DISClaimer Single Reviews: Kameron Marlowe Brings Soulful Voice To Ballad

/by

Kameron Marlowe. Photo: Trea Allen.

The voices of today meet the legends of yesterday in this week’s DISClaimer. 

Country music is in good hands (throats?) with such new talents as Avery Anna, Sam Williams, Harper Grace, Kane Brown and Disc of the Day winner Kameron Marlowe.

Showing the kiddies how it’s done are Barbara Fairchild and the late Ed Bruce.  

This week’s DISCovery Award goes to Dustin Kensrue, the singer from the band Thrice. He is apparently transitioning from rock to country.

BARBARA FAIRCHILD/ “All My Cloudy Days Are Gone”
Writer: Alan Rhody; Producer: Don Williams; Label: 65South
– Prior to his death in 2017, Country Music Hall of Fame member Don Williams collaborated with ‘70s hit maker Fairchild. He both produced and sang harmony on her project, which is now seeing the light of day. The album’s title tune is a splendid two-step with a rolling rhythm track and soft strings backing her heartfelt delivery. As country as a mountain stream.

NATE SMITH/ “Bulletproof”
Writers: Ashley Gorley/Ben Johnson/Hunter Phelps; Producer: Lindsay Rimes; Label: RCA Records Label Nashville
– The “World On Fire” man returns with a rocking barroom stomper. No matter how many shots he drinks, he can’t forget her. Hence, her “memory must be bulletproof.”

HARPER GRACE/ “Break It Like A Man”
Writers: Scott Stepakoff/Alex Kline Eisberg/Harper Gruzins; Producers: Alex Kline/Cooper Bascom/Tedd T.; Label: Curb Records
– Grace spits out this country-rocker with fiery force. She wails righteously on the choruses of the fiesty, wronged-woman outing. Well worth your spins. The video debuted on CMT yesterday.

KANE BROWN/ “Fiddle In The Band”
Writers: Gabe Foust/Jordan Walker/Kane Brown/Russell Sutton; Producer: Dann Huff; Label: RCA Records Label Nashville
– A blast furnace of energy. Brown paints the town red while a scorching fiddle in the house band sizzles. A little r&b, a little honky-tonk and a whole lotta rock percussion. A wild ride.

SAM WILLIAMS/ “Carnival Heart”
Writers: Ned Houston/PJ Harding/Sam Williams; Producers: Ben Roberts/Nathan Sexton; Label: Mercury Nashville
– This was created to accompany Cirque du Soleil’s new country show “Songblazers “which will open in Nashville in July. The orchestrated track has a celestial, dreamy quality, and Williams delivers a message of pain and hope brilliantly. An epic ballad, beautifully produced and sung.

RAELYNN/ “Funny Girl”
Writers: Lauren Hungate/Racheal Davis; Producer: Tofer Brown; Label: Daisy Rae Productions
– A winsome little piece of advice for a youngster who is hurting. You’ll grow out of this and blossom into a winner, she promises in this anthem of perseverance.

ED BRUCE/ “Old Timer”
Writers: E. Bruce/J.Bruce/T.Bruce; Producers: Ed Bruce/Jeff Elliott/Mike Morgan; Label: MRT/Old Hat
– The songwriting  great, successful actor and country hit maker (14 top-20 hits in 1975-86) passed away in 2021. But Bruce left behind many guitar-vocal demos, sung in his unforgettable, resonant baritone. Producers Elliott and Morgan have fleshed some of these out with sympathetic accompaniment to create an album titled After Hours. The 16-track  collection concludes with this wistful waltz. The first verse concerns a combat vet, the second describes a retired rodeo rider and the third is about a forgotten music star. It chillingly suggests an obituary. It also proves that the creator of such classics as “Texas (When I Die),” “The Last Cowboy Song,” “The Man That Turned My Mama On,” “Everything’s a Waltz” and “Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys” was a songwriting master to the end.

AVERY ANNA/ “Two Sides Of The Story”
Writers: Andy Sheridan/Avery Anna/Ben Williams/David Fanning; Producer: David Fanning; Label: Warner Music Nashville
– This streaming sensation (“Make It Look Easy,” “Narcissist”) caresses this ballad of heartbreak resignation with elegance and eloquence. The CMT-nominated youngster seems to be going from strength to strength. She has a voice of gold.

KAMERON MARLOWE/ “Keepin’ The Lights On”
Writers: Kameron Marlowe/Kendell Marvel/Phil O’Donnell; Producer: Dan Huff; Label: Columbia Nashville
– The title tune of Marlowe’s upcoming sophomore album is a recollection of hard times when his hard-working parents weathered spirit-crushing storms to provide for the family. The beautifully produced ballad mixes his expressive, soulful voice up front and intimately in your ear. I have been a consistent fan of this artist for four years and am more convinced than ever that he is one of our greatest living country singers.

GRAHAM BARHAM & LAUREN WATKINS/ “Straight To My Heart”
Writers: Graham Barham/Lauren Watkins/Lydia Vaughan/Will Bundy; Producer: Will Bundy; Label: Sony Music Nashville
– Highly engaging. “Whiskey went straight to my head/Goodbye went straight to my heart.” Nicely done, from pristine vocal harmonies to propulsive production.

DUSTIN KENSRUE & CAT CLYDE/ “Death Valley Honeymoon”
Writer: Dustin Kensrue; Producer: Dustin Kensrue; Label: Vagrant Records
– This is an alt country gem, packed with retro harmonies, echoey twang and standout pedal steel guitar. Immensely cool. This is the California rock artist’s country debut, and Clyde adds an extra layer of audio authenticity. Absolutely send more. Mark your calendars: Kensrue is playing the fantastic Eastside Bowl on April 29.

Robert K Oermann
Latest posts by Robert K Oermann (see all)