David Starr Springs Somber Sentiments From Literary Inspiration

David Starr | Beauty & Ruin | (Independent)

3 ½ out of 5

Inspired by Of What Was, Nothing Is Left, a 1972 novel written by David Starr’s grandfather and now republished for the first time, the younger Starr’s second collaboration with John Oates expresses a sobering series of sentiments that overlap the tattered tales of an Arkansas family and its inherent dysfunction as documented in Fred Starr’s final novel. The duo’s second collaboration following an earlier EP, Beauty & Ruin found the pair enlisting various fellow travelers to create a concept album based around the book. The participants included such contemporary singer/songwriter types as Jim Lauderdale, the Wild Ponies, Irene Kelley, Dana Cooper, Shelley Rae Korntved, all of whom manage to make this both a cohesive and coherent project. According to the press release that accompanied advance copies of the album, “the idea was not so much for them to retell the story, but to write songs inspired by the places, characters and situations found in the book.”

It’s an intriguing concept, even though the material isn’t always as varied and vibrant as the idea might imply. The songs are mostly low-lit ballads, all exceedingly affecting and of a torch song variety. Starr’s vocals are as soothing as they are sobering, enhancing the appeal while still maintaining the album’s even keel. Two songs stand out overall, the sublimely assertive “Rise Up Again” and “Bury the Young, a requiem of regret that sadly rings true in light of today’s ongoing incidents marked by turmoil and tragedy:

“Mothers shouldn’t grieve their babies, 

Fathers shouldn’t mourn their sons,

Lay their hope beneath the daises

It’s not right for the old to bury their young…”

Granted, the ache and longing inherent in each of these offerings isn’t exactly of an upbeat variety, but then again, that’s not the point. Several selections — “Road to Jubilee” and “Fly By Night” chief among them — express a decided sense of ache and longing, but still bear an unsuppressed optimism as well. So too, there isn’t a selection here that doesn’t evoke a kind of sentiment and compassion befitting these indelible characters, all trapped within sad circumstance. Story-telling is obviously imbued in the Starr family genes, leaving little doubt that Fred himself would be pleased with the gift given him by his grandson.