Loudon Wainwright III – Older Than My Old Man Now (2nd Story Sound)

Singer/songwriter Loudon Wainwright III is as accomplished an author as you could wish for on any subject, but he’s always at his best when he turns a sardonic eye towards his own life. “The Here & the Now,” the opening cut of his 22nd LP Older Than My Old Man Now, is a perfect example. Wainwright’s version of the memoirs being penned by his peers, the tune condenses his quirky life in three and a half minutes, with a particular emphasis on the family that’s been the subject of so many of his songs in his 40+ year career. The rest of the record follows suit, pondering aging and the evolution of life as children grow, wrinkles form and the memory starts to fade. Joined by friends and relatives, Wainwright ponders the death of the libido (“I Remember Sex,” with Dame Edna Everage), wishes for more time (“Double Lifetime,” with Ramblin’ Jack Elliott), experiences survivors’ guilt (“Somebody Else”) and counts down the pills he needs to just to keep up (“My Meds”). It’s not all grins, though – Wainwright gets serious on “The Days That We Die” (with his son Rufus), “Something Out to Get Me” and “In C,” reminding us to treasure beauty even when death is right around the corner. Possibly his best record since his landmark (and, not coincidentally, family-oriented) LP History, Older Than My Old Man Now looks forward and back on a life’s triumphs and mistakes, and the brood that surrounded and supported it along the way.

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