Sultans

by Bobby Long

Overview

The follow-up to 2015's crowd-funded, Mark Hallman-produced Ode to Thinking, Sultans sees the British-born, New York-based singer/songwriter eschew the folksy Americana leanings of past outings for something a bit more Beatlesque. In a nod to Sgt. Pepper's, Long bookends the ten-song set with two iterations of the title track; a slow building, paisley-pop confection with hints of Eastern mysticism and a very "I Am the Walrus"-inspired gait. Long has been up front about the album's Fab Four connection, citing his formative years spent in rural Southwest England as an emotional and cultural through-line, but there are still shades of Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan to be found behind all of the studio experimentation and skiffle beats -- the soulful "Love" hews closest to the big-hearted country-folk of past outings. Some of the time Long comes off as a gruffer and more muscular M. Ward, especially on the fuzzed-out "Serpentine" and "Mazarati," but the majority of Sultans has its feet firmly planted in the 1960s. Caught somewhere between swirling, Roy Orbison Brill Building pop ("Goodbye") and bluesy, Abbey Road-inspired guitar rock ("Nautical"), Sultans can feel a bit apocryphal, but Long and producer and frequent collaborator Jack Dawson inject the project with enough character that even at its most self-referential, it feels like the product of loving parents. ~ James Christopher Monger

Product Details

Release Date:	03/29/2019
Label:	Compass
UPC:	0766397473116
Rank:	112474

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Bobby Long   Primary Artist,Percussion,Guitar,Vocals,Ukulele
Jack Dawson   Bass,Organ,Piano,Guitar,Vocals,Omnichord,Wurlitzer,Percussion,Featured Artist,Moog Synthesizer,Guitar (Acoustic),Vocals (Background)
Ben Trimble   Percussion
Charles Garmendia   Percussion
Matt Menold   Pedal Steel,Organ (Hammond)
Jon Catfish Delorme   Pedal Steel
Mike Storey   Guitar
Riccardo Alessio   Piano
Tommy Volume   Guitar,Percussion
Dave Lindsay   Drums,Guitar,Percussion,Vibraphone,Vocals (Background)
Justina Davies   Percussion

Technical Credits

Bobby Long   Composer
John Baldwin   Mastering
Jack Dawson   Mixing,Producer,Tape Machine
Eduardo Duquesne   Mixing
Carlos Moncayo   Design,Art Direction
Jess Gattone   Design,Art Direction
Dave Lindsay   Engineer