Joe Ely: Satisfied at Last – review

After too many lean years, the Texan troubadour rediscovers the form that established him back in the 1980s. Now 64, Ely still sings with agility and swagger, though retrospection and mortality tie together the songs here. There's a rueful mood to "Not That Much Has Changed", about a soldier's return home, but mostly Ely's tone is philosophical. "The Highway is My Home" is defiant roadhouse rock, while the bluesy "I'm a Man Now" and scratchy reggae of "Roll Again" both shrug off the past. Best of all is "Circumstance", by Ely's former Flatlanders bandmate Butch Hancock, a cowboy's tribute to the endless trail.