Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
What the vault offers us is security, that our valuables, those precious treasures we hold dear, are in a safe place, strong enough to withstand the bitterest of blows from friends and former allies alike, that the combination of memories associated with these trinkets we have gained through knowledge and hard work are, and always be protected…until the time comes when are ready to open the door and place the contents before the world at large.
It is in the release of freedom, the acceptance of liberty, that we can offer our heartfelt belief that the vault has earned its keep, and for some it is the repository of more than trinkets, it is the hope and dreams of the individual given the security that only in the right space and time will they be seen for the sense of beauty, and the message they convey.
The keen sense of anticipation that renowned guitarist and songwriter Don Felder has the placed before the listener as his latest album begins its journey to release date is palpable, and for the former Eagle, the framing of his career in this fourth solo album, the unburdening of his soul, gives the musician a dramatic exposure to tackle the songs that he has placed in his vault, his own mind palace over the last fifty years.
A vault is also a container of time, and as the album progresses, from the opener of Move On, which came into existence in 1974, through the brilliance of a newly recorded version of the hit Heavy Metal, I Like The Things You Do, Digital World, Let Me Down Easy, Blues Skies, and Free At Last, time is seen to play heavy in this world conceived by the energy of the native Floridian.
It is in the arsenal of friendship from fellow musicians such as the ever-popular Steve Lukather, Nathan East, Leny Castro, David Paich, Brian Tichy, and even Nina Winter on guest vocals on a track that gives the entire album its soaring groove, the application of memory hits like a tidal wave of sound, and is framed with conviction from a soul aware of its unique place in the world.
To have the courage to look back at your own work and see where you can either bring up to date, or maybe find a space for improvement is to be admired, and in The Vault – Fifty Years Of Music, the admiration from the listener is bound be colossal.
Don Felder releases The Vault – Fifty Years Of Music on May 23rd via Frontiers Music.
Ian D. Hall