Beck’s Ride Lonesome: A Surprise 70s Road Trip

Beck has joined the ranks of Beyoncé, Kendrick and the Biebs with dropping songs without warning. No one was expecting a new single from Beck when he dropped Ride Lonesome and then promptly announced a North American tour to coincide with the release. Beck is know for wild swings in genre from Odelay to Midnight Vultures to Morning Phase…to a record that was released entirely as sheet music called Song Reader. So, there is no telling what a new release from Beck will look like. So, let’s dive in and see what he is brining us.

First off, the musicality and the arrangement is right out of the 70s. Beck has always had a bit of 70s in his work. He has dipped into 70s funk with Odelay, 70s punk and rock with Mellow Gold and has always had a 70s folk lean to his music…all but Song Reader of course…but I bet he wore a cool 70s rider leather jacket and amber lenses in his shades when he wrote it. Ride Lonesome dips into that kind of 1969 / early 70s Nashville Skyline vibe. Warm acoustic guitar is accented by twangy electric slide guitar and country rock riffs. The musicality is quite expansive and feeds into the theme of a lone road trip in the wider world. I love the music on this track because it has an emotive genuine quality to it. There’s no where to hide…no flashy synth or anything…just organic music from the heart.

Vocally Beck continues the vibes of warmth and expanse. He has a slight echo effect on his vocal with really underlines this feeling of being alone in a vast expanse. Lyrically, Beck sings about finding out who you are without the trappings of a “wrong memory” or the wild part of yourself. You are on this road alone…the road of discovery…of figuring out your own inner truth, which will lead you back home. It seems at odds that such a warm and soothing song could be lyrically so isolated and lonely. However, you could look at it as a song about reaching truth and forgiving yourself for mistakes and traumas you still hold on to…in that sense it’s quite an optimistic and loving song. I think the beauty of it is that you can get a different reading each listen.

It’s great to have Beck back to his folky best. What I love most about Beck is that his music seems genuine. I never get the feeling that he is doing something gimmicky or cynical. He might be experimenting with some crazy stuff, but his heart is always in the music. I’m excited to see where Beck goes in this latter half of his career.

Listen to Ride Lonesome