Whitehorse sings classic country songs

“I’m Not Crying, You’re Crying,” Whitehorse (Six Shooter Records)

She sings a drink song to start the album. He also sings a drink song in the second tune. On Whitehorse’s “I’m Not Crying, You’re Crying,” the singer-songwriter-husband-wife partnership Luke Doucet and Melissa McClelland trade the lead and share their love of classic country music.

Twang has always been part of the Canadian duo’s repertoire, and while writing during the pandemic, they looked to the country sounds of a half century ago for inspiration. The result is a collection songs that are at times weepy, sweet, catchy, charming, bouncy, lovely and echoing 1970s Bakersfields, Los Angeles, Austin, Nashville. Whitehorse is also a frequent topic on drinking. He sings about gambling, love, tug of home, and toilet paper.

The arrangements are sparse and leave the vocals to shine. McClelland as well as Doucet are excellent lead singers. Their harmonies can be sweet or savory. The voices weave around Burke Carroll’s pedal steel and Doucet’s distinctive electric guitar work, which makes his strings sound as thick as cable from one of the many construction cranes that dot today’s Nashville skyline. On “I’m Not Crying, You’re Crying,” retro becomes modern.

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