专辑简介

First, a few basic facts. John Keenan is a singer-songwriter from Scotland. He is in possession of a richly expressive, soulful voice, writes honest, emotive, lyrically direct songs, and, with his brand new album, Fools Crusade, presents a fresh and appealing take on contemporary rock and roll. He is in a long tradition of excellent Scottish writers and performers he writes the kind of lyrical, heartfelt ballads in the tradition of such illustrious forbears as Gerry Rafferty or John Martyn, yet can also rock out with the kind of gutsy grit of the likes of Frankie Miller or Alex Harvey. So far so good, but Keenan is also an excellent interpreter; Fools Crusade contains an imaginative reworking of the Gordon Lightfoot classic, If You Could Read My Mind, which is brought directly into the here and now by way of a warm and intimate reading, and a contemporary arrangement carefully tailored to frame Keenans interpretation. It can often be a difficult task, to take a very familiar song and to wring new layers of meaning and feeling from the lyric, but Keenan does just that. In this regard, he is aided and abetted by his German producer and arranger, Markus Wagner, who magisterially manicures the impressive musical backdrops to suit Keenans voice brilliantly. Wagner also co-writes the original songs on the album, carefully crafted, by turns melodic and punchy. Take, for example, Wishing Well, a gutsy rocker that positively swaggers with a bristling musical confidence, then contrast that with mellower moments such as Bus Ride Away, and the recorded evidence of a winning musical partnership is plain to see and hear. Fools Crusade is the second John Keenan album, and it represents a positive progression from his debut, Hell No. Fools Crusade boasts a greater stylistic diversity, and a more clearly defined sense of confidence radiates from finely-crafted songs such as Not Too Late To Turn and South of The River Crowd. John Keenan is a talent that has been carefully developed, and allowed to mature in collusion with producer Wagner. Mention must also be made of the excellent musical contributions made by guitarists Ralf Blaschke and Mike Harwood, whose varied tones and playing styles add much tasteful musical colour and texture, on an album that surprises and enthrals in equal measure. For all radio programmers out there, may we guide you to the following tracks as suitable points of entry for Fools Crusade: Track 1: If You Could Read My Mind soulful reading of the Gordon Lightfoot classic. Track 3: Bus Ride Away subtle, warm and winning ballad, with a Latinate, bossa nova rhythm. Track 10: Just A Kid parental advisory contains strong language! Track 12: Not Too Late To Turn tougher, more rocking track. John Keenan will be available for radio interviews and sessions in support of Fools Crusade.