Somewhere South of Eden

self-released

Ttaltonommy Talton, who along with Scott Boyer comprised the core of ’70s country/Southern rock ensemble Cowboy, has achieved the solo masterpiece he always had in him.

Cowboy recorded four criminally under-appreciated studio LPs before hanging it up after their self-titled 1977 effort. The group backed up Greg Allman on his 1974 orchestral tour, which yielded a live double LP and Cowboy’s only officially released live music (two of their songs were featured on Side 2) until “Reunion 2010.”

Talton didn’t release a solo record until 2008. That one and its two follow-ups, while enjoyable, turned out to be mileposts en route to the idyllic “Eden.”

Such bliss arrives in the form of well-crafted compositions, whose presentation is enhanced by a revolving cast of six world-class keyboard players, and maximized by meticulous engineering and mixing that puts the singer-songwriter’s estimable guitar skills — particularly his slide work — front and center.

“I remember when I was first trying to (learn how to play slide guitar) … back in late 1968 or so … in Venice, Calif. … I could not play and it sounded awful,” he said in a recent interview on Macon, Ga.’s WNEX-FM. “… (But I kept at it and) I went to bed one night, and the next morning when I woke up I could play. … Something happened that night, and I was not hanging out with the devil at the time, either.”

Markham White, proprietor of Afterdark Designs Studio in Smyrna, Ga., offered some quick logistics on the album’s recording as well as detailed technical insight into how the engineering and mixing process for “Eden” did justice to Talton’s guitar work:

“The initial tracking of drums, bass, and scratch guitar and vocals were done at my colleague David Pinkston’s studio, Boomtown Recorders, in the Nashville area,” White told Good New Music via email. “All good recordings must start with a great drum and bass sound, and David certainly delivered. Otherwise, it is difficult to finish with a great product.

“All the guitars and vocals were recorded at my studio … and all mixing was done there as well. The keyboards were recorded by each artist in their own studios and sent to me for mixing, as were the great horns by Randall Bramblett (on “I Can’t Believe It”). Paul Hornsby at Muscadine Studios recorded Chuck Leavell’s great piano on “Poblano.” Jimmy Nutt at the Nutthouse studio recorded Spooner Oldham. Ike Stubblefield and Kenny Head contributed great performances, as well.

“As for the guitar sounds, first let me start by saying that as a guitar player myself for over 40 years, I truly believe most tone is in the hands of the player. That said, it is important to work toward the best sound you can achieve. To that end, Tommy and I worked on several setups (different guitars, amps in different settings) to find what worked for him best on each song.

“The vast majority of electric guitar work was done on my SamAmp VAC 23 and Tommy’s Epiphone solid body and his mid-60’s Gibson 335. The amplifier was mic’d mostly in the tracking room of my studio but on some songs, in my studio bathroom shower. … We even used my Fractal Axe-Fx II on a song. Whatever served the sound is all that matters. I am not married to any particular technology, old or new.

“The signal chain for electric guitar recording is mostly a Royer R-121 or Sennheiser e 906 close-mic’d and an Audio-Technica AT4033 as a room mic thru API 512c preamps, API 550A EQs, etc. The acoustic guitars were mic’d with either a pair of Neumann KM 184s or Telefunken M60 FETs. Vocals were mostly done on a Telefunken U47 reissue through an Avalon 737 preamp/EQ/compressor.

“Recording and mixing was done on Pro Tools HD 7.3 thru a pair of ATC SCM25As with referencing on our respective car stereo systems. … The entire project was a bit over a year given our schedules. My recording and mixing philosophy is pretty conventional. I believe in letting the music dictate the approach. In this case, we wanted very clean recordings and mixes reminiscent of my idol Roger Nichols of Steely Dan fame. In the end, the project dictated its own sound, and Tommy and I were very happy with the results.”

As on his earlier releases, Talton covers an array of genres, from Memphis soul/R&B (“I Can’t Believe It”) to slow-shuffling blues (“Hard Situation”) to instrumental Latin jazz (“Poblano”) — even to pseudo-bluegrass (“Don’t Go Away Sore!” with special guest “Rev.” Jeff Mosier of Blueground Undergrass on banjo).

But unlike his previous albums, “Eden” has a thread tying it all together — one that initially was intangible to this reviewer. Good New Music came up with a theory about what it was, posited it to Talton and received the following in response:

“I suppose the ‘introspective’ aspect (you think might be present) is just a natural outcome of my state of mind while deciding what I would like to put out there,” he told GNM by email. “Actually, there are three songs included that have been in the ‘must record someday’ files! ‘I Surrender,’ ‘Hard Situation,’ ‘When I Fall Asleep Again,’ ‘It’s Gonna Come Down on You’ and even ‘Poblano’ have been sitting and waiting patiently to be recorded at some point.

“I had forgotten there were five,” Talton added parenthetically. “Wow, thanks for reminding me!”

As long as GNM had the artist’s ear, there was — as TV’s police Lt. Frank Columbo would say — “just one more thing”: What ever became of those recording sessions that reportedly took place about 10 years ago with an eye toward a new Cowboy album? Is there a finished album sitting on a shelf?

“Actually, it’s very timely of you to ask about those ‘secret’ Cowboy sessions,” Talton confided. “Just last week I received some final mixes on that project that was begun, believe it or not, in 2008! There are four tracks with all the original members of the band, and the rest are more of a ‘Boyer and Talton’ affair. We are getting closer to those seeing the light of day! But, that’s another story.”gnm_end_bug

Tracks
1. I Can’t Believe It
2. Hard Situation
3. We Are Calling
4. Somewhere South Of Eden
5. Poblano
6. Center Of My Soul
7. Don’t Go Away Sore
8. It’s Gonna Come Down On You
9. I Surrender
10. Waiting On The Saints
11. When I Fall Asleep Again

Total time: 49:12

External links
artist’s site
CD Baby
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