Category Archives: DVD

Look Out! HBO Full-Length ‘Deadwood’ Trailer featuring Colter Wall

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Deadwood: The Movie

Deadwood fans are still cautiously giddy at the news of a full-length version of our favorite profanity-splattered Shakspereon western. Deadwood unceremoniously canceled on June 5, 2006 Fans were left with a fragmented and ponderous third season after creator and primary writer David Milch decided he wanted to work on the HBO surfer sap opera ‘John from Cincinnati.” (which was immediately canceled)

In the aftermath, Milch agreed to make a pair of two-hour television films, but HBO executives and the otherwise newly contracted actors at various times over the years put the odds of that happening as slim to none.

But good things come to hooplheads that wait and HBO announced a few weeks back that ‘Deadwood: The Movie’ was happening. This was backed up by W. Earle Brown, who plays Al Swearengen’s hang-dog muscle Dan Dority verified on Twitter that the movie was in post-production.

Then came an official announcement from HBO with a trailer. Canned peaches all around!

Today we get a full-length trailer (see below) trailer highlighting more of the excellent cast (Calamity Jane!) The trailer also treats us with the perfectly placed Colter Wall song ‘Sleeping on the Blacktop.” This is a nice treat though no surprise as Deadwood has always featured great roots music.

Wall’s song being included appears to have been taken him by surprise as he heard the news while working on his ranch. He responded on social media.

Though the news of a movie finally being released is cause for celebration it comes with the bittersweet revelation that David Milch is suffering from Alzheimer’s.

Deadwood: The Movie will premiere on HBO, May 31, 2019.

UPDATE>> Apparently Jason Isbell will have a cameo in the movie!

Colter Wall’s ‘Sleeping on the Blacktop” on his album “Imaginary Appalachia.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0WrXmhvXTA

Steve Earle To Release His 16th Studio Album, “Terraplane,” and Memoir in 2015

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Steve Earle "Terraplane"

2015 is looking pretty bright roots music people. Steve Earle is again working with the current version of The Dukes – Kelly Looney, Will Rigby, Chris Masterson and Eleanor Whitmore – and will release his 16th studio effort “Terraplane” on February 17th. The album will also feature another great cover by longtime Earle collaborator Tony Fitzpatrick.

Earle will also release his memoir ‘I Can’t Remember If We Said Goodbye,’ published by Grand Central Publishing/Hachette Book Group.

The album follows fellow roots artist like Ray Wylie Hubbard and Lucinda Williams into more blues focused territory.

From the press release:

” ‘Terraplane’ takes its title from the 1930s Hudson Motor Car Company of Detroit model, which also inspired the Robert Johnson song “Terraplane Blues.” … As its title suggests, the album is very much a blues record, a third of which was written while Earle toured Europe alone for five weeks with just a guitar, a mandolin and a backpack. Earle, who was raised outside of San Antonio before migrating to Houston, offers about Texas blues, “There was Fort Worth where the model was Freddy King, and there was the Houston scene which was dominated by Lightnin’ Hopkins. Two very different styles.” He saw both of these giants, and was also exposed to Johnny Winter, Jimmy and Stevie Ray Vaughn, and Billy Gibbons, all of which make their influence heard here within Earle’s masterful storytelling. ”

“Earle states in the Terraplane album liner notes, “…the blues are anything but superficial. In fact, they run so deep and dark and close to the bone that folks walk around everyday with the blues as though it were perfectly natural for a human being to go on living with a broken heart (apologies to Tony Kushner).” He continues, “For my part, I’ve only ever believed two things about the blues: one, that they are very democratic, the commonest of human experience, perhaps the only thing that we all truly share and two, that one day, when it was time, I would make this record.” ”

The album was produced by R.S. Field (Buddy Guy, John Mayall), engineered by Earle’s longtime production partner Ray Kennedy, and recorded at House of Blues Studio D in Nashville, TN.

‘Terraplane’ will be available as a compact disc, deluxe CD/DVD combo as well as as 180g vinyl. The deluxe version of the album will include 24-bit high-res audio of the album as well as a long-form interview between Earle and acclaimed journalist Mark Jacobson, three live, acoustic songs filmed on the porch of House of Blues Studio D, and a behind-the-scenes short film about the making of the album.

