Search - Pat Boyack :: Voices From The Street

Not what I expected.

KR | Williamsville, NY United States | 05/26/2004

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Pat Boyack's first 3 albums (with the Prowlers) were some good listening, foot tapping, rockin' blues.
Great guitar work....tight band....my type of stuff.
This album, however fine it may be, is WAY different from anything in the first 3 albums. "Voices from the Street" really has a more gospelly/R&B type sound. There are, in fact, numerous tracks on this CD in which Pat's guitar work is definitely kept in the background.
I guess I'm missing the point behind a CD by a guitar player in which the guitar player is NOT featured.
As I said above....perhaps a very fine album...such as it is....but not what I want to hear from Pat Boyack....at least not given his first 3 albums.
If you enjoyed the original Pat Boyack and the Prowlers albums you should be well aware that THIS album is significantly different in nature from those."

SOUL SATISFYING SONGS

mo' blues | Austin, TX | 03/18/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is the best album from Austin in years! The concept of getting great singers like Marcia Ball, W.C. Clark, Ruthie Foster and Sweetpea Atkinson to be the "voices from the street" was a truly inspired idea. And the vocalists, especially Ruthie, are uniformly excellent. I don't think W.C. has ever recorded anything as soulful as "The Power Is Gone" and Marcia makes me want to get up and get involved with her "Listen to Me" anthem. But it's Sweetpea, especially on the sexy "Chance at Love", that steals the show. All the music, featuring Boyack's enlightened guitar lines, is fantastic and it sounds great to hear horns behind the singers. The songs all have a message and with voices like these delivering it everyone should be listening. The big ending of the album, the old protest tune "Time Has Come Today", has all the singers on it and it rocks."

Party Time

musicman | Fort Worth, TX USA | 04/10/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This CD reminds me of a party. Everyone seems so glad to be here, all milling around talking with each other, forming little circles here and there, getting tipsy sometimes, laughing a lot, crying a little. Pat Boyack put together something special. He gathered more than a dozen superb musicians in one virtual room and let them do what comes naturally.The CD contains thirteen full songs and a couple of extra pieces, all loosely held together by a theme of social conscience. What does that mean? Songs about the despair, folly, love and hope of ordinary people. It seems to say, "Here we are, let's help each other."So many musicians, guitarists especially, seem to want the center of the stage. This CD is remarkable in that the guitarist, who happens to be the leader of the project, stands off to one side and pulls the best out of the other musicians. None of these players is a household word. I would not expect any of them to headline an arena show or a network TV special. But it's not because they are poor musicians. It's because they are dedicated to a style of music that slips just outside the mainstream.The songs may be classified most easily as soul, but they have a flavor that makes them different from most soul music. Maybe it is due to the bi-racial makeup of the group, playing a style of music that has been the territory mostly of African-American musicians. Or maybe it's because I haven't listened to soul since Smokey Robinson was a kid.Among the solo singers on "Voices" are Sweetpea Atkinson, Marcia Ball, W.C. Clark, Ruthie Foster, and even Larry Fulcher, the bass player. Who knew a bass player could sing? Marcia Ball I've heard many times, so I was not surprised to hear her do a powerful version of "Listen to Me" to kick things off. Ruthie Foster follows that with "Misery." I had been really pumped to hear Ruthie, because I've read such wonderful things about her. I was not prepared for the natural restraint of her part on "Misery." It's like watching a battleship ease into port. The guns are not blazing, but the power is obvious.W.C. Clark contributes his high-ranging, soul-soaked vocals on two songs, displaying a wide span of emotion and voice on the upbeat "The Power Is Gone" and the slower "First Comes the Grievin'." Sweetpea Atkinson sings lead on three tunes with his unmistakable gravelly baritone. The lead vocals alone make this CD a treat, but many of the songs employ these talented singers as background vocalists, adding a lush dimension to a complex mix.There are so many great musicians on this album, you might think the result would be a big, messy montage of everyone trying to be heard. But the feeling throughout seems to be, "No, you first. No, YOU first. No, you ...." It's not so much organized as it is allowed to happen. Some songs feature fifteen players, including vocalists, rhythm instruments, horns, and soloists. Others are groupings of just a few, and they are just as powerful.For instance, on "These Are People," the band is simply guitar, bass and drums, with a few piano notes that seem to fall like twinkling raindrops here and there. Marcia Ball, a prima balladeer, was the perfect choice to sing this song. It seems to have been written with her in mind.Soul music is powered by electric bass. Whether you have a ten-piece band or a group of four, if you don't have bass, you don't have soul. "Voices" has bass. Almost all the songs are anchored by Larry Fulcher's precise, nimble bass lines. He plays with imagination, but keeps the songs firmly fastened to the beat. His few embellishments are done with skill and taste. Chris Maresh, another bass player's bass player, does the honors on "Ain't That a Shame (Help Me Now)."Bass players, of course, are joined at the hip with drummers, and it is particularly apparent on this CD. Tony Braunagel holds down most of the songs in a simple style well suited to the music. There is nothing quite like a drummer who can keep fifteen people on the beat and make it look as easy as sleeping. I'd like to make every drummer listen to "Shotgun Slim" until they understand this. B. E. "Frosty" Smith handles the kit on some of the songs. No soul album is complete without horn players, and many of the tracks contain precisely executed arrangements of trumpets, saxes and trombones.But what about Pat Boyack, the guitar player who invited all these folks to the party? The CD seems to mirror his style, unassuming and restrained, seldom in your face, but always where you can hear him. And there is a lot of great guitar work to listen to. Not because the guitarist is an outrageous, blazing star like Hendrix or VanHalen. It's because Pat confidently stays faithful to the purpose of putting great music in our ears, rather than a lot of gaudy frills.The vocals and the overall production of the songs are so engaging on the first listen that you have to spin the CD again to listen to the guitar. Pat's guitar sound is generally clean, but still shows a cool range of warm tones from one tune to another. He shows even more variety in styles, but with a subtlety that will test your ear and reward it. Perhaps the most compelling impression is that Pat is playing exactly what he wants. There is no hesitation, no struggling for the right notes or the right tone. He's always spot-on where he wants to be.But in spite of the excellent guitar work, this guitarist's solo album is not a guitar CD -- it's a music CD. And I can't think of a better compliment for a musician."