The Falcon Ate The Flower. Lee Gallagher and the Hallelujah

No matter how good I thought 'L.A. Yesterday' was in the summer of 2020, I had forgotten all about the album and Lee Gallagher and the Hallelujah. A new name I thought. Wrong. What had not changed, was my immediate positive response to The Falcon Ate The Flower. I loved the album from the get go, just like what seemingly happened with 'L.A. Yesterday'. That old-fashioned, slightly psychedelic country rock sound comes totally across, again.

Lee Gallagher since the release of 'L.A. Yesterday' relocated to Nashville. Luckily for him I read that only later, as music from that city often does not agree with me.

Reading my review of almost 3,5 years ago, I feel I could almost copy the text as the album makes the same impression on me as the one then. Coming out of the blue, while pushing on all the right buttons.

Gallagher's voice has that rough edge that a good country rock singer has. The guitars are allowed to expand in the songs and have a little dirty sound here and there. The Hammond organ warms my cold winter hands. The rhythm section lays down a solid foundation. The Fender Rhodes piano provides that vibe from half a century ago that is over the whole of The Falcon Ate The Flower. This is a record that could have been released in 1973 or something and would have stood out then like it does today.

Does this make The Falcon Ate The Flower a record we can ignore because of this? No, far from. For that it is to urgent. Just listen to 'Every Little Sound'. All Lee Gallagher is comes together here. The groove, the guitar solo, the warmth and the begging on bare knees vibe. If you like this song, I'm convinced you'll become a Lee Gallagher fan without hesitation. This album has it all where classic country rock is concerned.

Wout de Natris

You can listen to and order The Falcon Ate The Flower here:

https://leegallagher.bandcamp.com/album/the-falcon-ate-the-flower