Andy Logan
Last Dance on the Wild Frontier
KOAN Records
I’d never heard any of Andy Logan’s previous work (Little America, The Johnsons), but the description one fan gave of his voice, “a cross between Muddy Waters and Mickey Dolenz,” was enough to get me to sample this CD. After listening, I’m not sure I would have made the same connection, but Logan’s voice can easily switch from melodic and smooth to gravelly, depending on the needs of the song. And that’s where Logan seems to want the focus to stay – the song. As a singer/songwriter, he places the needs of the song above his own performance, and usually the result is for the best. Unlike many singer/songwriters, he has the musical chops to back up his writing.
The songs on Last Dance on the Wild Frontier range from traditional stripped down folksy numbers (“Shadow On My Trail”) to bluesy-riffed rockers (“Puttin’ It On”) to radio-ready catchy pop numbers (“Another Renaissance”). Is it perfect? No. Some of the numbers seem repetitious after fifteen songs. But when compared to the morass of generic folk-rockers being polished by the major labels, this honest effort is a breath of fresh air. If the Nashville music scene has more like Logan waiting in the wings, we are in for a treat.
Andy Logan: http://www.andylogan.com/
