A mixed bag of new and old recordings.
Inspired by the works of George Jones, Sam Outlaw ditched his LA Advertising job, took on his late Mother’s maiden name and enjoyed early success in the UK country charts with debut album “Angelino” and sophomore”Tenderheart” winning a UK Americana Award for Best International Song along the way. After relocating to Nashville, the recent “Popular Mechanics” and “Terra Cotta” have a more pop-sounding style that the artist describes as “New Wave Western”. This new album “The Nonessential” contains two new original songs plus a collection of previously released tracks that didn’t find a place on other albums or EPs. All are re-mastered to make their album debut.
Fans of Outlaw’s early work will enjoy lap-steel drenched opener ‘Do You Really Love Me?’ as this is a return to Outlaw’s earlier neo-traditional country sound [and was one of my tracks of 2023! – Ed], ‘Up All Night’ with its references to Dwight Yoakam and whiskey keeps the traditional country vibe going. Outlaw’s versatility as a songwriter is amply displayed in a brace of country ballads, 2022’s break-up song ‘Lonely Man’ and the new track ‘Waiting For Someone‘, a beautifully sung tale of unrequited love.
The unnecessarily explicit ‘MFFIL’ is jarring; Without the swearing it would be an OK rock-and-roll number, with it, the track sits awkwardly and feels out of place between the preceding ballads and the fine bar-room waltz ‘Get to Know Me’. The album gets back on track with two standout tracks. ‘I Never Saw Him Cry’ is a touching ode to a stoic father figure and the warm 2019 duet with Sarah Darling (‘Forever and Always’) makes a welcome album debut. Following on from these two great tunes the lo-fi re-recording of ‘Into My Arms’ (from Outlaw’s 2024 album “Terra Cotta”) feels like filler.
All this comes before an abrupt switch to Outlaw’s later, more pop-oriented style. Synths liven up the curiously titled pop pleaser ‘Rock and Roll Bisexual’ and 60s groover ‘Pink Paradise’. The expansive stadium rocker ‘Be Somebody’, with its thumping kick-drum beat and anthemic ‘o-o-ohs’ brings “The Nonessential” to a close.
Individually the cuts are generally enjoyable but the differing styles clash rather than complement such that overall the collection lacks a clear direction or sense of coherence. This album is not Outlaw’s strongest offering and unfortunately does live up to its self-deprecating title. On the plus side, ‘The Nonessential’ demonstrates that Outlaw is a versatile writer and has a distinct knack of composing a quality melody.
