirit Of The West themselves, should be a lot better known than it is.

You can hear the progression from Celtic folk group to rock band occurring throughout Disc One of Spirituality, with Save This House being the first sign that something’s afoot. By the time we get to songs like Goodbye Grace, D Is For Democracy (Scour The House) and Big Head, Spirit Of The West have achieved a true pop rock sound while still heavily influenced by their Celtic roots. Disc Two completes the transition, with five tracks from the Michael Phillip Wojewoda produced Faithlift ((And If) Venice Is Sinking; Sadness Grows; Bone Of Contention; Death On The Beach and Is This Where I Come In). Faithlift was Spirit Of The West’s best selling album with a fair amount of cross-exposure on soundtracks, TV, etc. The instrumentation and arrangements still suggest their roots, but the production values are the pure pop genius Wojewoda has long been capable of.

Unplugged continues the run of social commentary in an upbeat song about Euthanasia and the right to die. Delivered with a wry smile, Unplugged has deep philosophical roots in the right of individuals to determine their own fate. Wishing Line and Our Ambassador find Spirit Of The West at the nadir of their pop/rock sound, almost wholly distinct from where they started out. The album was Weights and Measures, and while offering up songs wholly in the rock realm, Spirit Of The West offered distinct nods to the “old” sound with Canadian Skye and Rites Of Man.

Spirituality also features two brand new tracks, the moody Winter’s Now The Enemy and the raucous Another Happy New Year. The two tracks reflect the two musical aspects of Spirit Of The West wonderfully well. You’ll find yourself wrapped up in the tension and beauty of the former and wanting to dance to latter (preferably with some Guinness or some grog).

Spirit Of The West has built a vibrant and varied catalog over the last quarter century. Too prolific and profound to ignore, the band continues to be a hit at live shows across Canada. The days of endless touring long behind them, Spirit Of The West are content continuing to make great music their way; in their own time and fashion. They still tour, and will commence a tour of Eastern Canada with Great Big Sea on March 11, 2009. While Spirit Of The West was a major label act at one time, they have always carried themselves with an Indie Spirit, and their music is a testament to that. Spirituality is a collection of some of their best moments, but there is much good material not represented. (Noticeably absent is anything from their fine album Open Heart Symphony, as well as my personal favorite song from Faithlift, Sincerely Yours), but a collection of this sort should inspire you to look (and listen) deeper; leaving some nuggets behind for the ardent listener to be rewarded with. With all that’s here, Spirituality can be nothing other than a Wildy’s World Certified Desert Island Disc. It’s an absolute must-have.

Rating: 5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Spirit Of The West at http://www.sotw.ca/. You can purchase Spirituality at CDUniverse.com. You will find it Amazon.com but will pay $15 more. Be sure to check out Spirit Of The West’s web page and particularly the individual members’ blogs on that site. John Mann, Geoffrey Kelly, Hugh McMillan, Vince Ditrich and Tobin Frank all have long musical histories that include solo albums or albums with other bands as well numerous guest appearances over the years.

Artist Feature: Spirit Of The West

Spirit Of The West is the Wildy’s World Artist Of The Month for January of 2009. They’ve been making great music for 25 years, starting out in 1983 as a Vancouver folk trio named Evesdropper. Original members Geoffrey Kelly, John Mann and J. Knutson built a sound steeped in Celtic musical traditions that defined Spirit Of The West's early years and is evident on the first two albums, Spirit Of The West (self-released, 1984) and Tripping Up The Stairs (Stony Plain Records, 1986). Knutson left after Tripping Up The Stairs to be replaced by Linda McRae and current member Hugh McMillan. The band's third release, Labour Day (Stony Plain, 1988) contained the hit single Political. This commercial splash led to the band signing with Warner Canada and releasing Save This House, which spawned two popular singles (Save This House and Home For A Rest)

As Spirit Of The West faced the onset of the 1990's, there was a desire in the band to expand their sound. They were inspired to branch out while touring England with The Wonder Stuff; wanting to fill concert halls with sound the way The Wonder Stuff did. Consequently Vince Ditrich was pressed into service. With a new drummer and a new sound, Spirit Of The West marched forward with Go Figure in 1991. Go Figure saw both a broadening of Spirit Of The West's popular appeal as well as the estrangement of some longtime fans that were unhappy with the move from folk to rock. A prime point of comparison is offered on Go Figure, as Spirit Of The West's first hit single, Political was reinterpreted here as a rock song. Disgruntled fans actually went so far as to present the band with a petition at one point during the tour supporting Go Figure demanding Spirit Of The West play the original version of Political.


1993 was a commercial plateau for Spirit Of The West. It began with the selection of Canadian super-producer Michael Phillip Wojewoda (also responsible for the Barenaked Ladies' Gordon). The resulting album, Faithlift completed the transition from folk band to mainstream rock band and sparked the band's biggest single, And If Venice Is Sinking. Spirit Of The West had other radio singles from Faithlift, including Sadness Grows and 5 Free Minutes. The marriage of Spirit Of The West with Wojewoda brought out the best in both.

Spirit Of The West returned in 1995 with Two-Headed, a darker, more mature effort that succeeded in artistry but failed to have the commercial legs of Faithlift. In 1996, Spirit Of The West released Open Heart Symphony with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. Perhaps the most stunning and courageous recording of their career, Open Heart Symphony was a collection of original songs written for the symphony performance, rather than a recapitulation of hits with orchestral arrangements. If fans and critics weren't aware of it before then, it became rapidly clear that Spirit Of The West had something special going for them in the song craft department.

1997 saw Spirit Of The West transplant themselves to England, and Martin Barre's personal studio for the recording of Weights & Measures. Guests included Barre (Jethro Tull); Karen Matheson and Donald Shaw (Capercaille); Ric Sanders (Fairport Convention); Martin Bell (The Wonderstuff) and Duncan Moss (Page & Plant, Shave The Monkey). Weights and Measures revived some of the Celtic roots of Spirit Of The West while continuing the development of their sound that began with Go Figure. Production was again handled by Michael Phillip Wojewoda.

A seven year hiatus saw band members pursue other musical projects, acting gigs and just living semi-normal lives, but Spirit Of The West returned in 2004 with Star Trails, a well written and performed album that received positive critical response but unfortunately just did not have significant commercial presence.

Along the way there have been three compilations of Spirit Of The West Material. 1989's Old Material: 1984-1986 captures live performances of songs from the ill-fated indie debut (which is long out of print) as well as early concert favorites. 1999's Hit Parade is your proto-typical Best Of collection featuring three unreleased songs from the Open Heart Symphony recordings. In 2008, Rhino Records Canada released Spirituality: A Consummate Compendium (1983-2008). This two-disc set captures highlights of the band's twenty-five year collective history, including rare tracks and two new songs produced by the aforementioned Michael Phillip Wojewoda. Not unsurprisingly the album peaked at #10 on the iTunes Canadian charts.

Spirit Of The West was inducted into the Western Canadian Music Association Hall of Fame in 2008, recognition of twenty-five years of ground breaking music as one of the pre-eminent alt-rock acts in Canada. For 2009, big things are planned, including a new studio album, a live DVD, and a recasting of the Open Heart Symphony shows. We are working on getting a review of Spirituality up this month, and hopefully a review of the new album (and maybe even the live DVD) as they are released this year. On a personal note, Spirit Of The West have long been one of my favorite bands, and it is with great pleasure that we present them as our January 2009 Artist Of The Month.

You can learn more about Spirit of The West at http://www.sotw.ca/ or www.myspace.com/spiritothewest.