Mike Farris

The Sound of Muscle Shoals

FAME Recording Studios / Malaco Music Group

Mike Farris generally takes about four years between albums, and for good reason. Each one, especially since his breakthrough Salvation in Lights in 2007, has been carefully crafted, slightly different, and a big cause for celebration. Seven long years have gone by since Silver & Stone. Farris’s eager fans and anyone that appreciates southern-fried soul music should be elated by The Sound of Muscle Shoals. Albums recorded at FAME have historically packed a special punch, and these eleven songs (nine new Farris originals and two choice covers) follow suit and then some. As produced by Rodney Hall, the son of legendary FAME founder Rick Hall, they launch Farris’s sanctified, rocking brand into a contemporary realm ideal for mass appeal.

Farris sings in a livewire timbre not unlike the late Steve Marriott’s in his Humble Pie prime, but creamier, wider-ranging, and thus more expressive. The band backing him here consists of Alabama mainstays Clayton Ivey on keys, Jimbo Hart on bass, Justin Holder holding down the backbeat, and Will MacFarlane, Kelvin Holly, and Wes Sheffield on guitars. A large gathering of singers and horn players add robust backdrops to the already thick and tasty rhythms.

Opening on the low rumble of Ivey’s electric piano keys, the album bursts to life with “Ease On,” Farris recounting his lean, hardscrabble days growing up in the rural outskirts of Nashville. The heft in the groove resonates deeply and matches the weight of the story; its four and a half intense minutes are the perfect setup for what follows. “Heavy on the Humble” explodes with a refrain tough to deny, replete with excellent guitar work that penetrates right through the humility. One can practically picture a gospel choir in the background. The energy and the principle behind “Swingin’” would be a perfect fit for Tedeschi Trucks Band, Farris soaring in voice and the band jamming beautifully on the wide-open, swinging melody. A cover of William Bell’s “Slow Train” brings on the gospel, and “Bright Lights,” with its weeping pedal steel and angelic harmonies, makes country music shimmer with soul.

I feel confident saying that Mike Farris jump-started everything that St. Paul & The Broken Bones and now dozens of others since have emulated and succeeded with. In that sense, The Sound of Muscle Shoals fills the heart with original, beaming spirit. In every sense, Mike Farris’s voice will rock your soul. The album stands as his most accomplished work to date for its songs and their presentation.

Tom Clarke for MAS

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