On his third album,
Heartworn Tragedy
,
Bart Crow
continues to play twangy country-rock with his band and to sing in a voice that strongly recalls
Steve Earle
. The sound is early
, that is, the
of
Guitar Town
. As a songwriter, however,
Crow
isn't in
Earle
's league. He reveals a familiar persona, a guy with lots of woman troubles, mostly because he seems to travel from town to town, but also because he has a sort of "can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em" viewpoint. While a song like
"Shadow Dancer"
is full of praise for a particular love interest, more often
is
"Saying Goodbye,"
for one reason or another. Such may be the fate of the itinerant musician, and if
isn't playing or singing anything new or in any new manner, he at least is well versed in the tradition, making him and his band a good bet at the local honky tonk, even if the songs suggest it might not be a good idea to try to go backstage and meet him personally. ~ William Ruhlmann