Nighthawk

Street Dog

 Self-released

Nighthawk is the moniker for singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Parker Hawkins. Although this is his second solo effort, the former child prodigy and graduate of the University of Richmond, has made his way around Nashville in recent years. He’s been a ravenous session player, sitting with troubadours such as Stuffy Shmitt and Amelia White to playing with underground funk (Grizzly T and the Salvation) and blues bands (Lynn Taylor and the Barflies) in the city. Most recently Hawkins can be heard with Piper and the Hard Times on Revelation, an album that rocketed to the top of the Billboard blues chart. We now find Hawkins in the esteemed company of East Nashville’s go-to producer and guitarist Dave Coleman who co-produced Street Dog along with Hawkins. Given Hawkins’ eclectic tastes, he and Coleman rounded up a crew of highly versatile musicians. MIchael Webb is on keys, Dave Colella and Chris Benelli share drum duties, and Roy Hoffman plays accordion, clarient, baritone sax, flute, sitar, and guitar. Hawkins matches that level of versatility by playing basses, guitars, banjo, percussion, synth, and piano. Roy Agee steps in on trombone and vocal contributions come from Piper Rose (also on some lead vocals), Lauryn Ross, Grace Wegener, and Lynn Taylor, co-writer on four tunes.

The full barrage of twin drums, multiple guitars, Webb’s soaring organ, and background vocalists welcome in the opener “99%” as Hawkins sings about an ill-fated relationship in a tune co-written with Lynn Taylor. He’s been down this road before but can’t resist the temptation – “I’m playing with fire, hoping I won’t get burned.”  The bouncy, yearning “Savannah” features Webb’s piano,  and ever-present organ over the infectious groove laid down by Colella and Hawkins on bass while Agee rounds out the bottom on his trombone.  All you need is some sweet iced tea and tasty barbecue with this as a soundtrack. “Too Soon” is the second of four co-written with Lynn Taylor, as Coleman’s tremolo soaked guitar underpins the airy, breezy lead vocal from Piper Rose. Hawkins wields bass again along with both acoustic and electric guitars.  Hawkins’ pal and masterful singer-songwriter Amelia White co-wrote “What Do You See.”  Coleman’s scratchy guitar heads a funky groove with a fully fleshed out bottom from Agee’s trombone and Hoffman’s bari sax and top side imbued by the backgrounds of Ross and Wegener. Hawkins sings about our tendency to reach judgement far too quickly in this polarized political climate we are all somehow enduring.

“Dancing Flames” is a rather uncategorical, somewhat jazz leaning tune where the contingent reprises the melody of “Too Soon” featuring Hoffman’s sitar and flute along with Rose’s wordless vocals.

The two-part title track is the third co-write with Taylor. Part 1 begins the album second half or Side B with the familiar second line strains of the Crescent City, where Hawkins logged some time as a youngster, taken by the NOLA sound immediately. From the liners we learn that it is an homage to Hawkins’ dog Jaco (Jockomo) who died suddenly of cancer 2022, months before the release of Nighthawk’s first studio album, Flyin’ Solo.  To give it that NOLA authenticity Webb plays in the vein of the city’s legendary piano greats and Agee’s trombone together with Hoffman’s clarinet represent two of the city’s most commonly favored instruments. The final co-wrote with Taylor, is the laid-back, sashaying  “Black and Blue” as Hawkins and Rose duet on the vocal about a relationship that’s run its course, abetted by Webb’s barroom piano and Agee and Hoffman (again on clarinet).

The fully instrumental “Cachorro,” which means puppy in Portugese seems to spring out of left field with its Brazilian rhythms, anchored by Hoffman’s accordion and flute with Webb’s electric piano. You’ll smile at the cha-cha riff that culminates the tune. “Fried Greens” features Hawkins’ bluesy guitar licks over a understated, rather causal funk groove with Agee’s interventions adding some NOLA flavor. “Street Dog, Part 2” sends us off in second line jubilation.

The album is purposely uneven as it proves the difficulty of reining in Nighthawk’s eclectic taste. While a fully New Orleans styled album would be more consistent, we’d be missing out on many rather unique musical offerings that Nighthawk presents. As my reviews have stated many times, any session with Dave Coleman at the helm, co-pilot or captain, is well worth the listen.

– Jim Hynes

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