This seven track debut EP features songs which were written over the last six to seven years in the life and times of a young Australian singer-songwriter. "From grieving periods to the highest times I’ve had. Each song presents a vastly different view on songwriting." says Jack Raymond.
Harriet might be mistaken for a love song (“Harriet, won’t you be mine”) but is actually about where he grew up, namely Harrietville, a town described on its website as ”A sanctuary on the frontier of wilderness.”
Raymond is the kind of gravelly voiced performer who one would expect to play solo. However his vocals and acoustic guitar has a fairly full backing here from Steve Summers (electric guitars, bass, drums), Jay Bishoff (electric guitars), OJ “Juice” Newcomb (double bass), Laurence Maynard (piano, banjo, mandolin), Patch “Hellhound” Brown (slide guitar) and Chucho Bruno (keyboard), Niq Reefman plays trumpet on Make Hay.
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It’s debatable whether this fleshing out is strictly necessary. Personally I’d prefer to hear at least some of the tunes in a rawer format even though this would undoubtedly have made for a bleaker finished product.
Certainly, the fuller arrangement gives the best song ,Wide Eyes, a nice joyful feel and the upbeat closing song, Money Won’t Buy Happiness, written when he was broke, ends up as a celebration of possibilities rather than dwelling on hard times.
Throughout there has been no attempt to make the record overly slick so the down to earth honesty of the songs shines through.
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