June 6, 2016

Five years ago: Frank Turner's England Keep My Bones

Five years ago today, Frank Turner released one of my all-time favourite albums in England Keep My Bones. It's got fantastic tunes played by amazing musicians, but Frank writes songs about English life, and the overall human condition including a philosophy of libertarianism, human-centred life and classic liberal politics that I love. Turner's songs tend to have an undercurrent, which comes out as more of a tidal wave in his live shows, of human beings making as much of the life that we have as possible, that we're not perfect but we should be good to each other, and to not sell ourselves short in terms of what we can all accomplish in this life, without worrying about the trappings and restrictions of things like religion, and that the relationships we nurture bring immeasurable value to our lives. It's not a socialist or left-wing political view, it's a human-focused view that is empowering and constructive in all the best possible ways.

"Life's kind of a shitty, raw deal and you shouldn't take it laying down. You should kick that fucker in the balls and steal his wallet."

I've only seen Frank perform a couple of times, and got the opportunity to photograph him and the Sleeping Souls the last time they stopped in Toronto. Take a peek at my pics, if you like.

These are my favourite tunes from this very special album, by a very special artist.

"Eulogy"

"Peggy Sang The Blues"

"I Still Believe"

"Rivers"

"I Am Disappeared"

"One Foot Before The Other"

"If Ever I Stray"

"Wessex Boy"

"Redemption"

"Glory Hallelujah"

Pic from Epitaph.