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Max Stalling One Of The Ways |
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Track List
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(Blind Nello) Max Stalling returns with
his third effort, One Of The Ways. This album finds Max
getting a little more reflective, his songs delving deeper into
relationships and emotions. One Of The Ways also marks Bruce
Robison's debut at producing a full album for someone else. Max &
Bruce prove to be a winning team. They take a bit of a chance, and
have put out an album that veers from the baseball cap, barroom party
fare of the past, and take things down a notch, with music that's more
lyrically and emotionally complex, that requires careful
listening.
Max has always been known as an all 'round
gentleman and nice guy, prompting Chris Wall to remark to
him that he's got that Jimmy Stewart schtick down pretty good. His
warm, laid back vocals are a comfortable fit with his
country-folk style. He writes his songs, vividly painting little
slices of life, in simple but intelligent terms, where the listener
can easily see the song's meaning. However, he writes his songs
so they have different meanings on different levels, and while he
focuses on weaving his tales, he seldom provides an ending, letting
the listener come to their own conclusions.
He fleshes out a character study in "Ain't
Falling In Love With You," about a small town couple stuck in an
emotional no man's land, with no other romantic prospects on the
horizon, yet are unable/unwilling to commit to each other. The
outstanding "The Beatles And The Thunder," delves into the mind of a
middle aged man, and aches with the emotions of a man's
uncertainty over what might have been and what is. Max's French is
charming as he incorporates the French lyric of the Beatles'
"Michelle" that plays in the character's mind, into this song.
Visions of the old west are mixed into the
fatalistic and chilling Texas border song of a man who loses his
life due to the cold hearted woman he loves, in the stellar "The Pila
Song." The Tex-Mex melody of the title track, "One Of The Ways," finds
the character alone, contemplating the reasons for his state of being
alone and not with the woman he loves. "Lay My Burdens Down" is a
lovely rustic, gospel-like song about finding one's path in life. It's
not often you hear an ode to a dance, but Max pays homage in "Dancing
To A Waltz" to a dance made for falling in love to.
"Probably Corsicana," is a clever
song telling the woes of the day to day trials and tribulations of a
band on the road, and poor memory. One Of The Ways closes
with one of Max's most lyrically ambitious songs, "The Girl By The
Lake," where Max is accompanied by a lone acoustic guitar, with it's
themes of missed chances and regret bubbling under the surface.
Although Max has found much success as a
singer/songwriter, with his first two albums selling well, and his
partnership with fellow artist Mark David Manders owning the Blind
Nello label (which includes Houston Marchman and Kevin Deal on their
roster), he didn't give up his day job as a product-development
specialist at Frito-Lay. However, songwriting has always been his
first love, and he's found his niche as a performer. After the tragic
events of 9/11, he decided life was too precious and short, and he
decided it was time to take the plunge and pursue his music full time,
quitting the security of his job at Frito-Lay this past February. With
One Of The Ways, Max Stalling should have no problem finding
a good measure of job security with his music, both as a songwriter
and a performer.
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AnnMarie
Harrington
Take Country Back December 2002