Peter Himmelman – Unstoppable Forces

Sometimes it seems as if Peter Himmelman has been recycling the same song since the mid-1980s, which makes it something of a miracle that his new release simultaneously sounds so familiar and so fresh. Now recording for his own Himmasongs imprint, he strips his music to its essence, tapping into a primal inspiration, investing melodies that have the sing-song simplicity of Buddy Holly or the Beatles with the yearning of a spiritual quest.

Listening to Himmelman renews one’s appreciation of how simple life could be and how difficult it can be. And it makes one marvel that music so basic should hit so deep.

Where so many self-styled prophets of song project a holier-than-thou attitude, humor and humility permeate Himmelman’s material. He rarely points fingers at anyone but himself. With the buoyant, Byrdsian jangle of “Racing Off To Nowhere”, he loses himself in the bustle of everyday life, while the Dylanesque “Still Don’t Know” suggests the confusion in the pilgrim’s heart. He never comes across as someone who knows all the answers, but rather as a guy bedeviled by the most provocative questions.

The amazing grace of songs such as “The Deepest Part”, “Love That Lasts” and “Discipline Of The Rain” should resonate as much with Christians and Buddhists as with those who share Himmelman’s Jewish religion, though the pop hooks of “Red Like Jupiter” and “Death Of Dreams” — with former Springsteen and Lone Justice sideman Shane Fontayne on lead guitar — require no leap of faith. Himmelman’s generosity of spirit extends to two bonus tracks beyond the twelve-cut album, plus a separate disc of demos and outtakes (since the early 1990s) from the “Himmelvaults”.