Rod MacDonald No Commercial Traffic CD

After several years of performing in and around New York City, singer/songwriter Rod MacDonald finally issued his debut album, No Commercial Traffic, in 1983. The title, referring to a ubiquitous city street sign (pictured above the artist on the back cover), slyly commented on the position of a thoughtful, thirtysomething, folk-based performer with a social conscience at a time when record labels were pursuing vapid synth pop acts. Listening to MacDonald's catchy folk-rock arrangements of his melodic songs, with their literate lyrics sung in his clear high tenor, it might have been hard to understand how any A&R person could fail to appreciate his music's commercial appeal, but that's the way the music business was in the early 1980s. Maybe it was just as well. That same A&R person probably would have balked at letting MacDonald open his first disc with the haunting flute of John Kruth on the environmental ballad "The Unearthly Fire"; might have demanded that the witty and riveting "On the Road (In New York Town)" be cut down from its eight-minute running time; or even suggested that the moving "A Sailor's Prayer" not be sung a cappella. Any such "feedback" would have hurt a collection that, as is often the case with a debut album, seems intended to showcase the range of the performer's talents. MacDonald mixes lighthearted romantic material such as the jazzy ballad "It's Goin' to Take Some Time" and the infectious, Beatlesque "What I Wanted" with more serious efforts such as "American Jerusalem," his metaphor for the business establishment of New York (and Western capitalism in general) and the idealistic anthem "Every Living Thing," which closes the album hopefully. As a debut album should be, No Commercial Traffic is a statement of purpose from a major performer who had been developing for many years to reach this point. ~ William Ruhlmann

No commercial traffic is rod macdonald’s first solo recording, ten original songs recorded from february to september 1983 by g parker and moogy klingman at moogy’s studio on park ave, produced by macdonald with the assistance of stephen powers and tom intondi. The Village Voice labeled it “the most strongly gritty work of the folkie revival” and its songs, especially “american jerusalem,” “a sailor’s prayer” and “every living thing” have been covered by the 4 bitchin’ babes, dave van ronk, garnet rogers and other singers. Instrumentally the sound varies from raw acoustic rock and roll to solo folk guitar, with generous helpings of native flute noise and strings across percussive rhythms. The cd was remastered for cd release in 2003, and in a brief review, the Palm Beach Post said the “recording sounds timeless.” musiciansrod macdonald/guitar, harmonica, vocals bill merchant/bassmark dann/bassjeff hardy/bassjoe henderson/guitarjohn kruth/mandolin, flutechuck hancock/saxophonenat seely/drumsjohn lewis/pianobackup vocals/dave van ronk, lucy kaplansky, tom duval, janet stecher, judy molnerFrom the All-Music Guide"Via the Fast Folk Music Cooperative, MacDonald and others like Richard Meyer and Christine Lavin were an important part of the rebirth of the folk scene in New York in the 1980s. While MacDonald isn't exactly a new face to New York folk music fans, he began to gain national stature in the early 1990s, performing at folk festivals and coffeehouses around the U.S., Canada and Europe. MacDonald's songwriting influences include Phil Ochs, Richard Farina and Bob Dylan. True to the folk tradition, MacDonald is not afraid to get political, that take chances and perhaps shock some people. Songs like "American Jerusalem," "White Buffalo" and "Every Living Thing" have been covered by his peers and his elders, including musicians Garnet Rogers, Jean Redpath, Gordon Bok, Happy Traum and Shawn Colvin. MacDonald's place in the folk Hall of Fame is assured by his "A Sailor's Prayer," a hymn-styled tune that many people mistook for a traditional song." Richard Skelly,