Rob's Note: Vermonters will need plenty of good music to get us through the long cold winter ahead. Lewis Franco's new CD delivers warmth, grace, and humor in equal measure, Check it out!

And trave safely this week-end.

THE REVIEW:

Not Pop Music, But “Mom and Pop” Music:
Lewis Franco's “Swinging in Daddyland”

Former Northern Power employee-turned-singer/songwriter Lewis Franco is one of Vermont's best-kept musical secrets. An understated and good-natured family man residing in the greater Montpelier area, Franco is one of the Green Mountains' most gifted musicians, a performer who is able to wrap well-crafted lyrics around catchy musical melodies, and possesses the guitar chops and musical sensibility to match.

Franco's new project – performed with an ensemble cleverly called the “Missing Cats,” and tinged with a scat-meet-gypsy swing sound – may be his best yet. Franco is always good at pushing the envelope – lyrically, musically, instrumentally – and he really goes to town on this new project. “Swinging in Daddyland” is toe-tapping infectious acoustic music at its best – equal parts Django Reinhart on the gypsy end, and, on the other, a Dan Zanes-ian Americana sensibility with a big-hearted sense of humor that grins, winks and nudges without being trite, sentimental or cheesy.

Pulling off a “concept” album – “Swing” meets “Gypsy” meets “Americana” - can be real hard to do. But Franco courageously commits up front. And the best part of Franco's songs, for me, is the fact that they always have a little musical and/or lyrical twist to them, including the use of odd instruments (a washing machine, for example, in his new project), or a zany concept he manages to pull off with a wink and a grin (Long-time Franco listeners know “Who Put the Hyper in Your Diaper?” from his first CD), as well as wonderful contributions from a whole community of friends and neighbors, from his multi-talented musical neighbor Colin McCaffrey to his daughter and son Louisa and Joseph.

The new CD comes out, well, swinging, with the title track, and then quickly jumps into a wonderful tune called “Homegrown” about the creature comforts of living in the “Householder” stage – a rhythmically wonderful ode to “place” and all that it entails, the homestead garden, the day-to-day rhythm of the seasons, the small pleasures of family. Imagine the lyrics below, performed against a groovy and rhythmic acoustic beat:

Good stuff growin' in the garden
Jumpin' up out of the dirt
Cook it up right for supper tonight
The neighbors will be bringin' desert

We don't need television
We don't need a video game
We have our fun together
It isn't too exciting but I love it just the same

Indeed.

And this song highlights another wonderful aspect to Franco's tunes – I feel like he is singing about me and everyone I know who has ever been a parent with children and a family.

My two kids' current favorite on the CD is a wonderful tune called “Have You Looked?” (track 3), a father/daughter duet about finding lost stuff – a necklace, Mommy (she's in the garden), a pillow, and…well, I won't spoil the ending for you, but let me just say that, as a father, I almost broke down the first time I heard the end of the song – laughing and crying all at once. Brilliantly orchestrated, and so simple.

Personally, I am drawn to track 7 – “Annabelle” – an acoustic rock and roll number about a father and daughter spending a day out, and their encounters with a band playing dance music. It is a spontaneous, fun, catchy and upbeat tune about seizing the moment, wrapped up (very subtly) with a reminder that kids do grow up (Never mind track 6, “Rude Awakening” – a bluesy number urging adults in love to think thrice before they plunge into the baby thing) and, Franco reminds us that we parents need to practice “carpe diem” behavior at every opportunity.

And I haven't even begun to mention the other ten tunes (yes, there are an ambitious 15 songs on this project).

Suffice to say, Lewis Franco has set a very high bar for Green Mountain singer/songwriters with his new and wondrous CD. Don't miss him, performing with “the Missing Cats,” at some of Vermont's best venues this next month!

And keep it swinging.

Find out more at www.lewisfranco.com.

Upcoming Performances include:

Friday, November 16th, 2007
Historic Town Hall Theatre; Woodstock VT; 7:30 pm
Price: $15 adults, $10 kids (under 18)

Saturday, November 17th, 2007
United Methodist Church of Middlebury; 7:30 pm
Price: $15 adults, $10 kids (under 18)

Saturday, December 1st, 2007
The Old Meeting House; East Montpelier; 7:30 pm
Price: $15 adults, $10 kids (under 18)