John Parkes - Bleeding Edge/Distant Past...

  by Malcolm Carter

published: 4 / 12 / 2013

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Review

If my admittedly fading memory serves me well for once, I think I made a comment about Sheffield born singer-songwriter John Parkes' EP which was released a year ago maybe being a taster for a forthcoming album. Maybe I was not too far off the mark as two of the songs featured on that four tracker appear here in the same live versions, along with another eleven new (at least to these ears) Parkes' originals. It’s been a while (put it down to a really strong year for music) since I’ve slipped that EP into the player but as soon as ‘Don’t Be Seventeen’, the title song of the EP, started (it’s the second track on this album) a warm glow engulfed this listener. It might well be a cliché, but it really was like welcoming back home an old friend. Parkes' mellow, inviting vocals are perfectly suited to songs such as this; the regret carried in his voice as the story of former lovers facing up to the fact that there is no future together is obvious. That warm glow extends to many other songs on ‘Bleeding Edge/ Distant Past…’ too. ‘Brand New Day’ opens the album with a breathtaking harmonic display before developing into a sweet but never mawkish lullaby. Parkes has proven over his previous two albums that he’s something of a master at plucking gorgeous melodies apparently out of the air with ease, but this song must rank as one of his best. It’s predominantly acoustic and is one of those songs that you immediately feel you’ve heard many times before, but at the same time you know you haven’t. It’s a remarkable opening shot and a brilliant introduction to Parkes. ‘Just for Now (Baby Song)’ which makes a showing towards the end of the album, is another song that, even more than ‘Brand New Day’, was obviously written for Parkes' as-yet-then unborn child. Again in other hands, coming from another voice, this type of song could be over sentimental but Parkes has such a way with lyrics he avoids that situation. “I hope you’ll have lovers/I hope you’ll sing songs/And I hope we’ll admit when we are wrong/ And I will go with you as far as I can/And I hope that you will stay forever young” is just but one verse where Parkes has captured the feelings of parents the world over. The combination of Parkes' appealing vocals, the full and rounded sound he pulls from his acoustic and the warmth that producer Neil Ferguson wraps around songs such as ‘A Strange Affair’ with his keyboard skills is but part of the attraction in the songs on ‘Bleeding Edge/Distant Past…’. Every song is also lyrically special. Parkes is one of the breed of British songwriters who can say more in one line than many do over a whole album. Parkes is up there with the likes of Ray Davies, Paul Weller and Difford and Tilbrook. He articulates in short pop songs the lives, loves and losses of the average man in the street. ‘Lincolnshire’ is particularly touching, Parkes reminiscing about the “small town girl” he’d left behind. Lines like “I thought I’d left her there like the pickles on her larder shelf just waiting there” litter the song and evoke bittersweet feelings. Parkes could only be British. His lyrics prove that time and again, and he actually makes you proud that we can still produce artists of this calibre. It’s just a shame that Parkes seems destined to have a small but loyal band of followers when this music really does deserve to be heard and appreciated by a wider audience. We touched on the humorous side of Parkes writing with ‘My Hit Song’ when reviewing his EP and that song is the other one from that release that makes a showing here, but is not the only one where Parkes' lyrics will have you smiling. The closing song ‘Trireme ’72 (All Rowed Home)’ might well have ancient Greek rowing ships at its core, but Parkes injects his unique brand of humour into the lyrics and shows once again why John Peel and Steve Lamacq were early admirers of his work. ‘Bleeding Edge/Distant Past…’ will not sit on the shelf like Parkes year-old EP did. While these thirteen songs instantly register with the listener, there’s depth to each and every one that makes each play feel like the first one. And it’s passed the test; everyone who hears the album when it’s playing always asks, “Who is this?”, and if Parkes can grab the attention of some of those who pass by here he must be doing something right.

Track Listing:-

1 Brand New Day
2 Don't Be Seventeen
3 A Strange Affair
4 Roses / Bees
5 What to Do (One True Love)
6 Lincolnshire
7 Cinema Pictures (Loved to Sail)
8 Sleep with Me
9 One Who Got Away
10 Cold
11 Just for Now (Baby Song)
12 My Hit Song
13 Trireme '72 (All Rowed Home)

Band Links:-

https://www.facebook.com/johnparkesaco
http://johnparkes.blogspot.co.uk/
https://johnparkes.bandcamp.com/