Album Review

Roddy Woomble – The Impossible Song and Other Songs

• 18th Feb 2011

The Impossible Song and Other Songs is the second solo album from Idlewild frontman Roddy Woomble. But those unfamiliar with his previous solo work and perhaps expecting a rock album will be surprised to find that this is a collection of folk songs.

Recorded at Roddy’s local arts centre, An Tobar in Tobermory on the Isle of Mull, it is very much a Scottish album. His clear baritone is backed for the most by guitars and fiddles in traditional arrangements that complement the vocals rather nicely. And there are some more contemporary touches too.

Tangled Wire and Living As You Always Have are soft and gentle, with Woomble accompanied by delicate guitar picking as he recounts tales of the past. Work Like We Can has a starker arrangement, opening with a haunting female backing vocal before it picks up to tell a tale of survival in a bleak place.

Roll Along is the most modern arrangement here, kicking off with a nice saxophone intro. It has a faster pace, based around a piano part from renowned jazz musician Chick Lyall that drives the song forward, and an upbeat chorus.

New Frontier is the one song with an American feel, its almost spoken word delivery looking back to an age of discovery. The singer tells of a time fifty years previously when times were hard and love was the key to survival.

Hour After Hour has an almost soporific quality combined with tender lyrics. Another love song, it features an atmospheric accompanying vocal (perhaps from Woomble’s wife Ailidh Lennon?) and some nice keyboard work.

The album closes with Between The Old Moon, perhaps its most haunting and poignant track. The imagery of a town haunted by ghosts of the past while a father talks to his son on a long journey home creates a stirring mental image.

The Impossible Song and Other Songs is a warm, mellow album. They lyrics are deep and thoughtful, painting some delightful pictures and the production brings out Woomble’s voice very nicely. The album is perhaps best enjoyed sitting back in that old comfortable chair with a glass of your favourite tipple in your hand.