This might be an apples-to-oranges comparison, but in a perfect world, Clay Cook would be dominating the music charts, and people would be saying “Taylor who?” and “I’m not sure who that lady is on the NFL games.”
Ok, maybe that’s a little extreme, but Clay Cook has the talent and musical pedigree that would make him more famous in a perfect world. The nephew of the Marshall Tucker Band’s Doug Gray, Cook cut his teeth at Berklee College of Music, where he met John Mayer. Mayer and Cook collaborated on some of the songs that made it onto Mayer’s debut album “Room for Squares.”
Cook did a stint with the Marshall Tucker Band and played with Shawn Mullins and Sugarland before becoming a member of the Zac Brown Band in 2008. He’s a talented songwriter, powerhouse vocalist, and masterful multi-instrumentalist.
Fans of the Zac Brown Band will recognize his harmony vocals as well as his lead vocal turns on the closing portion of 2012’s “Last but Not Least” (the best part of an already killer song) and his song “Smoke Rise,” which the band included a bonus track on the “You Get What You Give” album.
I first became aware of his solo work when he did an opening set for Zac Brown Band. The first song of his I heard was the title cut to his 2014 album “North Star,” which has become one of my all-time favorite songs.
Cook followed up “North Star” with his most cohesive album yet, 2017’s “Unobstructed View.” This album has all the hallmarks of what made Cook’s other albums so excellent, including a seamless blend of rock, country, and pop, but on “Unobstructed View,” the whole manages to exceed the sum of its parts.
Part of what ties the whole album together so well is that Cook puts these musical interludes in between each song. They’re a little more experimental and challenging than the songs themselves, but they make the whole record seem like a song cycle, even if the songs themselves don’t relate to each other.
“Unobstructed View” kicks off with “Waiting,” a soaring, melodic plea to a woman to be honest about her intentions.
Then comes the gorgeous, delicate title track. The protagonist of this song laments overshadowing his brother and promises to allow him to shine. I don’t know if it’s an autobiographical song, but it’s moving nonetheless.
Cook proves his prowess as a story-song writer with “Worth Fighting For.” The story of a man who decides again and again that his relationship with his wife is worth fighting for against different types of adversity packs a punch. It also rocks!
Cook loves a good cover tune, and “Unobstructed View” includes two of them. His version of Zac Brown Band’s “Wildfire,” which he co-wrote, is better than the original, and his take on “Right Down the Line” pays fine tribute to Gerry Rafferty.
Of course, there’s no such thing as a perfect album, and “Unobstructed View” is no exception. I’m hesitant to call any of the songs bad, but there are a handful of tracks on this album that aren’t as strong as the rest. I don’t hate “If She’ll Have Me,” “Waiting for Time to Run Out,” or “I’m Giving Up on You,” but they pale in comparison to the stronger cuts on the record.
Cook saves one of the best for last. On the closing cut “Dangerous,” he sings to the accompaniment of a tack piano about how he’s not the kind of man a woman should want to be with. It’s the opposite of his life as a happily married father of three, but he belts so convincingly that you can’t help but believe him.
As an independent artist, Cook creates tremendous music yet deserves a much wider audience. Give “Unobstructed View” a spin and see for yourself. You can listen to it on Spotify or in lossless audio on Apple Music.
