In July of 2017, we called their album, Bass, Drums, Guitars & Organs, “…a rare instance of near flawless fundamentals.” (And we weren’t joking.) Last year, we described their single, She Moves Like A Mystery, as “…oh-so-lovely.”
Yet, none of this comes much as a surprise when you stop to consider that Frank Migliorelli & The Dirt Nappers have shared the stage with the likes of Gavin DeGraw, Southside Johnny, Steve Forbert, Joan Osborne, and others.
Now, Frank Migliorelli (singer-songwriter, guitar), Tony Tino (bass), Dan Weiss (keyboards), Mike Heaphy (steel), Tommy Diehl (drums), and Thad Debrock (guitars), are at it again, with their third studio album, the tangibly sweet, the refreshingly full-of-heart, The Things You Left Behind. (We even love the album cover.)
HERE’S WHAT WE DUG MOST…
Opening with the album’s title track, The Things You Left Behind, Frank and company do what they do best: take something broken, something serious, something disheartening… and make it sparkle, make it fun. With a 50’s-rock-style groove, and an Orbison-esque timbre, what we have here is the theme song to the next iteration of Friends.
OUR FAVORITE TRACK…
She Moves Like A Mystery never gets old, never tires in its ability to warm a room, create a smile, and encourage that long, deep breath on a Friday night after a long week. Damn, it’s oh-so-lovely…
“She moves like a mystery
To places I can’t find
Lipstick traces and fingerprints
Is what she leaves behind
She disappears in the shadows
And I don’t know what to do
She leaves me with her perfume scent
And that’s my only clue…”
Take It Back rebels tastefully against the machine of our capitalistic, over-tech’ed, anti-social culture…
“Now I’m turning off the TV, I’m hanging up the phone
I’m feeling anti-social, but I don’t want to be alone
I’ll find another way to see the forest from the trees
I’m fighting for survival, and I’m doing what I please…”
The sweet, tender accordion melody and drifter storytelling in Vagabond Shoes feels like something from a safe world long past.
Late 70’s Petty lives again in The Fire Inside. Dig that bass-line.
The bluesy, 80’s-style downtown southern swag in, The Key To Your Heart, feels a bit like Hall & Oates cut a track with The Fixx.
Steel guitars and country-plucked strings lighten the mood in Every Bartender In This Town Knows My Name. Think: Cheers in Nashville.
IN CONCLUSION…
Light and effervescent. Unassuming and substantive. Uncommonly skilled musicianship. Whether it’s 50’s, southern, country, pop, Americana, or folk, Frank Migliorelli & The Dirt Nappers are at all times cool and composed with each song’s respective rock muse of choice in their third studio album, The Things You Left Behind.
Incorporating—as we have come to expect—a superbly-mixed collective of veteran music-smiths with Migliorelli’s gentle-yet-direct, subtle-though-honest brand of storytelling and songwriting, the album comes off crisp, clean, and wildly enjoyable—all while leaving no topic off limits, from broken hearts to gun laws.
It’s Friday night in, with your partner and a glass of wine. It’s also Friday night out, with your crew and a pitcher of beer. Win—win.
WHOSE LOVECHILD…?
Petty meets Orbison…
BELOW: Listen to Frank Migliorelli & The Dirt Nappers’ new album, The Things You Left Behind, and connect with their website and social media platforms. Please support Frank Migliorelli & The Dirt Nappers by visiting them online, and playing, downloading, and/or purchasing their music, or attending a live show! And, as always, thank you for supporting real music!
Follow, stream, download & connect with FRANK MIGLIORELLI & THE DIRT NAPPERS online:
