CD Odyssey Disc 576: Jimmy Rankin

I have finished my Christmas shopping and I’m feeling very much in the spirit of the season.  It was fun engaging with people at stores and in check-out lines and I’m feeling relaxed and happy to be a part of the human race.  Sure we’ve got our faults, but we’re not so bad overall.  Try to remember that as you maneuver through crowded streets and malls over the next ten days.

Disc 576 is…. Song Dog

Artist: Jimmy Rankin

Year of Release: 2001

What’s up with the Cover? Jimmy plays guitar.  Someone should tell him that the fret hand actually needs to be on the guitar to make the chord work.

How I Came To Know It:  I had been a fan of the Rankin Family for some time when I saw Jimmy Rankin’s video for the song, “Followed Her Around” on CMT.  I liked it, and given my previous experience with the Rankins decided to give him a chance.

How It Stacks Up:  I have three of Jimmy Rankin’s solo albums.  Originally, I had ranked “Handmade” as the best.  “Handmade” does have my favourite Jimmy Rankin song, “Colorado” but having listened to “Song Dog” again, I have to say overall it is the better record, so I’m putting it first and bumping “Handmade” down to second.

Since this completes this artist in my collection, tradition dictates a quick listing, in order of preference:

1. Song Dog: 4 stars (reviewed right here).
2. Handmade: 4 stars (reviewed at Disc 130).
3. Edge of Day: 2 stars (reviewed at Disc 509).

Rating:  4 stars

If you ever listen to the Rankin Family albums and wish that there was less sing-song Celtic traditionalism, and more of Jimmy Rankin’s contemporary folk compositions, then “Song Dog” will definitely appeal to you.

Sister Cookie Rankin’s pretty voice is still present on a number of tracks, but only as background vocals, filling out the songs with touches of colour to the upper range of the melody.  This is definitely Jimmy Rankin’s baby, and it his vocal, pure and purposeful, which carries the album.

When I first heard this record, it caused me to go back into the Rankin Family catalogue and listen to the songs that he is featured on.  Each of those old albums has a Jimmy Rankin original like “Your Boat’s Lost at Sea,” “The Ballad of Malcolm Murray” or “Let it Go,” and when I look back at my reviews of those albums, they are consistently some of my favourite songs on those records. “Song Dog” is basically an entire album of this type of song, which combine the sights and sounds of Atlantic Canada with an introspective style that borders on confessional.

The album is dedicated to John Morris Rankin, who had died tragically in a car accident the year before, and many of the songs feel like Jimmy’s attempt to come to terms with the loss. On “Wasted” this is particularly acute, a gorgeous song about drowning your sorrows with booze and bad habits.  I don’t know if this song is about John Morris, but it is hard not to think about him when Jimmy sings:

“I’d trade all of the fine life

Everything I’ve tasted

Just to have you near, just to have you near

Instead I’m wasted.”

Other songs cover lost love, and while living up to the exceptional “Colorado” on “Handmade” is a tall order, “Midnight Angel” and “Stoned Blue” come damn close.

Jimmy brings in the talents of fellow Cape Bretoner Gordie Sampson’s musical talents on a number of tracks to good effect.  Sampson’s amazing work on the bouzouki on the instrumental “We’ll Carry on (Prelude)” is an absolute joy to listen to, and sets the emotional tone for the entire record.  Sampson is worth checking out as a solo artist as well, and I even reviewed his album “Sunburn” back at Disc 173.  Check him out.

“Drunk and Crucified” and “Tripper” are the social conscience of the album, the former a snapshot of a homeless man in the cold, and the latter a character study that reminds us that even hardened criminals were once just kids like us, with dreams of their own that sadly never came true.

The guitar and piano work on this album are amazing, and Rankin lets his finger picking bring out the melody and his strumming patterns to add resonance, blending them artfully together.  Electric guitar is used for flavour in places, but like sister Cookie’s background vocals care is taken to ensure it doesn’t overwhelm the album’s rootsy sound.

Lyrically, the record has many high points, although they work best with Jimmy’s exceptional phrasing and delivery.  Internal rhyme helps as well.  It may be an old trick, but that’s because it works so well.

The exception would be “Lighthouse Heart” which is schmaltzy and forced.  “I wanna be your lighthouse keeper/I wanna be your beacon in the dark” is a clumsily delivered metaphor and the song pushes the point home a bit too hard.  The tune is pretty though, as Jimmy has a great ear on where a song should go for maximum emotional impact, all the while staying in fairly conventional three and four chord progressions.

