John Hiatt
Same Old Man
(New West, 2008)

John Hiatt has famously struggled to establish an identity of his own. Renditions of Hiatt-penned tunes from the likes of Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Iggy Pop, and Bonnie Raitt gained him a decent reputation as a songwriter but little else. And his stint in Ry Cooder’s band kept him from the spotlight. Hiatt’s solo albums eventually earned him a cult following, helping him to come into his own as an artist. There were ill-advised new-wave excursions and plenty of other genre experiments along the way. But whether it was traditional country outings or Costello-esque workouts, he managed to retain an infallible air of authenticity, though he sometimes struggled to become comfortable in his own skin.

His new album on New West, Same Old Man, is more or less a folk record, but the particular genre’s hardly relevant. The effort is more remarkable for Hiatt’s full embrace of his solo identity—Same Old Man is a record that has him sounding supremely content in his most natural setting. It’s surely not the first time Hiatt’s been this at ease—but he’s rarely sounded better than he does here.

Same Old Man finds Hiatt reflecting on over 30 years of touring and recording. And it’s only natural that he would want to pause to take stock of a lengthy and significant career. But on Same Old Man, the rearview mirror provides insights both professional and deeply personal. There are the expected reflections on a life on the road via tracks like the album’s freewheeling opener “Old Days.” But Hiatt’s also concerned with love and its myriad complications on songs like the standout “Love You Again” and the mournful “Hurt My Baby.”

The album’s production, handled nicely by Hiatt, is deliberately simple and the arrangements are similarly straightforward. The result is a lean sounding album that still retains a remarkable depth. In this regard, Same Old Man is a bit like Hiatt’s 1987 A&M debut Bring the Family. Boasting a crack band comprised of Cooder, Jim Keltner, and Nick Lowe (a group that would subsequently emerge as Little Village), that record had the same sort of stripped down approach and loose roots-rock feel. Here, free of frills and distractions, Hiatt delivers a soul-bearing acoustic set that effortlessly moves between humor and heartbreak.

Hiatt’s voice and guitar are accompanied only by Kenneth Blevin’s lively drums, Patrick O’Hearn’s steady bass, and Luther Dickinson’s wonderfully emotive guitars and mandolins—and his daughter, Lilly Hiatt, chimes in with a handful of lovely harmonies. It’s a perfect canvas for reflection. Hiatt has always flirted with a variety of genres, having settled upon his unique fusion of folk, blues, and roots. And that style, though previously excellent, is perfected here. If there’s a complaint to be made, it’s that Hiatt’s vocals are not what they once were. Still, although his voice sounds a bit battered by the years, it manages to remain remarkably resilient—appropriately weathered after years of heavy use.

Hiatt is a master storyteller and Same Old Man is clearly a milestone record—a songwriter at the top of his game taking stock of where he’s been and where he’s going. But he likely won’t be looking back for long. The Same Old Man? Perhaps for now. But a writer of Hiatt’s talent is sure to continue to refine and maybe even reinvent his craft, never content to remain merely comfortable.

Listen: Various Tracks [at myspace.com]

More articles by Matt Gewolb:

Album review of Okay, Huggable Dust

Album review of Old 97’s, Blame It on Gravity

Album review of Billy Bragg, Mr. Love & Justice