Lovin’, Fightin’, Losin’ Sleep

On their latest, Joe Mullins and the Radio Ramblers serve up a box of treats that seem destined to please old fans as well as new ones.  The album opens with the philosophical “Time Adds Up (If You’re Lucky)” (co-written by Missy Raines and Tim Stafford). Next up is “Something To Look Forward To” (Ronnie Bowman-William Apostol), about how dreams of the love back home can make life on the road more sustainable.

“(We’re In) The Good Old Days” is about appreciating life in the moment, before those moments slip away.  Mullins and the crew really rev up their gospel-style harmonies on the lovely “The Bluebirds Are Singing To Me” (Conrad Fisher). More sorrowful is “It’s Morning Already (and Still You’re Not Home)” (Lisa Moore), which is about sleepless nights and tortured minds.

There’s also quite a bit here on the more playful side. “Black and Decker Blues” (James Rushing and Larry Cordle) is a song every do-it-yourselfer home-improver can relate to. “Low Dog Blues” is a tongue-in-cheek lament originally co-written (with Lionel Delmore) and recorded by John Anderson.

A special delight is a thrilling reprise of the rock n’ roll hit, “The End of the Line,” first popularized by the supergroup, The Traveling Wilburys in the late 1980s.