Album Review—The Small Hours by Neil Patton

Stories Rephrased In Music: Neil Patton’s Nightly Conversations With The Soul

Stories have enthralled and engaged humans throughout history, regardless of age. Seeking to engage his audience, familiar with his mesmerizing piano compositions, Neil Patton chooses to tell stories through music – yes, The Small Hours is a collection of discussions on the most common experiences we all share. Patton finds piano notes to be the perfect medium to converse with our souls for this purpose. I also found that The Small Hours is by no means a small work, as it connects with every listener on a deeply emotional level, challenging them to transform their perception of life and human experiences. So, let us listen to these tracks together and discover what the maestro wishes to tell us through his musical narratives.

About the Artist

A gifted pianist, composer, and teacher, Neil Patton hails from Eugene, Oregon. He has developed a distinct style in New Age Music that evidently reveals the influences of classical, folk, and rock music. Over his musical career, Patton is widely recognized for his emotionally resonant compositions. Especially, his 2015 album, Between Shadow and Light, was named Album of the Year at MainlyPiano.com, and his 2022 work Holy Ground earned the title of Christian Album of the Year at SoloPiano.com. As a pianist, Patton is a master of some rare techniques that he has picked up and polished through his practice. In addition, we can’t discount his astonishing ability to evoke deep feelings and personal reflections in his listeners.

About the Album: The Small Hours

The Small Hours is an exceptional composition in solo piano. This album, created during the challenging times of the pandemic years, reflects Patton’s unparalleled musical insight. It is an instance to demonstrate how music can serve as a potent tool in the hands of an inspired artist to develop remedies for humanity. This album is an exploration of some quiet and reflective moments of human life – the late-night hours when memories, thoughts, and emotions surface.

1. Day’s End

The album begins with this gentle piece, surrounding us with the ambience of the peaceful close of a long day. Its serene melody sets the tone for the reflective journey ahead.

2. We Will Tell the Stories

This track surfaces a commonly shared human experience, discussing the essence of storytelling that is passed on through generations across different cultures and traditions. The tunes of this track wear a timeless quality and sound warm and inviting.

3. Goodnight Daddy

I found this one of the most intimate compositions in the album. Expressing some tender moments between a father and child, this song blends sweetness and nostalgia.

4. Good to See You Again

After the pangs of painful separation, reuniting with a loved one can be an incredibly rewarding experience for any human. The easy-flowing melodies of this track exude comfort and joy.

5. Above the Treetops

The lighter and uplifting composition of this piece feels like breathing fresh air. The notes of this track suggest freedom and emancipation, letting us perceive the world from a bird’s-eye view.

6. A Room with a View

This is a calm and reflective song painting a picture of stillness and contemplation. We feel as though we are looking out over a peaceful landscape.

7. Falling Up

Introducing a paradoxical statement in its title, the seventh track lifts our spirits for an upward journey to make the most of the gift of freedom we all cherish within our souls.

8. The Moon and Sun Dance

In this track, the piano notes get rather playful, portraying the theme of the eternal dance between day and night. Patton’s dexterous fingers delicately bring out the contrast between light and dark on those black and white keys. Listening to this piece, I do wonder, if Patton’s piano is made elsewhere being specially ordered to deliver exceptional music.

9. A Prayer in the Darkness

This is another introspective track in the album.  Listening to this song feels contemplative and deeply personal. In these notes, our hearts discover a profound sense of emancipation from suffering.

10. The Small Hours

The title track beautifully delivers the essence of the quiet and reflective moments of the late-night hours. The music feels haunting and ethereal, healing some deep-rooted injuries within our hearts. 

11. Trust

This is one of my favorite compositions in this album. The melodies of this track progress gently reflecting the emotional journey in which we learn to trust ourselves and the world.

12. Shame and Grace

In this track, Patton dwells on two opposing, yet connected emotions. With the artist, we journey through the reconcilement that follows after we are delivered from the shackles of our confinements.

13. This Grief Lies Down Beside Me

Grief is a part of our life, which we can’t discount so easily unless we gain the maturity to live with it without getting disturbed. This sense of acceptance makes us live our lives successfully to discover a purpose and fulfillment. The powerful notes of this track seem to bring out this message in a subtle way. 

14. Nightwalk – Be Thou My Vision

In this piece, Patton reimagines an ancient hymn. There is a kind of depth and timelessness in this composition. By interpreting it in his own exceptional way, the composer creates something new as well as sacred.

15. Daybreak

In this track, Patton chooses to consolidate and sum up the discussions in all the preceding tracks. The notes of this track delicately mirror the process of the closure of the night and the arrival of the new day. A sense of renewal and resurgence surrounds us and leaves us much lighter and hopeful. 

Take Away

In The Small Hours, Neil Patton seems to have accomplished a mammoth mission. The album is a deep exploration of intimate human experiences that repeat and recur in all our lives. On a personal level, nights appear to me as chambers of healing and renewal, when our beings are refreshed, recharged, and prepared for the next day. The stillness of night is when this profound work of rejuvenation occurs, providing a perfect setting and theme for the artist to uncover the quiet transformation that happens in all of our lives—each and every night. Each track offers an enriching experience to the listener, inviting us to marvel at the power of the composer’s rare musical abilities.