Tad Wise | For The Record
(Independent)
As the story goes, Tad Wise started writing songs at age 10 while raking Bob Dylan’s leaves. The influence of Woodstock’s musical ghosts and present-day giants is indeed evident on For The Record. As such, it is hard not to focus on Tony Levin’s bass and Jerry Marotta’s drums and the beautiful sounds that emanate from Dreamland Studios. Mr. Wise, however, to his credit, embraces the spotlight with the talent and confidence necessary to produce, write, and perform with these prolific lifers. Playing like an emotionally compartmentalized stream of consciousness, For The Record is a psychic purging of the trauma accompanying a once-in-a lifetime (let’s hope) pandemic and president. Reading the Bandcamp “liner notes” accompanying each tune is a unique and recommended journey in itself, but the music distinguishes itself, fleshed out with provocative songwriting and heart-on-a-sleeve prose. For the Record is a timely narrative of self and societal reflection opening appropriately with “The Wrong Heroes” and concluding with the melancholic and prescient “Goodbye John (For John Prine).”
This article appears in October 2021.
