STATE OF THE UNION – Paper Tigers (Reveal 201DDX)

Paper TigersTwo musicians, Boo Hewerdine and Brooks Williams, who will work with anybody and everybody occasionally get to work with each other. As a result, Paper Tigers is their fourth album as State Of The Union. Stripped down to basics, just two guitars and two voices, the album is a very easy listen laced with humour (sometimes with an edge) and clever arrangements all recorded off the floor.

The opener is ‘Jonesin’ Over You’, a reference to a craving – this time over a woman -removing the term from addicts’ slang, an old-fashioned shuffle in a light-hearted vein. The title track is a nod to The Everly Brothers, all gentle guitars and sweet harmonies and we’re back to humour with ‘Horsefeathers’: “I know you’re lying when your lips move” sums it up perfectly. ‘The Hesitation Waltz’ is a delightfully romantic song conjuring up visions of dancefloors leading to a happy ending.

‘Saint-Louis-Du-Ha!-Ha!’ is a mischievous put-down of a farming town in Quebec which the chaps have never visited and, after this song, almost certainly never will. The song makes a joke of the town’s name and it makes a nice contrast with ‘Lonesome Town’, the only cover on the record, which comes next. ‘Taste Of The Onion’ is a funky instrumental sometimes reminiscent of ‘Walk Right In’ and we’re back to a serious subject with ‘Butterfly Wings’ – more Everlys but with a harder edge to their harmonies.

‘Turtle Dove’ doesn’t feel like a song that either Boo or Brooks would sing solo and the same can be said of ‘Why Does The Nightingale Sing?’ but together they make them work. Logically, the break-up song, ‘That’s All Folks’, should be the last track but perversely State Of The Union end Paper Tigers with another romantic song, ‘If I Was Your Guardian Angel’. Short and sweet is the perfect description.

Paper Tigers won’t shake your musical foundations but it’s a very enjoyable listen.

Dai Jeffries

Artists’ websites: www.boohewerdine.com  www.brookswilliams.com

‘Why Does The Nightingale Sing?’:

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