K enny Roby’s music is very simple. His new album is mostly just him and his acoustic guitar, with a dozen original songs. He doesn’t seem to be doing anything new. Such artists are found in the singer-songwriter world. Roby writes in plain English, but his material is not flashy. One does not need a dictionary to comprehend the lyrics. Songs with titles such as “Suzanne”, “God-Sized Hole”, and “I Don’t Believe It’s Magic” evoke past artists such as Leonard Cohen, David Olney, and John Sebastian. It seems like Roby’s tunes are also friendly. The riffs gently decorate his songs in that old familiar way, and one can hear small snippets of old melodies between the riffs.
There is something special about Roby that makes him different from the rest. Initially, it seems unsophisticated, but it turns out to be more complicated and captivating. His guitar work enhances the mood without being cloying or show-offish. Roby gets in a good rhythm with a crackerjack band that features Daniel Littleton on guitars, Jeff Hill on bass, and Tony Leone on drums. John Sebastian is on harmonica, Amy Helm is on vocals, Brian Mitchell is on accordion, and Amy Laber is on the autoharp.
Roby’s voice is relaxed and comfortable. He seems to have experienced life’s difficulties, but still has a positive attitude towards the future. Roby sings in a mellow voice that he has always been ok even when he isn’t. He just takes a deep breath and lets his cares go. He sings on the opening track, “every day is a new day”, which seems to be the theme of the release. The first-person protagonists know that every day has the potential to be special.
Roby is depicted in the songs as a dreamer with a sense of reality. You can teach a boy to fish, but not make him eat. His world is more important than his current reality. He may call everyoneBuddy, but not everyone is his friend, and his wife can be a different person. One can always build a new reality and try again if one keeps their head high after experiencing failure. These are small things. Roby expresses them with the strum of a guitar and an unhurried voice as if he is telling the audience something they already know with a pat on the back and a warm smile.
The last track on Kenny Roby’s album has the musician confess that he used to make gadgets and heart-shaped candy treats, presumably referring to creating a more intricate style of pop music. He advises people to sing about the secret of crickets and the dish that runs away with the spoon. Keeping it simple doesn’t mean dumbing it down. Roby has learned that the more obvious facts of life are the same as watching the world without filters. He sings them like they are true.