“Leon” is the only album I’ve reviewed for this column that I’ve listened to all the way through in one sitting. Leon Bridges’ eponymous fourth album is a honey-sweet trip through a sun- blitzed 70’s soundscape reminiscent of Sam Cooke and Al Greene’s summer tunes. I listened to “Leon” on a long solo car ride through New England as the leaves changed colors on a friend’s recommendation. It’s a beautiful piece of art that is cohesive in a very different way from albums I’ve reviewed recently (remember “Bando Stone,” anyone?). Every song aligns with the same aesthetic.
Bridges’ album is the result of a decade-long creative journey for the 35-year old singer. Leon Bridges’ professional career began at the Del Frisco Grille in Fort Worth, Texas, a decade ago. Bridges had been playing for years at the Grille before he was signed by Columbia Records in 2014, a move that allowed him to release 2015’s “Coming Home” to a broad audience. Although Bridges has slightly declined in popularity since 2015 in terms of chart positioning, his music has only matured with time.
“Leon” is a culmination of everything Bridges has ever written. “Panther City,” for example, combines Bridges’ usual upbeat, sunny style without sacrificing the truth of where he grew up: “All the crackheads and prostitutes on Rosedale/My father said, ‘Go straight home’ or I’d catch hell/‘Don’t walk around them streets at night.’” For me, “Panther City” represents the beautiful duality of Leon Bridges’ music. On the same project, he’s able to seamlessly deliver the perfect song for a relaxing day at the beach and also a whole host of melancholic slow tunes. What’s even more special is that, in doing this, Bridges is playing with nothing more than chord arrangements and lyrics. His backing percussion and soundscape stay relatively similar throughout.
The album begins on a melancholic note. “When a Man Cries,” the opening song on “Leon,” begins the 43-minute project with this: “Feel my world split in two/I know you hurt so bad/You gotta hurt me.” Love (or lack thereof) isn’t the only theme in “Leon” like it’s been for albums I’ve reviewed in the past, but it does sneak its way into many tracks, especially the more reflective ones. “When a Man Cries,” “Laredo,” and “Ghetto Honeybee” are just a few examples of Bridges’ profound ability to encapsulate a specific emotional moment and relay it through music. His songwriting ability is powerful, but his guitar and backing band carry him through some of the most emotional music I’ve ever heard.
I think “Leon” is the best album I’ve reviewed for this column. Although many of the songs follow a similar style, this lends itself well to Bridges’ guitar and songwriting abilities. Each song feels like a continuation of the last, a syrupy-sweet mashup of summer memories and dreams Bridges himself has left behind in the Texas sun. More than anything else, “Leon” makes me want to hop on a plane and go to a beach in the tropics. In the air, I’d listen to “Panther City” and “Ivy,” both beautiful moments captured through Bridges’ hazy, golden world of song.
