The always musically vigilant singer/songwriter Thom Carter has some stories to tell on his third release as Menhirs of Er Grah, Billy Cross’s Daughter. And they are amongst the best he has even told. Thom has announced that he has tried to “bury his Eric Clapton CD’s in a casket under the seaâ€. But, even he will admit that he still has subliminal nods to the king of Cream throughout this amazing album.
Carter has always had a way of turning the sourest of plums into the sweetest peach in the garden, metaphorically speaking of course. The self-titled track is a beautiful tale of the wandering soul and the spirit to rebel that is within us all — the power to drop the life they know and become an entire new being. It’s the sort of tale that he was always meant to tell. And the Clapton moments really come to light with tracks like “Circle Me With Love†and “Wherever Your Eyes Fallâ€. But this guy can write a love song like no other has before. All Dominos included.
Billy Cross’s Daughter has the raw spirit of early Menhirs of Er Grah. It’s stripped of some of the eeriness of his last album, Mourning Dove, but keeps with the soulful melodies and almost funk-driven guitar work that he mastered on that album. “Whitening Light†(from Dove) would have worked easily in this track list. For fans of back alley and underground coffee shop inspired folk rock, this is bound to be one of your favorite albums of 2010. And at the very minimum, this is Thom Carter’s finest work to date.
Verlaine Records [CD, 2010]
1. Billy Cross’s Daughter
2. This Feeling
3. Always
4. Wherever Your Eyes Fall
5. House Of Love
6. The Shepherd
7. Circle Me With Love
8. Tonight
9. If That’s What You Need
10. Do What You Want
