Paul Kelly to Release New Album 'Rivers and Rain'

Water has been an elemental image in Paul Kelly's music. "If I were to make a compilation of all my 'water' songs, the track list would be overflowing," he laughs at his appropriate wordplay. So, for the second installment of his themed compilation series, the Australian singer/songwriter says he "decided to narrow the channel to rivers and rain," which have personal significance to him.

"One of the great pleasures in life is lying in bed listening to the rain or reading a book in a nook inside as rain falls outside," Kelly muses about the transformative power of water in motion. "You can dream by a river; court and picnic by a river; sail or row or float down a river, and drown in a river."

Filled to the brim with songs from his five decades of exceptional music making, the 20 tracks of Rivers and Rain are skimmed from his much-admired albums, such as his award-winning releases Nothing But A Dream, Goin' Your Way, Life Is Fine, and Nature, as well as his epic eight-CD retrospective, The A-Z Recordings. The lone unreleased track, "Northern Rivers," is a 2021 recording that Kelly describes as "a love song set in contrasting landscapes."

Lyrically ebbing and flowing with water imagery, the collection envelops the music with poetic attachments to rivers and rain. In "When a Woman Loves a Man," a river serves as a metaphor for how love can deepen over time, "Smoke Under the Bridge" is a place where a man comes to terms with his life. Rain represents a love lost on "Petrichor" but signals a sign of change in "Smell Like Rain."

About Paul Kelly:

Hailed as a literary songwriter, Paul Kelly has turned to literature for inspiration on occasion. This compilation features the darkly ironic "Life Is Fine," where Kelly sets a Langston Hughes poem to music. One of Kelly's best-known songs, "Everything Turns to White," was inspired by a Raymond Carver short story and Rivers and Rain presents an especially powerful, stripped-down rendition that comes from 2010's The A-Z Recordings.

Rivers and rain also loom large on two exquisite story-songs about indigenous Australians: a cover of L.J. Hill's poignant "Pretty Bird Tree" and Kelly's heartbreaking "Maralinga (Rainy Land)," about the British doing nuclear tests on land near indigenous communities.

Beyond showcasing the depth of Paul Kelly's songwriting talent, Rivers and Rain reveals the breadth of his musicianship, too. The gentle "Summer Rain" is performed simply with piano and strings, and an atmospheric electric guitar radiates throughout "Midnight Rain." From Paul Kelly and the Messengers' 1992 Hidden Things is a folk-rocking version of Woody Guthrie's "Pastures of Plenty." There is a twangy gospel-ish quality to the rather solemn "Gathering Storm" while a country soul vibe enlivens "I Close My Eyes and Think Of You."

Kelly explored his interest in soul and gospel music on 2014's The Merri Soul Sessions, which is represented here with the Sunday morning foot-stomper "Hasn't It Rained" and the rousing "Smells Like Rain," featuring Linda Bull on lead vocals. Kelly also reveals an appreciation for standards with his affectionate take of the Henry Mancini/Johnny Mercer classic, "Moon River," done as a subdued duet with Neil Finn (Crowded House) from their 2013 live album Goin' My Way.

The 21 songs on Rivers and Rain epitomize what Finn described as the unique and powerful way "Kelly mixes up everyday detail with the big issues of life, death, love and struggle." Critic Darren Wang proclaimed Kelly's work displays "a transparency into the craft of songwriting that is unsurpassed in pop music today", while All Music Guide's Thom Jurek lauds Kelly' as "a songwriter whose peers are few; they include Townes Van Zandt, Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, Elvis Costello, and Ronnie Lane." Revered in his homeland, Kelly has been inducted into the Australian Record Industry Association's Hall of Fame and earned the prestigious title of an Officer of the Order of Australia for his distinguished service to the arts.

Paul Kelly will continue to digitally release more themed compilations in the near future.