Jack Lukeman, Magic Days. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *

There is nothing in this world that can touch the feeling of absolute passion in a person’s thoughts and actions, even in the unseen, the visually unattainable, if the words can be heard, if they send a shiver down your spine then all in the world is filled at least with humanity and beauty. It is a way in the world which gives hope, which really makes the listener of the delight and enthusiasm dream of a place where all can be held with such fervour.

It is in these Magic Days that even the wind blowing a gale, rattling the old timber frames to their core, the threat of violence outside the door and the punishments dreamed up by mad men and false Governments, that music has such power to thrill, to conjure up the imagination and put a person in a different frame of mind to the one they started the morning with. It is in magic notes and well written, memorable lyrics that the world truly turns and in Jack Lukeman, that magic is the absolute of passionate spells.

Jack Lukeman’s Magic Days is to be seen as a reflection of those moments, however it has more to it than the ability to make the listener feel good, to be in the moment of the exquisite and the company of the good hearted overflow, it has the bang of honesty strewn throughout each song, the unnerving thrill and cascade of emotions that come with an album dedicated solely to the reliable memory of what has been.

Passion, it is arguably one of life’s most endearing qualities, without it the bleak and pretence are all that is left and they soon rot out like uncared for teeth; it is one thing to eat a fine meal everyday but if all you are doing is going through the motions and the need to fill your belly with high calorie sweets, then you may as well turn in your fork and palate.

The same is with music, if it does not convey enjoyment, a story filled with drama and expertise then the songs won’t flow with the ease of a Guinness tasted after a long day at work.

In tracks such as You Are The Sea, The Show, The Sunset Is Blue On Mars and The Show, what comes across is dynamite, an explosion of beauty tucked away in surely one of the albums of the year, perhaps sentimental, but never knowingly anything other sincere; it is an album in which Jack Lukeman truly establishes a sense of utter respect. Magic days indeed. Â

Ian D. Hall