It all comes back to a great story – just listen to the new album Sea Change from Montana’s Corey Stapleton And The Pretty Pirates. Stapleton, a Naval Veteran, certainly has an interesting backstory. The Veteran-turned-politician-turned singer/songwriter wows in this 12-song outing. Covering a variety of universal emotions, Stapleton also strikes a unique chord with this patriotic and some might say, controversial foothold, in the standout “Kabul’s Fallen”. Loyalty and love run deep in these country-fused tracks. Stapleton, the former Montana Secretary of State, convinces his audiences that his words do in fact matter the most. Sea Change is one captivating ride.
With the success of series like Yellowstone and its prequel 1883, Montana seems to be in vogue these days. If you listen to the integrity and the honesty in Stapleton’s compositions, you wouldn’t be surprised at all. I’m not sure he cares about being in public favor as much as he cares about sharing what is on his mind and in his heart. Songs like “The Coin”, an interesting take on relationships and chances, as well as “The Darkest Part” peel back a different shell to what you might already be thinking if you heard ‘Veteran’ and ‘politician’ in the same sentence. Stapleton, well, he’s not alone in the Veteran and musician department. He joins a rather impressive list of servicemen that have also recorded music. The list includes Jimi Hendrix (Army), Elvis (Army), Johnny Cash (Air Force), George Strait (Army), Sturgill Simpson (Navy) and John Prine (Army). What is about soldiers and music?
Just listen to Sea Change and you can glean a glimpse of what is behind the men and women that serve. I think that selflessness and desire to do good, be good and give people hope is forged in each of these songs. Stapleton does an excellent job of connecting his listener to not only a story, but emotions. The universal feeling of wanting something and the freedom to do that is backed in each of these tracks. Be it the warmth of the acoustic guitar or the way his voice almost pines for a bigger, outdoor stage at the foot of the Rocky Mountains or the Beartooth Mountain range, Stapleton grasps his listener and reimagines for them the idea of singing under the Big Sky. There is something so freeing in hearing him sing songs like “The Pen”, which call it Manifest Destiny or even leaving it in God’s Hands, he crafts a song that gives his listener the ‘choose your own adventure’.
Stapleton’s voice has the range a bit higher than John Denver’s, and is very approachable. I would place him very close to Jim Croce and Gordon Lightfoot, too. These songs have a bit more country flavoring to them, then traditional pop, but I think fans of any genre will be ensconced. You don’t have to have served your country to understand the pain and the frustration like Stapleton conveys in “Kabul’s Fallen”. One just has to listen to his story; I think people will listen to Sea Change and be moved.
Claire Uebelacker