Downbeat is Ben Chapman’s third full length album, following Make the Night Better from 2022 and last year’s Amber Sound, Vol. 1, and it gives a fresh look at the singer/songwriter from Lafayette, GA. If the songs feel real and personal, it’s because they are. They come from his own life experiences and observations of the music business, both the victories and the losses. 

The ten tracks were produced by Anderson East, who is also credited with background vocals, playing a variety of instruments and co-writing one of the songs. Chapman has said that this batch of songs came together much quicker than they have in the past. Instead of spending weeks, months or even years trying to perfect a song, some were written in as little as 30 minutes. The album is proof that really living these songs and witnessing first-hand how the stories play out has contributed to his growth as a songwriter. 

We were given a hint of what to expect from the new album when the co-write with East, “Baby Don’t Cry, It’s Saturday Night,” was released late last year. It’s a reminder that “if things ain’t looking up, you might as well get down” because sitting at home and crying about it won’t change the situation.

Chapman doesn’t waste any time getting into the “country funk” that has become his signature style. From the first track - “Almost Home,” a song about going through the motions out on the road when all you really want to do is get back to the one you love – the album is a soundtrack to life’s highs and lows. 

There are soulful ballads about perfect loves (“Don’t You Dare”) and breaking hearts (“Star of Monterey” and “Finish What You Started”) blended with funky jams about finally moving on (“If I Was You”) and how music can help everything feel alright even if you’re stuck making that music in your hometown (“Downbeat”).

The song “Temporary High” is a look at the downside of touring and how the highs that come with being on the road - the fame, the money, the drugs and alcohol - will fade and the coming down can feel like the lowest of lows, kind of like “gold losing its glitter.” 

“America’s Sweetheart” is another cautionary tale that chasing your dreams doesn’t always work out. You can start out as the biggest and brightest, the star quarterback or the rodeo queen, but life won’t always have a glamorous ending and can instead fade out like “a slow kinda tragedy.”

A cover of Bob Dylan’s “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here with You” rounds out the album. The passionate delivery from Ben and Meg McRee, his girlfriend and one of his favorite collaborators, makes it hard to believe that it’s not an original song that the two wrote together. 

With Downbeat, Ben put himself in the spotlight this time, instead of writing hits for other artists, and the result is a collection of songs that show a new version of himself – one that he considers to be his true self. According to the title track, the trick is finding “the right groove with just enough soul” and the album is the result of mastering that magical sound. This “southern-funk jam-band country thing” might not fit under any one label but it’s a mix of reflection and swagger with an authenticity that makes it relatable for everyone. It’s back and forth, up and down, but it will have you tapping your toe from beginning to end.  

Find out more about Ben Chapman at the links below:

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Spotify