Danny and the Champions of the World - Streets of our Time

Streets of Our Time is the second release from Aussie-born Londoner Danny Wilson and his ever-changing gang of Champions, and the ninth album in total for the former Grand Drive singer.

Surely influenced by the likes of Dylan, Springsteen and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Wilson’s classically told tales of a folk troubadour are summed up pretty well by the opening two songs. Opener Henry the Van fondly tells of a tour bus on its last legs and is followed by the nostalgia of the soul-tinged Restless Feet. Wilson’s vocal falls somewhere between a young Dylan, Ian Felice and Neil Young as the album travels through the pedal steel of Wandle Swan, the gentle harmonica and banjo of Streets of Time and the gospel choir of Yr People Here (Shine a Light).

The fact that The Champions are less of a band and more of an ever-rotating group of mates that, according to Wilson “never rehearse”, gives Streets of Our Time a real sense of freedom and joy. That’s not to say it’s a sloppy record in its musicianship, far from it, rather there is just a footloose vibe here that comes from a bunch of pals doing what they love.

Okay, so maybe at times it’s a little bit cheesy in its dewy-eyed nostalgia, but it does have a nice heart and soul to it. Hardly groundbreaking, but with a certain timeless charm, Streets of our Time is a love-letter to Americana, to Wilson’s influences and, in the best folk tradition, to times gone by.