So let’s start at the end. Overall, singer-songwriter, musician, producer, and CEO / Owner of Pryor 2 What? Records and Music Publishing, Doug Cash brings the heat on the single, “All I Can Ask”. The production, specifically the arrangement and the instrumental, is superb. Production and songwriting aside, the songwriting is solid as well, and the song wouldn’t be possible without the soulful vocals of Doug Cash, who is magnificently supported by Lindsay Marie on the mic. It’s living, breathing, pulsating, music, and if you’re not moving and grooving, best check your pulse. This song has all the trademarks of the golden years of Soul, as well as rhythm and blues with an unusual Americana twist. It’s fine to draw influence from classic music sounds, but rarely can you capture its essence and match its quality. Yet somehow, Doug Cash seems to do just that on “All I Can Ask”.
Through the years, Doug Cash has staked his name to his songwriting, and “All I Can Ask” catches it at its crest. In reality, Cash’s latest is a different angle on the same aching verve that’s spilled out of him for the last decade. But the chord it strikes is no less cutting, as he wrings out his heart: “So lost and out of place. The pain the cost. Across my face. What we once had you gave away. And all I can ask is why’d you do it. Dared to care. To try once more. More than my share. Of being screwed like a whore. What we once had you gave away. And all I can ask is why’d you do it.”
You can feel the melancholy and hopelessness tinged with desperation to make sense of a relationship gone awry. Whatever or whoever the song is about; anyone who listens is bound to apply it to someone close in their lives.
“All I Can Ask” is a song which is what it sounds like if you’re relying on the melody and instrumentals to guide you on the mood of the track overall. It is worth noting again that Doug Cash’s rich voice is front and center in this song and this is where the track gets its strength.
You’ll keep hearing the talent of Cash’s delivery in “All I Can Ask” when he practically unfolds the narrative, and allows Lindsay Marie to add an extra vocal dynamic to the track. If this is what we should expect from Doug Cash’s solo work from here on out, I’m all for it.
The listener will be happy to experience powerful emotions in response to Cash’s songwriting and performance. This record is a slow burn that requires multiple listens in order to fully process and appreciate its artistry, besides the obvious and immediate payoffs.
As you listen to “All I Can Ask”, it becomes increasingly clear that this track was written at the height of Doug Cash’s creative powers. Cash is a whole lot more than just another Americana troubadour armed with an acoustic guitar and a great singing voice.
When Doug Cash puts his honest words and performing talents at the forefront of a solid tune, it can only come across as captivatingly genuine. “All I Can Ask”, is a song that is rooted, and plucked straight from Doug Cash’s organic musical alchemy.
OFFICIAL LINKS: SPOTIFY – APPLE MUSIC – YOUTUBE – REVERBNATION
