To Be Continued (LP)

ER Jurken's songwriting, as evidenced by his acclaimed first album I Stand Corrected, is inclined to wander through the past century or so of American music with a uniquely insouciant flair.

On his debut, Ed (as his friends call him) did most of the playing himself, underscoring a deeply personal song-cycle of rise, fall and redemption- a bare-bones production that ran the gamut from whoa to woe and back again!

To Be Continued, his sophomore release, finds his baroque folk-pop fantasias literally on the rocks- because this time around, Ed's got a power trio of players from Chicago's Junegrass to help him crank it up and out of the park. Once up in the air, his heavenly high tenor and vocal choir melodies further extrude the twisted psyche that under-scores Ed & Co's easy riding rock 'n roll. Spelled in spots by Paul Von Mertens' extraordinary string and horn arrangements, the songs of To Be Continued aggressively transcend and defy the stings of everyday misfortune.