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Evidence aplenty for Daryl Mosley’s spiritual beliefs fills his fourth Pinecastle Records solo release Long Days & Short Stories. However, you don’t need to share his faith to get something meaningful from his songs. Mosley composed nine of the album’s ten songs by himself, working with a single co-writer on one. He puts himself out there without hesitation. Long Days & Short Stories opens Mosley’s heart for listeners, sometimes piecemeal, sometimes in a sweeping manner, but by the time we finish this collection for the first time, we can begin again knowing far more about Daryl Mosley than we did before.
The album opener, “When the Good Old Days Were New”, says a lot about Mosley the writer. He has panoramic predilections; Long Days & Short Stories’ first track encapsulates personal and national history in the same song without belaboring details. His deft touch moves us through major events, micro and macro, with singular confidence, and he never places a foot wrong with his language. The first of his outright paeans to God, “When I Can’t Reach Up” benefits enormously from the combined talents of Jeff and Sheri Easter supplying superb backing vocals. Mosley’s singing and lyrics will bedazzle. He writes about God’s aid in his life without unquestionable gratitude, and his voice expresses that thanks with emotional weight any listener will feel.
Tony Wray’s sparkling guitar playing supplies “A Friend Like You” with a scintillating opening. The song’s easy swing is an ideal vehicle for Mosley’s refreshing testifying about the virtues of a healthy friendship. His writing layers the song with scores of significant details that ground his portrayal in a reality we recognize, and the jaunty bounce provided by the accompaniment fills “A Friend Like You” with an irrepressibly buoyant air.
The album’s longest track and, arguably, its centerpiece, “I’m Still Here” is a quietly triumphant song, nevertheless unflinchingly staring down the abyss. Ernest Hemingway once wrote that man can be destroyed, but never defeated, and there’s a strong strand of that DNA running through this song. He delivers it with the measured respect that it deserves.
The single “Me and Mr. Howard” has an assortment of virtues working in its favor. It has one of Long Days & Short Stories’ best lyrics, there’s no doubting that. Steely confidence strengthens Mosley’s confident delivery, and many listeners will find it difficult, if not impossible, to turn away from this song once it starts. It works equally well as a standalone performance or part of a son cycle. “Still the Solid Rock” celebrates God’s evergreen presence in the songwriter’s life.
The added presence of the group New Tradition as guest vocals deepens its authenticity. It’s an unabashed song of praise and worship that Mosley and his cohorts dispatch with loving care. The album’s bonus track re-imagines the earlier “I’m Still Here”, longer than before, and accompanied by Sarah Davidson’s piano playing. She brings a great deal to this performance, and the emotional gravitas of her work on the keys acts as a sort of second voice joining Mosley’s exceptional vocals.
Daryl Mosley’s Long Days and Short Stories is an unmitigated success for the songwriter and Pinecastle Records. Let’s hope their relationship continues far into the foreseeable future.
Mark Druery
