If David Lynch made movies in England, Richard Hawley would likely provide the soundtracks. The British singer/songwriter worked as a guitarist for Pulp and others before emerging as a distinctive solo artist, but the series of albums that began with his 2001 debut full-length, LATE NIGHT FINAL, have proven Hawley to be a truly singular artistic figure. With a smooth, deep croon that suggests Ricky Nelson giving Mark Lanegan voice lessons, Hawley turns out a hushed, lonesome sound that pays homage to elegant '60s pop/rock a la Roy Orbison and Johnny Rivers. COLES CORNER is as fine an exemplar of Hawley's approach as one could want, as twangy, reverb-heavy guitar lines dance around sparse orchestrations and gentle compositions full of satin-bedecked loneliness. Pitched perfectly in a sonic spot triangulated by Chet Baker's vocal albums, Sinatra's ONLY THE LONELY, and the bachelor-pad pop of the Burt Bacharach/Jimmy Webb school, the wee-hours sound of COLES CORNER suggests that, in the right hands, melancholy can be downright fun.
Personnel: Richard Hawley (vocals, acoustic guitar, acoustic 12-string guitar, electric guitar, electric 12-string guitar, Hawaiian steel guitar, Spanish guitar, baritone guitar, hammer dulcimer, lyre, piano, omnichord, vibraphone, glockenspiel, drums, steel drum); Richard Hawley (6-string guitar, 12-string guitar, lap steel guitar); Colin Elliot (baritone, baritone guitar, piano, upright bass, electric bass, percussion, background vocals); Shez Sheridan (acoustic guitar, acoustic 12-string guitar, electric guitar, electric 12-string guitar, 6-string guitar, 12-string guitar, baritone guitar, background vocals); Gaynor Sutcliffe, Gaynor Sutcliffe (violin); Simon Graham, Simon Graham (viola); Johnny Woods (upright bass); Lizz Lipscombe, Susannah Simmons, Lizzie Ball (violin); Naomi Koop (viola); Liz Hanks (cello); John Trier (piano, Fender Rhodes piano, vibraphone, glockenspiel); Andy Cook (drums).
Audio Mixers: Richard Hawley; Mike Timm; Colin Elliot.
Uncut (p.110) - 4 stars out of 5 - "Hawley resurrects ghosts of music past and breathes new, poignant life into their forms." Mojo (Publisher) (p.58) - Ranked #10 in Mojo's "The 50 Best Albums Of 2005" - "[Hawley] hymned his native Sheffield in purring, broken tones and wry, subtly-charged commonplaces. Genius." Mojo (Publisher) (p.86) - 4 stars out of 5 - "[A] glorious m‚lange of love, loss, regret, homesickness and romance....This record is endowed with a quality that's all his own...
Excellent Album !!!!!!!! It's a mixture os rocabilly and brit-pop. He has got a crooner voice and in my opinion, it was the best release in 2005. Submitted by latorrac (Cuiabá, MT, Brazil) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo 1 of 1 found this helpful.
Beautiful Voice This guy has a wonderful voice, and the genre reminds me of the old style crooners. Except it is current very sounding music and composition. Submitted by budnell (pineville, louisiana) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Best album of 2005
A great album, Sheffield native Richard Hawley has made. Full of melancholy and with great arrangements. His work reminds me of The Blue Nile. His voice has gained strength, although all his previous albums are fantastic too. By the way: the members of his band are great musicians too. A must have. Back to old-style quality! Submitted by Martijn (The Hague, Netherlands) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Excellent Album !!!!!!!!
Beautiful Voice
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