David Nail: I'm About To Come Alive (Review)
David Nail Releases Soulful and Dramatic Album
Aug 23, 2009
Missouri isn't exactly a hotbed for soul music, or country music, for that matter. On this album, newcomer David Nail sounds as though he spent his life in the Mississippi Delta or singing in clubs on Beale Street.
So it is fitting that the album start off with the soulful and longing "Mississippi." This slow-burning ballad has a mournful piano lick and is a a great tribute to the slow-paced life in the Southern state. Nail sounds a bit nasally in his upper register, instead of full, which would have suited the soulful song better.
"Red Light," "Looking For a Good Time" are soulful gems
Nail keeps with his mid-tempo, soulful groove for much of the album. On the title track, Nail pleads for his lady not to give up on him ("Nobody thought I was good enough for you/except for you/don't let them be right after all we've been through"). "Red Light" gives an interesting parallel of a man being blindsided by the fact that his relationship is over while he's in traffic.
On the ballad "Looking for a Good Time" (not be confused with the Lady Antebellum hit song), he warns a woman who keeps confusing love with lust ("they'll say anything to play the part/but they don't give a damn about your heart").
"This Time Around" finally gets the album to an uptempo track. He sings of being older, more stable, and more ready for a relationship this time around. The lyrics are so vague here that they cease to be interesting by the time the chorus hits. The jazzy piano bridge accents his voice beautifully.
Chesney, Lambert, Rascal Flatts Contribute to Album
"Clouds" does its best to be dramatic, but plods along too slowly to keep interest. "Summer Job Days" sounds eerily like a Rascal Flatts song, especially given that it was in fact written by Flatts singer Gary Levox.
"Strangers on a Train" begins with an interesting harmonica and piano combo, reminiscent of Billy Joel's "Piano Man." The tale of wondering what life would be like with someone else is wrapped in one telling moment of the attraction between two strangers in transit. Miranda Lambert guests on this track.
"Turning Home" showcases the strength of his soulful voice, and is one of the best tracks on the album, and showcases his tenor voice well. The guitar solo sounds inspired, not contrived, and he seems to be having fun on this track. The song was co-written by Kenny Chesney.
The album ends with what could have been an obligatory ode to his homestate of Missouri, but ends up being Nail pleading for a southern Georgia girl to head back home after all the pain he has caused her, and leave him in Missouri (Nail pronounces it like "misery").
Summary
Overall, Nail's voice is warm, inviting, and distinct, but he digs through the same mine of mid-tempo, serious songs too many times on this album. It would be interesting to see him take on some lighter material and stretch himself vocally.
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