Once upon a time there was a singer-songwriter named Amy Farris. She played fiddle and sang with another singer-songwriter named Kelly Willis. She made a sweet country album called Anyway, joined Dave Alvin’s band The Guilty Women and was a sought after session musician. Then, in 2009, at the age of forty, she took her own life. That was an unlikely impetuous for Kelly Willis, who mourned the loss of a friend and a singing partner. This inspired Kelly to record an album with another common musical partner, herhusband Bruce Robison. The resulting album, Cheater’s Game, was such a resounding success that they opted to try again. Our Year is a delightful album, offering delicious and whimsical covers of songs that showcase a wide range of musical influences and the transcendence of two people in perfect harmony.
The album opens with “Departing Louisiana,” a shuffling ballad about seeking new horizons. The song marks another first, it is the first time Robyn Ludwick has been covered by one of her brothers. Willis swaggers through the bluesy “Motor City Man.” “You know it hurts a little more, because you know how hard we tried, but comes time the music has to stop…you step off of the carousel and say good-bye,” Robison croons on his own sad country waltz “Carousel.” Willis’ offering for the album is “Lonely for You.” It is a fitting follow up to “Carousel” which finds a woman chasing every good time to escape memories of her ex. Fans of obscure country duets will recognize “A Hanging On” as an Emmylou Harris and Vern Gosdin collaboration. Willis and Robison harmonize in a purely perfect melancholy ache. T. Bone Burnett’s lush and tragic “Shake Yourself Loose” finds them trading verses against a folksy wall of sound. Kelly Willis’ cover of the classic “Harper Valley PTA” is a funky, bluesy number. Robison offers his second song with a song he co-wrote with Monte Warden. “Anywhere but Here” is finds the pair looking longingly at the freewheeling fun of childhood. Willis and Robison plucked “I’ll Go to My Grave Loving You” from the Statler Brothers' cannon. Their version retains the driving lightness and felicity of the original. The album closes with “This Will Be Our Year,” a Zombies cover that is a staple of their famous Christmas show. In the hands of Robison and Willis it becomes a celebration of a successful marriage as well as a reminder to cherish what can so easily be snatched away.
Country music has a long standing tradition of duets. Dolly and Porter, Dolly and Kenny, George and Tammy, Loretta and Conway, Emmylou and Gram. Robison and Willis belong in that revered list. While each of them is a stellar singing and songwriter in their own right, when they get together they make magic. The latest collaboration finds them honing their musical choices to a nearly nuanced and balanced collection of songs. Our Year promises to be one of the best country albums of the year.
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