The Smoker You Drink, The Player You Get 1973 Album

Joe Walsh Barnstorm

The second Barnstorm/Walsh record strikes a more celebratory tone overall, but compared to the debut record it's the less challenging of the two. It also served as the commercial breakthrough as well, with the leadoff "Rocky Mountain Way" getting the lion's share of the notoriety and attention. For years to come, it would also pigeonhole the album into a classic rock, guitar-hero, gear-and-pot-head dated limbo, but that's OK, because it is also extremely comfortable in its' own skin. But not all of the music is in the same vein as "Rocky Mountain Way" - not by a long shot. Like the previous album, Barnstorm sees fit to range 'round confidently over of the course of the remaining eight tracks. However, the experience does not go down as smoothly as the first album did, either. "Midnight Moodies" is an instrumental that is just as inscrutable as "Giant Bohemoth". "Wolf" is layers and layers of gorgeous, haunting sound. But then, there is "Happy Ways", which is a little too lightweight. While much of the material sounds great and creative, tracks like "Meadows", "Dreams", and "Days (Go By)" come off as intentionally marked to build from innocuously quiet to epic. They seem a bit too contrived to be believed. Despite this, The Smoker You Get, The Player You Get is quite an entertaining listen, and necessary companion piece to hear after the debut Barnstorm record.