Lives in the Balance - Browne, Jackson (CD 1986)

Most of you are familiar with Jackson Browne as the minstrel playing his songs to entertain the listener. Here, he becomes the Bard, interjecting social commentary and making the listener think about, not the song, but the topic of the song, with the music as the vehicle for the listener to remember the points made.

The top 40 song here is "In The Shape of A Heart", a good enough "lost love" sort of ballad, well written and well performed. It is, in my opinion the 5th best song on the CD. Listen to "For America", "Lawless Avenues", "Til I Go Down" and the devastatingly on target title song, "Lives In The Balance"! I know I came away with a "Fire In The Belly" like I haven't had since the old college anti-VietNam War days.

Though this collection of songs was released in 1986, the song "Lives In the Balance" could have been written a half an hour ago. It is as timely today as then, and maybe more so. The same is true of "Lawless Avenues" and "Till I Go Down". Listen. This CD will not disappoint.