On The Road To Somewhere

Label: Loose Records
Artist: Danny & The Champions of the World
Album: Streets Of Our Time

Danny Wilson has done time on the alt. country music scene for 12 years as frontman of South London's Grand Drive. He broke out with his own folk project, Danny and the Champions of the World, releasing a debut album in 2008. "Streets of our Time", out today, is their second album and is served with a big dollop of retro, Americana cream.

Danny Wilson has done time on the alt. country music scene as frontman for 12 years of South London's Grand Drive. He broke out with his own folk project, Danny and the Champions of the World, releasing a debut album in 2008. "Streets of our Time", out today, is their second album and is served with a big dollop of retro, Americana cream. Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young - style, multi-layered harmonies float over Dylanesque tales of lives lived and loves lost, all created with a varied pallette of instruments (played, incidentally, by a medley of musicians from other bands), from lapsteel guitar to saxophone, blended to give a satisfyingly authentic sound. Wilson and the band delve deep into their Country influences on three of the tracks: " Lose These Rags" is an upbeat resolution to battle against life's adversities while "Parakeets", the closing track, is an all out hoedown. The reflective "Wandle Swan" is about the river near his home, a chalk stream which once turned the mills of the industrial revolution, but now a place of natural beauty cloaked in the sentiment of familiarity. The river theme is a recurring one on this album, and you get the feeling that Wilson is assessing his personal progress in life in terms of a journey travelled but a destination not yet reached, and bittersweet emotions bubble to the surface throughout the album. "Follow The River" is a tribute to Bruce Springsteen, with its anthemic chorus and rock feel. Even the sax line evokes The Boss (if a little tongue in cheek), with whom Wilson identifies as an inspiration and brother. Here too, Wilson asks, "Did we stay true to a path? Did we follow the river back to where it starts?" These doubts surface again, both in "Restless Feet", and the title track, "Streets of Time" (well, almost the title, bar one word!). "Restless Feet" echoes Bob Dylan musically and lyrically, mentioning Kerouac's iconic book "On The Road", to question whether drifting has caused the loss of something precious - a sense of belonging maybe? The hub of the album is "Streets of Time", which though simple, expresses exactly where this singer/songwriter is at. It is a straightforward allegory for the journey of life, different streets lead to different places, good and bad, and these are roads Wilson is still walking. However, he is not alone and this song is also a love song, wistful and poignant, asking that love be enjoyed while it lasts: shared in the present moment. This gem is followed by the upbeat, gospel number, "The People Here (Shine A Light)" and "Bluebird", another love song glowing with those lovely CSN&Y harmonies. For me though, the highlight of the album is its opener, "Henry The Van". Again allegorical, but this time so personal that it really hits home with its message of reaching the end of roads well travelled. As the tour bus (Henry) breaks down on a hill outside Aberdeen, Wilson muses about the better times they have both seen and the dreams that will now never be fulfilled. It's an amusing idea on the face of it, but it's hard not to sympathise with the knackered old bus and its lost dreams. This is the essence of this album, the feeling that it is from the heart: a simple, personal statement of a man's place in life after the first rush of striving is over as he wonders what to do next, executed with true charm.

Release date: 25th January 10