Simple Truths

1	Run Myself Out of Town 3:25
2	Shine 3:14
3	We Meet, We Part, We Remember 3:56
4	If I Needed You 3:40
5	Hey Baby 4:01
6	I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry 4:52
7	Everything Is Free 5:08
8	Big Boss Man 2:52
9	Opportunity to Cry 3:35
10	Concrete Jungle 5:26
11	You Won't Be Livin' Here Anymore 3:10
12	He'll Have to Go 3:01
13	I'm So Lonely 4:40

Barnes & Noble

The Holmes Brothers have survived through decades of trends, movements, and fads in the popular music business, even though they have never had a hit. The reason for their longstanding career is reflected partially in the title of their CD, Simple Truths. Wendell Holmes’s humorous original, “Run Myself Out of Town,” is a laid-back rocker, as is the Jimmy Reed hit “Big Boss Man.” Due to their affection for the country music they grew up with, the brothers chose Hank Williams’s “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry,” which weeps fuzz-toned tears and a searing guitar solo. The Holmeses never leave their gospel-tinged soul far behind, and it often infuses their covers. The acoustic version of the Townes Van Zandt heartbreaker “If I Needed You” comes right out of church, and Gillian Welch’s “Everything Is Free” (one of the best songs ever written about artistic commitment) is in the gospel-folk style. Willie Nelson’s song of obsessive love, “Opportunity to Cry,” is also from the sanctuary. Closer to the looseness of the Holmes Brothers’ former releases is Bruce Channel’s classic “Hey Baby” and Bob Marley’s “Concrete Jungle,” a brilliant selection for singers who have been pounding the streets of New York City for much of their lives. Simple Truths tells their story with no bitterness but hard and sweet looks at its highs and lows. And it takes a lifetime of music to pull off such truths. Roberta Penn

All Music Guide

The return to CD of New York's favorite sons, the Holmes Brothers, is a welcome one. Indeed, while fans know what to expect -- a killer mélange of soul, blues, gospel, and funk -- those combinations are always surprising. Sherman and Wendell Holmes and drummer/vocalist Popsy Dixon have opted to work with producer Craig Street (Cassandra Wilson, Joe Henry, Me'Shell NdegéOcello) this time out and enlist a few guests in the guise of pedal steel boss Greg Leisz, bassist David Pilch from the Bill Frisell Band, guitarist Chris Bruce, and the inimitable Patrick Warren on pump organ. The program is one of the most adventurous the band has ever attempted on record, but all of these songs become vehicles for the rootsy, sweet, and deeply emotional Holmes Brothers treatment. The covers are revelatory in scope, including easily the most moving read of Townes Van Zandt's "If I Needed You" ever committed to tape. But it doesn't stop there; they give a similar -- albeit rowdier -- treatment to Hank Williams' "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry." In addition, the band covers Willie Nelson's classic "Opportunity to Cry" and Gillian Welch's "Everything Is Free" in a late-night fireplace version that makes the songwriter's version sound clinical. But before one gets the idea that this is the Holmes Brothers' alt.country disc, a Delta blues-styled reading of Bob Marley's "Concrete Jungle" and a smoking, roiling, bluesed-out two-step version of the Smith and Dixon R&B stalwart "Big Boss Man" should put those assumptions to rest. But it's Sherman and Wendell's songs that bring the most satisfaction. Wendell's "We Meet, We Part, We Remember" is the greatest pure soul tune recorded thus far in the 21st century. With its Impressions-styled chorus and its James Carr cadence it rips the skin off. His rollicking electric country blues number "You Won't Be Livin' Here Anymore" sounds like an urban garage version of "Big River," and the deep blue Mississippi Delta chamber song "I'm So Lonely" by Sherman closes the record on a mournful whisper that underscores the transcendent message in all Holmes Brothers outings: that no matter who they are and what their circumstances are, people share one great desire, to be loved just for who they are. Sound syrupy? Sound hopelessly out of touch with the times? Then maybe the times need to change, because music like this deserves to be played from every open window. This is the first great record of 2004. Thom Jurek