Album Review: Bradley Walker - “Call Me Old-Fashioned”

One of Joey Martin’s favorite vocalists (and people) was Bradley Walker and thanks to one of her last wishes, his life is forever changed with it. From there, Walker sang and the Gaither family attended Joey’s service and after Bradley sang, they offered to record a project with him and the rest, they say, is now history. That project, Call Me Old-Fashioned, blends country ballads and love songs with gospel tracks worthy of any attention there can be. Especially since Bradley Walker is such a talented vocalist.

“Don’t Give Up On Me” and “I Count My Blessings” are amongst the very best country songs of the year and allow Bradley Walker to showcase his splendid vocal. His version of the classic “Why Me” blends well with the other Gospel songs (“With His Arms Wide Open,” “Pray For God” and “Sinners Only”) on Call Me Old-Fashioned and new songs “His Memory Walks On Water” and “The Toolbox” showcase why Bradley Walker is such a distinctive talent but his performance on the album’s title track and “In The Time That You Gave Me,” a duet with the late Joey Feek, where Bradley Walker truly shines.

Bradley is able to go toe to toe with Joey Feek on “In The Time That You Gave Me,” matching her vocal nuance with vocal nuance and giving us an idea of what a Randy Travis and Emmylou Harris duet might’ve sounded like when they were at their peak vocal abilities. “Call Me Old-Fashioned” has the chance to be a massive hit. The lyrics hit home for anyone who is longing for a little simplicity while Bradley Walker sings the living daylights out of the lyric. The record closes with a live performance of “Sweet Beulah Land” with The Isaacs and like the two songs preceding this note, it’s a showstopper of a song for Bradley Walker.

One of the talented interpreters of country and Gospel may never have gotten a chance to record a second album (he released an album — “Highway of Dreams” — on Rounder Records in 2006) but thanks to Joey Feek’s request, we were blessed to be able to have another album from Bradley Walker and it’s a delightful collection of great, great music.