While the sprawling double lp Gossip was my introduction to Paul Kelly Under The Sun is the one I come back to the most. Kelly is a very literate songwriter who ranks as one of the best of his generation. One of those artists that you forget for a while and then you play a CD or album and go on a bit of a binge. I think it happens because while the songwriting is such a uniformly high standard the delivery is such that binging eventually has you putting them to the side for a while. Hiatt, Springsteen, Zevon and Waits are all in the same category as far as I am concerned.
I have managed to see him three times. The most memorable at Sammy's in Dunedin about 20 years ago!!!
Under the Sun is crammed with outstanding songs. The highlight to me is To Her Door a gentle song of relationship redemption. Dumb Things and 40 Miles to Saturday Night are great party songs with the latter always bringing Jon's time "stranded" in the outback to mind. The CD version of the album has the mighty Bradman on it - the best song about cricket ever. I still have strong memories of the crowd that night singing along to it waving their arms in the air as he sang the "Pal,m of His Hands" lyric (and this was a NZ audience!)
Playing the album now - I feel a binge coming on.
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