Bernie Leadon - Too Late to Be Cool
by Kevin Wierzbicki
As a founding member of the Eagles (and a player on their first three albums) and a member of the Flying Burrito Brothers before that, singer, songwriter and guitarist Bernie Leadon was not only right in the middle of the nascent country rock scene but also one of the major architects of that sound. As a solo artist he hasn't been heard from in a while, 20-years to be exact, but fans should not worry that he has changed his ways during that absence.
On Too Late to Be Cool Leadon offers up a great set of songs that reflect his beloved easy going style. The 11-song set opens with "Zero Sum Game," a sort of "there's more fish in the sea" advisement to those suffering through the end of a romantic relationship that's set to a perky rhythm and where Leadon's acoustic guitar playing and upbeat vocals reinforce that notion. "Telescope" is a slinky groove about how what one thinks lies in store for them isn't always what actually happens; follow up cut "Just a Little" rocks pretty good and deals with the anger that might come from the "Telescope" situation. The jazzy and dreamy "Take it As it Comes" offers more good advice on dealing with life's peculiarities; the song is in a style that reminds of the music on Leadon's great but mostly overlooked album with Michael Georgiades, 1977's
Natural Progressions. Other standout tracks include the funky "Go on Down to Mobile," another song about a broken relationship, the country-tinged and self-explanatory "Mama Didn't Raise No Fool" and title cut "Too Late to Be Cool" which also explores the album's theme of failed relationships. When Leadon name checks a bunch of West Coast cities on road trip song "Coast Highway" the listener could initially think from the carefree vocal delivery that the journey is just for fun, but alas the man Leadon portrays in the cut is trying to escape from something, or many things. While the songs here are mostly about bad situations Leadon doesn't project much negativity; to the contrary listeners will find themselves bopping along and singing along too to this set that's very easy to cozy up to. Leadon closes the effort with "Too Many Memories," a piano-driven song that's about something we all tend to do; focus too much on mistakes when looking back.
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