Paul
Childers - Naked Poetry
Paul
Childers hails from the Nashville area, but no one will ever confuse him with
Music City’s typically country performers. His approach and style is urbane and
deeply musical with style to burn., but there’s a lot of substance paired with
the obvious stylishness. Childers displays all the finesse and musical acumen
of a much older singer – the phrasing he serves up through the album’s run of
thirteen songs is next to unforgettable and it’s filled with an emotive beauty
that never overstates its case. Childers, instead, imposes an inviting but
commanding air over these songs and molds his voice quite nicely around the
rich musical arrangements. Naked Poetry is just that – an expression of self
completely stripped of pretense, yet shaped by technique and inspiration for
maximum effect. The sparkling performances comprising this release are among
the year’s most memorable.
Naked
Poetry begins with the song “Music Pulls You Through”. If this were anyone
else, it probably wouldn’t come off as sincere. The redemptive power of music
to get you through a bad time doesn’t exactly rate as an inventive or
particularly revelatory lyrical subject, but Childers’ songwriting has a real
knack for specific and meaningful details that help listeners’ better
experience the song. It’s a recurring strength. “The Art of Being Twenty”
benefits from the same across the board excellence and authoritative
songwriting voice that makes the first song such a memorable track. His lyrical
turns in this one are particularly strong and showcase a writer with impressive
wisdom in someone so young. “Why Don’t You Stay” hits a bluesy note that
Childers shows a later willingness to revisit and the use of horns in this song
are particularly effective. He never wastes listeners time with the album’s
thirteen song s and their focus plays an enormous role in their final impact on
the audience.
“My
Love of the Rain” could single-handedly carry this album. It’s stark evidence
of his skills that Childers can take this deceptively simple arrangement and
performance to such stratospheric heights. This sounds like the living beating
heart of his music, but there’s no excitability to ruin his performance.
Instead, Childers take it careful and slow, fixed on a goal of investing each
line with almost religious importance. The effect is sensational. “No One Goes
Dancing Anymore” is going to be a favorite for a lot of people. This invokes of
the opener’s best attributes, namely Childers’ willingness to tell a story, and
rolls out at just the right pace to hook listeners into its story. “Perfect
Man” is a slightly rueful tune that, nevertheless, provides Childers’ audience
with a thoroughly enjoyable listening experience. He’s learned a helpful lesson early on about
working in the ranks of popular song – your audience will let you brood over
more serious fare, but you have to give them a little bit of the sweet to help
chase the taste of sour. “Throwing Shade” is an excellent final example of
that. It’s delightful how he gives this rueful lyric the blessing of an almost
buoyant musical backing quite at odds with the lyrical temper. Paul Childers is
full of surprises and there are sure more to come, but he’s also one of the
brightest talents to debut in recent memory.
Ed
Price
