Bap Kennedy - Above All, Love
****1/2
It turns out that the rumours about Bap Kennedy still being both highly creative and in fine voice during the last years of his life were true. This posthumous set of previously unreleased songs from some of his final sessions, has been meticulously curated and produced by Brenda Kennedy, Bap’s wife and longtime musical collaborator. It doesn’t seem possible that it will be ten years this November, that Bap passed away. It feels somehow comforting, sometimes even mesmeric to get to hear this new music. Overall, this album is a fine testament to a unique talent and personality, who is still sorely missed by so many. Music can evoke all sorts of emotions. Some songs can bring feelings of liveliness, some can bring longing for a greater time, and others can bring messages of hope and salvation. Bap demonstrated allthese emotional qualities in his songs. It takes a good deal of bravery to write and record songs that are so naked and unflinching, and it pays off. His courage and palpable investment in the material makes it easy to connect and empathise with his subject matter. A stirring, propulsive mix of meditations on perseverance, love and finding your way home, his aim was to make listeners feel less alone and more connected.
While some of the rhythmic punch is missing here and there, there’s a tender beauty to the songs that connects all the same. His remarkable restraint is a key to the album’s power. His soulful vocal is marked by controlled intensity; where others might be tempted to over-sing for dramatic effect, he holds back with stoic grace, letting his simple yet eloquent lyrics do some of the heavy lifting. If he does allow the tension to rise in his voice, as on the thumping It’s Just A Game, the result is riveting. He gives this story of estranged lovers a bluesy rockabilly spin, with a stern warning. In direct contrast, Bap's expressive and beautifully thoughtful songwriting creates a dreamy and enticing sonic landscape under that Old Majestic Moon. The song evokes a kind of wistful, tender magic and is as warm as happy tears on a cheek. Silent Sea is a haunting slice of slowcore Americana, pedal steel does a dreamy dance with harmonica while his lyrics tell the tale. Slightly more abstract lyrically speaking, but it carries a brutally honest and somewhat defeatist sensibility.
His passion for the music of Hank Williams comes to the fore on the bluesy Going Back To Nashville. He dresses the song with an intricate latticework of noodly guitars, bass and crisp drumming. The chilling lament finds him singing with powerful regret. There’s even more of a Hank influence with the emotionally weighty slow burn catharsis of Red Moon.Weepy pedal steel licks mixed with ethereal harmonica feel just right as the mist of emotion leaps from some deep, dark well inside your being.Sugar Love embraces an emotional ache, imbued with a yearning for someone or something out of reach. Like the lyrics, the music plays with expectations, pairing twinkling Dobro with Bap’s vocal and it makes for an enticing listen. The thoughtful Love, Above All has all the feel of a friend inviting you over for an encouraging chat that's as up close and personal as it gets. Rising out of warm piano notes, he reflects on life, loss and the often-unexpected hurdles that life presents as he wraps his soulful voice around a heartfelt decision of ultimately choosing love.
Bap Kennedy raises chills and warms hearts, sometimes in the same song. His songs have a way of circling around my mood and elevating it as his music makes me feel better, no matter how my day is going. It’s both the timeless melodies and the mysterious persona he created that constantly demand repeat plays.
August 2026