NEIL MURRAY’S NEW ALBUM

             Blood  & Longing

1. Hills of Burra 4.13

2. The Footsteps of Blackfella Bob 3.02

3. Byjantic Man 4.12

4. Cry my Darling 5.58

5. Every Time I Turn Around 3.40

6. Kind of Day 5.31

7. Dja Dja Wurrung, Dja Dja Wurrun

8. Who will Ride with Stuart? 5.14

9. Waiting to be Born 5.20

10. My Secret Heart 4.29

11. Come Too Far Now 4.15

12. Old Land (instrumental) 2.14

13. Let the Dead Rise Up 6.20

Those who know and appreciate Neil Murray’s work will find in “Blood & Longing” an impressive addition to his already remarkable catalogue of songs that continue to refine a sense of place, purpose and identity. Those that don’t, stand to be converted.

“Wherever I go in this country, I always think of the old people of that place. Sometimes it overwhelms me. Many of the songs come from these powerful feelings.” – Neil Murray

Blood & Longing starts out with energy and drive, as our broke, yet upbeat troubadour passes through Tennant Creek while grappling with the digital age – Hills of Burra, then meanders through a series of encounters:- the historical narratives, The Footsteps of Blackfella Bob and Who will ride with Stuart?, the celebration of a post-apocalyptic survivor in Byjantic Man – featured in the cover art, the plea for a dying river Cry My Darling, the visionary ballads Kind of Day and Waiting to Be Born, the ever-present yearning of Dja Dja Wurrung, Dja Dja Wurrung and My Secret Heart. Throw in the lighter, Every time I Turn Around, before arriving at Come Too Far Now, which predicts the troubadour “washed up and broken down”.

In the Australian backcountry, the haunting Old Land (instrumental) would seem a final requiem.  But the last word of Blood & Longing is a redemptive sermon of sorts, Let the Dead Rise Up, spoken to an arresting musical score by David Bridie and John Phillips.

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