ANT ZINE | Record Review


Josh Ritter
Golden Age of Radio
Signature Sounds Recordings


The world of singer/songwriters is one littered with those who play pleasant - but ultimately indistinguishable - acoustic ditties about love gone wrong and other personal calamities. Thus, when a troubadour manages to rise above the smattering of earnest lightweights hawking self-titled debuts to make you take notice, it's a rather rare thing. And Josh Ritter, an Idaho-native, is that rare thing.

With a style that is unassuming, yet affecting and radiant, Ritter has crafted a beautiful down home treat in Golden Age of Radio. The second record from Ritter (his debut isn't widely available - and yes, it is self-titled) is perfect for those sun-setting hours when the sky is at its most colorful and contemplative. Aside from a few numbers that feature drums, harmonica, and bass, Golden Age is primarily just Ritter and his understated acoustic guitar playing. His songs are evocative, detailed, and resonate just as compellingly as people like Nick Drake and Townes Van Zandt, artists Ritter is often compared to.

Ritter's voice is a killer. That's what first won this reviewer over. It is pure, rustic and weaves through the song's smart, wise-beyond-his-years lyrics like a thoughtful, sun-warmed country wind. Golden Age opens with the whispery "Come and Find Me", his poetic talent is evident from the first lines ("If I could trace the lines that ran/ Between your smile and your sleight of hand/ I would guess that you put something up my sleeve.") On the next song, the up-tempo "Me & Jiggs", Ritter elevates his voice above a whisper and its true force is heard. It's a classic song that perfectly captures that feeling of a mid-summer Saturday evening - where you're "drinking beer underneath the tree / Lying on your back as the sun goes down... Till we climb the fences at the edge of town and paint our names on the water towers."

The most prevalent theme on Golden Age is one of other people leaving, but finding it difficult to do it yourself. On "Lawrence, KS", Ritter sings knowingly about his place on the planet: "Dirt roads and dryland farming might be the death of me / But I can't leave this world behind." Several other songs lament how people seem unwilling to stay anywhere, how they seem to be always on the run to somewhere else. The appropriately titled "Leaving" says it best: "Every time I turn around / Something else just floated away / There ain't a single thing that I've found / With wings that decided to stay." I could quote from this album all day!

Other notables include the title song, which is a glorious country rave-up featuring a full band. It'll get you dancing in your boots as it celebrates the Patsy Cline-era Grand Ole Opry shows. "Harrisburg", one of many songs that contain lines about trains (a subject Ritter refers to often that fits well into the overall "leaving" theme), will also get your feet tapping when the chorus chimes in. Both are definite standouts among standouts.

The entire record is a gem. It'll make you want to flee to the dusty, open frontier and kick your feet up on a porch railing as a screen door gently bangs in the breeze. Golden Age of Radio is evidence that this singer/songwriter is one of the few that shouldn't get lost in the shuffle.

-Doug Sell

Review at ANT ZINE