Let It Ride

Steven Graves is not wasting anytime. Many would think that releasing a full length CD Matter of Time which received worldwide radio play and peaked at #8 on the Jambands would be enough to rest on for 2012. Not Steven, his new CD Let it Ride, is set to release in November 2012 and by all accounts it's his best work to date. The new CD contains six tracks including four new songs, and two bonus tracks - a live reggae track Peace, Love and Understanding and his holiday track On Christmas Day which he released as a single in December of 2011. The CD opens with Take A Stand a folk rock anthem that takes on the flavor of Dylan's Forever Young but then bursts into a rousing hoe-down country-gospel revival, which is sure to bring you to your feet! The title track Let it Ride follows with a slower tempo ballad sure to evoke images of early Neil Young with great harmony vocals, tasty guitar and mandolin riffs, and Steven's emotional and passionate singing. The third track is When Things Were Simple which is a Nashville sounding Middle-America themed rocker which might have come from the repertoire of John Mellencamp or Bruce Springsteen. This track features a lovely duet with Steven and the much accomplished vocalist Tammi Brown as well as searing guitars by Nashville's Brent Mason. Lightning Medicine Cloud, the fourth track, was written by Graves about the real life story of the 3rd sacred White Buffalo Calf, whose life was cut short by a senseless act shortly before it's one year birthday. The song celebrates the rich Lakota-Souix spiritual tradition of the White Buffalo, and features some great fiddle and lap steel playing. This song has been added to Graves' site to help raise awareness and money for poverty stricken Native American reservations Steven's music has a sense of familiarity and timelessness to it. While it often evokes and reminds us of much of the great music we have listened to over our lifetimes, never does it imitate, and always it is refreshing and new as it filters through Steven's musical experience. His thought provoking lyrics always seem to touch within us something very personal yet also echoing universal truths that we can relate to in our lives. Graves is an original and inspiring artist who is poised to move mountains with this extraordinary release.