Product Description

Though he's all made up for late'90s MTV exposure, Shawn Mullins turns out to be an old-fashioned troubadour at heart. Sure, there are hip-hop inflected drum loops, tastefully retro-sounding keyboards and stylish, artful string arrangements, but Mullins' main concern is chronicling his experiences and observations as he moves through a complex, confusing world. Most of the songs are based on acoustic guitar underpinning, and Mullin's appealing drawl is at the centre of it all, delivering lyrics full of careful detail from his traveler's bag of tunes. The liner notes even give details of whereand why some of the songs were written, a sure sign of a man with itinerant balladeer blood. Hell, there's even a decent cover of Kris Kristofferson's "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", what more do you want? Did we mention that Mullin's isn't afraid to get funky? There's more to SOUL'S CORE than just aflavour-of-the-week mindset. Try it and see.

Track Listing

1. Anchored In You
2. Lullaby
3. Gulf Of Mexico
4. September In Seattle
5. Twin Rocks Oregon
6. On A Rainy Night
7. Tannin Bed Song
8. Soul Child
9. Ballad Of Billy Jo McKay
10. Patrick's Song
11. Sunday Mornin' Coming Down
12. You Mean Everything To Me
13. Shimmer

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #65320 in Music
• Released on: 2001-01-01
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
Shawn Mullins is a 1990s acoustic troubadour whose lyrics, at their worst, read like overly precious journal entries ("The road is my home / And my spirit is wild"), making him seem sometimes like Jewel with a Y chromosome. (According to his song "Twin Rock, Oregon", Mullins has lived out of his van, too.) But some of the 13 songs that comprise Soul's Core have bite, especially the restless "Ballad of Billy Jo McKay" and the gritty "Gulf of Mexico". Mullins is at his best when he plays to his strengths, which include an affinity for working-class characters and an eye for detail. Best of all is his sweet Georgia drawl, which pours honey over the aching "Soul Child" and the memorable chorus of his breakthrough hit, "Lullabye". Mullins produced the album, his major-label debut, and even though it's his eighth title (he sold its predecessors out of that storied van), he is an artist whose skills are still on the rise. --Daniel Durchholz

Customer Reviews

Absolutely first class...
Well, what can I say?!This album is a masterpiece-its amazing! Shawn Mullins is such a clever artist and writes with such sincerity. The songs on this album are fantastic and range from being quite upbeat to the more slower ballards and the lyrics to every song are wonderful. The first song I heard off of this album was 'Lullaby' and I was very impressed-I liked the way the song was mixed between Shawn talking and then singing through the chorus. And then I heard 'Shimmer' on the Dawson's Creek album and that confirmed my liking for him-and I also noticed that he has such a fantastic voice; how can you not like a song with lyrics like: "He's born to shimmer, he's born to shine, he's born to radiate, he's born to live' he's born to love, but we will teach him how to hate"?!!!
Most of the songs on the album are like stories being told through songs and music, which I think is just so refreshing. I think the best songs on the album are 'Anchored In You' ("I am in motion, I am blue, love is an ocean, Im anchored in you"), 'The Gulf of Mexico' ("And I hear a voice from my soul's core sayin' 'freedoms just a metaphore, you got nowhere to go', and the rain pours down like a holy waterfall, over the Gulf of Mexico"), 'Twin Rocks, Oregon' ("I pulled up here to watch the sun, disappear into the ocean, cos its been years since I smelt the salty sea"), 'Soul Child' ("Like fallin' rain, the days go by, you can't kill the pain, and you wonder why") and 'Shimmer' as I mentionned before. But all of the songs are amazing!!

Well, I hope that just reading some of the amazing lyrics that this man can write will help you to decide to buy this album- and the price on Amazon is so [inexpensive] compared to other places, that you really can't go wrong!It is the perfect album to listen to-especially in the summer or if you are on a long road trip and you need something to chill out to! Take my word for it, if you buy this album, you will not be disappointed-this man is amazing.

Laid back music for the soul
I first heard this album in Colorado, I had of course heard lullaby on the radio and due to overkill on the radio stations part found it a particularly annoying song, however when you hear in in context with the rest of the album it regains the credit it deserves. Lullaby is not the best song on the album, Twin Rocks, Oregan has to be my favourite, with Tanning Bed Song and Sunday Morning Coming Down. I suggest you buy this album, get some gear and just chill....it's amazing.

This is an album you must own!!
If you like your music simplistic,then this album is undoubtedly for you.From the the stunning opening track, "Anchored in you" right through to the inspiring "Shimmer", Mullins has crafted an album of rare beauty.Every song tells a story,and every song is a masterpiece!The power of this album lies in Mullins acoustic guitar and his gravelly,hypnotic voice.Standout tracks;"Twin rocks, Oregon" which tells the story of an older version of Mullins himself and "And On A Rainy Night" which is just mindblowing.Listen to this when you've had a smoke and just kick back and enjoy Mullins unique storytelling.Marvellous!