America – Stafford Centre – November 16, 2007

America Returns: Here & Now 

by Bill Reed

 Gifted song writers don’t quit writing songs just because some people say that most of their hits are far behind them. Two of the founding members of classic rock group America, Dewey Bunnell and Gerry Beckley, demonstrated that they are the epitome of that axiom, bringing material both old and new to their sold-out performance last Friday night at the Stafford Centre. Preceding America, Austin-based Stephen Clarke and his band opened the show, unveiling a creative set of alt-pop-rock pieces that have been gaining him greater local notice lately.

America’s set was a very enjoyable mix of nostalgia and newness. Hits like Ventura Highway, You Can Do Magic, Tin Man, and Sister Golden Hair were creatively injected amidst newer songs like Chasing The Rainbow and Ride On. The group even included a cover of The Mamas & The Papas’ California Dreamin’. Always mellow to gently rhythmic, each of America’s numbers flowed lushly through fairly simple pop chord patterns, augmented occasionally by a bridge or drops into minors for effect. The vocals and backing choruses remain comparable to past contemporaries Neil Young, Christopher Cross, James Taylor, or early Eagles or Doobie Brothers.

Early-on, I Need You, with its cleanly-raked acoustic guitar intro and beautiful vocals, was one of many songs during the evening performed in nearly flawless four-part harmony—a rare treat. One of the best songs of the night was Sandman, which markedly departed into much harder musical territory with a fantastic electric guitar jam duet, spearheaded by Bunnell and lead guitarist Michael Woods. For many in the audience, the closing encore, Horse With No Name, was an emotional flashback to the glory days of the group’s origins, and a fitting end to a night filled with such moments.

In one of several comedic breaks between songs, Beckley assured the crowd that even old 8-tracks brought by fans would be autographed after the show. He made it clear, however, that America’s music should be properly categorized. “These aren’t oldies,” he cautioned. “They’re classic rock. There is a difference.” Citing a former fan’s suggestion that the only real difference was that the artists were still alive, Beckley and Bunnell agreed, “We’re going to stick with that.”

America really doesn’t want to characterize their newfound popularity swing as either critical acclaim vindication or an artistic comeback. Bunnell forced a surprised look, “A comeback? We didn’t go anywhere! It was the audiences that came back.” Truth be told, it has been nine years since their last album. Still, it seems that their new stuff, like their tour stop at Stafford, is being very warmly received and appreciated by a growing crowd of listeners.

Coming off the heels of the January 2007 release of America’s sixteenth studio album, Here & Now, and their recent induction into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, the lighter folk-rock songwriting duo hopes to refuel a new resurgence of the popularity they enjoyed during their heyday in the early 70’s. Though the likelihood of this is rather slim, their chances are certainly bolstered by the fresh comeback production helmsmanship of Fountain Of Wayne’s Adam Schlesinger and Smashing Pumpkin’s James Iha, who have successfully aided in recapturing the clean trademark sound of America that made them famous in the first place. The two-disc album, divided equally between brand new songs and live versions of past hits, is metaphorically reminiscent of the dichotomy of opinions surrounding the band’s lack of past critical acclaim. Though some former critics may not have fully appreciated the pioneering directions of such soft rock acoustic songwriters back in “the day,” many now seem willing to revisit the contributions made by groups like America to the evolution of modern music. Rather than merely diluting 60’s folk into bland, commercialized arrangements, America consistently produces refined, hook-heavy melodies that smoothly take root in the memory of a wide variety of music listeners. Through it all, Bunnell and Beckley have remained artistically unabashed. Their Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1972 was only a precursor to the more than seventeen gold, platinum, and multi-platinum albums garnered since then.  

Following a tradition established early-on, most of their album names start with the letter “H.” In retrospect, the “H” must stand for “Hang in there.” It’s definitely the one thing they’ve been able to do to absolute perfection. It all began years ago with a ride on a nameless horse: and it’s anyone’s guess how it will all end, because it appears that the journey is far from over yet.