ROBERT DENNIS – Busted Rowels

ROBERT DENNIS – Busted Rowels
 

Spring Dance – Beyond Alone – Real Western
Mornin’ – Cowhand – Coy – ‘Tween My Horse’s Ears – Calvin’ Blues –
Loveswar – Wet Sortin’ –  Revel in the Journey
 
     I believe what we have in Robert Dennis is a ‘real’
cowboy.  He makes his home in South Dakota, and the photos on his CD
show him on horseback (at least three different steeds), riding the
range, and certainly working the ranch.  Of the ten songs on this CD,
six are his own originals.  The other four he co-wrote with some of his
cowboy poet friends.  What Robert Dennis does, is take some excellent
cowboy poetry and brace it together with some fine old-time guitar
focused western melodies. 
     I’ve always liked the cowboy approach to music, mostly
because of its honesty.  Today though, at least with the Western Music
Association, you’d best have lots of money to even get ‘mentioned’ in
their very slick, over-produced, over-colored, magazine.  Not a place
where I would expect to see Robert Dennis, but I do see him working on
the ranch, spending off hours with like-minded friends, swapping
stories, songs, tales and details, without all the hullabaloo created
around many in show business today.
     Not a lot of instrumentation on this CD, mostly
acoustic guitar which I believe Robert is playing, and he allows it to
bring his voice forward so we can hear the ‘entire’ story as he relates
‘life on the prairie.’  This is what is so great about today’s cowboy
and western music makers.  We just had Michael Martin Murphey at our
festival in LeMars, Iowa in 2012, and just him, his guitar, and his
little daughter’s fiddle, absolutely magnetized the audience.  The
proverbial ‘he had them in the palm of his hand’ held more than true at
that performance.  Robert Dennis has that same mild appealing ability.  I
believe we will have Michael Martin back in LeMars in 2013, and we’d
like to extend an invitation to Robert Dennis to come be with us too.
     A ‘picture in my memory’ is simply one of the many
very small poetic images Robert creates throughout this entire CD.  All
of his ‘memories’ become the basis for an entertaining and pleasantly
beautiful portrayal of another time, and certainly a different lifestyle
from what most urban folks experience today.  He has a nice easy-going
voice, attuned to the songs and the poetry he has created.
     I’m going to forward this CD to the Rural Roots Music
Commission for ‘Western CD of the Year” and see what happens.  Much
continued success to Robert Dennis.
Bob Everhart, Reviewer

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