Gillian Welch - Time (The Revelator)
Favorite Songs: Revelator, My First Lover, Elvis Presley Blues, I Dream A Highway
There are a select few albums that I have heard throughout my life that are not only my favorite works of art, but have drastically altered the way that I approach listening, and writing music. One such masterpiece is Gillian Welch’s Time (The Revelator). It is one of those albums that you hear for the first time, and then don’t listen to anything else for at least the next week. Each song transports you further into a mythic American past caught somewhere between 19th century Appalachia and early 2000s Nashville without ever landing in one place. Welch’s mastery of her craft and the cradle of David Rawlings’ timeless guitar playing create a soundscape reminiscent of an ultra-realistic dream that feels more real than life in the moment and as intangible as infinity when it’s over.
The album begins like a slow-moving freight train that hits you in the chest with the title track “Revelator.” The story goes that Welch and Rawlings recorded this particular take as a mic test at the renowned RCA Studio B in Nashville, lending the song its emotional improvisational feel.
“My First Lover” follows with a slightly more pronounced, wonderfully dissonant country twang The lyrics spin a sinister tale of a highly toxic relationship. “Dear Someone” is a beautiful swinging lament for an unknown someone who is certain to appear when the time is right.
“Red Clay Halo” concerns the life of a country girl defined by the red soil of her rural home, and if the pearly gates will wash away the mud when she passes through to the other side.
“April the 14th Part 1” is a multi-layered slow burner that references various historical and personal tragedies that eerily occurred on the same date. “I Want To Sing That Rock And Roll” is the only live track on the album, recorded at the infamous Ryman Auditorium in Nashville.
“Elvis Presley Blues” is a reflection on the King himself, and references American folk-hero John Henry. This is one of the tracks that always brings me to a completely observatory place in time, examining the folkloric trajectory and demise of so many American icons.
“Ruination Day Part 2” reintroduces the listener to the April 14 phenomenon, with an ever more ominous tone. “Everything Is Free” provides a deeply personal insight to the struggles of a musicians plight at the turn of the 20th century grappling with the introduction of online music streaming, and the subsequent decline in record sales.
The album comes to a close with the 14-minute epic poem, “I Dream a Highway.” The song serves as an ode to 20th century American music, reminiscing on the good old days and recognizing that the sands of time are irreversible. This song truly deserves its own examination, which perhaps I will naively try to undertake in the future.
Sometimes when I close my eyes while listening, this album brings me close to knowing what it feels like to ride a horse through a canyon before stopping for the night and eating a can of lukewarm beans under a blanket of stars. It is musical power that you can’t fake just with lyrics—it takes the honesty of the amazing Gillian Welch to take you there.
