Chris Whitley - Living with the Law

File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Source: Ll (from CD)
Released: 1991
Styles: Bluesrock
Time: 47:00
Size: 107,9 MB
Covers: Full

(0:17) 1. Excerpt
(3:42) 2. Living with the Law
(4:45) 3. Big Sky Country
(4:12) 4. Kick the Stones
(3:33) 5. Make the Dirt Stick
(3:26) 6. Poison Girl
(5:08) 7. Dust Radio
(4:47) 8. Phone Call from Leavenworth
(4:33) 9. I Forget You Every Day
(4:27) 10. Long Way Around
(3:16) 11. Look What Love Has Done
(4:30) 12. Bordertown
(0:17) 13. Outro

Chris Whitley's 1991 debut, Living with the Law, was recorded in Daniel Lanois' New Orleans mansion and was produced by Malcolm Burn. The sublimely dark, creepy, and possessed collection sounds completely out of place for the era of slick 1990s pop/rock sound. The tortured album is rich with old-style sounds, from slide guitars to pedal steel. (Lanois contributes some on the album.) Living with the Law has a full, ambient feel that transports the listener into the recording. Whitley humbly (and falsely) claims, at the beginning of the record, that "God knows it's all been done." But these 12 songs attempt an original look at an honest style and passionate mood that is lacking in much of rock music. Whitley sings of drug abuse, alienation, failure, and loneliness with a Delta blues flavor. Standout tracks include "Phone Call from Leavenworth," "Big Sky Country," and "Dirt Radio." Those who liked Whitley's Dirt Floor must own Living with the Law if they don't already. It is more of a full-band sound, but similar in tone and feel. An exceptional and mesmerizing debut, one with the potential to inspire all who hear it. -- Allmusic.
This impressive album of bluesy rock was one of the best debuts of 1991 and it didn't sound like a debut record. Whitley's tales of trials, tribulations and blues had a more authentic ring than your usual white bluesman. I think that the key to Whitley's success was that he did not merely try to copy the blues, but use it as a springboard to investigate his own ideas. The instrumental mix of guitars, pedal steel, tambourine, keyboards, harmonica and viola lends the album a distinctively atmospheric southern sound. Whitley's voice and the quality of the songs make it unforgettable. This is a record without a weak track. After this, Whitley set out on a career that jumped from genre to genre with mixed results. -- Amazon.

Living with the Law

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