This Connecticut Yankee sings and plays guitar like a good ole Southern boy -- much like Californian John Fogarty of Creedence sounds like he was "Born on the Bayou." Wrap up Fogarty, Gregg Allman, Travis Tritt, and Lynyrd Skynyrd and you get a good idea of what to expect on "Truth" by the Christopher Robin Band. This album sprang from a set of questions Robin wrote in his journal on February 24, 2004. "What is the truth? What does the truth sound like? Would I know it if I heard it?" Steve Addabbo produced Christopher Robin's answers with the help of Tommy Nagy (drums), Mike Ventimiglia (keys), Lincoln Schleifer (bass), Benny Rietveld (bass), Janice Pendarvis (background vocals) Tawath Agee (background vocals), Steve Addabbo (guitar), and Christopher Robin himself (lead vocals, lead guitar). Robin wrote all the tunes, some in collaboration with Steve Addabbo.
So Mr. Peabody, set the WABAC machine for the early seventies, grab a cold one, and get ready to rock! Robin's whisky-soaked voice roars out of the speaker on the title track. "I've got one thing to hold on to. I've got one voice that speaks the truth." He ain't kidding. This southern rock joint, destined to become a classic, features bluesy guitar riffs that will rivet you to your chair. "Back to the Bay" finds this traveling man in Colorado longing for his woman back in San Francisco. The acoustic guitar solo at the end would do Dickie Betts proud. On "Fightin Words," Robin cops some Skynyrd attitude when bitching about his troublesome woman. "She tortures me when she rips off her shirt. When I ask for more lovin' I'm put down in the dirt... It don't matter, no, no. They're just some fightin' words anyway." Country pride runs deep in "Strength of Just One Man." "When tomorrow comes I'll be the one to tend to who I am. Through darkness runs a rising sun and the strength of just one man." The band switches up nicely with the instrumental fiddle tune (minus the fiddle), "Leipers Fork." "The Hardest Goodbye" ends the record with a classic rock lament. The descending keyboard riff underpins a lover's plea. "Before you go. Before I cry. I just have to know. Do you really want do die?... As I wished it couldn't be that a cigarette and a bottle could come between you and me."Christopher Robin lays his soul bare on "Truth." A man of substance, his "Fightin Words" show the strength of "Just One Man." And by the way, don't call him "Chris."
©2010 Roger Zee