The Wind Will Change Again is the latest release from The Twangtown Paramours. The duo are Mike T Lewis and MaryBeth Zamer and describe it as their first folk album in twelve years.
I suspect the word ‘folk’ relates to the predominantly acoustic sound of the album as The Wind Will Change Again would be a great album to play to any friends who think that folk has a narrow range. There are a mixture of styles on here, all very nicely played: the up-tempo opening ‘Sincerely Yours No More’, the French accordion sound of ‘A Room in Bordeaux’, the piano sound of Zamer’s ‘The Garden’, the percussion and bass of slapped-happy ‘The Goodwill Store’. That’s not a random selection of tracks to make a point, it’s nothing more than the opening four tracks.
I could describe the feel of the album as being light and fun – another reason to play it to your friends. I’d be thinking of tracks like ‘Showin’ Off For Their Girlfriends’ which opens with “Nicholas Copernicus/Proved the book of Genesis/ Spun the Sun all wrong” and continues with Gandhi, Hippocrates, Socrates, Bach, Zimmerman and many more to suggest the motivation was to show off for their girlfriends. Splendid song – bouncy, smile-inducing and entirely appropriate to have nonchalant whistling along the way. I’d also be thinking of Lewis’ s ‘The Goodwill Store’ all 50’s/60’s bounce and the humour of lines like, “Electrical razors / From 1964 / You’ll be shocked by what you find / At the Goodwill store”
It would give the wrong feel, though, to say ‘light and fun’ with no caveats or further explanation as there are deep and perceptive insights in both those tracks.
Elsewhere ‘A Room in Bordeaux’ is a leaving song; ‘The Garden’ has some glorious lines about looking ahead to older age, the best of which might be “I hope I grow old enough / To know my grandchildren / To tell them my stories / And to sing them to sleep”; ‘Part of Me’ is a Lewis written love song that captures a life of growth, change, death, errors, love, learning – and the hope that “I’m still a part of you” – it’s a list song that manages to be lyrically intense but stylistically energetic and very listenable. Lewis has also written ‘Coupons and Cowboys’ a sing-along tune and chorus with a thoughtful lyric about a waitress who used to want to be a ballerina and is now scraping by in life and counting tips and “collecting coupons and cowboy” lovers.
Zamer is an equally powerful songwriter. ‘Stars Without A Heaven’, took me back to a talk I went to recently with a lady who left Germany in 1938. Both told the tale the loss of family. The star in the title of Zamer’s song is both a yellow physical star and a metaphorical star in heaven and demonstrates beautifully that there can be truth without rancour.
‘Old Friends’ is Zamer’s take on those who know what really matters to us, a gentle tune and arrangement to reflect the tenor of a lyric about those who “will come and find you / and walk you back on home” when you’re wandering in the darkness of life.
Unusually, the final track is also the title track. ‘The Wind Will Change Again’ bounces along to a lyric about a coming storm – looking like the end, with mud-sliding hills, temperatures dropping, darkness … and a reminder that, whatever the darkness, things will improve “Remember darlin’ / The wind will change again” It’s a song both about a storm and about a metaphor of life. It’s a splendid upbeat way to finish the album
I get the impression that The Twangtown Paramours are not as well known in the UK as I think they deserve to be. Presumably not by chance, the album’s release also coincides with their first tour of the UK (dates from April 30th – May 17th on their webpage).
The duo are multi-talented (producing, songwriting for others as well as themselves, smart playing, vocals which capture a range of moods). The Wind Will Change Again gives us humour and profundity alike on this splendid and enjoyable album.
Mike Wistow
Artists’ website: https://www.thetwangtownparamours.com
‘The Wind Will Change Again’ – live:
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