Well when I finally gave in to all my natural resistance and gave Tom Jones’ 39th album a listen I was not at disappointed. After 38 albums that, as far as I am aware, have contributed little to personal or social transformation the Welshman gives us a reason for his existence. Much has been made of the young producer Nathan Johns whose previous work being the likes of Ryan Adams being to Jones what Rick Rubin was for Johnny Cash and I am not sure whose idea it was to match Jones with the Spirituals but it is revelation. The sound is dirty, live organic and uncluttered with pianos honey-tonkin’ and on Burning Hell guitars that sound like Jack White is in the house. It takes your default position a little time to adjust to Jones’s voice moving from pop trivia like Sex Bomb to the depth of these spirituals but eventually you begin to believe that Jones is actually a soul singer.
The Spirituals have so much to teach the modern Church about life and faith and how to use music to engage with a God who bridges the gap between how we are and how we can be. Praise and Blame is a perfect title. From the confessional and sobering gem of Bob Dylan’s What Good Am I these songs look for God to, by grace alone, navigate us through the reality of humanity’s tainted inclinations to miss the judgement that should be ours. There is constant confession of Blame but always a reason for Praise. These are songs about people who can sneak a peak at redemption from their honest understanding of their profound lostness. These are songs full of serious minded sinners, wayward pilgrims, screams to God for help and burning hell; it is everything that modern Christian worship albums are missing.
The playing is deliciously celebratory on Strange Things and Aint No Grace but also bluesy cathartic on Did Trouble Me and Ain’t Nobody’s Fault But Mine. All in all the whole thing comes across as a surprising flash of light in the midst of a dark place. Tom Jones on my playlist under “songs for a healthy soul”... who’d have thought!
'it is everything that modern Christian worship albums are missing' nicely put. The thought that I would ever enjoy a Jones album. His version of 'What Good Am I' is different from the original but a very, very authentic and welcome version.
Posted by: Alfred Valstar | 24/08/2010 at 10:10 AM