Never Look Back

Album Review

It's the same old story: men and women (or men and men, or women and women) meet, fall in love, and, sooner or later, one leaves. In one sense, the opening cut of Never Look Back tells yet another story of another man — who should've know better but of course didn't — being left behind. Tom Gillam is smart enough to know, however, that this story, no matter how clever the singer/songwriter might be, is a cliché before the ink dries, leading him to offer the clever title, "Another Break-Up Song." That doesn't mean that Gillam, despite the rocking backdrop and a well-delivered lyric, escapes walking on familiar ground, but he does make the point that living through the pain is never a cliché for the person who has to live through it (especially if he or she just happens to be a singer/songwriter). Never Look Back's original songs, mostly by Gillam and guitarist Craig Simon, are bolstered by solid rock arrangements and background vocals. Gillam easily moves between the heavier country-rock of "Devil in My Heart" and the slow blues-rock of "Where Is Bobby Gentry?" Gillam never attempts to reinvent the singer/songwriter genre on Never Look Back, but he does manage to deliver a consistent and enjoyable set. ~ Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr., All Music Guide