(Train Wreck)

www.trainwreckrecords.com

Chip Taylor's journey through the maze of the music biz has been an unlikely one to say the least.  As a successful singer/songwriter who freely veered from Country to Rock and then back again, his initial successes - "Wild Thing," "Angel of the Morning" and several early but under-appreciated albums in the mid ‘70s - was waylaid by a gambling addiction.  It took nearly twenty years for Taylor to reconnect with his muse, but ultimately Taylor -on his own and in partnership with fiddler Carrie Rodriguez - rebounded as prolifically as ever.

Not surprisingly then, Songs From A Dutch Tour is as much a memoir as an autobiography, a personal reflection of a one-off tour that momentarily stole him away from the race track and introduced him to a new overseas audience.  Written from an insider's perspective, this music memoir contains a clear-eyed intimacy, some stunning detail and an exceptional array of rare archival photos.  A series of anecdotes as opposed to a traditional narrative, it spans forty years - from Taylor's initial attempts to ply his songwriting skills to his reemergence with Rodriguez and his bittersweet return to Holland three decades later - and its casual conversational style makes for an engaging read.

That 2007 tour also inspired him to write some striking new music for an accompanying CD, an audio addendum that enhances the wistful poignancy of his candid commentary.  Singing mostly in dry, measured tones that bear a certain similarity to Willie Nelson, Taylor name-checks numerous contemporaries - Emmylou Harris, John Prine and Steve Goodman, among them.  On "Song for a German Girl," Taylor recalls one troubadour's tip: "Steve Earle said all along/If you want to write a special song/Steal one that rings so fine." Fortunately, it seems Taylor's yet to take that advice. LEE ZIMMERMAN