It's possible that in the decades to come, music writers will speak of a subgenre called "pandemic music," albums created between 2020 and 2022 that were produced under the constraints of remote recording imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. So many artists issued home-recorded projects during this period that certain telltale signs became common, in particular stripped-down arrangements and a certain lo-fi vibe that were a consequence of not having all the usual participants on hand.
Joe Henry, who is a successful and imaginative producer as well as a gifted songwriter and vocalist, wasn't having any of that. Wisely enough, he figured that he wasn't the only musician of note to be locked in by the pandemic, so why not approach as many of his friends and colleagues as possible to fly in contributions to his latest album? 2023's
All the Eye Can See, like much of
Henry's best work, sounds wide open and spacious, with enough room to avoid needless clutter, but the arrangements have plenty of different flavors at work. For these songs, many of
Henry's frequent accompanists were able to lend their talents, including
Patrick Warren on keyboard,
David Piltch on bass,
Jay Bellerose on drums, and
Levon Henry (
Joe's son) on sax and clarinet. In addition,
Bill Frisell,
Marc Ribot,
Daniel Lanois,
Allison Russell,
the Milk Carton Kids, and
Madison Cunningham are among the notables who appear on
All the Eye Can See. While the results don't sound bigger than they need to be, this music never feels as if it's spare for any other reason than
Henry decided that was the dynamic he was looking for. The various contributors never bump into each other, but they all make themselves heard, and the subtle diversity does wonders for the grace of
Henry's melodies.
All the Eye Can See is his first album following 2019's
The Gospel According to Water, a spontaneous effort he made after learning he'd been diagnosed with severe prostate cancer.
All the Eye Can See's songs were penned after
Henry went into remission, and if the tone of
The Gospel According to Water was that of a person confronting life's mysteries with mortality in his rearview mirror,
All the Eye Can See is a companion volume that finds him still trying to come to terms with the world around him, though this time from a place of gratitude and quiet joy. On these songs,
Henry is asking questions he wasn't sure he would ever be able to pose; although it was laid down while the world was waiting out a mysterious new illness, the lyrical voice is that of a man who knows he has another chance, and he's happy to take it even if he has to do it while stuck at home. It's an intelligent, compassionate, heartfelt album from an artist who knows how to make them, and we should all be as grateful as
Joe Henry that he's around to sing these songs. ~ Mark Deming
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