I came to this record liking the Rankin Family already, but even if you don’t, this record is a different beast and you shouldn’t write it off.  “Song Dog” is a deeply honest record from an artist who clearly had plenty to say as a solo act that he could only partly accomplish as part of the Rankin Family band.  It is an explosion of his solo talent, and while it isn’t perfect, it deserves to be considered a classic in the Canadian folk genre for years to come. 

Best tracks:   Followed Her Around, Midnight Angel, Drunk & Crucified, Wasted, We’ll Carry On (Prelude), This is the Hour, We’ll Carry On, Stoned Blue

CD Odyssey Disc 509: Jimmy Rankin

I began listening to this album on cheap ear buds (I’d left my big headphones at the office over the weekend).  I hadn’t realized how spoiled I was with the good sound of a full set of headphones, but what a difference!  The ear buds have no richness in their sound, and are mostly bass and tinny high notes.  I’m glad that before I did the final review I was able to hear the whole record on a proper sound system, or this review might have gone a lot worse.

Disc 509 is…. Edge of Day

Artist: Jimmy Rankin

Year of Release: 2007

What’s up with the Cover?  Jimmy, playing the guitar down by the…er…fence.  I think he’s near the sea as well.  Having seen Jimmy live I can advise he’s not a tall man, but he can make that guitar sound plenty big.

How I Came To Know It:  I’ve been a fan of Jimmy Rankin since he was in the Rankin Family.  This was just me buying his latest solo album when it came out.

How It Stacks Up:  I have three Jimmy Rankin albums.  I like the other two much more, so I must put this one third.

Rating:  2 stars

Back in 2007 when “Edge of Day” I couldn’t wait to get it home and give it a listen.  I had loved 2003’s “Handmade” (reviewed way back at Disc 130) and had impatiently awaited Jimmy Rankin’s next record ever since.  Unfortunately, I found “Edge of Day” a disappointment then, and six years later it remains merely OK.

I work hard to review every album on the CD Odyssey on its own terms, however, and every album doesn’t have to measure up to an artist’s best.  “Edge of Day” still has its moments and it still features Jimmy Rankin, who I think is one of Canada’s many brilliantly talented contemporary folk singers.

Rankin’s voice is excellent once again, particularly on “Slipping Away.”  The guitar work on this track is also superior, with a full and bluesy groove.  Jimmy hits the falsetto with practice ease as he sings “I heee-aaar you callin’” only to follow with an absent-minded “a thousand light years away.” The two lines are expertly divided by a measure of that bluesy guitar, and the effect of it all together is remarkable.  It puts you in a mood that evokes hot summer days on a porch, cold beer in hand, and not entirely pleasant memories on your mind.  It may always be the same old three or four chords in this kind of music, but that doesn’t make all the songs the same.

I also enjoy “When I Rise” which has that desperate feel that captures the plight of disadvantaged dreamers.  Best lines:

“If I was a pretty girl I wouldn’t be standin’ here

I wouldn’t be all alone - I’d have my way with the world.”

And:

“If I was a rich man, I wouldn’t have to break my back

Wouldn’t have to walk this line – you’d never see me tip my hat.”

This song reminded me of Patty Griffin’s “I Don’t Ever Give Up” thematically and it made me appreciate the stubbornly placed hope people place in blind luck when they’ve got nothing else to hold out for.  It is also interesting how easily we slip into old notions that girls should be pretty and men should be wealthy.  Jimmy draws our attention to long-standing sexual stereotypes and how hard they are to dispel when we foolishly hold ourselves to those standards, outdated as they are.

Another nice side note to “When I Rise” is former “Rankin Family” band mate (and sister) Cookie Rankin providing some pretty harmony on the chorus. 

Unfortunately, these moments on “Edge of Day” are just not frequent enough.  The album has brilliant musicianship, including the talents of slide guitarist Colin Linden, Gordie Sampson on vocals and mandolin, and Jimmy himself.  It is just that the songs have an adult contemporary feel that sucks a lot of the passion out of them.

Also, there was a broken-heartedness that made “Handmade” so deeply evocative that is missing on “Edge of Day.”  I sincerely hope that is because Jimmy was in a happier place when he made the record.  For all that I love a sad song, I wouldn’t wish any sadness on the artist just to make one.  I still wanted something a little deeper though, even if that something was just idle reverie.

Despite the good stuff in “When I Rise” the lyrics on “Edge of Day” are fairly spotty overall.  Jimmy’s voice makes most things sound good but there are some cringe-worthy items.  From “Touched by an Angel”:

“I’ve been touched by an angel, that’s one thing for sure…

I felt the flutter of her wings on my skin.

I fell harder than ever before

From higher than I’ve ever been.”

