Vance Gilbert is not the name of the famous, or at least I've never heard of him before I listened to this CD, his tenth. But now I think all people who love song with a good story should know Vance Gilbert.
Old white men appropriately named, as most of the songs reflect episodes in people's lives. These songs, with little accompaniment besides the acoustic guitar, clarinet, and saxophone is used rarely but effectively, complex and not songs that young and Innocent.
The songs deal with love and loss, with those who are not as good as they should ("no one can love You like Mary," "Dragonfly wings") and others who are better than you'd expect them to be (especially poignant "new year's day at the Hotel lion's head" and "Go"), about the good and bad at the same time ("The brakeman's son") and, with slyfunny, "I'm bad," about being completely bad and not really be sorry for it.
Then there is the title of the song "Old White Men," which is about the role parents can play in the life of a man and how that will be passed on down the line.
Gilbert's voice is very similar to vintage Tom Waits. He has a true tenor, powerful and confident. He was the singer in the tradition of the strongest, and the people that he was plagued by deep song, disability, and real. You feel what they feel. Subject includes degraded family of unfaithfulness a neighborly feuds, age, and, of course, love. A recurring theme is the train, which appeared in "the boy on the train", "King of the Rails", and "child brakeman."