My musical acquaintance with John Paul Healy was far too brief. This is the only record on which he appears that I know. He cave me a copy of this CD, the cardboard sleeve of which was made from a recycled vinyl album cover.
Everything about this collective musical endeavour is free of the usual veneer (of not laminate) that has been all too prevalent on so-called folk or alt-country releases ever since such terms have become fashionable in the early part of this century.
It’s true that I hesitate to even use such terms in relation to the music of Broken City People. Like much of the best music this album defies description. I still listen to it, enjoy it and draw inspiration from it.
I remember years ago engaging JPH in conversation about the recording process several times in order to find out how the album came to sound so simply fantastically good, but he was vague about the details as I remember. I still have no idea.
I’m just glad we have it to enjoy.
