Single Review: 'Days of Gold' – Jake Owen
12 years ago Liv Carter Comments Off on Single Review: 'Days of Gold' – Jake Owen
Songwriters: Jaren Johnston, Neil Mason
Jake Owen is kicking off a new era with ‘Days of Gold,’ the title track of his upcoming album, due out December 3. And oh my, does it bode well for this new project!
Owen found the song on the 2012 debut album of Nashville trio The Cadillac Three. While the record is stuffed full of excellent songs (really, you need this album), I said at the time that the one undisputed hit was ‘Days of Gold.’ I am thrilled that Owen and his team share that opinion and are bringing this song to a new audience.
With its short, descriptive, often verb-less phrases, the song just presents you a scene and leaves it up to the listener to populate it with characters. It’s a risk relying on people to identify with the situation rather than a person in a song, and it’s a testament to Jaren Johnston and Neil Mason‘s songwriting that it works so well here. Add to that Owen’s convincing performance and everything a hit song needs is in the right place. He is enjoying the heck out of this song, and his enthusiasm is infectious.
Producer Joey Moi rebuilt much of the original arrangement, although making it a little less weighty and volatile. He kept the hand-clap percussion but added harmonica, and pushed the energetic banjo very forward in the mix, to create an almost perfect 50/50 blend of country and southern rock.
‘Days of Gold’ is unlike anything Jake Owen has sent to country radio so far, but the change in direction is exciting. Here’s hoping that radio fully supports this song and the single can launch Owen to the next level of his career.
‘Days of Gold’ lyrics video:
Liv Carter
She holds several certificates from Berklee College of Music, and a certificate in Positive Psychology from UC Berkeley.
Her main influences are coffee, cats, and Alexander Hamilton.
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