1 	Andare	0:53
2 	Footsteps in the Shadows 	4:49
3 	Texas Is My Mother 	3:01
4 	Teenage Luggage	3:25
5 	Something Blue 	4:11
6 	Outlaw for You 	3:26
7 	Amor Puro 	2:38
8 	Waiting for Me	3:17
9 	How Many Times	4:29
10 	Cherry Blossom Rain 	3:36
11 	Sonica USA	2:20
12 	Rio Navidad [Explicit]	3:45
13 	Silver City	5:57
14 	Fury and Fire 	2:13
15 	Flying	3:08
16 	MC Overload	3:04
17 	The Crossing	5:20

Bass, Backing Vocals, Percussion – Denis Valentini
Drums, Percussion – Matteo Monti
Guitar, Bass, Lap Steel Guitar, Keyboards – Don Antonio
Guitar, Vocals, Percussion – Alejandro Escovedo
Organ, Electric Piano, Piano [acoustic], Synth – Nicola Peruch
Saxophone – Franz Valtieri, Gianni Perinelli
Strings – Prague Metropolitan Symphonic Orchestra
Vocals – Emma Morton, Nicholas Tremulis 
+
Grand Piano – Vanni Crociani (1)
Guitar – James Williamson (4), John Perry (8), Wayne Kramer (11)
Bass Clarinet – Gianni Perinelli (15)
Beats – Franco Naddei (16)
Vocals – Peter Perrett (8), Sabrina Rocchi (9), Joe Ely (13)
Vocals [spoken word] – Freddy Trujillo (12), Joe Ely (17)

In 2000, Alejandro Escovedo wrote a play with music titled By the Hand of the Father, a moving song cycle that dealt with the Mexican-American experience as families left one home behind in hopes of finding another on the other side of the border. Escovedo is the son of one such man, and By the Hand of the Father was informed by the lives of his own family members. In 2018, Escovedo explores not dissimilar themes on his concept album The Crossing, but instead of telling the story of his father and those like him, here he imagines a story of two expatriates not unlike himself, and what their lives might be like if they made their way to America in these times. In 17 songs, The Crossing follows the journeys of two young men who came to America -- Diego from Mexico, Salvo from Italy -- chasing a dream of the nation they came to love from vintage punk rock, film noir, and beat-era literature. In their minds, America is not only a place of freedom and opportunity, but of ineffable cool, and if the art lives up to their expectations, the reality of daily life outside the American mainstream is another matter. These songs run the emotional gamut from the furious celebration of "Sonica USA" ("I saw the Zeros and they looked like me/This is the America that I want to be") to the bitter rant of "Teenage Luggage" ("America is beautiful, America is ill/America is a bloodstain in a honky tonk kill") to the rueful wisdom of the title cut ("Thoughts and prayers they never last/Don't waste them on the past/We all become history when we make the crossing"). Escovedo wrote these songs in collaboration with Italian rock musician Antonio Gramentiere, with Gramentiere and his band Don Antonio providing the backing, and the partnership proves to be inspired, with the musicians tackling the multiple influences and shifting moods of this music with passion and aplomb. And Escovedo has brought in some impressive guests for these sessions, including Wayne Kramer of the MC5, James Williamson of Iggy & the Stooges, Peter Perrett and John Perry of the Only Ones, and Joe Ely (who lends harmonies to a beautiful cover of his song "Silver City"). With The Crossing, Escovedo puts a new and compelling spin on the oft-told tale of the American dream as seen both from a distance and up close. In his hands, this story is both timeless and as up to date as the latest news bulletin, and it connects as great music and outstanding storytelling delivered by an artist who has a unique talent for both. ---Mark Deming, AllMusic Review

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01 – Man Of The World
02 – Big Station
03 – Sally Was A Cop
04 – Bottom Of The World
05 – Can’t Make Me Run
06 – San Antonio Rain
07 – Headstrong Crazy Fools
08 – Common Mistake
09 – Never Stood A Chance
10 – Party People
11 – Too Many Tears
12 – Sabor A Mi

Personnel:
Bobby Daniel - Bass, Composer, Vocals
Alejandro Escovedo - Composer, Guitar, Primary Artist, Vocals
Elias Haslanger 	- Sax (Baritone), Sax (Tenor)
Gina Lopez Holton - Vocals
Warren Hood - Fiddle, Violin
Evan Jacobs - Farfisa Organ
Karla Manzur - Vocals
Ephraim Owens - Trumpet
David Pulkingham - Composer, Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals
Chris Searles - Drums
Brian Standefer - Cello
Tony Visconti - Composer, Engineer, Keyboards, Mixing, Producer, Tambourine
Kristeen Young 	- Vocals

With a brazen swagger drawn from Alejandro Escovedo’s punk roots, the 61-year-old songwriter/yowler declares, “I can take a punch, I can take a swing…” on Big Station’s opening “Man of the World”—suggesting his 12th studio release is an action record. Over a dozen songs, the Rank and File founder never disappoints.

With strains of “Forever Young”-era Dylan and the acoustic side of Neil Young, “Bottom of the World” paints a sweeping portrait of the dissolute, while the low-riding urgency of artistic consumption “Headstrong Crazy Fool” is laced with one slithering guitar line, a tiny keyboard figure and an unwavering beat, driven by creativity, desire and bad decisions.

Even the trumpet over hand-clapped rhythms of the neo-chant “Can’t Make Me Run,” suggesting a hipster Tom Petty, glows with the slow-burn confession of the cornered. There may not be options, but that includes surrender. Escovedo has always been a fringe rock icon—never mainstream, but always the secret handshake that separates those who know from those who think they do. There is no denying the grit of Big Station as essential—or the way the grooves cut into your brain and don’t let go.

Tony Visconti, known for his work with David Bowie, understands both drama and spaciousness. There is room inside these tracks that allows the guitars’ fuzzy edges to spread out, the drum tracks a bit of reverb and Escovedo’s voice a chance for its nuances to rise.

A bit of a bray, a touch of caw, his voice echoes with the truth of a rock life fully explored—and survived. “San Antonio Rain” is a survivor’s lament, strung across the Southwest, equal parts surrender to addictions and knowing better; “Never Stood A Chance” matches Roy Orbison-esque guitars with that washed-out sadness of realization.

Like Tom Waits, who also goes fishing in the gutter, Escovedo sees the romance of the underbelly and writes with compassion—but also the clarity of having lived it, seen it, touched it, breathed it. He can take a Joe Jackson, "Is She Really Going Out With Him”-style shuffle and turn it into a street-smart write-off in “Common Mistake.” Voice blaring, as the girls swoosh up with their pretty “ah-ooh-ahhhs” and the sax bleats, he confesses “I choose love over anything…” before issuing the challenge, “come on, it’s a common mistake.”

Common mistakes, hearts ablaze, worlds torn apart and one man emerging from the maelstrom. Those are the things Big Station is made of, and it imbues this lean rock record with import beyond the sting of the smart, seething tracks. ---Holly Gleason, pastemagazine.com

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