We fell in love with Charles Wesley Godwin back in 2021 when he released his excellent ‘How the Mighty Fall’ album, calling the album “one of the most accomplished and deeply engaging albums of the year.” Big Loud must have heard what we heard because it wasn’t long after that they signed this earthy, organic and authentic songwriter from the Appalachian regions of West Virginia. You can read our review of ‘How the Mighty Fall’ right here.
Soon after signing for Big Loud, disaster struck! We’ll let Godwin tell you why in his own words. “For the first time, I essentially started an album cycle empty-handed. By the time ‘How the Mighty Fall’ was released, I’d hardly written a word in six months. The work stress and financial strain of 2021 had taken a toll on me both physically and creatively… I had nothin’. Label talks came into the fold shortly after and for the first time in my life, I felt a new kind of pressure. There were expectations of me to write songs, write them quickly, and they had better be good. Our second baby was due in mid-February of 2022. That month, for the first time in almost a year, I was finally off the road for more than a handful of days. It was time to get back to work.” A conversation with his father-in-law led him to realise what his next album should be about, the thing that meant the most to him. “Family. I was going to get right back down to the foundation of who I am. Personal songs about my life and those closest to me.”
‘Family Ties’ is one of the most appropriate titles for an album I’ve ever seen. The album opens and closes with a lullaby sounding overture and underture in which you can hear Godwin’s family playing and interacting with each other and eventually singing snippets of ‘Take Me Home Country Roads,’ a classic song which feels like it has been written for Godwin himself: being about an Appalachian dreamer wanting to re-connect with his roots and the ties that bind. Throughout the album you’ll find references to Godwin’s family, his upbringing and his values and beliefs. He even closes down the main section of the album with a cover of the aforementioned John Denver classic to complete the journey of this part of his career.
The title track kicks things off properly with its gentle acoustic stylings augmented by banjo, piano and fiddle. A mention of ‘Seneca’ is a nice call back to the title of his debut album as Godwin implores ‘Strike me down if I cut family ties.’ It’s an urgent, impassioned sentiment that carries forward across songs like ‘Miner Imperfections’, ‘Gabriel’ and ‘Dance in the Rain,’ too. ‘Miner Imperfections’ is a delightful play on words tribute to fathers and sons. It initially plays out as a description of Godwin’s upbringing and his father’s influence on him before it being about himself as a father and what he learned to pass on. Earthy, organic and Folk-leaning, ‘Miner Imperfections’ is a touching tribute to a whole generation of Appalachian men and their strengths and weaknesses. ‘Gabriel’, meanwhile, is an acoustic tribute to his son of the same name. ‘I’ll hold you from the first day till the sun sets on me too,’ Godwin sings, pledging his love, strength and loyalty in equal measure against the backdrop of acoustic guitars and plaintive fiddle. ‘Dance in the Rain’ finds Godwin in full ‘wisdom’ mode, telling his progeny to be strong, to bend but not break and to dance in the rain. It’s no wonder it’s paired consecutively with ‘Gabriel’ and together the two songs are incredibly personal and powerful slices of Country-Folk.
Elsewhere that powerful, evocative storytelling can be found on the likes of ‘The Flood’ and ‘Another Leaf.’ The former is a slow, atmospheric Gospel leaning song that builds with a brooding heaviness, very powerful imagery based around blood, floods and bridges with an almost biblical portent. It’s climax comes in a 90 second outro that is almost Black Sabbath-esque in it’s power and hypnotic intent. Similarly, ‘Another Leaf’ is another 5 minute epic that starts with an almost Johnny Cash-like acoustic vibe before the fiddle kicks in. The drums take it up a level as they begin to work in tandem with the fiddle before a time change makes things go all sorrowful and plaintive again as Godwin expresses regret about not always being around for his family before the handclaps come in and the song barrels along in an almost hoedown / honky tonk climax that will really come into its own in his live set and give the band a chance to cut loose.
Other songs from ‘Family Ties’ that should find a home for themselves in Charles Wesley Godwin’s live set list include ‘Two Weeks Gone’, ‘Cue Country Roads’ and the simply stunning ‘Soul Like Mine’. ‘Two Weeks Gone’ was the first track recorded for this album. It’s a jaunty number that Godwin counts in with ‘1, 2 you know what to do……. I’m turning left on red, there ain’t a soul as far as I can see.’ It barrels along with a kind of Gaelic joie de vivre meets Appalachian hiking song vibe meaning it would fit right at home on the latest Turnpike Troubadours album. ‘Cue Country Roads’, meanwhile, finds Godwin in bullish mood on the most rugged and muscle-bound song on the album. It’s almost as if label mate HARDY has rubbed off a little influence on Godwin here and it looks real good on him. Handclaps, fiddles and electric guitars are the stars as Godwin implores to be taken home by country roads, one track before he actually covers the John Denver classic of the same name! This heavier sound feels good and breaks up the acoustic Folk really well, something to think of going forward as his career progresses. Similarly, when the electric guitar solo comes in on ‘Willing or Able’ you realise how potentially under-used it is as a tool on this album.
Having said that about more electric guitars, the stand out track on this album is easily ‘Soul Like Mine,’ which is a soulful, powerful piano driven ballad that simply hums with a passion and intensity that leaves goosebumps on your arms. Godwin gives off typical troubadour vibes here as he sings about life on the road and the toll it takes on the travelling musician. Think Leonard Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah’, think Springsteen & Billy Joel and you’ll be somewhere in the ball park as Godwin sings his heart out and expresses all his fears about what the future might hold. Springsteen is another easy reference point on a track like ’10-38′, which finds a frustrated and latently angry New Jersey police officer pulling over the wrong car for the wrong reasons in a song that doesn’t end well but could have been lifted right off Springsteen’s ‘Nebraska’ album whilst the rest of ‘Family Ties’ carries a more ‘The Ghost of Tom Joad’ vibe throughout.
Big Loud have a penchant for big projects, the clue is in the name right? And at 19 songs this one is a whopper. It is held together seamlessly by Godwin’s fiery passion and the over-arching narratives of family, of roots, of authenticity and of truth. Its weakest moments are still infinitely better than the best that some other artists of a similar ilk have to offer and whilst it feels like a Bob Dylan style protest album you’ll find no lazy pandering to any political party or any hint of the culture wars here. Instead, this is an evocative look at people and places and of the ties that bind us all together. Passion oozes out of every note and the poetic lyrics are clever enough to engage your brain and draw you in whilst remaining instantly relatable to most people’s lived experiences. This is the beating heart of rural America right here. It isn’t concerned with people elsewhere or crying about how unfair life is: instead Godwin takes the opposite tack – telling you to take control of your own destiny and be a better person, be trustworthy and hardworking and be someone who your family will be proud to love. In reaching those objectives you’ll learn how to become proud of yourself along the way. Sounds like something akin to the American dream to me, how ’bout you?
Tracklist: 1. Tell the Babies I Love Them (Overture) 2. Family Ties 3. Miner Imperfections 4. The Flood 5. All Again 6. Gabriel 7. Dance in Rain 8. Another Leaf 9. That Time Again 10. Skyline Blue 11. West of Lonesome 12. Headwaters 13. 10-38 14. Two Weeks Gone 15. Soul Like Mine 16. Willing and Able 17. Cue Country Roads 18. Take Me Home, Country Roads 19. By Your Side (Underture) Record Label: Big Loud Release Date: 22nd September Buy ‘Family Ties’ now
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