Album Review: Peter Case 'HWY 62'

Courtesy Conqueroo

Founding member of the Nerves, leader of the Plimsouls, and one of the artists who spearheaded the songwriter’s movement, Peter Case returns on October 30th with his first album of new material since 2010’s Wig! Released on Omnivore Recordings, HWY 62 was co-produced by Case and Sheldon Gomberg (Rickie Lee Jones, Ben Harper with Charlie Musselwhite) and also includes the talents of Ben Harper, Jebin Bruni (PIL), Cindy Wasserman and David Carpenter (Dead Rock West), D.J. Bonebrake (X), Don Heffington (Lone Justice) among others.

HWY 62 takes its title from the highway that connects Ciudad Juarez with Niagara Falls, Ontario. Case was born in the Buffalo area, a block from said road, and has noted, “I always saw HWY 62 as my gateway to the country, my doorway to the west.” The album indeed opens that doorway with troubadour’s tales infused with Americana, blues, rock and folk. Commentary on social issues flows throughout the project which consists of twelve vividly written tracks, all originals except for a rendition of Dylan’s “Long Time Gone.” The journey begins in Pelican Bay, a bluesy protest of solitary confinement before the listener finds themselves in an airport “Waiting On A Plane” which perfectly channels that old time lounge feel. It’s onto the 1960’s in “New Mexico,” the dark west in “Water From A Stone,” which chronicles the plight of immigrants, and the courthouse in the melodically irresistible, “All Dressed Up (For Trial)” which documents a man “terrified to be himself” going to a place where “justice still gets left behind.”

Rounding out the album are stories of displacement on “Evicted,” life and meeting again on “The Long Good Time,” as well as the rollicking “If I Go Crazy” and the soothing, peaceful “Bluebells.” The journey concludes with the all too short instrumental title track leaving you wanting to travel a little longer on HWY 62.

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