Artist: Tabor, Ty
Label: Inside Out Records
Release: 2006
Rating: 3.5/5
If you know King`s X or Platypus/Jelly Jam, you know Ty Tabor. Ty is the guitarist and lead vocalist in all of those bands and projects. So far he has put out three solo albums. The first was called “Moonflower Lane”, the second “Safety”, and the one in front of us this time is “Rock Garden”. The album doesn’t bring anything earth-shattering, it’s just the logical follow-up to the first two, which, like this one, reflected Ty’s emotional scatteredness tied to his private life, or in plain words: “working through inner conflicts”. That’s why, on first listen, the album comes across as kind of gloomy and passive.
In the time since the last album, Ty surprisingly didn’t turn into some radio superstar, even though I personally, as a fan of this kind of music, am firmly in his corner. Ty Tabor stays true to himself again, so don’t expect him to play guitar like E. Clapton in his best Cream days, sing like J. Lennon or write better lyrics than Tom Petty. That would be a perversion. Then again, you could also describe Ty as the complete musician package mentioned above.
Personally, I have to admit that what I like most about him is his ability to work in harmony across all those projects. The man simply has that personal knack for fusing and adapting to other musicians. It’s a virtue that, in today’s music business, where everybody wants to dominate on their own, is more the exception than the rule.
If someone were to ask you, say, whether King`s X and Platypus count as progressive, most of you would probably answer with a loud “yes” in one voice. Ty himself, though, says he’s a pop star who only developed with the help of those progressive bands. So that’s the virtue we were writing about a moment ago. And Ty’s partners in crime, Steve Walsh and Neal Morse, could surely tell you a lot more about this wordplay.
That gives me an idea: Tabor, Walsh and Morse should join forces and call themselves KING`S STREET PRAYER. If there were ever a Woodstock III, they could easily debut the way CSN did in 1968.
Alright, let’s wrap it up.
Track List
1. Ride 4:53
2. Stalker 4:47
3. I Know What I’m Missing 3:11
4. Afraid 3:39
5. Play 6:51
6. Beautiful Sky 4:07
7. She’s a Tree 3:32
8. Take It Back 3:00
9. Wading In 3:26
10. Thankful 3:26
11. Pretty Good 4:00
Album length: 45:56
