Here’s the headline– Paul Cauthen’s Room 41 is one of the best country records ever made, should be on every critic’s Top 100 list, and will be a mainstay in my rotation forever.
The backstory of “Room 41” is stuff legends are made of. Following an abrupt breakup with his long-time fiancee, Cauthen rented a room at the Belmont Hotel in Dallas for two years. It was there he “somehow floored it without busting the engine”, drowning his sorrows in an epic bender. What came out the other side is a breathtaking collection of 10 songs that will forever be an alt-country masterpiece.
Cauthen’s ominous baritone, drenched in whiskey and cigarettes, sounds like late night revelry that extends well past closing time into a separate dimension where reality is briefly suspended. Set against the musical backdrop of country standards, gospel hymns, 70’s funk, and late 90’s west coast hip hop, Cauthen covers all of the concurrent pain and hope of the human experience en-masse.
Lyrically Cauthen is similarly nuanced– one minute he’s boasting with bravado, the next he’s a vulnerable mess confessing his loss of faith. This plays out in interesting ways, especially on “Slow Down” and “Big Velvet” where the dichotomy gets turned up to 11. “Give Em’ Peace” sounds like Cauthen rolled into church still hungover with tie askew, “Freak” tells the story of a man accepting he has hit rock bottom, and the gripping refrain of “Prayed For Rain” is poignant in its unrelenting grip on hope for better days.
In short, Cauthen found a way to transpose the entire emotional range of his stay at the Belmont into this album, pressing his every being into each crevice of the 39-minute runtime. It’s a feat not many artists can claim. This is one for the ages.
Standout Songs: “Prayed For Rain”, “Freak”, “Cocaine Country Dancing”, “Angel”
