God Willin’ & The Creek Don't Rise

There's long been a delicate poignancy to LaMontagne's delivery that forces equal parts close listening and chair-rocking ease of feeling. For his fourth album God Willin' & The Creek Don't Rise, LaMontagne has done one better by bringing the studio to his Massachusetts living room to create a loose, live-sounding record alongside his newly named band, The Pariah Dogs.

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It seems that Ray LaMontagne is finally growing comfortable in his own skin and with his popularity as a professional singer/songwriter. That may have something to do with having a full time band backing him. The Pariah Dogs—bassist Jennifer Condos, guitarists Eric Heywood and pedal steel guitarist Greg Leisz, keyboardist Patrick Warren and drummer Jay Bellerose—have been recording and touring with LaMontagne for a couple of years now. More to the point, God Willin’ & the Creek Don’t Rise, his fourth CD, was entirely self-produced and recorded over a two-week period in his restored historic home/studio in Western Massachusetts. That makes this his first studio record made without the mega producer/tastemaker Ethan Johns guiding him through the process

Full Review | More Reviews from Publication | Top Rated of 2010