Singer/ songwriter PAUL WILKES comes highly recommended, not least with a skipload of good press relating to his debut EP (“Green Lane”) and numerous support slots with the influential likes of Nick Harper and The Zutons, but also a big-up from Sir Paul McCartney himself, who was moved to say “he’ll go far” when speaking of young Mr.Wilkes.
So it’s hardly the place for some upstart journo to light the ‘diss’ flares, is it? Not least when it transpires that His Fabness was spot on in his judgement, for the four songs on Paul Wilkes’ second four-track EP are very much loveliness itself.
Recorded downhome and acoustic, but with considerable clarity, “Walkin’ The Long Road” again shows that however well-trodden a path the acoustic singer/ songwriter one may be, it’s one still worth pursuing by a minority of talented souls. The gentle,
mellifluous figures of the opening “Stories Told” preface a sweet and reflective summer ends scenario, showcasing Wilkes’ plaintive and evocative vocals with some occasional second guitar and ghostly backing vocals weaving in and out of the plot without ever getting too obtrusive. It’s a measure of Wilkes’ inherent skill that he can sign off with the imploring line “in a world of endless fallacies, I still care for you” without sounding anything but credible.
Second track “I Don’t Mean To Be” touches on peoples’ unhappiness at their respective lots at both ends of the spectrum (the homeless and the extremely rich) and is similarly close-miked, intimate and honest, while the forthright “Hanging By A Thread” examines the stupid misunderstandings and conflicts we all have and finds Wilkes declaring “I wish we could make it up and apologise sensibly” in mediation. Once again it’s poised and well-observed and his rich vein of form continues through the closing track “I Want The World To See” where a subtle bassline and second guitar buoy up Wilkes’ attack on the shallowness of celebrity and a society where “no respect, no dignity can be purchased”. Absolutely.
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Paul Wilkes, then, is undoubtedly one to keep a weather eye on. Part of me would like to hear these songs punched through with the muscle of a full band in tow, although Paul’s emotive, charismatic vocal and dextrous guitar playing are sweetly seductive as they are and this unadorned approach and avowed intent to continue “Walkin’ The Long Road” on his own terms are more than laudable. It’s a stance that ought to ensure his journey will be a similar road to Damascus for a growing number of fans in the near future.
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