Laid-back West Coast americana with heartfelt words.
“Wayfarer” is Dan Raza’s third album after 2011’s “Dan Raza” and 2017’s “Two”. Recorded in pandemic times between 2021 and 2023, it came after Raza had felt “burnt-out” and had decided to leave his long-term London base and find a change of scene. He had also come out of a long-term relationship. He took a flight to Tennessee and then travelled through the US, Mexico and then Europe. Many of the songs on the album were inspired by his reflections while on the journey and particularly the people and places he encountered.
It is a bit of a surprise to learn that Raza is English as the album very much has the laid-back feel of the west coast of the US. The music is often piano-based ballads but there is country, folk, soul and blues on show at various times to make it all the more interesting. Raza has a very nice soulful voice and when female harmonies are added they complement it well. At the time of recording, he had been working alone on stage but brought friends in to play on the album to give the songs a fuller arrangement. He was really pleased to see the way that they “expanded” as a result of the input from other musicians.
‘Newborn Man’, about a character with cerebal palsy and his determined struggles to overcome it, has fiddle and flute to give an Irish folk feel. The country influence is seen in the steel guitar on some tracks and also in the guitar picking and fiddle on ‘In My Own Time’. Here Raza admits “I’ve always been the black sheep” but says that he will make his family proud, but in his own way and in his own time. It has a nice swing, as does ‘Nothing Like A Woman’ where Raza pays tribute to a new, unexpected love in his life who has changed it for the better. However, the swing and the rootsy feel of these tracks leave you wishing for a bit more of this elsewhere in the album.
‘The Truth Will Heal You’, about a woman, perhaps his mother, who “Left her old man/ he didn’t treat her right” is nicely soulful, as is ‘Water Reflects (What It Is Shown)’ which has a bluesy lead guitar. This is the song that Raza is most proud of, saying “We’re living through an age where snake oil salesmen are flourishing on the political scene, peddling scapegoats and promising fake easy cures to deep problems”. His social conscience is also seen on ‘Only A Stone’s Throw Away’ inspired by watching a father and son wading through the ocean to get over the border from Mexico to the US. It struck him how desperate they must have been and led to the lines “But you only leave your home/ When your home won’t let you stay”. Throughout, you get the feeling that Raza is a man with a heart. For example, he seems to look back sensitively and with some regret on his ended long-term relationship on ‘Wasn’t That Enough For Me’ and ‘Like Strangers Again’.
You can see why Raza has received plaudits from people such as Rodney Crowell and Neil Young and has toured with Joan Armatrading. This album will appeal to fans of more relaxed Americana, such as that of The Eagles or Jackson Browne.
