Andrew Beam - Selma By Sundown (Album Review)
If you like traditional country music Andrew Beam should be on your radar. Raised in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina as the son of a bluegrass picking preacher Beam grew up in a one-stoplight town where real progress amounted to a second stoplight (yay). Surrounded by music from an early age via the seemingly endless stream of church socials and front porch get-togethers that helped to shape the musical journeys of the likes of Don Gibson, Ronnie Milsap, Charlie Daniels and Randy Travis, Andrew Beam was no different. After graduating Beam became a game warden with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (Beam is an avid fisherman and serious bowhunter) but getting recognised playing shows in local bars wasn't entirely compatible with his day job so, in 2018, he started to explore music full time. Luckily a mutual friend introduced Beam to veteran RCA Victor/Moonwatcher Records producer and guitarist Joe Taylor and the result is Beam’s debut album ‘Selma By Sundown’.
Photo Credit: Justin Hodge
My introduction to Beam was via the title track - originally penned by producer/guitarist Joe Taylor back in 2002 - which takes the tried and trusted approach of retelling a story of travelling home to see a loved one. Inspired by CB radio chatter, the song rather cleverly and sympathetically references the tragic events that took place on 9/11 as gentle acoustic guitars and Gary Morse’s crying pedal steel form the perfect background to Beam’s twangy old-school vocal delivery. Trivia: The drummer on this track is Steve Holley of Wings/Ian Hunter fame.
Elsewhere Beam and producer Taylor - who also handles a range of guitars, organ and keys - keep things fresh and upbeat targeting a range of country styles and repeatedly hitting their mark. Opener ‘Country Ain’t Dead’ (Beam mined early Kenny Chesney records for inspiration) sounds like you’d expect it might, Beam’s vocal is big on twang while Taylor’s nimble guitar blends well with lashings of pedal steel. ‘You Should See The Other Guy’ benefits again from some fine instrumentation and Beam’s vocal phrasing is nicely judged as he pulls things back to an almost spoken drawl.
‘Three Sheets’ is a rare misstep as it introduces us to Honky Tonk Pirate music (shudder). Remember; Johnny Depp bringing Jack Sparrow back to life as Tonto…Yes, this is as equally misjudged. ‘Black And White’ is another near miss. You’ve got to admire the sentiment of Andy Griffith taking Martin Luther King Jr fishing but it doesn’t quite work for me as a duet with Bryon Addison. Beam is on much safer ground with the heartfelt balladry of ‘Semalee’ or the cleverly titled ‘The Beam In Me’ which allows Andrew to meet Jim and roughs up the guitars considerably, but still finds room for a little mandolin colour. ‘Wadmalaw Saturday Night’ - a 90s influenced track with a solid groove and organ filling out the sound - is a deeply personal track for Beam as the lyrics recall people and places in the small community he calls home while ‘Farmall 53’ is another winner thanks to Beam’s languid delivery and Taylor’s excellent guitar playing. The album concludes with an old swampy rockin’ country track ‘Cajun Wind’ that Joe Taylor bought to the table. Taylor finds plenty of room to delve into his box of production trickery to enhance the atmosphere - and add plenty of slide guitar - as folks get up to bad things down in the bayou.
If you like your country music to sound like real country music then ‘Selma By Sundown’ will tick a lot of boxes on your wish list. Andrew Beam’s twangy voice and down-home authenticity are perfectly captured by experienced producer Joe Taylor and the results will please many listeners who know what they like and they like it old-school.
Selma By Sundown will be released on April 16th, 2021
To quote John Surge, “These five songs represent a real cross-section of the music we make”. John is referencing a new EP aptly titled, ‘Maybe You Don’t Know Me’. The ‘Almost Time’ album from last year was well received, but Surge still had a host of material that wasn’t quite right for that record but worked well in his live set. A live set that had gotten John noticed on the LA country scene in the first place. Surge re-connected with highly regarded Texas producer Tommy Detamore {Doug Sahm, Jim Lauderdale, Sunny Sweeney, Jesse Daniel} and reenlisted many of the ‘Almost Time’ crew including his right-hand Haymaker guitarist Randy Volin, plus Brennen Leigh on harmony vocals, Brad Fordham (Dave Alvin/Hayes Carll) on bass, Tom Lewis (Junior Brown/Raul Malo) on drums and Floyd Domino (Asleep at the Wheel, Merle Haggard) on keyboards.