White Light - GENE CLARK***

The Virgin/With Tomorrow/White Light/Because Of You/One In A Hundred/For A Spanish Guitar/Where My Love Lies Asleep/Tears Of Rage/1975

White Light was the second solo album from the former Byrds member Gene Clark. It has been described as a poetic and mostly acoustic work with many introspective tracks.

“On White Light, Gene Clark combines poetic lyrics with beautiful vocals and sparse arrangements: most of the time it's just Clark with his acoustic guitar. The more you listen, the more the LP will reveal itself and its secrets to you. What I love most about it is how Gene Clark really lets the arrangements of his songs breathe.”

“With this release it becomes easier to see how much Gene Clark is influenced by Bob Dylan, particularly the early phase when he tended to focus on simple acoustic driven ballads. Clark doesn't quite compare when it comes to songwriting, but he did write a very solid album here. The songs have neat easy going melodies in them, and the electric guitars that show up are quite enjoyable.”

“Gene's voice is so achingly plaintive, his words are deceptively simple, the mood is meditative, and the playing is ear-catching enough to reward attention but never overshadows the songs.”

“White Light is a quite laid-back affair. At its heart it is an acoustic record, the lead electric guitar is clean and the songs are always driven by the acoustic rhythm guitar. The percussion is generally not the standard in-your-face rock kit drumming that usually accompanies folk-rock.”

“He's always been better as a solo artist than as a band member, something which is again obvious on this album, his first true solo effort. As a brilliant songwriter and vocalist Clark hardly ever puts a foot wrong, but this collection remains one of his most impressive achievements. It's filled with his trademark sound which falls somewhere between folk-rock and country, and the songs are all excellent.”

"White Light stands as a snapshot of Gene Clark at his song writing peak. The songs are all heartfelt, full of interesting melodies and delivered with his sweet, soulful vocals. It can be seen as an evaluation of the successes and failures of the hippie generation, with lyrics never obtrusive but quietly thoughtful, warm and caring. The instrumentation is perfect for the material he wrote.”