John Brannen – The Good Thief

In the 1980s, John Brannen was a Springsteen-esque rocker; his song “Desolation Angel” was even an MTV Hip Clip. In the ’90s he re-emerged as a country singer and Nashville songwriter; a 1993 tour for his self-titled Polygram album was a package deal with two other newcomers — Shania Twain and Toby Keith. With a new decade nearly half over, Brannen has combined those personalities and finally created an original hybrid.

The Springsteen element is still evident on songs such as “A Pair Of Dice” and “I Could Never Make It Right”, but Brannen’s soulful rasp lands him closer to John Hiatt on the former and Southside Johnny on the latter. The country singer in him comes out on the gently acoustic “The Lonely Side Of Love”, and his coastal roots show up on “Summer In Savannah”, but Brannen is still more of a barroom soul singer than a honky-tonk hillbilly.

It is Brannen’s voice that ultimately lifts these sometimes pedestrian tunes (most co-written with frequent Eagles collaborator Jack Tempchin) above the crowd. A fluid instrument, it betrays its high mileage in creaky moments that add character lines to the music’s face.

The relentlessly downcast subject matter that dominates this disc is redeemed, finally, in the hidden track. A simple acoustic arrangement of “Amazing Grace”, Brannen sings it with a conviction and grace all his own.