Transcendental Highway

by

Colin Hay

Edit

Maybe they just weren't that popular in England, but I for one was exceedingly disappointed by the demise of Men At Work. As much as I yearned for their return to the popular music charts in the UK, I was increasingly aware that Colin Hay had a developing, and promising solo career. But I never thought he could equal the intelligence and emotive expression of some of the group's earlier high points, such as 'Overkill', Blue for you' and 'Touching the untouchables'. How wrong I was! Following a trip to Oz I was able to purchase both Transcendental Highway and Topanga. The latter is a good, solid album, but TH is just one helluva of a great album! Perhaps it is just an age thing, but I found the lyrics to be suttle, poignant and well performed. The album fits many moods - it's great as a background filler if in company, but is far more powerful and meaningful if listening to on it's own. He may not possess quite the emotional angst of Phil Collins, but Colin Hay manages to tug quite efffectively at the ol' heart strings with such simple lyrics as those of track 13 (unlisted)... It's mellow, relaxing, sometimes sad, but above all one very enjoyable album. It may not have any of that raw energy that enthused earlier MAW tracks, but if you like intelligent lyrics mixed with a background of soothing, rhythmic melody then this is the album for you. Prepare to chill!!

Having just reviewed Colin Hay's "Man at Work" album from 2002, I decided to give another of his albums, "Transcendental Highway" a listen. Unlike "Man at Work", this album contains nothing from his "Men at Work" days of the 80's. It is entirely new music of his own. After a few spins, here's what I think of the album...

This album has one overriding theme, which is that of lost love. Most of the tracks tell the same story different ways. That story is one of the singer/narrator being in love with someone who is apparently no longer in love with him. The tracks "Don't Believe You Anymore", "Goodbye My Red Rose", "If I Go", "I'm Doing Fine", "I'll Leave the Light On", and "I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You" all tell basically this same story. I get the impression that this album was more of a therapy for Colin Hay than anything else.

"Transcendental Highway" features a very pleasant background music track with some backing vocals, but is a rather strange spoken-word piece rather than Colin Hay singing. It kind of sounds like something you'd hear on a "motivation album" from some self-help guru. For example, consider these lines from early in the song: "It's true you know, horizons are unlimited. It's a little challenge, with a little incentive and willpower, but a single suggestion. Take it out, go on, take it out, right out. You feel so... connected. Now you're driving to new heights..." As background music, this would be fine. It's soft and "spacey" but not especially coherent. I can't say that I recommend it as music you sit and listen actively to.

"My Brilliant Feat" talks about someone whose "15 minutes of fame" appears to have passed, and they're left wondering why no one takes them seriously anymore, saying "Did someone call my name, like a distant drum that's beating, or is it just another dream of long ago?...Once upon a time, I could do no wrong. Though the candle flickers, the flame is never gone... The world it won't wait for you. It's got its own things to do.... as I listen to the silence, I can hear thunder in the distance." Nicely written, and well-performed on the album.

"Goodbye My Red Rose" is one of the better songs on the album, and another of the recurring theme of lost love. Hay's vocals and the lyrics are both well above average. "If I Go" starts off like something from the 70's, in a sort of a "Dr. Hook" or "Eagles" style. Later on, it sounds more like a modern (or at least 80s-like) song. As with the earlier songs, there is a recurring theme that a love is over with but the singer isn't ready to give up on it just yet, hoping he can "fix whatever's broken". I can't say that it's an especially inspired song.

"I'm Doing Fine" is a rather downbeat, depressing song. In this case, the singer has run into his "ex" somewhere and asks how she's doing, tells her he's doing fine, and gives the impression that he probably isn't. The lyrics in this song include very lackluster lines like "Yes, I'm Doin' Fine, and thanks for askin'. It's been a long time, you know time keeps passin'..." Hay's vocals on the song are excellent as usual, but the song is not the best showcase for his singing talent.

"Wash It All Away" is a song about self-reliance and not getting too upset when others refuse to sympathize with you or what you're going through. This makes it a good fit with the "lost love" theme. It's a more upbeat song than most on the album. The beat is a little quicker than most of the other songs. The music has elements of 90's instrumentals and 70's sounds mixed in occasionally.

"Cactus" is a pleasant instrumental piece that would fit well in some movie soundtrack somewhere.

"Death Row Conversation" tells the story of a man named Jake on death row, who wonders how his executioners can really know that his death will be painless, and appears to have found religion in those last moments. A good piece of songwriting, and a fairly original topic (at least among the music I've listened to in my lifetime). The style of the acoustic guitar on this track helps to lend the song a sense of peace and loneliness.

"I'll Leave The Light On" is a more upbeat song about lost love, and seems to imply that the singer/narrator in this case is getting his act together (though he still holds out some hope that the object of his affections decides to come back, leaving the light on for her).

"Freedom Calling" is another of the songs that doesn't fit into the overall theme of the album. It's interesting in that it contains what appears to be a bagpipe solo within it - something you don't usually hear in rock albums. It's a slightly better than average song on the album.

"I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You" is, in spite of being in the recurring "lost love" theme of the album, one of the stronger songs. Like "I'm Doing Fine", it's not a happy song, as you can gather from the title, but it's extremely well written. For example, lines like the following convey a state of mind that anyone who's been in love and lost that love can understand: "I drink good coffee every morning/Comes from a place that's far away/And when I'm done I feel like talking/Without you here there is less to say/I don't want you thinking I'm unhappy/What is closer to the truth/That if I lived till I was 102/I just don't think I'll ever get over you" and "I still find pieces of your presence here/Even after all these years/But I don't want you thinking I don't get asked to dinner/'Cause I'm here to say that I sometimes do/Even though I may soon feel the touch of love/I just don't think I'll ever get over you". I thought Hay's vocals on this track sounded quite a bit like Elvis Costello.

I can't say that this is a great album. I'm not entirely comfortable even calling it a "good" album, so I think I'll describe it as a "decent" album. I've certainly heard worse, and I've definitely heard better - from Colin Hay himself. If it wasn't for the strength of "I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You" and "My Brilliant Feat", I'm not sure I could give it a "decent" rating. On a 1-10 scale, this earns about a 6 overall with 2 tracks getting 8's or 9's, and the rest getting something more like a 4-5.