Album Review: James McMurtry - Complicated Game (8/10)

JamesMcMurtryComplicatedGameLPartIt’s been six years since the revered Texan released his last album, but McMurtry’s followup was worth the wait. This is classic songwriting in the vein of Bob Dylan’s Highway 61 Revisited or Nashville Skyline, mixed with the fragility of Jeff Buckley and the honesty of Tom Waits. The wordsmith plumbs relationships and the human condition better than just about anyone, with “She Loves Me” and “These Things I’ve Come to Know” as prime examples. “Ain’t Got a Place” is a cool travelling song and “Cutter” may very well tug at your heartstrings a bit. – Eric A. Harabadian