Yesterday was a snow day, or at least the first couple of hours was. Where I live this causes general panic and mayhem and I took the bus to work. This meant I had a nice walk home (in the freezing rain as it turned out) and got a long listen in of this next record. Then, exhausted from all the excitement (snow!) I fell asleep on the couch. So one more day and one more listen…here we are!
Disc 1603 is…Take It Like a Man
Artist: Amanda Shires
Year of Release: 2022
What’s up with the Cover? Amanda Shires stares you down in a way that could burn the topless towers of Ilium. I’m not saying I bought this album for the cover, but it didn’t hurt.
How I Came To Know It: My interest in Amanda Shires’ music has come and gone over the years. I like her work with husband Jason Isbell, and she is one-fourth of all-woman supergroup the Highwomen, which is also a fine record. Every now and then one of her solo records catches my attention and I give it a shot, but so far none have stuck.
How It Stacks Up: This is my only Amanda Shires solo album, so can’t really stack up.
Ratings: 2 stars but almost 3
When I first heard “Take It Like a Man” I felt certain that it was going to be the one. The record that encouraged me to go back and give all those previous Amanda Shires records I’d passed over a second chance. Sadly, a few listens later it was not to be.
There is plenty to like about this record, starting with the way Shires explores desire from the darkest part of the room. This album isn’t skulking or guilt-filled either; it invites desire, erotic truth and a touch that makes you shiver. There were times it felt so intimate it felt awkward to listen, but you keep listening anyway. “Hawk for the Dove” gets us started strong with these opening lines:
“I’m well aware of
what the night’s made of
And I’m coming for
you like a hawk for a dove.”
It is a great line, and while the record doesn’t consistently land such dead-shot brilliance, she does well overall. If anything some of her better lyrics are drowned in an excess of pop production, where they would have fared that much better with some sparse country hurt.
The other standout is “Don’t Be Alarmed” which has the added bonus of Jason Isbell’s guitar as accompaniment. Shires shows her range of emotion here, starting with a reassuring whisper and raising up to a head-voiced peel that perfectly captures the no man’s land between being resolute and having a good cry.
Shires vocals won’t blow the barn door down but she has a tone that lends access to a lot of different approaches. On the title track she has a sweet warble that made me think of Kim Carnes, only with two sugars added. On “Empty Cups” she goes for a lot more traditional country sound. Gone is that vibrato, replaced with the sharpness of new country. “Empty Cups” reminded me a bit of Suzy Bogguss in both style and structure although I admit if I had to choose, I would go with Bogguss.
In other moments Shires calls forth the ghost of Olivia Newton John, particularly the version of her where she’s in a musical and pining for some boy. Partly it is the tone and partly it is this undercurrent of joyful optimism in her delivery, even when she’s being sad or sexy.
While I admire all of these different approaches, the album feels over the top in places, particularly where she tries to drag in a flourish of horns. The worst is what I think is a French horn on “Lonely at Night” which is evocative of fifties Sinatra, but just made me want to go put on “In the Wee Small Hours”.
The record focuses on relationship challenges and a lot of very raw and honest sexuality. I love the way Shires opens herself up on this record, and it is the main draw on my initial listens. Unfortunately, with the exception of “a few tracks, I wasn’t consistently drawn in. A good album should catch you up in its emotion, and instead I kept falling out of my reverie.
This record is good, but I don’t love it enough to pull it down and play it very often. And so I must reluctantly admit that once again I have passed Amanda Shires in the night. Close enough to hear and appreciate her music, but not enough to make a lasting connection. Maybe next time.
Best tracks: Hawk for the Dove, Don’t Be Alarmed, Fault Lines
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