Shimmer & Thrum  Jon Albrink  Rimanoah Records

The pen is mightier than the sword. Combined with a guitar (axe) in the hands 
of an accomplished songwriter, it will cut a neat swath through a muddled present 
and a cloudy future. Jon Albrink wields a formidable weapon. 

He has a sharp command of melody and his burr-edged voice matches each melodic turn with precision. 

In the opening cut, "Miracle," "…she waits for a miracle…and she's hoping that it's 
cheap and it's free." Kind of like when the lotto goes over 25 million and I plunk down 
my five bucks to buy a bargain solve-all. And sometimes there's an inertia that leaves us earthbound.  
"She waits for the sun to rise, so she can finally get some sleep… Jon expresses it well.

Looking back on a relationship in "Brother and Sister," declaring "…I know we're more 
than brother and sister…", Jon explores what happened between him and one particular female 
with aplomb, not hiding the hurt, but exalting it with a sweeping grace. Marc Shulman, 
an old favorite on lead guitar, adds some wrenching slide and solo work.

One jewel on the CD, for me, is "Angel on My Shoulder." This has some surprising melodic 
twists and lyrics that Stevie Wonder would be proud of. The loss is mirrored so well… 
"I'm going far tonight…with an angel on my shoulder…suddenly it's colder than I had planned." 
I have no trouble imagining Stevie performing it. Marc again adds some beautiful background solo work.

Another absolute gem is "The way I Look at You." Any singer/songwriter would be happy with a 
declaration of love such as this one in his repertoire. "When your dreams are broken…and your blood 
is shed…no one wants to take you into his bed…when your bridge is smokin'… river's running red…
all of your friends have left you for dead…Nothing's gonna change… the way I look at you." The bridge, 
"…I know I sound like a fool, when I go on this way…" is like a hit of a spring flower's aroma. 
It's sensitive and catchy, with Beatle-like pop hooks. Allison Cornell provides some beautiful 
background violin and viola here. 

The entire effort is full of finely crafted songs and thoughtful production. 

Shimmer and Thrum is available on www.songs.com