By Ken Paulson
Paul Thorn’s Too Blessed to Be Stressed is sort of a children’s album for adults.
Just as kids’ albums teach cooperation, manners and personal hygiene in song, Thorn offers a few life lessons of his own:
- Remember that we’re “Too Blessed to Be Stressed.”
- Keep the faith and know that “Everything’s Gonna Be All Right.”
- Make friends because “Everybody Needs Somebody.”
- Walk a different path and “Don’t Let Nobody Rob You of Your Joy”
While that may sound preachy, it’s anything but. This is largely joyous and affirming music, supplemented with the vocals of the McCrary Sisters.
“Mediocrity is King,” the album’s highlight, is considerably more cutting. This is a contemporary protest song, bemoaning an era in which the shallow are celebrated, family businesses are obsolete and Johnny Cash would never have made it. In just 18 words, Thorn explains why our democracy is in disarray “When you don’t expect much, you’re never let down; you get the kind of government we’ve got now.” This is smart and pointed songwriting and we need a lot more of it.
The album isn’t wall-to wall messages. “I Backslide on Fridays” is more familiar Thorn fare, explaining how good intentions disappear over the course of a week.
Thorn and co-writer Billy Maddox have crafted a fine album with hook-laden songs that actually say something about the world we live in, a surprisingly rare achievement. Too Blessed to be Stressed continues Thorn’s remarkable run.
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