ROBBIE FULKS - GONE AWAY BACKWARD

If you are unaware of who Robbie Fulks is, or never heard his music, please pay close attention...or perhaps it is too late for you so in that case go back to your Tim McGraw/Kenny Chesney collection and enjoy.
Robbie Fulks has been creating exceptional music for quite sometime. His latest release "Gone Away Backward" finds him once again on the Bloodshot Records label. I must admit I have been looking forward to this release very much after first hearing about it a couple of months ago. There is something within his music that captures my attention...be it his keen wit or his way of creating imagery I can relate to within his lyrics...I have long enjoyed his music. I have often tried to share my good fortune with others, and explain who Robbie Fulks is...or what his music is like. One of the first questions they often ask is "what song should I listen to of his". Well, I find that hard to answer since there are so many sides to his music. You have the wit of "I Told Her Lies"...the charm and force of "Rock Bottom" or "Barely Human"...and the stellar vivid imagery of "Cold Statesville Ground". I would be doing Robbie a disfavor by selling him short only selecting one or even two songs.
So, it was with much interest I waited for this new release..and also to read the reviews that were written on it. I wanted to wait a few weeks afterward to write my own, just to see what others were saying. What I found most interesting was people trying to tie the title in with the music, by saying he has gone back to his musical roots. Nothing could be further from the truth, since he never left them. Robbie Fulks has always relied on his own keen mind and creativity in his writing and music, regardless of any genre classifications you may try to attach, which is useless in my opinion. Pure music is just that, music that you can feel within you, written and performed by someone who is talented enough to make you think...or make you picture something within your own mind. Robbie continues to do just that with his new release.
Ultimately, there is nothing I can say that can describe what the music sounds like, or what the lyrics were trying to imply within any certain song. The only thing I can say is buy the record, see for yourself what I am trying to say. The music will have an impact upon you, and it is artists such as Robbie who deserve the support of listeners who enjoy music in its pure form. Buy it, sit back, and enjoy. Then tell me what struck you about it. That is what I enjoy about music and conversing...it is all open to the interpretation of the listener.