Muse, guitarist and singer songwriter Richard Gorman has never sounded in better voice than on one of his latest collection of songs entitled “This Guitar Loves You” with a passing reference to Woody Guthrie, of course! ‘As Simple as This’ is simply one of his best, ‘Ruby and the Fool’ is a charming recounting of his experiences as an open mic pub singer in Dundee and the countryfied ‘Dundee U.S.A.’ teases and charms in equal measure. Richard’s dazzling guitar skills are exemplified by the title track and ‘Chard’s Boogie’. ‘Desert Walking’ we are told is producer Stuart Duncan’s favourite, but by Richard’s own admission ‘bleak’, but Stuart is right: there is something about those enigmatic lyrics and guitar arpeggios that demarcate a serious, if personal and intensely philosophical troubadour. The album finishes with the longest song ‘Ghosts and Angels’ (and in my book the strongest) at 6 minutes long and starts with an observation about Dundee’s Albert Street that it is indeed the street “where Jesus and Mohammed meet”. The greatest thing about Richard’s music is that he cares deeply and finds beauty in even the darkest places – “a little drunken laughter goes a long way” might sound an odd line but when sung by this guy it touches the heart – the ‘ghosts’ part may reflect that it was inspired by a tragic suicide during a gig Richard played in a Dundee bar. The authenticity and elegiac nature of Richard Gorman’s music is never in question.
‘Scunnered’ is a fine Scots word for ‘fed up’ and ‘Easy Peezy Lemon Squeezy’ is a long way of saying something, well, quite simple. Richard’s own description of the music is that it ranges between “sleazy, besotted, despairing, stirring and just plain daft.” Oh, and I nearly forgot – “bluesy” as in the “Easy Peezy” opener. The title track is intensely autobiographical and ‘There’s Nothing to It’ is full of ‘double entendre’. I always look forward to hearing Richard’s longer numbers and the reflective ‘Earthbound’ doesn’t disappoint and shows that he knows a thing or two about the classics as well. I am going to stop there right now and speak to the man himself about these and his other recent projects in the New Year.
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