Todd Thibaud
Todd Thibaud – Little Mystery
Doolittle/Mercury, 1999, Roots Rock
Laden with arrestingly smart images like “I count my blessings on a napkin
ring,” Todd Thibaud combines intelligent songwriting with comfortably
familiar sounds in an album which hearkens to his Roots roots while
looking to the future of AAA-rated music. Composed mostly of powerful
balladry and slow, circling rolls such as the instrumentally spare beats
of “Anywhere,” the throat-catching washes of “Suppose,” the solitary duet
of “Total Stranger” (which features fellow Bostonian Merrie Amsterberg)
and the simple poetry of the title track, Thibaud also shoots some heavier
drive into more up tempo offerings like “Suffer Me” and the countrified
slider “It’s Only Me.” Thibaud’s buzzy, twangy head voice and meaningfully
home-grown compositions combine elements of Deep Blue Something, The Boss,
Richard Shindell, and even a bit of Mr. Diamond. Particularly reminiscent
are the Cowboy Junkie fix “Last Thing That I Need,” the Mellencamp-y
“Finer Things” and the crow counting number “Finding Out.” While many of
the songs are also suggestive of each other , the common threads are
strong and supportive. They are the strands of sound which unite us and
which keep the weave of music broad and bright.
- Matthew S. Robinson
© 1999 M. S. Robinson, ARR
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