John Hiatt’s 20th album “Dirty Jeans and Mudslide Hymns” continues his remarkable streak of consistently solid recordings. It feels like an extension of last year’s “The Open Road,” with a few more songs about regrets and a couple of compelling compositions about transportation.
The album opens with “Damn This Town,” a vow to leave everything and everyone behind. The arrangement echoes “Perfectly Good Guitar,” but it comes from a much darker place.
“All The Way Under” and “Down Around My Place” are both evocative songs, riddled with despair.
The man who wrote “Drive South” celebrates a classic car on “Detroit Made,” a rocking ode to a Buick Electra 225. There’s also a fine train song here, “Train to Birmingham.”
The often somber feel of the album makes “I Love That Girl,” the one unabashed pop song, a joyous change of pace.
“Dirty Jeans” closes with “When New York Had Her Heart Broke,” a song about the events of 9/11, written and first performed days after the attacks. You can understand why it’s been on the shelf, but a decade later, it’s powerful and touching.