Facts and Stats: Palmhenge is singer-songwriter-guitarist Johnny Hickman’s debut solo album released in 2005. Hickman is known for his long and illustrious partnership with David Lowery (Camper Van Beethoven) through their band Cracker. Hickman was also a member of the Estonian Gauchos, a precursor to Camper Van Beethoven, as well as The Unforgiven and later the Hickman Dalton Gang.
Palmhenge came hot off the heels of Hickman’s song-writing and performance contributions to Camper Van Beethoven’s concept album New Roman Times (2004). Both New Roman Times and Palmhenge are concept albums, with Palmhenge an imagination of California as a lost civilisation.
Hickman plays much of the instrumentation on the album but also has an impressive supporting cast, including the hopefully recognisable names of David Immerglück (guitars, pedal steel, vocals), Ken Coomer (percussion). Joey Burns (bowed bass) and Davey Faragher (vocals). Hickman wrote all songs except two (“Harvest Queen” co-written with Lowery and singer songwriter Chris LeRoy) and “The San Bernardino Boy” (with LeRoy).
What The Critics Thought: On the Flip Side Music wrote (25 April 2024) that “Johnny Hickman has created a timeless album. With its vibrant melodies and catchy lyrics, Palmhenge offers a compelling musical journey that’s sure to captivate fans of Americana and Alternative Country”. AllMusic said that “with his solo debut album Palmhenge that the world can truly hear the scope of his talent”. Robert Christgau noted (September 2005) that as Lowery’s co-writer in Cracker, Hickman found Lowery’s “snarkiness contagious” but concluded the album “sounds compassionate when it says it’s compassionate, it sounds loving when it says it’s loving, and it sounds cynical when it says it’s cynical. And that’s such a relief”.
What We Think: there’s much to appreciate on Palmhenge with its high quality song-writing – so much so that two of the songs were re-recorded for Cracker projects: “Friends” for 2009’s Sunrise in the Land of Milk and Honey and “The San Bernardino Boy” for 2014’s Berkeley to Bakersfield. Other highpoints include Jesus-thanking peach-loving “Southern Cal”, the philosophical approach of “Lucky” and the rebellious power chords and confident vocal of “The Great Decline”. The originality of the songs is a winning feature, with Hickman taking some risks (“Prerequiem”, “Harvest Queen”). The hacking in to the main frame on the electrified “Hacker Boy” is worthy of being in a rock opera and the appealing pop of “Little Queen Bee” is entirely convincing.
Christgau was of the view that Palmhenge has a “glum outlook” but we disagree. The “Prerequiem” may be written from the Floyd-ian dark side of the songwriter’s room but we’re on the edge of the continent and the surf is up, so there is some consolation. Further, the quieter songs are not necessarily melancholic; history dramatically swirls around the narrator of “Little Tom”, the seasonal slow shuffle “Father Winter has an uplifting gospel tinge and “Beauregarde’s Retreat” takes comfort in country with fiddle and a hearty singalong.
Label: Campstove Records
Release Date: 1 JAN 2005
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