Jez Lowe – Crazy Pagan
Tantobie Records (TTRCD0120) – 1 November 2020
It’s an all too familiar story. Jez Lowe was in the middle of a Canadian tour when the virus arrived and all bets were off. He spent the months of June and July at home with a laptop and, seemingly, a room full of instruments, and took the time to revisit songs written earlier, at least one of which has been released before. There were no Bad Pennies around to help and the extra focus that brings to these songs is welcome.
It comes as no surprise that a singer and writer like Jez is inspired by the people he has met and the places he has been. These connections run through the album.
Shaking Monty is an upbeat start to the album that pays homage to a childhood sporting hero who maybe sprinkled a little stardust on a young Jez. Louisa’s Choosing deals with his admiration for Louisa Jo Killen, a singer and concertina player who inspired many nascent folkies in the North East and beyond in a career that lasted from her first folk club in 1958 until her death in 2013.
Inspired by the writing of yet another hero, Jack Common, This is not my Tribe was written in anger at the time of the last UK election. Yet this is a genuine protest song as opposed to a rant about something you don’t like. It resonates with the times we are living in but is relevant to a listener in any time and place where dissent feels necessary but somehow pointless. Lines like “don’t ask me..to worship at the cross while you’re hammering the nails” and “they pillory their prophets and ridicule their sages and their scribes” carry a lot of weight. For me the multi-tracked backing vocals, while well done by Jez, will never replace the sound of an enthusiastic audience joining in. However, it doesn’t take the edge off the song. There will no doubt be many covers of this song in future.
We have an anthem for the unemployed in Time Rich Cash Poor that has extra relevance in lockdown where the dreaded furlough has given it another perspective. It Features some fine harmonica playing and is strangely uplifting rather than merely complaining. He says “…the soothsayers don’t soothe me” and he means it. This is one of the highlights of this album. When we are back at festivals the crowds will love it.
Farmer Sun talks of the changes taking place in the North East and elsewhere as the old industrial features of the landscape are replaced by those of solar and wind power. A very simple arrangement gives emphasis to the words.
There is not much left of High Handenhold, the village in County Durham where Jez’s father was born that gives its name to what seems a simple song about growing old. Is it autobiographical? It certainly sounds like it. There are references to guitar strings stretched over dry wood, only having one Jethro Tull album to play and “life’s not a long song but a waltz through fast-flowing days”. These memories sound too fond not to be personal. If you are of ‘a certain age’ you may recognise yourself in this song. I did.
There is a fantasy street that Jez uses to hark back to the seventies and mourn the loss of old houses being replaced by “…affordable housing that nobody can afford”. I admire the sentiment but, for me, Honeymoon Terrace is not as strong as most of the songs on this album.
The sounds of an empty coal mine provide bookends to Coal Mountain. They are the only sounds on this CD not made by Jez. It stands up for the songs of the mining communities who “still hold their songs in good strong hands”. “Read what is scraped in dust across my soul” says a lot about what he feels and it’s the one song that also made the hairs on my arms stand on end.
A live recording from the Guildhall in Lichfield from 2019, Talk To Me Dirty in Geordie is desperately funny. I wept with laughter. This is already being talked about as the ultimate Tyneside love song. Before long it will be impossible for Jez to play anywhere without singing it. Health warning: Do not listen for the first time while driving.
Loon in the Moon claims that “…we know what it’s like to be mad”. Can’t get more enigmatic than that. Is this howling at the moon? Probably. It’s compelling. Damned if I know what it’s about but I keep going back to listen again and that must be the mark of a good song, potentially a great one. Maybe Jez is channelling his inner Syd Barratt.
We have another enigmatic song in Three Indian Kings. It deals with a strange conversation with a street sleeper seeking a “siren from a distant sea”. The three Indian kings was a quayside pub in Newcastle and is the setting for a forthcoming novel from Jez. The tune has a haunting Indian feel to it, taking twists and turns that are unexpected and delightful. This also commands repeated listening for more understanding. Its theme gives the album its title.
The Corly Croons shares its title with Jez’s second novel and it closes the album with what he describes as a lockdown shanty. I see what he means, although this another great song that when performed live will be a tour de force, I’m sure. On its own, this version lacks the energy of a strong closer to a really fine set of songs.
If you are a fan of Jez Lowe you will love this, as I did. If you are new to his work, then this will prove to be a great introduction and will certainly send you off looking for more.
Order Crazy Pagan here: http://www.jezlowe.com/products-page/cds/crazy-pagan/