Hunnicutt, Tom
Escaping From Today
Rare & Collectible Vinyl Records

Rare 1974 Hippie-Folk Private Pressing Still In Shrink Wrap. VG/VG+ Vinyl, Music Dominates Overall. “I'm Pretty Sure That I Only Have One LP In My Collection That's The Work Of A Marine Corps Officer, Martial Arts Expert, Christian, TM Guide, And Back-To-The-Lander, And It's "Escaping From Today" By Tom Hunnicutt. Lots Could Be Written About Mr Hunnicutt Himself - A Very Friendly Man & Quite A Character - But These Words Will Focus Solely On His First Record, Which Sadly Remains A Highly Obscure Piece Of Art. Recorded 1974 In Nashville, With Backing From Seasoned Session Cats, One Could Fear That The Sound & Playing Would Be A Step Or Several Too Far In The Pro Direction. And Sure, It's Well-Played, Well-Written, Well-Arranged, But So Genuine & Down Home, And Created With So Much Heart & Care, That A Word Like 'Pro' Just Gets Robbed Of Its Meaning, Had It Ever Had One. Musically & Vocally "Escaping From Today" Is In A Rather Straight Country-Folk Bag, Occasionally Sideleaping Into Small Town Country-Crooner Bar Sounds ("To Fight A War"), But Lyrically It's More In Line With The Counterculture Of Its Day, Focusing Heavily On Environmental Issues, Although There Are Also More Genre-Typical Subjects, Like The Rural Nostalgia In "Arkansas". Guitars, Banjo, Fiddle, Organ, Piano, Bass, Drums & Percussion Shape Storytelling Songs Into Gold-Shimmering Nuggets; They May Sound Deceptively Simple When They Start Out, But Soon Enough A Spine-Tingling, Bittersweet Twist & Turn Freeze The Moment & You Find Yourself Inside The Songs. Or At Least I Do: I Am The Long Haired Hitchhiker In The Titletrack, Just Like I'm The Moonshinin' Father In "Arkansas" & The Polluted Stream In "Potomac River Song".” – Beautiful Lies