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T. Moody is an independent songwriter distributing his music through his site. Songs of Samuel is his second project, a 7-song acoustic journey through I Samuel 16.
In the new digital age and the world wide web it is much easier to distribute your music to the world. As recent as the 1980's T. Moody would be forced to have his music at a local level with little or no chance for distrubtion unless thousands were put into his project and promotion.
To compare a home-produced CD with those of major labels or Indie labels or replicated full CD projects is apples and oranges, but TMoody has strong potential and we like the porject as a whole. Dew is uplifting and certainly good driving to work music; it's quite reflective and a smart way to start the CD. The second track, Daybreak, is longing for a vocal over the top. This is a beautifully written song, full of the joy of the morning and the promise of a new day. You'll have a difficult time not smiling when you hear it as it buoys your spirits. It's the one I found myself going back to over and over again.
A guitar album somewhat limits production, with modules and studio equipment needed for improvement. That would be the next step needed to get closer to the level the music industry now demands; something for nothing, except that nothing is valuable time and money to the artist. We like this album even without the production. What could be improved is arrangement skill; this is more apparent on some tracks than others. Track 3, Prophecy, has great potential yet cries out for a shorter arrangement. The repeating lick throughout the song seems to be a set up for improv (the melody line), but to the listener it gets old quickly.
The album is layered guitar with no other instruments involved. Moody fills out the songs well with high guitar picking taking the place of percussion and brass. Quest has a soothing edge to it while there's a little bit of a blues vibe running through Reflection, which is aptly titled. The 10-minute plus Peace fits the concept of the album, the Songs of Samuel. I Samuel 16:17 reads, "And Saul said unto his servants, Provide me now a man that can play well, and bring him to me." Moody could well have fit that description.
Moonlight closes out the album with an arrangement of Amazing Grace put into an original song. It's another track that will lift your spirits. The ending of the CD seems to stop a bit abruptly with no fading, no slowing down. In the right producer's hands, this project could be so much more.
Songs of Samuel needs some polish, yet at the same time it's very soothing, peaceful, and uplifting. With that said, I'd certainly pay money to watch TMoody play guitar in an unplugged setting. You can feel the passion and the unadulterated love of music even through an imperfect project. I'm sure he's well worth the price of admission, but after the concert, I'd want a finished product that reflects the quality of the musician. That CD would need to meet a pretty high standard.
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