Primrose Green isn’t a euphoric album nor will it put you in a dream-like state. They are delicate, hush songs with the former having an almost hymnal quality and the latter emanating of a young Gordon Lightfoot – just an acoustic guitar and the sound of Walker’s voice. “The High Road” and “Hide in the Roses” are set against classical arrangements. “On The Banks of the Old Kishwaukee” is a fantastic, swaying, blues tune with the storytelling that respects the genre’s lengthy history. The vocals act as the bridge while the instrumentation takes centre stage on this blues-folk-rock track. This lasts for nearly 110 seconds before Walker’s voice is heard, but only in quick spurts. Where as “Blues” was harmoniously lush, “Love Can Be Cruel” is a crossing, though not a competition, of instruments to create a nearly atmospheric tone. Complemented by a violin, the track is one to lay back, close your eyes, and enjoy the gorgeous sound being produced by the two string instruments.
“Griffiths Bucks Blues ” is an opportunity for Walker to showcase his immense guitar skills – quick finger plucking to strumming. And while his voice doesn’t reach the range of Louis Armstrong, you get the feeling Walker is channeling the great jazz master as he yells, “I’m feeling, feeling, feeling all right!” The standup bass and tickling of piano keys on “Summer Keys’ is the sound of a well-established, well-oiled jazz machine. From the opening title track, we’re introduced to the brilliance and skills of Walker – a perfectly orchestrated, full-band song that is part jazz and part ’60s rock, the precision of Walker’s strumming, and his gentle, soothing voice. Whereas Gunn took us on a sonic, rock adventure with the majestic Way Out Weather, Walker guides us on a carefully curated tour of jazz, blues, folk, and rock, often blending these genres together. Another way to think of them – they are the next generation of James Taylors and Nick Drakes. Ryley Walker, like Steve Gunn, is among a new wave of musicians – precise, expert guitar players who are taking their turns as songwriters and perfecting that craft. It’s music our parents and grandparents listened to back in the 60s and 70s, yet the man behind Primrose Green is only in his mid-twenties. Just a man, his guitar, his band, and his voice. Yet even when channeling these ethereal artists, Walker never betrays the earthy open-heartedness that’s wholly his own. Bert Jansch may be the most apt reference point, though Nick Drake haunts the string-laden mysticism of “The High Road,” while “Same Minds” recalls the peaks and valleys of Tim Buckley’s songwriting. While the depth of this 20-something’s often-improvised lyrics doesn’t yet match the force of his baritone growls and purrs, the record gains emotional resonance from Walker’s uncanny knack for summoning the specters of tragic folk figures. Walker impresses with his ability to effortlessly meld knotty psych, hard bop sway, and convincingly gritty blues riffs into single compositions, but the fact that he does so without any degree of affectation is perhaps even more admirable. On his second full-length, Chicago-based guitarist and singer/songwriter Ryley Walker continues to draw inspiration from the most virtuosic finger-pickers and vocalists of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s.
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