From sideman to frontman, singer-songwriter Michael McAdam steps out with only his second solo outing, and first in nineteen years with Tremolo. Yes, the skilled and versatile guitarist McAdam, based in Nashville, has supported and soaked in the best of preeminent artists on the Americana scene such as Steve Earle & The (original) Dukes, Foster & Lloyd, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Jim Lauderdale, Radney Foster, Jack Ingram, Chris Knight, and many others. He’s been to more than one rodeo, so to speak. Tremolo proves that McAdam is an astute listener and has formed the kind of relationships that can only lead to an outing as strong as this one. His co-producer is old friend Jack Irwin, best known as the longtime producer for the late David Olney.
Tremolo, while a bit uneven and repetitive in a couple of places, has its share of clear gems. This writer might be just a tad biased as McAdam’s reference to “crossing the Lehigh County line” in his song “Allentown” speaks to geography less than a mile from where this review is being written. Yet, McAdam’s eye for detail is evident from his opening lines to his gently rocking “My Little Queenie” – “from my second-story window, looking down on city park/she crossed the street at Laurel, by the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart/as a band played Little Queenie, out of tune but really loud/she crisscrossed at the fountain, and disappeared into the crowd.” The last phrase is a metaphor for a breakup, lyrics that are indicative of his eight co-writes. McAdam is the major accompanist on his array of guitars from acoustic to slide and gets help from multiple drummers on select tracks, background vocalists, his friends from the band he founded 40 years ago, The Good Humor Band, from Richmond, VA, and Springsteen stalwart, bassist Garry Tallent, who plays on four tracks. He lifts a mandolin part from the late Butch Baldasarri for “Little Places” and has Kim Richey join him for harmonies on “Venus.”
“Northern Girl” is an up-tempo rocker with power-pop strains infusing memorable lines such as “she made her way on the southbound train with little Richie on her knee.” “Kingdom Come” is a power ballad steeped in urgency where the line “got yourself a gun,” at least for this writer hits a sour chord but it’s clear that McAdam has a fascination with the weapon as another of his songs is “Hand on the Trigger,” both about a desperate character trying to escape a rough situation.
The acoustic cover of Tim Hardin’s “Don’t Make Promises” and his own acoustic “Little Places” offer not only a stylistic break but insightful commentary on relationships and love, perhaps best encapsulated by describing love as living “in nooks and crannies and open space in Volkswagens and Chevrolets” in the latter. On the other hand, he renders his cover of the Rolling Stones’ “I’m Free” just fine but it just seems oddly placed amidst his other well-crafted gems. The Springsteen-esque anthemic “Allentown,” is another song about a woman trying to escape. While the others may be rooted in southern cities, this one is about the Pennsylvania city with a mixed reputation at best, that lies in the heart of one of the country’s fasted growing regions. The protagonist may never want to return to that city, but she can find plenty of peaceful, safe environments within just a few minutes of ‘crossing that Lehigh County line.’
Throughout we may be wondering why the album is entitled “Tremolo,” a question at least partially answered by the closing instrumental where McAdam shows his guitar skills in tribute to Roy Buchanan on “Chuck’s Mood.” No, there’s no ready answer for why Chuck is in the title rather than Roy, but so it goes. McAdam’s songs speak clearly enough with their character sketches and storytelling to warrant many listens.
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“Chuck’s Mood” refers to Chuck Wrenn, a Richmond native who fronted his own rockabilly bands back in the day but also hosted the High on the Hog festival as well as ran the successful restaurant-with-music Moondance.