Nick Taylor “Not Alone” – Americana UK

A solid debut album that mixes roots rock and country with songs that hint at future greatness.

The point at which country becomes Americana is the subject of much debate at AUK, and with Nick Taylor’s debut we have the ideal subject to examine. It opens with a compressed drum beat and a guitar slide.dogs‘ dives straight into the rock’n’roll elements that move it firmly into the realm of Americana. A Hammond organ by Benmont Tench, a raucous guitar solo and a voice that devotes itself to the lyrics with a passion that is so often missing in modern country music.

The acoustic ‘Future is past’ comes across as Bruce Hornsby’s attempt at bluegrass, thanks to David Flint’s mandolin. And that sets the tone for the rest of the album.’3am on the highway’ is another song that comes as close to Bob Seger or Tom Petty in country music.

‘Kentucky Girl’ (with ‘dogs” recycled from his 2020 debut “Family tree EP’) is country rock at its finest, a driving beat, a cleanly plucked guitar solo (David Flint is definitely the most valuable player on the album) and soulful lyrics. It also marks the point where more variety comes into the music, ‘Heart on the run’ is another country rock song, this time carried by a biting steel guitar.’Take you home’ introduces a more thoughtful tone, with the fiddle changing from sad to happy to emphasize the theme of “You have friends around you to help you get home.” The baritone guitar on “Dead Land of the Future” adds the touch of difference he needs to stand out from the rest of the Americana singer-songwriter crowd

The album ends with “Song about fame.“The best song here is about how the American dream has eluded most people. ‘I’d like to settle down on the prairie. Build a house out of sticks. Pretend I’m a man. Who’s found happiness again. I picture the dream. It washes up to my feet, (and) I close my eyes. And I float out to sea.'” It’s great, and the place where Taylor finds the lyrical excellence that the rest of the album suggests he’s capable of.

Even though it’s not the end, the acoustic “Lover’s Dream” is a good song and deserves better than being buried as a “hidden track” at the end of the album.

Comparisons with country and heartland rock artists like Seger suggest that Nick Taylor is finding his feet as an artist. Which is largely true. In songs like “dogs‘, ‘Kentucky Girl’ And “Dead Land of the Future” you can feel his musical personality developing. “I make music to understand and connect with the world and the people around me,” says Taylor. “I’ve always believed that music connects us all on an emotional and spiritual level. All I can do is put this music out into the world and hope that others feel that connection too.” This is a very respectable debut and lays a solid foundation for a career.

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