Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
A universal truth must come when we learn to observe more than just our own footsteps, more than just our lives in the moment if we are to grow and progress as a species.
That truth, one of many and never singular is alive to the certainty that we are connected, that we must observe others on the same road, those that travel with us in our time, those that go against the flow, those that stand still or those that trudge or stride with purpose in ways that we thought was unobtainable and unimaginable…for whichever way the road points we can but hope that Love Runs Through the course of the observer’s mind, that it connects with all around it; and by doing so creates energy and art as a symbol of what has been witnessed.
Tulsa may be known for many events, many different people, but one of history’s more modern heroes surely comes in the form of Parker Ferrell, more than just a musician, beyond that of a player with a set of songs designed to thrill, he is an observer, a creative who beholds the authentic and certifies the event with truth, with honour, and passion drips from every source of instrument that is utilised as the framework and narrative combine to produce a song seared and stamped in authority.
The brand-new release, Love Runs Through is testament to the musician’s eye for detail, taking stock of events, both personal and worldwide, intimate and guarded, and with fellow observers such as Michael Frost on drums, Andrew Bair on piano, Mike Cameron on saxophone, and Gary Hale on Native American flutes, the listener is gifted the drama of our time but with sweet melody and fierce beauty rivetted deep into the artist’s soul.
Across tracks such as Malala (The Happiest Girl In The World), To All The Friends I’ve Known, Lauren Kimberly, To Deserve You, and the album title track Love Runs Through, Parker Ferrell dominates the airwaves and the surroundings of the listener, an album that may start of as though the listener is entombed in walls, but which by the end is the provider of freedom, the locks and the chains longs since abandoned and all that remains is peace out in the open.
A wonderful and pleasurable album to sink into after a long day fighting a world that demands attention, one crafted in beauty, and unafraid of what it has seen.
Parker Ferrell releases Love Runs Through on June 16th.
Ian D. Hall