Rob Price
Gutbrain Records
rob + gutbrain.com = email

2026 June 22 • Monday

The music for The American Dreamer is the 914th Soundtrack of the Week.

The first track is Gene Clark’s “American Dreamer”, a simple song for acoustic guitar and voice and lyrics about what money can and can’t buy.

Then Hello People’s “Pass Me By” starts the same but adds other voices and bass to the acoustic guitar track. Like the first song, it has an air of melancholy.

The mood continues with another acoustic guitar and voice song, John Manning’s “Whole Song”, which has a 12-string guitar and romantic but downbeat lyrics.

Gene Clark returns with “Outlaw Song”, a song that’s a bit more upbeat and has harmonica in addition to acoustic guitar. It’s a very short tribute to someone living outside the law.

“Easy Rider, 1970” by Chris Sikelianos is a reworking of “See See Rider”, another one for acoustic guitar and voice.

Then we get some very resonant and lovely 12-string acoustic guitar playing for John Buck Wilkin’s “The Screaming Metaphysical Blues”, which also has bass accompaniment and a more optimistic feel.

John Manning’s “Hard Road to New Mexico” is a strong, anthemic song with at least two guitars, bass and piano backing the vocals.

John Buck Wilkin comes back with the groovy, driving “Look at Me, Mama”, a really good song that’s also a weldome change of pace, followed by his “Sun, Moon and Stars”, a beautiful, dreamy, atmospheric number.

The record concludes with the Abbey Road Singers’ “Other Side of Life”, an engaging rock/pop/blues with great groove and strong vocals.