Overused phrases like “touched by an angel” (and later in the song “angels can fly/she’s living proof” isn’t much better) feel forced.  Add to that filler lines like “that’s one thing for sure” that mostly serve the rhyme, and it fully pulled me out of a song that might have given the depth of emotion I was seeking.  That said, worth noting once again Colin Linden’s slide guitar on this song, sweet and beautiful as ever.

Even not liking some of the lyrics, I can’t point to anything truly terrible on “Edge of Day.”  This is a record made by someone who understands how to write a song, and how to deliver it with passion and professionalism.  I didn’t emotionally connect to the album as a whole, but it is still a good effort from a talented countryman.

Best tracks:  Stranded, Slipping Away, When I Rise

CD Odyssey Disc 130: Jimmy Rankin

Mark Knopfler's reign of terror is over! Finally - after two reviews of Knopfler, preceded by two reviews referencing Mark Knopfler - this review does not feature Mark Knopfler in any way!

Wait a minute...

Disc 130 is...Handmade
Artist: Jimmy Rankin

Year of Release: 2003

What’s Up With The Cover?: Jimmy Rankin is dressed up in a suit and top hat. I think it is supposed to look old-school, but Jimmy's face looks a little too...plastic. His pose is just a little too...artificial. I have therefore come to the only logically plausible conclusion - Jimmy has been replaced in this photo shoot by a terminator. Where's a plasma rifle in 40 watt range when you need one?

How I Came To Know It: I was a fan of the Rankin Family throughout their career. Jimmy is just one of them branching out on a solo career. I liked his first album, "Song Dog" so I stuck with him for his sophomore effort, "Handmade".

How It Stacks Up: So far Jimmy's put out three solo albums that I know of. Of the three, "Handmade" is the best.

Rating: 4 stars.

As I noted above, Jimmy Rankin is a former member of the Cape Breton folk group - the Rankin Family. As you may know, the Rankins were five siblings (three sisters, two brothers). Of them all, I think Jimmy is the most talented, and I'm glad he went on to do solo work. In fact, his solo work benefits from branching out from the very straightlaced old-school folk sounds of the Rankins, and into more interesting arrangements, and original material.

I really love this record, and when the Odyssey isn't dictating my playlist, I put it on often. In fact, I had it on just a couple weeks ago on a Tuesday night.

I love how it gets back to basics. All acoustic instruments, simple arrangements, and great songwriting. In fact, when this came out I remember seeing a program on its recording, and how they tried to emulate the old school "Sun" recording sessions. Basically, doing the takes for all the instruments simultaneously live off the floor. The album sounds great, which speaks highly of the musicianship of those involved.

This raw, 'live off the floor' sound hits most sweetly on the opening song, "Morning Bound Train". This track sounds so timeless it could've been recorded by Johnny Cash at Sun Records 50 years earlier.

Because the songs are stripped down, Jimmy's voice can really shine - and it does. I think coming out of a band known for its female harmonies, he hasn't always received his due, but this dude can really sing.

So many tracks stand out on this record. My favourite has got to be "Colorado" which is a bittersweet break up song. I'd quote some lyrics, but without Jimmy's mournful, powerful voice it wouldn't do it justice. I'll just say it always hits me emotionally, and more often than not has me warbling along in my own broken voice.

I will note that this song features someone taking old love letters down off a shelf and nostalgiacally going through them. This always reminds me of the song "Box Full of Letters", off the Wilco album, "A.M.", which I reviewed back at Disc 84. Throw in Alice Cooper writing to his wife from the insane asylum on "From The Inside" and you've got the early makings of a mixed tape.

The title track, "Handmade" also has great appeal for me. This is a song that hits on themes of authenticity. Jimmy is certainly talking about music, but he also brings in all kinds of issues relating to consumerism, and the fashion industry and a host of other things that need to be stripped down and reinvented.

"Have we lost our style in the face of fashion?
Have we lost the need and the will to care?
Something's gone, nobody's asking,
Seems the more I look, it's nowhere.

"Give me something that is real
Give me something I can taste
Show me someone who can feel
I'm sick and tired of this place
But everybody must get paid
Give me something handmade."

The song makes you despair a little for the world, but then you realize that Jimmy hasn't just asked for something real. He's delivered it on this album.

Sheila and I actually saw Jimmy live on this album's tour, in 2004. He was playing a small theatre at Camosun College - maybe 150 people tops. I was struck by how small a man he was - maybe 5'6" and thin. His big acoustic guitar almost dragged him around the stage, but sounded great all the same. And that same voice filled that hall with room to spare. He is a great live act, but you shouldn't necessarily wait for him to come to town - just go buy this album.

Best tracks: Morning Bound Train, Stay, Handmade, Colorado, Sweet Wheels, Running Home (this last one has that annoying extra bonus track appended to it as part of the same track listing - but since both tracks are good, it is worth a listen anyway).