Bob Levy’s songs seem to radiate a “nice guy” feel, even when emotions stated in the lyrics would seem to cry out for more passion rather than pleasantry and pop purring. Often reserved, laidback-bordering-on-labored approaches keep as slow, low-burning embers what could be the occasional raging fire (lines like “Don’t even try to come ‘round here again: I’m tired of your lies” and “Give me one reason to trust you”). Though the producer and arranger of record for the record is its mellow Nashville pianist Jamey Whiting, who tends to draw out the tempi rather than draw out the emotions or draw us into them, one assumes that’s what the songwriter wanted and likes. As they’d say in a political ad, “My name is Bob Levy and I approved this message.” Guitarists Andy Reiss and Penn Pennington often compensate with tasty sidework. Many tracks are in the country music style with hearts that are on the sleeve or broken, with broken chords to match. The most countryish are the bestish.

Though some songs are sprinkled with well-worn phrases (two consecutive songs use the phrase about the truth setting you free). Though lyrics feature my pet peeve of false rhymes (tomorrows/borrowed; perfect/worth it; whole/old; heaven-sent/dividend; quickly/with me) there are also examples of finely crafted lines. My favorite: “Fate’s just an old cliché songwriters all adore/Your life’s a Gershwin score you orchestrate, so why wait?”

Carolyn Martin plaintively sings three numbers: one has the phrase “loving this man” sung 14 times: guess what the title is. Half of the 18 tracks are sung by Perry Danos, who is a real asset with an attractive touch of sandpaper in his warm and fuzzy voice. On some of the tracks, he has a way of successfully defusing the sentimentality and adding a hip snap and crackle to the pop. He appeared on the previous Levy collection, Out in the Cold. Five other singers are on board, with one song apiece. One is cabaret artist Dane Vannatter (also on the prior CD) whose track is a smoothie and highlight: “Sooner Than Someday” (with co-writer Dennis Livingston and a different pianist, Jim Rice). A few other tracks feature writing collaborations: quite effective and polished is “This Time” with the writing partner du jour Karen Jacobsen doing the heartbreaking vocal

Rob Lester
Cabaret Scenes
December 2008
www.cabaretscenes.org