Riley Downing loved his grandparents.
There is no mistaking the tenderness, the warmth, and the wonder he feels for the bond they shared. It drives “Helen & Gene,” in which Downing turns family lore into a living, breathing narrative of two young people falling for each other. They were on the same train in 1942. Then, Gene happens upon a fence Helen drove through. She’s laughing at the absurdity of it all. He’s fixing the fence. Then they’re at the same barn dance. “I can see her / bright red in the face / hoping he might wanna dance a few,” Downing sings. Though his grandparents are gone, he sings in present tense. It’s as if he’s looking right at them. “I can see him / taking her hand / wondering if she already knew / She already knew.”
It’s a standout track on Downing’s second solo LP, the emotionally deep and stylistically broad Landfill Poetry. Downing, also of the Deslondes, draws from real life to craft songs about garbage men, young lovers and country folk. With straightforward lyrics comprised of carefully chosen details, he paints believable pictures of his subjects. And with a low, memorable voice that can warm with reminiscence, crack with exhaustion or bark with enthusiasm, Downing gives his songs life.
