Dave Carter, Tracy Grammer - Drum Hat Buddha

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Free Music Notes for Drum Hat Buddha

Free Music Review: They just keep improving on perfection
Hit: 5 Stars

Fragments ran through my head for six months before I finally received a pre-release copy of the newest CD. Lyrics such as, Shine the merlin moonbeam eye/set my dancin feet to fly/o'er the dark and dervish sky/I go like the raven wandered through my head, frustrating me with the fact that I couldn't remember all the words.

One song in particular, "Gentle Arms of Eden", grabbed my soul and held onto it for six solid months. The song has a jubilant, joyful, Peter-Paul-and-Mary-at-their-giddiest flavor, with a deep passion that lends it an anthem-like quality. This could be the theme song for planet Earth... on some virgin beach head, one lonesome critter crawled/ and he looked about and shouted out in his most astonished drawl/ This is my home, this is my only home/ this is the only sacred ground that I have ever known/ and if I stray in the dark night alone/ rock me goddess in the gentle arms of Eden. Dave calls the song his "contribution to country music's eco-spiritualism genre." If country music didn't have one before, it does now. Dave Carter has a genius for capturing vulnerability in poetry and making it beautiful and strong. He then takes that poetry and blends it with music that draws from country-western, folk, bluegrass and a variety of other roots in a way that not only works, but appeals to a broader range of people than the original stock ever could. Tracy Grammer adds her substantial talent with instruments and voice in a way which is synergistic. Without Dave, Tracy would be an excellent musician, and without Tracy, Dave would be an excellent songwriter, but when you combine the two of them, the result is magic.

When I say magic, I mean it... I'm talking knights-in-rusting-armor, maidens-in-pensive-thought, magicians-in-the-cave magic. Yes, there are truck driving songs and gator songs and lost love and card playing and murder in the repertoire, and they're amazing, too. When you get right down to it, Dave may be a country singer at heart-but he's also extremely well-read and intelligent and it pops out in his music in the quirkiest and most delightful ways.

What is the music like? At the heart you have Dave, with his Texas twang and either a guitar or banjo, and Tracy, with her darkly sweet and nuanced voice and a fiddle, mandolin or guitar. It used to be that Dave did more of the singing and Tracy sang the harmonies and played fiddle. Then Dave started writing for her voice, and now it is pretty balanced between the two of them. Both of them are delightful singers, him for the character of his voice and her for the shining beauty of hers, but the best part is when they sing together in harmony. Somehow they always seem to achieve the perfect blend--they are both humble enough to step back and let the other shine. It's either folk with a country flavor or country with folk flavor.

Clearly Dave and Tracy have a deep love for what they do, and this shows in the music. They are both refreshingly humble, delightfully down-to-earth people, just some of the nicest, most gracious performers I've ever met. Their dedication shows in the amazing quality of both their live performances and studio recordings. This is my favorite music to date, not "in spite of", but in part, because of the down-home quality his twang lends the music. If all country music was this intelligent, I'd probably listen to a lot more of it. In hundreds of listenings, Dave's twang has never bothered me, and I've never considered myself a country fan.

Why is this CD called Drum Hat Buddha? My guess is that the title pays homage to the three driving moods behind the album--the drumbeat of dancing feet, the cowboy tradition, and the spirituality that continues to deepen in each successive album. Or maybe it's the other way around... the spirit drums and the cowboy dance with the peaceful Zen that hums through it all. Dave is a pagan cowboy mathematician poet, and he's obviously found the key to keeping his muse happy. From the first upbeat chords of "Ordinary Town" to the almost psychedelic "41 Thunderer", the first half of the CD just doesn't let you go. Then in quick succession the energy builds with "Gentle Arms of Eden", "I Go Like the Raven" and the truck-drivin' "Highway 80". The last three songs are quieter and slower, but at the same time subtle and evocative. The imagery of "Love, the Magician" is exquisite in a deceptively simple song. "Merlin's Lament" is heart-breakingly beautiful. The last song on the album, the quietest, with a drumbeat like a peaceful heart, is "Gentle Soldier of my Soul"-a love song with a profoundly spiritual root.

I strongly recommend Drum Hat Buddha (as well as Tanglewood Tree and When I Go) as well-worth the $$. At the last performance, they previewed a song that will be on a yet-to-be-released album. If it is any indication of things to come, Dave and Tracy will just keep getting better. It's almost scary. My only complaint is that I've got "Dark Womb" (a song from their *next* album) stuck in my head, and I'm afraid it will be at least a year before it gets onto a CD... Whenever it comes out, I'll be the first in line. For now, I have Drum Hat Buddha following me through my day in four different CD players. It's that good.

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