Chris Hillman – Like A Hurricane

Discussing the term “country rock” in the liner notes to his new album, Chris Hillman says that “The Byrds pioneered this style, Gram Parsons and I defined it and the Eagles took it to the bank.” This assessment is probably true, and few are as qualified to speak on the subject as the former Byrd and Flying Burrito Brother. Like A Hurricane (the title track is a Hillman original, not the Neil Young song) is a solid, if somewhat lightweight, album of new and old songs that bears the strong mark of the Southern California pop-country trinity of Byrds/Burritos/Eagles.

Hillman has a wonderful voice, great pop instincts, and a finely developed talent for splicing together country, bluegrass, and four-chord rock ‘n’ roll. Here, he leans a bit more on his pop side than he has on recent country and bluegrass efforts. A couple tracks — “Run Again,” “Living On The Edge,” and “I’m Still Alive”, a tune written for rock ‘n’ roll survivor David Crosby — sound ready-made for late-’70s AM rock radio. A cover of Jackie DeShannon’s “When You Walk In The Room” is another highlight, two minutes of pure jingle-jangle pop perfection.

Although Like A Hurricane seldom reaches the heights of Bakersfield Bound, Hillman and Herb Pedersen’s outstanding 1996 tribute to the hard California country sound of Buck Owens, this country-rock legend can still teach the young alt.country crowd a thing or two.