Stacey Earle and Mark Stuart - Dedication

  by Malcolm Carter

published: 2 / 5 / 2012

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Twenty years ago Stacey Earle and Mark Stuart began working together in music. During the last two decades the couple have toured extensively, taking in around 170 concerts a year, released both solo albums and four albums together and still they sound as fresh as they did when we first heard from them. The touring hasn’t slowed down. The duo are currently working their way through over forty dates in the UK and Ireland, and over the eleven new songs that make up ‘Dedication’ it’s obvious that they haven’t lost any of the passion they displayed on their early albums. Their solo albums were always worth a listen. While they weren’t going to change the world you could always rely on Stacey and Mark to include at least a couple of real gems on every solo album. But something happened when the pair recorded together; they brought out the best in their music. Stacey was often, in the early days, compared to Nanci Griffith and it was a fair comparison, the problem was that Griffith was, and still is, one of those singers that you either love or dislike. There is no middle ground; if those girly vocals just don’t appeal to you then no matter how good the song is you’ll never appreciate it. When Stacey teamed up with Mark for an album’s worth of songs though a lot of those Griffith-isms seemed to disappear and Stacey’s vocals lost a lot of that inflection. It appeared now and then on certain songs as it does still on this latest collection but it’s less noticeable now. Whatever the reasons for this it’s certainly going to make the music this duo produce appeal to a much wider audience now. While country still dominates Stacey’s and Mark’s music, with Stacey now sounding more mature and confident vocally ‘Dedication’ feels in many ways like the album that is finally going to break this talented duo out of the country/folk genre they have always been associated with. There’s only one co-write between Stacey and Mark on ‘Dedication’. Mark takes the writers credit on four songs and Stacey the other six, but it’s not one of those albums where you can instantly hear who wrote a particular song. ‘The Flag’ is the exception, the tale of a mother looking back on her son’s life it must rate as one of the most touching songs Stacey has ever written. Coming halfway through the album and with Stacey’s almost spoken vocals accompanied by only her acoustic guitar and Michael Webb’s accordion, it’s the core of the album. ‘The Flag’ is one of the most affecting songs ever written about losing a son while fighting for his country, and the production by Stacey and Mark is superb. It’s an atmospheric piece of music that can’t fail to touch you. While there are many female/male duos around just now, most of them producing excellent music, there are few that can get close to Stacey and Mark with the songs on ‘Dedication’. Not one of the songs here sounds like the preceding one but still the album flows so naturally. ‘I’ve Been Wrong, I’ve Been Right’ shows a more soulful side to the duo’s work, and is also an excellent indication of just how much their work has grown over the years. This particular song just wouldn’t have suited any of their earlier albums but here it’s just perfect. With Mark’s trademark twang at it’s very best the song, being the only co-write on ‘Dedication’, is evidence that the duo should write more songs together. ‘For A Long Time’ is a heartbreaker; after Mark’s opening guitar lines, which are enough alone to make a grown man cry, Stacey comes in with “ There’s a white mark on my hand, where I wore your wedding band/Had to force myself to lay it down” with such sadness and regret in her voice you can’t help but feel her pain. As with all the songs on ‘Dedication’, it’s the honesty in the lyrics and the emotion in both Stacey’s and Mark’s vocals that make these songs so special. Listen to Mark’s guitar in this particular song, and then wonder why he isn’t known as one of this generation’s most expressive guitarists. ‘A Great Day to Fly’ is a gentle, relaxing instrumental featuring Stacey on ukulele and Mark on acoustic leaving a warm feeling in the listener as it closes the album. A shortened version of ‘Little Rock’ (the radio version) does follow that last song but it’s unnecessary really, the laid-back road song in all it’s six minute glory the way it’s presented earlier on the album is the only way to hear this little gem of a song. ‘Dedication’ isn’t just a career highpoint for Stacey and Mark; it’s an absolute classic of an album. They surely can’t better this collection.

Track Listing:-

1 Dedication
2 Here Comes The Pain
3 Here Comes The Rain
4 Little Rock
5 If You Change Your Mind
6 The Flag
7 Broken Heart For You
8 Workin' On It
9 I've Been Wrong, I've Been Right
10 For A Long Time
11 A Great Day To Fly
12 Little Rock (Radio Edit)

Band Links:-

https://www.facebook.com/Stacey-Earle-and-Mark-Stuart-73662449818/
http://www.staceyandmark.com/
https://twitter.com/GearleRecords

Label Links:-

https://twitter.com/GearleRecords

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