The James Hyland Band

The James Hyland Band

Place I Call Home

This is a country record about country music and country artists -- twice removed from life in most instances, a mirror held up to a mirror, but it's a position almost necessary for a songwriter doing what Corpus Christi native James Hyland does. It helps that Hyland has written some genuinely good tunes. And it doesn't hurt that the roster for his debut is so impressive: to regulars Willie Pipkin on guitar and steel and Warren Hood (yep, Champ's son) on fiddle, add guests Lloyd Maines, Earl Poole Ball, Stephen Doster, Butch Hancock, and the elder Hood, among others. Hyland's lyrics are easy and fluid, mostly lacking the sense of the over-wrought that so often surfaces when the young guys wear their love for the old guys like a star-shaped badge. And there's the split: When Hyland sings about the women ("Part-Time Girlfriend," "Honky-Tonkin and White Trash Women") and other figures from his own life, he slips a bit toward clichéd imagery and rehashed party tunes. It's when the stars are in his eyes, when he sings in awe and admiration of the music and the musicians he emulates, that Hyland seems most comfortable. And these songs ("Place I Call Home," "Texas Band," and especially "The Train Song") are well-done, self-conscious without sacrificing genuine emotion and an original voice. Perhaps it's because at age 24, music is Hyland's experience, and the songs of life will come with more living.