Music Review
Band: The Waterboys
Title: Book of Lightning

Rock / Folk Rock / Other

The Ninth studio album gets a 9!

I was so excited to find this one in the mail! I’ve been a longtime Waterboys fan.

‘Book of Lightning’ starts out with ‘The Crash of Angel Wings’. I’m not connecting with it like I do with other Waterboys tunes. However, I can say it’s quite catchy and I like the lyrics.

‘Love Will Shoot You Down’ is nothing short of fantastic! A true rock and roll song that is a definite highlight on this release. I especially like the lyrics on this track:

Time, old Time, King Time is moving back and forth
like a backlit dancer on a pale white horse
On a mad racecource in a hungry land
you will be forced to play your secret hand
and love will shoot you down, will shoot you down

‘Nobody’s Baby Anymore’ surprised me, having an unusual vocal style for Mike. I love it!!! Gotta give it to the boys for always offering something different... and the vast majority of the time it works. This is another catchy song but what I really like about it is the subject matter. I read somewhere that it’s about our planet and the lack of care for it. This track was partially penned twenty years ago and was recently completed for inclusion on ‘Book of Lightning’.

The pace of the album slows down a bit for a breather. ‘Strange Arrangement’ is a hauntingly striking offering that tugs at my heart every time I listen to it. Mike Scott has a way of making his songs cozy and effortless to embrace. The feelings injected into this tune cannot be faked and really say a lot about him as a person – someone with lots of compassion, wisdom and soul. Mike is the founder, songwriter, vocalist & an instrumentalist.

I think everyone can relate to ‘She Tried To Hold Me’. This is a great, easy-going song with one of my favorite lines ever: ‘like she was skin surrounding thunder’. Wow.

My husband's standing behind me laughing. He claims that it's a perfect description of me on a daily basis. That may be so... but he's the tornado that spins a mess throughout the house! He agrees and we hug.

‘You In The Sky’ is delightful, dripping with glittered honey... and just a little Bob Dylan DNA. This track originally appeared on the ‘Fisherman’s Blues’ album.

Other Major Highlights are ‘It’s Gonna Rain’ and ‘Sustain’.

If you are familiar with The Waterboys you know that their music weaves its way into your veins. It becomes a large part of that soundtrack to your life. Please give ‘Book of Lightning’ a listen.
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