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MojoMar 11, 2013New stuff for him every bit, from pain to process, and consequently unprecedented in his previous work is the sweet melancholy measure of his voice. His songwriting, too, emerges liberated, lyrics forged, melodies flowing. [Apr 2013, p.86]
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Entertainment WeeklyMar 21, 2013His perfectly weathered voice brings out the simple sweetness of breezy heartbreakers. [22 Mar 2013, p.64]
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Jun 4, 2013Tooth & Nail is probably the most accurate and all-encompassing illustration of the great man’s worth.
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Mar 18, 2013Just like Levi Stubbs, he can't help himself.
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Mar 18, 2013Weary then, but, as ever, authentic.
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Mar 14, 2013Billy Bragg has released his classiest-sounding album to date.
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Mar 13, 2013It’s Bragg’s voice that’s most prominent of course: warm and resonant, but also mournful at times, tinged with regret, that of an old soul looking at the world and shaking his head at its follies.
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Mar 11, 2013Through its songs he conveys truths about this country in a way that few other English songwriters, if any, are able to do.
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Mar 13, 2013Less a pessimistic declaration than a call for release, the tune ["January Song"] sets a contemplative tone that rings throughout.
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MagnetApr 16, 2013There's both freshness and familiarity to this live-in-the-studio effort. [No. 97, p.53]
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Mar 22, 2013The scope may be smaller this time around, but in the end, the record delivers the same smart, sometimes funny, always impassioned results.
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Mar 21, 2013The tone of Tooth and Nail, lyrically and musically, is “mature” and “sophisticated” in a way that stops short of dull and ends up feeling pleasantly familiar, like reuniting with an old friend.
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Mar 19, 2013Bragg and producer Joe Henry, owner of the aforementioned basement where Tooth & Nail was recorded, make for a solid team, allowing their shared love of rural Americana to run wild and each song enough elbow room to get comfy by sticking to a pantry of few seasonings.
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Mar 15, 2013Tooth & Nail is mellow, but not un-edgy.
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Mar 13, 2013Despite the occasionally more personal tone to Tooth & Nail, he continues his role as social commentator magnificently.
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Mar 13, 2013It’s all very soft and comfortable, musically speaking, like an old couch you can’t get out of.
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Mar 11, 2013It features some undeniably strong songs but is lacking a vitality which would make it a convincing listen. Nonetheless, it’s fascinating in its own way.
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Mar 19, 2013In spite of its title, Tooth & Nail sounds like a cozy old rocking chair of an album, full of session players, slide guitar, and a songwriter softened by age.
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Jul 15, 2013With a reflective outlook worthy of Bragg’s now venerable stature, this weathered perspective serves him well.
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May 2, 2013Though Bragg leaves behind punk rock fire for the personal, there are still political--and optimistic--moments, weariness be damned.
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Mar 15, 2013Only much later, in “There Will Be a Reckoning”, does the familiar Bragg anger kick in significantly.... it's outnumbered here by more sensitive songs about things like relationship difficulties and dying.
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Q MagazineMar 11, 2013Somewhat laid-back for a record made by an ex-punk, even one in his mid-50s. [Apr 2013, p.96]
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UncutMar 11, 2013For the most part, there's nothing wrong with the lyrics. "Do Unto Others" is a fine secular hymn, while "January Song" has some smart digs at the Tea Party, but, in both cases, the voice never convinces. [Apr 2013, p.80]