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“Looking back, perhaps the headache caused by PledgeMusic was actually a blessing. It gave me the push & impulse I probably needed to get the job done and it also made me realize, more than anything, that the fans are on my side and they are indispensable and significant. And if you have fans on your side, nothing is impossible.” Fast forward a few months, and the album feared lost after PledgeMusic folded, sees the light of day and by Lucifer’s beard it’s been well worth the eleven year wait. Although the tracks featured on ‘Myths, Legends and Lies’ have been rattling around Vaughn’s brain for some time now, it‘s actually the perfect time to release such a diverse album. Had Vaughn released the album last decade, then perhaps the musical climate might not have been so open to giving it a chance. Until recently, could you have ever imagined an act like Brothers Osborne performing at Download? A Danny Vaughn solo album? Surely that’s got to be just an extension of a Tyketto album? Well, the answer couldn’t be further from that thought even if it tried, again, Vaughn explains it best himself..“This is the music I make when left to my own devices. When there is no schedule to satisfy and no target audience to audition for. “ So, take a seat, drop the needle, and let, arguably, the cleanest, most melodic voice in Rock today regale you with 14 tales set against a backdrop of folk music, Americana, blues, non-hipster jazz, acoustic rock, hell, there’s even some sassy horns thrown into the mix. Yes, it’s 2019 and the word “sassy” has just been used. Vaughn’s vocal range and clarity hasn’t dampened over the years, if anything, it’s actually improved. Without the wall of Marshall’s behind him, every note is crystal clear, and even when the band are blowing a hooley on the traditional Irish-Folk opener, ‘The Shadow Of King John’, his warm vocals fill the room. ‘Man Or Machine’ continues down the folk route, with a dash of Americana added, as well as the most insanely catchy hand-claps that you will ever hear. Thunder bassist Chris Childs keeps everyone in check with another one of his bedrock performances, as he also does on the meandering ‘The Missouri Kid’. Vaughn and Childs could casually insert this (and ‘Kelly’s Gone’ which appears later) into their set the next time that they perform as The Ultimate Eagles, and no-one would notice, all the Eagles fans would be caught out by boasting that they heard Henley, Frey et al play this back in the day. ‘Last Ride Of The Sunset Men’ is another fantastic Eagles influenced slice of acoustic rock, until the synths and far-out voice-over comes in and totally freaks the listener out. Did I really hear that or was it just my imagination? Yep, you heard it. Childs controls the tempo on the dust-bowl Americana tale ‘Black Crow’, as well as keeping it on the lowdown on the finger-snapping ‘Something I Picked Up Along The Way’. The partnership between Vaughn and Childs goes back sometime now and works well, a genuine understanding between them both. Chris Buck also appears, lending his considerable guitar skills to the dazzling pair of ‘The Good Life’ and ‘Monkeys With Money And Guns’, the latter especially noteworthy with its wry observational, Don Henley vibes. The album ends on the rather special ‘What You Left Behind’, a simple, intimate and ultimately, heartbreaking, acoustic track, with easily identifiable lyrics such as “And the sun will shine, and the tears will fall, so don’t worry yourself tonight, Mom, I’m gonna be alright”. It would take someone with the coldest of cold hearts, not to be affected by these four minutes. ‘Father and Son’ by Cat Stevens make you well up? You ain’t heard nothing yet until you hear this one. Niagara Falls baby, Niagara Falls. ‘Myths, Legends and Lies’ is an album that constantly surprises, Danny Vaughn needs to be left to his own devices more often. Available now through Townsend Music. UK Live Dates July 11: Bannermans Edinburgh, UK July 12: Waterloo Music Bar Blackpool, UK July 13: Sanders Yard Bistro Whitby, UK (Sold Out) July 19: Queen’s Hall, Nuneaton July 20: Tivoli, Buckley Aug 16: The Dreadnought Bathgate, UK Aug 17: The Diamond Rock Bar Ballymena, N. Ireland Aug 22: The Black Heart, London Aug 23: The Cluny, Newcastle Aug 29: Eleven, Stoke On Trent Aug 30: The Asylum, Birmingham Review – Dave ]]>
