Rob’s Album of The Week: Johnny Blue Skies’ Passage du Desir

Sturgill Simpson has always been the type of artist to stray away from norms & trends while doing things on his own terms. This is proven from the way the Jackson, Kentucky approaches music with one song being a country tune about aliens and another being a rip-roaring rocker that’s influenced by Japanese culture. It’s also proven from how he isn’t afraid to switch things up a bit, even going as far as to change his own name. This is the case with Johnny Blue Skies, which is Simpson’s new alter ego. His debut album under this name is Passage du Desir, which came out via his own label at High Top Mountain Records on July 12.

Simpson co-produced the record with David Ferguson, who he has worked with on prior projects. The process was done at two different studios, with one being at the legendary Abbey Road Studios in London and the other being at the Clement House Recording Studio in Nashville. This resulted in an album that incorporates elements of country, blues and soul to forge a sound that’s very reminiscent of the ’70s singer-songwriter era. It’s another example of Simpson’s stellar songwriting talents with each tune possessing a fantastic quality. There’s also a nice flow that comes through via the sequencing.

Now, I know that I have some explaining to do. For the past two weeks, the only two articles I’ve written for Culture Beat have been this review column. While I do love writing this particular article on a regular basis, I do recognize that there are also other articles that need tending to. After dealing with a case of burnout, I do plan on getting back to publishing daily content. In the meantime, here are my top tracks off of the Album of The Week:

“If The Sun Never Rises Again” definitely relays a cool vibe that’s similar to Bill Withers. It has this funky blend of soul and R&B that I really enjoy and it’s probably my favorite song off of Passage du Desir. Going down the psychedelic route is “Jupiter’s Faerie”, which starts off as a ballad and then it picks things up while having a more orchestral tone. Supplying a proper dose of bluegrass, “Mint Tea” has fantastic harmonies with an electric guitar riff being weaved in and out. I also like how it honors Simpson’s musical roots.

While embracing his new moniker, Simpson and his band are going to be touring in support of Passage du Desir starting at the Outside Lands Music Festival happening in San Francisco from August 9–11. Other notable dates include September 14 at The Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, September 25 at the Roy Wilkins Auditorium in St. Paul, Minnesota, October 18 at the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh, November 12 at The Met in Philadelphia and November 23 at MGM Music Hall at Fenway in Boston. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Simpson perform live twice and both instances he was magnificent, so I highly suggest going to see him perform. In the meantime, grab a copy of the album. It isn’t totally country, and it isn’t totally rock & roll, but it finds a unique balance between the two.

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