Dublin Blues

iTunes Review

The opening of the title song of Guy Clark’s 1998 album Dublin Blues contains a perfect encapsulation of Clark’s open-hearted perspective on relationships. The song’s final verse is an equally perfect encapsulation of his musical convictions: “I have seen the David, I’ve seen the Mona Lisa too / I have heard Doc Watson play ‘Columbus Stockade Blues.’” Clark has spent his entire career trying to bridge his complex, humanistic view of men and women with his love for the simplicity of country music. In bridging those notions, Dublin Blues might be his most fully realized album to date. The music is straightforward, and so are the lyrics, but if you read between the lines, “Black Diamond Strings,” “Stuff That Works” and “Hangin’ Your Life On the Wall” reveal everything about Clark’s philosophy of life. By the same token, “Shut Up and Talk to Me” and “Tryin’ to Try” summarize everything he’s learned about relationships. Over the course of his career, Clark has learned to use simpler imagery to describe more complex feelings. Anyone who doubts his craft needs only listen to “The Randall Knife,” a song as delicately constructed as its subject matter.