Scratchings on the Wall

"Scratchings on the Wall" is a curious thing, an oddity at once strange yet familiar. Mixing personal commentary, some pithy vignettes, and three decades worth of song lyrics, Dave Winans stakes out his own claim as an honorary modern-day member of what music critic Greil Marcus refers to as the "Invisible Republic." From the opening tribute to his sister to the fond farewell to bluegrass legend John Hartford, Winans touches upon the personal and political in his search for "common sense, a kinder faith, and a little clear-eyed understanding of the craziness around us." In between are ballads, rags, dirges, talking blues and love songs about, among other things, dogs, family, God, street musicians, women and baseball.