Let’s set the table for this review.  You’ve read/heard my very long standing admiration and respect for, plus the immeasurable influence that Peter Holsapple has had on my musical endeavors over the decades.  I wrote a piece (here on Popdose), opining on how I thought The dB’s (his well-beloved band, along with Chris Stamey, Gene Holder and Will Rigby) had released one of the most perfect albums of all time, their masterpiece, Repercussion (which has recently been reissued).  It would be foolish of me to repeat myself and seeing as Mr. Holsapple is about to unleash his third solo album, The Face Of ’68 on Friday, April 18th, I think a good place to set said table is with the press release that accompanies the album (with enormous thanks to the magnificent Wendy Brynford-Jones).  Then, I’ll give my breakdown of the tracks:

“Meet Peter Holsapple. You probably already know him, but if you don’t, it’s time to change that with his new album The Face of 68 on Label 51 Recordings.

You may know him from The dB’s or Continental Drifters, two bands he co-helmed over the course of influential albums like Stands for deciBels and Vermilion. Or his duo records with Chris Stamey like Mavericks. You may know him from his work on the road and in the studio with R.E.M. and Hootie & The Blowfish. Or via artists like Marti Jones, the Golden Palominos, the Troggs and Claire Lynch, who have all covered his songs.

This is different, though: The Face of 68 is a fresh new sound for Peter. With a couple of years playing lead guitar with The Paranoid Style under his belt, he’s renewed his rock roots. The Face of 68 is a high performance album that accentuates Holsapple’s stylish guitar work, alongside the established excellence of his songwriting.

  • The solid muscular groove of the leadoff track “Anytime Soon” bridges the gap between a classic Holsapple pop song and something more intense and harder rocking, with a wicked retro guitar sound.
  • Title track “The Face of 68” is the one recording that’s got Peter playing all the instruments. He’s brought an enthusiasm and engagement to the vocals on this bright birthday present to himself!
  • “Larger Than Life” is the first single/focus track from The Face of 68. It’s got a heavy ‘70s rock vibe not dissimilar to Mountain, and lyrics that were grief therapy for Holsapple after the death of Continental Drifters’ founding member Carlo Nuccio in 2022.
  • “My Idea #49” is a dystopian science project by Peter, powered by heavy guitars. (Not to be confused with “Funk 49” by esteemed midwestern rockers, The James Gang.)
  • The spirit of the aforementioned Continental Drifters rises in the sound of “High High Horse”, which features a soulful organ solo by Mark Simonsen (The Old Ceremony).
  • Record collecting has a new national anthem. “That Kind of Guy” swings the story of someone you probably know if you are digging through crates yourself!
  • A true story of theft and retribution, “One for the Book” has Peter back on acoustic guitar with a classic West Coast folk-rock vibe.
  • “Fireflies” bridges progressive and punk with its searing lead guitar and mathematical arrangement.
  • Peter mourns another friend, the legendary Winston-Salem guitarist Sam Moss, in “So Sad About Sam.” Moss was a mentor to Peter and a generation of musicians in the Camel City, and this song encapsulates the grief an entire community felt in a succinct rock song.
  • If MTV still played pop rock videos, you could imagine “See About You” as a candidate with its late 70s pop vibe.
  • The album ends with “She and Me” which is more familiar songwriting territory for fans of Holsapple’s power-pop catalog. Nobody writes a love song like Peter Holsapple, and this one belongs among his finest.

Recording in the popular trio form like Cream and The Limelighters (!), Peter and his rhythm buddies Robert Sledge (Ben Folds Five) on bass and Rob Ladd (The Connells) on drums ran everything by producer Don Dixon (R.E.M., Smithereens) and through engineer Jason Richmond (Margaret Glaspy) in three and a half days.

Eleven new songs that drolly weave through laughter and grief, all the while underpinned by Peter Holsapple’s confident electric guitar and the strongest singing heard from him yet. It’s a strong and intense record by a veteran songwriter still stretching his wings.”

That’s a strong appetite whetter.  Now, for my evaluation of the album (and I’m not going to give you a breakdown on all eleven songs; you should buy the album and absorb them yourself):

The title track, “The Face Of 68” has that Holsapple-trademark melodic-pop structure that’s so warmly familiar; I could easily see this on a dB’s album.  A lyrically sharp number that rings true for all of us who are reaching the upper numbers of age.  He’s playing all the instruments and it’s tight, taught and filled with an exuberance that goes hand in hand with the cheerfully-tongue in cheek lyrics (and it has an on-the-one economic solo that’s pure fire).

“That Kind Of Guy” has a hypnotically heavy groove; a witty observation for many of us who were (once upon a time) evanagelical record collecting obsessives (I was).  Name checking a slew of artists in a poetic fashion is done with ease and natural to Mr. Holsapple, whose delivery is dead on-target (and his genuine laugh as he mentions his own (previous) solo album is simply brilliant).

“She And Me” is what I consider “vinatage” Holsapple; a love song that doesn’t get weepy or filled with blustery pose.  The arrangement automatically made me think of Van Duran or Todd Rundgren, especially with the “la la la”‘s and the choruses.

“One For The Book” has what I always look for in an album these days – that standout “radio track”; you know, the kind that you can hear as you drive down a highway.  Acoustic-bodied, framed by subtle organ and clean, crisp riffing that doesn’t interfere with the melody or the narrative.

“High High Horse” is a slower, thoughtful groover – and yes, to these ears, it has that “Memphis feel”.  Soulful (yep), emotionally moving – something that, aurally, took me back to the kind of sounds I loved in the ’70’s.  And that organ solo is damn perfect.

So it’s simple.  When this album is released, make sure to buy a copy – please; get a physical edition.  Sit back and listen without interruption.  Let the entire package – the melody; the lyrics, the nuisances – enter your consciousness.  Because as soon as it does, I can guarantee you’ll repeat the process several times.  Which is the mark of an instant classic.  And that’s what The Face Of 68 is.  It’s the first album of 2025 that’s taken hold of me.  As it’s been for over forty years, Mr. Holsapple’s work has a pure humanity and warmth that very few artists can achieve and sustain.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

The Face Of ’68 will be released on Friday, April 18th, 2025

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https://label51recordings.com/peter-holsapple/

Listen to “She And Me”:

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About the Author

Rob Ross

Rob Ross has been, for good, bad or indifferent, involved in the music industry for over 30 years - first as guitarist/singer/songwriter with The Punch Line, then as freelance journalist, producer and manager to working for independent and major record labels. He resides in Staten Island, New York with his wife and cats; he works out a lot, reads voraciously, loves Big Star and his orange Gretsch. Doesn't that make him neat?

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