“Starting Over”, the title track of Mark Conklin’s EP, is a stunning beginning to a special six song release. It is special for many reasons. The first and primary reason is that the half dozen tracks he’s written for this release are, in my opinion, among the finest examples of traditional country music in a contemporary setting I’ve listened to in many years. They revisit the form in a modern context without ever feeling or sounding like rank imitations. The second reason is because the EP might not even exist at all if it wasn’t for some particular turns his life has taken. Conklin began his life in music as an active musician and Nashville songwriter, but circumstances pulled in a different direction and he moved into the industry itself and artist management. It was satisfying and Conklin enjoyed real success but, in the end, he wanted to write and record his own music once again. That desire gave birth to Starting Over.
URL: https://markdconklin.com/
The slide guitar, electric guitar, and on target drumming pushing the title track onward gives Conklin an outstanding foundation. He’s acquainted himself with the best possible musicians to bring the song together and the mid-tempo pace it maintains has more vigor than you might expect. The lyrics are the first of many stunners on the EP – Conklin draws blood from himself and leaves it in every line. “Circus” focuses its lens on another individual in the second track “Circus” but, nonetheless, his attention on another reveals just as much about himself, his attitudes, his affection for people who’ve hit hard times. It also reveals his ability to orchestrate a tune in such a dramatic way that it holds your attention from the first as if you are watching some small, short movie. The track moves from a hushed opening into a rousing full band arrangement and the atmosphere provided by unexpected instrumentation is a minor masterstroke. The lyrics are pure verbal fireworks during the chorus.
WATCH THE LYRIC VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L06umIhj5Tg
“When a Girl Gives Up” is a wonderful traditional country ballad, a real weeper tune complete with old school steel guitar lines that hit the spot without sounding corny or dated. Conklin comes across as a man who has traveled this particular road with a partner in his own life thanks to convincing lyrics that drive to the heart of such feelings without ever sounding melodramatic. “Toy Soldiers” is another standout because it is one of the most thoughtful reflections on the waste of war you will hear in recent memory. He avoids slogans and examines the subject from every angle – the politicians, the men and women who come home in body bags or coffins, those that come back forever scarred, and the families torn asunder by the carnage. The accompanying music, especially the drumming, couldn’t be better. There isn’t a bad song on this release and if this is starting over for Mark Conklin, he could hardly do so in more complete and excellent fashion. Many will be coming back to this musician and songwriter when he releases new material.
Jodi Marxbury