David Wilcox - Underneath (1999)

"I know compassion is all out of fashion/And anger is all the rage." So begins singer/songwriter David Wilcox' 13-part story of coming out from under and making it in the modern world. From the daily cynicism of the Alison Krauss-assisted title track to financial struggles ("Never Enough"), human loss ("Prisoner of War"), and the frustrations of the recording industry ("Sex and Music"), Wilcox deals with a wide array of difficult topics, but is able to find hope in nearly all of them. In "Down Here," a duet with Jennifer Kimball, the pair finds solace and joy in being together, despite being outcasts "under the radar of the status quo." "Hometown" finds another pair split by questions of "the good life" reminiscent of "Green Acres," yet with much less satisfaction. In "Dust To Dust," Wilcox finds freedom even in death. The answer, Wilcox lyrically posits, is perspective ("The truth has changed how I see," he says in "Leaving You"), and though Wilcox' topics may at first seem discouraging, his sensitive and human handling of them teach us all to find the music in even the most difficult aspects of our lives.~Underneath Review by Matthew Robinson