This collection of Michael Murphey's work is
from his earliest period, when he was hanging out with Jerry Jeff
Walker's Lost Gonzo Band and issuing some of the most forward-thinking,
philosophical, cosmic cowboy music of the outlaw era. Michael Murphey was no outlaw. The tracks from his first three albums
-- Geronimo's Cadillac, Cosmic CowboySouvenir, and Blue Sky - Night
Thunder, where the mega-smash "Wildfire" originally came from -- are
the most satisfying. The cuts from these albums -- such as the title
track from Geronimo, "Natchez Trace," "Alleys of Austin,""Cosmic
Cowboy," "Boy From the Country," and "What Am I Doin' Hangin' Around?"
-- reflect an artist who is looking to widen his path, searching
restlessly through the country, rock, and blues music he loves for a
sound that embodies them all but stays true to the spirit of the West.
It's
as if Murphey were looking to become a cosmic cowboy rather than
already seeing himself as the embodiment of the ghosts of mythical
western figures he did later. The music from the early records is wild
and untamed, full of experimentation and raw fire. Even "Wildfire" and
"Carolina in the Pines" embody the seeker's vision, although it's more
closely defined by an uncynical wonder and the willingness to let some
of the recording studio in on the journey.
No one can ever
argue -- unless they're out of their damned minds -- that "Wildfire"
isn't an amazing pop single. It gave Dan Fogelberg a career for a
decade or so. "Carolina in the Pines" is one of the most successful
fusions of bluegrass, country, and American schlock pop ever
accomplished -- and the song is stunningly beautiful.
In
essence, as this collection of Raven's proves, Murphey didn't
completely lose his country heritage until after 1984. While the albums
that embodied these songs may not have kept to the standard that these
songs do, there was at least one track on each that stood out and is
worthy of repeated listening by anyone interested in country music,
such as the Murphey/Willie Nelson duet on the stomping "Rhythm of the
Road." "Dancing in the Meadow," "Cherokee Fiddle," "Texas Morning," a
stunning live version of "Backslider's Wine," and "Take It as It
Comes," with its whining pedal steel and slowed-down 4/4 tempo, embody
the folky spirit of country with all of its contradiction -- though
Murphey is on the politically correct side of things. It is only on the
pop tracks -- such as the synthed-out "Renegade," the Steely Dan
jazz-funk of "Nothing Is Your Own," the other mega-smash, "What's
Forever For," the Eagles America-like crossover of "Still Takin'
Chances," and the insipid "Don't Count the Rainy Days" that was written
for the charts -- that fall really short in terms of the cosmic cowboy
vision. The Jackson-Eagles production blends well with Murphey's
gorgeous tenor voice.
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