MILLIONAIRE (Dead Reckoning/Compendia)
• Kevin Welch and The Danes

This is a great and different sounding Americana recording from one of Nashville's quietest and most revered stars. He's been a successful songwriter for decades, with plenty of good cuts.

The cat's really got it all--great looks, first class tunes, expert playing, and signature smooth vocals. It's sick.

Kevin's always surrounded himself with great players, and this CD's no exception. But it is a genuine departure, because all these great players are from Denmark. I met some of his Danish friends one night at Billy Block's Western Beat Roots Revival, loaned them my acoustic for a few numbers. Spoke a little with drummer Frank Marstokk, who struck me as the ringleader, and a real prince.

Americans don't have the market cornered on Americana, on Country (we're diluting that beyond recognition), or Jazz or anything musical anymore. It's just music, and it's all up for grabs. And the tones these guys got with Kevin in the studio, both here in Nashville and over there in Arhus, have pushed his envelope a little further, and may bring some fresh blood to the genre. You can hear a real fraternity too, and that's always a joy to the ear.

Kevin Welch has been so good for so long that he belongs in your collection. This CD's a great place to start, and there are also two great previous records on Dead Reckoning, now in a partnership with Compendia. (Dead Reckoning is a collective of superlative Nashville who helped to pave the indie road.)

We're going to be shedding some light on other Dead Reckoning artists and titles, and are happy that they've inked a licensing deal with Compendia Music, which assures they'll be around. Millionaire is the first joint release, and the first of many, we hope.

We also enjoyed the evocative painting by songwriter John Hadley on the cover of this release, he and Kevin are the oldest of cronies. Please get your ears over to the Listen page to check out the excellent tunes of this great artist. • FG

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