Search - Ian Tyson :: One Jump Ahead of the Devil

Bridging the gap between Ian & Sylvia and Cowboy Culture

Garry Lafollette | Winchester, VA | 01/13/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I discovered this 1978 Canadian release after I already had all of his later works and many of his 60's recordings. The disc is a layer of his career I didn't know existed. Some of the tracks clearly foreshadow what was to come with his cowboy culture discs, while others point backwards to a variety of influences. The title track sounds like Waylon when he was putting outlaw country on the map. "Beverly" has a classic Marty Robbins feel, while "Lone Star and Coors" has Bob Wills' - Or maybe some of Tommy Duncan's solo work after he left the Texas Playboys - bootprints all over it. The final package, pulling together so many C&W influences and tieing them off neatly with Ian's voice could have been a monster seller IF Ian was promoted properly in the states, and IF it had had the good fortune to be released 2 yrs later when the Urban Cowboy rage was jacking sales of lesser work by lesser artists who didn't have a clue how to get on (or fall off) a horse."

A Very Overlooked Album

Garry Lafollette | 11/09/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This cd is awesome! I love it and am glad that I was able to find it hidden away in a cd store. Not many people have ever heard this album, BUY IT! The songs on here are wonderful. Half Mile of Hell and Lone Star and Coors are my two favorites. Once again Ian is able to write and sing from the heart and he has done an outstanding job! This cd is a must for any Ian Tyson fan!"

Great music from the original urban cowboy

BC Beatle | Canada | 11/06/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I've always been a fan of Ian Tyson...from the vanguard years and Four Strong Winds to Great Speckled Bird and beyond. This little known album lies somewhere between all of this music and gives us a glimpse into the style of music he would create in his later years. It's nicely produced by Richard Harrow, a local Calgary favourite in the mid 70's and features some great guitar playing by Kent Blazy before he surfaced in Nashville and built his own distinguished career as a guitar player and producer. From the lovely ballad "Beverly" to the urgency of "half a mile of Hell", an ode to the Calgary Stampede Chuckwagon races...Tyson tips his hat to the Texas Playboys and many other country greats with soaring steel work, smooth as silk vocals and some genuinely infectious pickin. Ian Tyson has embraced his Alberta roots with his recent "cowboy" work and after repeated playing I think this album may have indeed been the catalyst. If you're a casual fan or even a seasoned Tyson listener, you might do well to pick up this album and Great Speckled Bird...I consider them "must haves" and are highly recommended."