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For the past three weeks, this disc has inhabited the drawer of my CD player and replaced the radio during the long ride to work. Needless to say, I've had plenty of time to absorb what Everyday has to offer and have enjoyed every note of it. On the other hand, trying to explain that pleasure with words is an entirely different matter. Musically, Widespread Panic could be compared to the Allman Brothers, a band with whom they share many unique and tuneful traits. (Superb musicianship, smooth, intricate time changes and the love of a good jam are but a few of their many qualities.) They create a perpetual aural paradise that's easy to get swept up in and yet hard to escape. If a recounting such as this should pique your interest, then by all means run right out and pick this one up. Believe me, you won't be disappointed. It wouldn't surprise me at all if you end up buying the two other discs that are available. (The recently re-issued Space Wrangler and their self titled Capricorn debut album.) Both are splendiferous. Everyday opens with "Pleas," a song brimming with honesty and common sense. "(they) Tell me it takes sorrow boy, to help you feel the joy./They say it takes poverty to let you love a toy./No, you can't have the good until you've shared the bad./They say don't let it get too sad.../Not this time." Lessons to be learned and respected. "Hatfield" follows with a mystifying bayou feel. One of the longest tunes here, (clocking in at 6:50) it allows the band to stretch out and do what they do best. Next is the first single/video from the album, "Wondering." An infectious tune that'll stick with you for days after hearing it. (Don't be alarmed if "happy feet" should suddenly strike when this gets cranked up.) "Papa's Home" is a tale of life on the road with an unusually positive point of view. "Papa's hittin' the road again, takes the show cross-country for hire./And as the crowds come and go, secret agents gettin' bigger/Mom's holdin' sister in the chair turnin' pages of photographs/ Warm in their memories, fallin' asleep by the fire." Sounds like they have a great time travelling, but are glad to get home when the time comes. I'd dare guess that "Diner" is a loving tribute to Mom's Kitchen, their favorite little diner in Athens. Y'know, the kind of place that has a "happenin'" squash souffle', corn bread, fried chicken, et al and sometimes if you show up too late, you don't get any. "Better Off" is a funky number that reminds me of early Little Feat. "Pickin' Up The Pieces" (featuring Matt Mundy on mandolin) is one of the mellower tunes on the album and has recently been on the playlist of at least one local station that I know of. "Henry Parsons Died" recounts the funeral of a man in a small town that no one liked because of his reputation. Of the three remaining songs, "Pilgrims" is another mellow tune, at least instrumentally. I'll leave the translation up to you. "Postcard" kicks in the jams again. "Well I been sittin' here thinkin' about you./'Bout what it is that you want from me./You know it seems that I still don't know you well./So many faces I have seen./Still I try to make you happy, still I try to make you sing./ But if you're wonderin' what I think of it all, just read the back of this postcard." Believe me it's not what you think. "Dream Song" closes the album. The title says it all. (How many lives do we live anyway?) For the record, Widespread Panic are: John Bell (vocals/guitar), Michael Houser (guitar/vocals), Todd Nance (drums), Domingo S. Ortiz (percussion/vocals), Dave Schools (bass) and John Hermann (keyboards/chicken.) It's also worth noting that their producer is none other than the legendary Johnny Sandlin who also produced the Allmans and many other renowned southern bands. (He really doesn't have much to to do with their original sound, instead, he knows how to capture them on tape without losing anything.) In other words this is honest music played from the heart and soul. Or as John Bell would say, "The truth...it's worth gettin' down to..." And that's what they do best. (SC) © 2000 Dr. Rock'n'Roll
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