If Dean Fields were ‘Special Ops, ’ he would fly under the radar, avoid all security cameras, sneak onto your music system, and hi-jack your playlist. Many years ago, while scrolling through the then-aptly named Twitter, people were extolling the virtue of a certain Ryan Adams. One tweet caught my eye, as it said, “If you enjoy Adams, then give this Dean Fields guy a chance.”
Checking out Fields’ biography makes for interesting reading and sets the tone of what to expect when you listen to the artist’s music. His dad and uncle used to sing and play Jim Croce and John Prine songs in the living room. Fields grew up believing his dad and Uncle Timmy wrote those songs. Lori McKenna has recorded his songs. He co-wrote and recorded with many other artists, including Texan artist William Clark Green, on his 2022 release “Baker Hotel”.
Fields lived in Miami, Boston, and Nashville before returning to his native Richmond. Soaking up all these locations’ cultural and musical offerings, you can expect influences of folk, country, and Latin America. He opened for Rosanne Cash at the legendary Birchmere Music Hall, Virginia, on her tour promoting her album “The List”. He also opened up for John Hiatt, stating that Hiatt was the nicest headliner he had ever worked with.
Fields worked with The Young Fables, co-writing the excellent ‘Old Songs’ with Laurel Wright and Wes Lunsford. This led to a documentary about the songwriting process, which Fields originally thought was a terrible idea. He said, “If I didn’t love Laurel and Wes of the Young Fables so much, I would’ve said no. I’m glad I didn’t”. The documentary that transpired was ‘The Fable of a Song’ and is a powerful piece of theatre if you can track down a stream of it.
Fields’ body of work may seem limited when considering his long career. However, his output is much bigger than that of the current releases, and others have recorded the songs he has written.
2012, Fields recorded a six-track collection called “Any Minute Now”. It wasn’t any ordinary project. Produced by Fields and Trey Pollard, the Virginia-based musician and producer, Fields also used his fans as honorary producers. Fans were sent various versions of the songs to critique, and Fields used the feedback to change and rework his original ideas. The finished product is a fine collection. It includes an ode to his Uncle Timmy, who he listened to singing with his Dad all those years ago. Fields decided it was time for him to continue with the country tradition and record a song about trains. ‘Timmy and the Train’ describes the day Uncle Timmy took his nephew on a train ride. A beautifully finger-picked nostalgic look back at childhood.
Between 2014 and 2016, Fields issued twelve self-promoted EPs called “Harvester”, which included songs written solo and some with others. What Fields does well is telling a story. Indeed, his earlier albums are serious affairs of failed relationships, lost love and heartache. Only later in his career, coinciding with the birth of his son, came a fun Fields. There’s a great song about an Armadillo, which would translate to a hedgehog here in the UK. Not fun for the Armadillo, though.
‘Back of the Drawer’ was a demo song within the Harvester series and was a perfect song about regrets. It could easily translate to a lost love or a broken love affair. How often have you found something, possibly in the back of a drawer, that brings back a sunny day, a great day, and a lost partner, friend, or loved one? Fields sings “If I could pawn regrets for pennies / Lord I’d make a killing”
A further version of the song appears on his latest album which, to quote the sleeve notes, was “Recorded in the room above the garage.” The collection is called “While The Baby Was Sleeping” because that’s when Fields recorded it in his little studio above the garage.
It includes the poignant and wonderful ‘My Dad at My Age’. “Trying to be gentle and tough / Trying to be the man that he was / Trying my best to give back / Some of the love that he gave / I don’t know how he did it / If it was hard he hid it / I wonder if I’m anything like / My Dad at my age”
Fields’ talent for lyric writing sets him apart. In March 2011, he played an opening set for his pal Eliot Bronson at Eddie’s Attic. This recording, which is free to download on Bandcamp, is worth checking out as a great introduction to his music.
