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Greg Hawks I This It's Time Review by Gary Hill Blending healthy helping of country music and folk, this is classic Americana. The lyrical content ranges from topical subjects of societal scope to deeply personal. It's all delivered with a style that feels genuine and thoughtful. This is entertaining from start to finish, and has a good amount of variety, while still remaining fairly constant. This review is available in book (paperback and hardcover) form in Music Street Journal: 2018 Volume 6. More information and purchase links can be found at: garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2018.

Track by Track Review

So Lonely While there's a modern vibe and rocking energy to this cut, it's still well set in traditional country music. The instrumental fills on the number seem almost more old-school rockabilly. The vocals bring classic country to the mix, too. I love the shuffling instrumental groove on the piece. This is a considerably effective opener.

I Hope I Never Know A bit less intense, the traditional country elements are further in the driver seat here. I suppose that this has textures that call to mind things like The Marshall Tucker band, too. All in all, I don't like this as well as I do the opener, but it's solid.

The King of Hate The intricate textures that start this bring a dramatic and classy angle to this piece. It's more of a folk song than it is a country number. The vocals bring the country to the proceedings, though. This cut has lyrics that are decidedly topical.

Nothing Matters Here Anymore Folk and country music mix on this cool arrangement. The over layers of sound land so much magic to it. The lyrics are about as topical as they were on the previous tune, but perhaps not as pointed. This does have a couple direct lyrical ties to that song. I love the slide guitar on this tune. The whole track is pretty with a melancholy edge to it.

Pretending Not to Know A mellower number, the old school country is fully in control of this cut. I dig the guitar work on it, and the whole groove of the song is tasty. It does have some nods to jazz with some of the chords.

One Light There is almost soaring quality to this tune. It feels very folk rock oriented. This is arguably the least country based piece here. It is so cool, too.

From One to the Other Extreme Country and general Americana merge on this cut. It's a bit more of a rocker than the last cut was. There is some killer instrumental work, and the hooks are tasty, too. This is another topical track.

I Think It's Time A folk ballad with some country music in the mix is the concept here. This has a rather peaceful vibe to it, and that's a lot of what the lyrics are about.

Things I Did Not Say A country ballad styled tune, this works quite well. It's not a standout, but it is effective.

It's Going to Be Okay I love the pretty textures on this mellower number. This has a positive message both musically and lyrically. The backing vocals lend a lot of magic to this. It ends with the sound of a cat purring.

Another Possibility A fast paced bluegrass tune, this is fun stuff. It's a good way to close the set in style.

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