Life is a charade, and at those points when you think you have it figured out, it throws you for a loop, which, in a sense, is how Scott Ballew came to record Rio Bravo. A filmmaker who spent the pandemic writing his first songs, Ballew realized that, like so many of his contemporaries, he wasn’t just one thing but many. And while he had never thought about being a singer/songwriter, it was a part of him in the same way that Terry Allen was a singer but also a painter. So, in his late 30s, Ballew began branching out.
Now 40, with his third album, Ballew has created something that rivals the work of John Prine, Townes VanZandt and even Mr. Zimmerman himself. Rio Bravo keeps sneaking up on you, mixing music and metaphors in the most amazing ways. True Love Can’t Surf introduces every musician who plays on the album, one at a time, while also establishing Ballew as a person with a most unique vision, “People, they don’t change/ It’s like hugging a crashing wave/ Expecting it not to break.” There’s heart and soul and even a sense of sentimentality that imbues his work.
While not blessed with a traditionally beautiful voice, Ballew uses it with the unerring skill of someone who finds the magic in the cracks and crevices of his vocals. The Texas timbres never overshadow his lyrical visions. Lines like “One thousand Christmas cards/ the cause of my death” make you realize that inside moments or mirth, larger issues are being raised.
The final song on the album, A Funny Masterpiece, strings together lines offering truths much bigger than they appear. “Inside a truck stop/ Or maybe AA/ Or Outside of Denver/ I heard someone say/ If you’re lonely get a dog/ If you’re broke get a job/ Find religion if you believe in hell/ Find God, if you’ve already been there.” Perhaps humour and truth are just two sides of the same coin.
There are so many great lines amidst the guitars and keyboards it’s impossible to take it all in. Sometimes, you’re left wondering just exactly what it all means. How do you understand the opening line of Can You Hear Me Smile, as Ballew offers, “Like the first cigarette of winter, everything is possible.” Yet when he uncorks, “It’s funny, when you go for the horizon/ How quickly one can be alone”, there is no mistaking the meaning.
Recorded live, Scott Ballew has crafted an album that breathes and becomes a mirror of who we are and how we live. “Rio Bravo” explores our lives and insecurities, bringing us face-to-face with the person in the mirror. If it’s not a masterpiece, it’s pretty damn close.
Out now on La Honda and RCA records.