There is something about Martin Sexton's voice and his music that always makes me smile or melt a little. Powered by a terrific vocal range, his ecclectic syle is the sort of music that is hard for me to genre-ize. He's folk, rock, acoustic, blue-eyed soul, scat, blues... well he's just great. How 'bout that?
I first heard him on the stage at Bird's Hill Park just outside of Winnipeg, Manitoba at the Folk Festival which is coming up again soon... How I long to be there. Then I had the pleasure of seeing Sexton perform at the Avalon in Fargo. Both concerts were terrific.
I'm not great at describing music I like, except to play something and say... there.... THAT... did you hear it... Ahhhhh..... Instead I will tell you about some of my favorite songs... and in the order I discovered my love for them. (the links are to the lyrics) If you want you could go to the site and play the songs on his jukebox. I'd feel better if you would.
1. Angeline (Wonderbar)-- This was the first. A happy tune. It made me wish that was my name and he was singing to me...
2. Diner (Black Sheep) -- It's FAST and it's playful and it makes me think
of the forties... but that may be just me......Diner my shiny shiny love
In the night you're all I'm thinking of
Diner my shiny shiny love
Dean Martin god rest his soul
Talkin' to me from the cereal bowl
There's a couple from the show me state
Knockin' back a little meatloaf plate
Diner my shiny shiny love.
In a westerly direction this car is my train
I'm driving and I'm wonderin what it is I'm runnin from again
I feel like an eighty year old man but I'm holdin on to twenty nine
And up ahead on that horizon is the California line.
Now I've had enough of this freedom of the road
Never was good with decisions
Least that's what I've been told
5. The Way I Am (The American & In the Journey) -- This song is a great demo of his vocal playfulness... I mean he's practically yodeling at times.... In a good way.... and then at the end of the song you might think he's doing an instrumental bit... but it's his VOICE. It's like rubber... it can twist and bend and shimmy... Seriously cool.
6. 13 Step Boogie (In the Journey) -- Scatalicious. No. That does not mean poop.
7. Black Sheep (Black Sheep) -- The general feel of this song demonstrates my universal favorite "sound" of music.... some songs are appropriate for certain moods. This one is a sort of head nodding, hair shaking, slow swaying song that is my kind of sound. Oh and he holds this one note for a really long time. I do admire that.
8. Hard Times (In the Journey) -- Sure, it's a cover of the Ray Charles song, but it's a great version.
9. Women and Wine (Live Wide Open) -- I just like it. That's all. I think this one caught on for me after the Avalon performance.
....... Women and wine
Never went too well
Make me say things I don't want to tell
I know baby that you wish me well
But in spite of your trying
I'm still gonna have to find my own way through
10. Hallelujah (Live Wide Open) -- This song's on the Wonder Bar album, but I don't really like that version. It took hearing it again on the live CD before the wonderfulness of this song really hit me. For me, it's the lyrics on this one. I'll reprint them complete... but you really do need to hear it... When I thought about doing this post, it was because I wanted to share this song.Does Satan wear a suit and tie
Or does he work at the Dairy Queen
Does he listen to rock and roll
Does he feed the mean
Singing Hallelujah
What about Jesus
Didn't he do it too?
Hang out with prostitutes
And have a drink or two.
Power of example
My mama said it and I heard
She says one ounce of action
Beats a ton of words.
Singing Hallelujah.
Mama said there would be angels
Mama said there would be sun
Is the devil in Elvis to go where no white man went
Or hiding in Hugh Hefner's body or maybe even Larry Flynt.
Say, hows about the President shielding all them stones
Man if I could find a shield like that I'd run 'round naked
in my glass home.
Sippin' Hallelujah
My angel's gone to Vegas
Sippin' Hallelujah
Holding aces in her hand. Hallelujah
As she's singing rock of ages. Hallelujah
On the table at the Sands. Hallelujah
Does Satan wear a suit and tie or
Does he work at the Dairy Queen.
Does he listen to rock and roll
Does he feed the mean
Streak in all of us.
All us saints here on earth
Hypnotized and over-advertised
'Til we're numb at birth
Singing Hallelujah
And my angel's turning pages
Singing Hallelujah
And she just don't understand. Hallelujah
That the devil's hot on her trail. Hallelujah
On the road to broken promised land. Hallelujah
On the TV and the radio.
On the muddied public waves.
Good and evil look the same to you.
Elvis lives and Jesus saves.
Hallelujah
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