‘Time to Save the World’ is the fourth album from the highly accomplished Jaywalkers trio that comprises Mike Giverin, Jay Bradberry and Lucille Williams. Their music may be on the bluegrass side of the broad Americana church, but they clearly bring their own identity and put their own stamp on the music. Drawing heavily on their own personal experiences, the 10 original tracks and the excellent, and decidedly creative, cover of the Johnny Cash classic ‘Big River’, simply bound along, driven by energetic, high-quality musicianship and a surprisingly fulsome sound from the acoustic trio.
The first few bars of the opening track ‘Homage to the Fromage’ transport you to the Appalachian Mountains or Cape Breton Island, but any thoughts that this is just another bluegrass/folk ditty are soon dispelled as the track quickly picks up the pace, driven along wonderfully by some great fiddle playing as the trio cut loose on this four-and-a-half-minute instrumental gem. ‘How Many Whiskeys’, with its country feel is an account of life on the road while the beseeching ‘Rescue Me’ recounts a tale of being stuck high on a Colorado mountain.
As well as the personal stories on the album, the not-so-subtle title, ‘Time To Save The World’ is drawn from the third track ‘This Time’ which deliberates on how we are damaging the natural world through climate change, warfare and wildlife poaching, but it opines that there is still hope as long as we see sense and act quickly positively.
This is a really fine album by a talented trio and with ‘Time to Save the World’ they display a joie de vivre, focus and musical togetherness that has resulted in absorbing album that simply gets better with repeated plays.
