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Jeffrey Foucault
Horse Latitudes
Review By Steven Stone
Jeffrey
Foucault has a rock and roll voice in a folkie's body. His vocal instrument
sounds like a cross between Spider John Koerner and Willis Allan Ramsey with a
pinch of Marc Cohen thrown in. It is a voice that resonates inside your chest.
On his latest album Foucault presents listeners with ample opportunity to enjoy
the full scope of his vocal, instrumental, and songwriting prowess.
Jeffery Foucault has been playing the "folk circuit" and
regularly releasing albums for the past 12 years. When I reviewed his 2006
album, Ghost Repeater, I wrote, "Jeffrey Foucault reminds me of a 21st century Pete Seeger who can
combine contemporary internal and external issues with traditional
influences." On Horse Latitudes
Foucault expands his musical legacy with ten more original songs that occupy the
spaces between heartbreak and memory. The opening title cut has a languorous
floating quality to the rhythm that sways slowly like a hammock on a ship in a
lazy cove.
The whole album was made in only three days of recording at
Stampede Origin in Los Angeles. The band included Van Dyke Parks (yes THE Van
Dyke Parks) on keyboards, Jennifer Condos on electric bass, Eric Heywood on
pedal steel, baritone, and electric guitars, Billy Conway on drums, Kris
Delmhorst on cello and vocals, and Jeffrey Foucault on acoustic guitar and lead
vocals. Engineered and mixed principally by Ryan Freeland and mastered by Alex
McClough at Yes Master, Nashville, TN, this CD sounds like money. By that I mean
it has a certain lushness, bigness, and overall clarity that I rarely hear from
home-studio projects. Often I found it hard to concentrate on the lyrics because
of the sheer magnificence of the sound. Yes, most of the songs are sad, but the
overall album is so darn beautiful you won't mind.
Enjoyment: 
Sound:
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