Album-a-Day #18: "Living with the Law"

AZCB34 · April 2nd, 2004, 05:46 AM

Band: Chris Whitley

Website: www.chriswhitley.com/main
Album: Living with the Law
Year Released: 1991
No. of Discs: 1
No. of Tracks: 12
Track Listing:

1. Excerpt
2. Living with the Law
3. Big Sky Country
4. Kick the Stones
5. Make the Dirt Stick
6. Poison Girl
7. Dust Radio
8. Phone Call from Leavenworth
9. I Forget You Every Day
10. Long Way Around
11. Look What Love Has Done
12. Bordertown

This one may be obscure to some but this album is one of my favorites in the collection. Chris Whitley primarily uses the acoustic sound and he really builds songs well. “Big Sky Country” is the song that probably has received the most airplay of any of his tunes and it is a fantastic song of solid lyrics and great musicianship. The song itself really transports you to open mountain country.

I originally bought this CD for that one song…once I sat down and listened to the entire album I was hooked. From top to bottom, there is not a weak song on this list. Since buying it, I have grown to love “Dust Radio” and “Bordertown”…IMO, the 2 best tracks on the album.

Chris is a musician who is completely under-promoted…but by all accounts he loves it that way.

Pariah · April 2nd, 2004, 07:44 AM

I thought this guy was going to be the next big thing, but he just sort of disappeared. I wonder if he re-released this album now if it would do better. Everyhting on the Boulder radio station (KBCO) sounds just like this album.

I love it, and it's ironic (or, at least coincidental) that you chose this album because I just pulled it out last week and have been listening to it in the kitchen while I make dinner.

AZCB34 · April 2nd, 2004, 07:59 AM

To take the coincidence a bit further, the very first time I heard "Big Sky Country" was heading into Boulder when I took a trip out there for a grad school visit. The song lured me in as I was driving towards the mountains. I bought the disc that night at some record shop in Boulder.

I really thought he was going to blow up too but he just never had a breakout.

Mulli · July 24th, 2007, 10:56 AM

Love this album

Pariah · July 24th, 2007, 01:50 PM

He recently died... a few years ago, maybe?

Mulli · July 26th, 2007, 12:09 PM

Funny, the first time I heard it was in a movie theatre before the movie started. "Poison Girl" is a great song.