With his choice of Mark Heard's "Worry Too Much" and Bob Dylan's "With God On Our Side," Buddy Miller wastes no time in cutting to the heart of his latest record's concern. When familiar comfort zones are pulled from under you, the reassuring confidence of the country you love turns to arrogance, and the name of the God you trust is invoked to defend the shift, which way does a person of faith turn?
In this case it's further into explicitly spiritual terrain, as Miller melds co-writes and covers to build his most charged album to date. The production is measured, the arrangements tight and deeply textured, and the message is clear: something has gone terribly wrong and the only way forward is to admit our faults and look outside of ourselves for direction.
The themes of war are easy to find, particularly in the aforementioned Dylan cover, but also in the apocalyptic imagery of "Shelter Me" (co-written with wife and long-time writing partner Julie) and interspersed through the album. But they do not sit alone and there's clearly a recognition of wider societal and personal brokenness. It's not till after he has sung:
just look at me so lost and weak
heed my warning when this fool speaks
in "Don't Wait" that he turns to the broader juxtaposition of indictment and hope in "This Old World":
this old world just stays the same
one man wants what the other man gained
one man's greedy one man's not
you can't worship money and god
cain killed abel that was his brother
sons of abraham still killing each other
c'mon children understand
jesus washed all away the sins of man
Stylistically, Miller runs the gamut of americana, from the stripped down, Buddy, Julie, and guitar of "Wide River To Cross," to the gospel-blues-rock mesh of "Don't Wait", and on to the fiddle'n'accordion of "This Old World." Naturally Buddy's own vocals and the guitar playing that has seen him appearing next to much of country music's royalty are the dominant force, but the use of backing vocalists is particularly effective, with the near constant presence of Regina and Ann McCrary's soulful contribution bringing the record much of its flavour.
It's been a long time since Buddy Miller could be accused of releasing a weak record, but it wouldn't be overstepping the mark to point to "Universal United House of Prayer," as the high-point of his career to date. A rousing contribution to a discussion that is very much needed.
Other coverage for this album
The Phantom Tollbooth 2004Reviewed by Steve StockmanUniversal United House of Prayer is as in your face spiritually as Steve Earle's The Revolution Starts Now is politically and deals with the very same response to the very same war. It is Gospel blues of a most upright sort. No messing or ambiguity. This is the subject matter of the contemporary Christian music industry but with a huge difference - it doesn't sit in a vacuum but gets sung into…Similar sounding releases
2003Screen DoorGreener
2002John AustinBusted At The Pearly Gates
2004Jonathan RundmanPublic Library
2004Ben ThomasThe Recovery
2005John PrineFair & Square
2003Joel HendersonThe High Risk EP
