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Chris Stamey first earned well-deserved fame for launching Car Records, the label that released Chris Bell\u2019s solo single. His work with The dBs is, of course, extraordinary. His solo body of work, equally so. As a key part of the Big Star tribute concerts, he shone brightly as well. But with few exceptions, all of the aforementioned credits fall squarely into the rock idiom. And none of them fully prepares the listener for Stamey\u2019s current musical approach.<\/p>\n
The signs were there, if only clear in retrospect. Stamey\u2019s compositional style has always leaned in the sophisticated (which isn\u2019t to say too-arty) direction, and his emphasis on melody suggests the influence of some important pre- and non-rock forms. His 2013 album Lovesick Blues<\/i><\/a> displayed even more subtlety and refinement than his previous work. And when I saw him live in Nashville (at one of the annual AmericanaFest events) his ensemble included a cellist. Very non-rock, that.<\/p>\n And against that backdrop, his 2019 album New Songs for the 20<\/i>th<\/i><\/sup> Century<\/i><\/a> shouldn\u2019t have come as a major surprise. That release found him writing and arranging original songs in a style that would fit seamlessly into the Great American Songbook. And his latest, A Brand-New shade of Blue<\/i>, follows on from that album.<\/p>\n The 13 songs on this (apparently digital-only) release feature a core four-piece combo: Stamey on guitar, Charles Cleaver on poino, Dan Davis on drums and upright bassist Jason Foureman. The featured vocalist is the supremely talented Brett Harris<\/a>, though two other singers \u2013 Ramun\u00e9 Martin and Django Haskins \u2013 each take a vocal turn. A six-piece brass\/woodwinds section adds more tonal color.<\/p>\n The music on A Brand-New Shade of Blue<\/i> focuses a bit more on instrumental work than did Stamey\u2019s previous album, and the arrangements are more layered, textured, complex. But those qualities are presented in a way that\u2019s so subtle \u2013 that word again! \u2013 that they seem simpler and more straightforward than they are.<\/p>\n