Don McLean - Botanical gardens

There aren't many songwriters who will ever write a song that tops the charts in multiple countries, and even fewer will ever write a song that is instantly recognisable to an entire generation. Don McLean did just that with his song "American pie" in 1971, but he's no one-hit wonder, having had success with other singles (most notably "Vincent"), and has been releasing albums for almost 50 years with over 40 gold or platinum records to his name. His latest album, "Botanical gardens" is his first album for 8 years.

It's an album that contains Americana, Folk, Country and rock. That may sound like a bit diverse, but it's not as diverse as it sounds as the genres all tend to overlap, and it's in that area that Don McLean's album sits, containing elements of all those genres without songs necessarily being clearly in one genre or another, so all the songs work well together.

Musically it's a great album, and the vocals are fantastic, but lyrically is where things excel. It's got a very intimate and emotional feel as the songs look back at his life. The songs really are beautifully crafted and really do draw you in. It's rare that an album invokes as much emotion in the listener as this album does.

A fantastic album.

"Botanical gardens" will be released on 23rd March 2018

Track listing:

1. Botanical gardens
2. The lucky guy
3. A total eclipse of the sun
4. Waving man
5. When July comes
6. You're all I ever had
7. Rock'n'Roll your baby
8. I've cried all the tears that I have
9. Ain't she a honey
10. The king of fools
11. Grief and hope
12. You've got such beautiful eyes
13. Last night when we were young