image courtesy of AFC Management & Publicity

Single Review of Shea Rafferty: “Livin'”

You ready to get a lump in your throat? Oh, yeah, Shea Rafferty serves it up! Fast-rising UK Americana artist Rafferty serves up a reminiscent, throwback number that straddles the line between Americana and country music. Nah, it’s firmly in both camps, though for me, I think it leans country, and not judge because of the slide guitar wafting through the number from time to time but also because Rafferty’s voice is convincingly deep and quivers a little like good country singers’ often do when emotions well up. And yet it is flush with references to pop, rock, and country musical touchstones (“It was Springsteen, Madonna, Petty or Nirvana. It’s was old country songs, we all could sing along…”), as it harkens back to simpler times before constant digital connectivity. Rafferty is so rich, his voice so sincere, and the lyrics so convincing. Nostalgia is a powerful emotional drug, and the way Rafferty’s voice soars during the climactic line “It was livin’!”, there’s no doubt this is a surefire hit anywhere it gets a little airplay. Regardless, it’s a song we all need on our playlists.

More Recently

A couple weeks after “Livin'” was released in September, the full album Livin’ dropped. If this single is any indication, that album is a must-hear!