2015 will also see the publication of Earle’s memoir ‘I Can’t Remember If We Said Goodbye,’ published by Grand Central Publishing/Hachette Book Group. Earle has been a featured actor on the HBO Original Series “The Wire” and “Treme,” and also appears in the upcoming films “The World Made Straight” and “Dixieland.” He can be seen in many episodes of the Foo Fighters HBO Original Series “Sonic Highways” and also co-wrote the title track with Marianne Faithfull for her new studio album Give My Love To London.

Steve Earle & The Dukes – Terraplane Track Listing:
1. Baby Baby Baby (Baby)
2. You’re The Best Lover That I Ever Had
3. The Tennessee Kid
4. Ain’t Nobody’s Daddy Now
5. Better Off Alone
6. The Usual Time
7. Go Go Boots Are Back
8. Acquainted With The Wind
9. Baby’s Just As Mean As Me
10. Gamblin’ Blues
11. King Of The Blues

Earle announced four January residency performances at the City Winery in New York City, where he resides :

January 5 – New York, NY @ City Winery *
January 12 – New York, NY @ City Winery +
January 19 – New York, NY @ City Winery
January 26 – New York, NY @ City Winery

* With Willie Watson
+ With Shawn Colvin

Austin City Limits Announces Inaugural ACL Hall of Fame in Conjunction With Upcoming 40th Anniversary

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Austin City Limits

Austin City Limits (ACL) announced today the launch of the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame in conjunction with the iconic television series’ upcoming 40th Anniversary. This Hall of Fame’s Inaugural Induction Ceremony will take place on Saturday, April 26, 2014 at ACL’s original home, KLRU’s legendary Studio 6A. Recognizing both artists and non-performers who have made the long-running show a music institution, the ceremony will honor the first class of inductees, featuring two legendary music acts, Willie Nelson and Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble, and a pair of individuals who have played an invaluable role in the genesis of the series, show creator Bill Arhos and longtime University of Texas football coach Darrell K. Royal.

Performers for this intimate evening include inductees and Doyle Bramhall II, Mike Farris, Buddy Guy, Emmylou Harris, Lyle Lovett, Lukas Nelson, Robert Randolph and Kenny Wayne Shepherd. Former University of Texas football head coach Mack Brown will participate in the inductions, as well as special guests. More information about performances and additional guests will be announced prior to the event. Details about the physical ACL Hall of Fame will also be unveiled at the ceremony.

Guitar legend Stevie Ray Vaughan and “Coach” Darrell K. Royal will be inducted posthumously during the ceremony. Willie Nelson, ACL show creator Bill Arhos and Vaughan’s longtime band Double Trouble, featuring Chris Layton, Tommy Shannon and Reese Wynans, will be inducted at the event. The Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will be an annual event, honoring a new class of inductees each year. This year’s Inaugural ceremony will be an invitation-only benefit for ACL parent station KLRU-TV, Austin PBS.

“There are other Halls of Fame, but none quite like this,” says ACL Executive Producer Terry Lickona. “Austin City Limits has become a unique American institution, in both the worlds of popular music and television. It has such a rich history and legacy that we decided it was time to celebrate and honor the artists and individuals who made it what it is today.”

ACL began broadcasting in 1976 as a live-music show that served to showcase musicians; it has since grown to feature performers of all genres from all over the globe. Since its inception, the Peabody Award-winning series has become an institution that’s helped secure Austin’s reputation as the Live Music Capital of the World. ACL continues its mission of producing great television with the debut of its 40th Season in October 2014. The program airs weekly on PBS stations nationwide and episodes are made available online at http://acltv.com/watch/.

Emmylou Harris To Release “Wrecking Ball” Special Package Reissue

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Emmylou Harris Wrecking Ball

American Songwriter reports that Nonesuch Records will reissue Emmylou Harris’ acclaimed 1995 album Wrecking Ball as a three-disc set. The reissue will contain a remastered version of the original album, which snagged the Grammy for Best Contemporary Folk Album in 1996. There will also be a bonus CD of recently unearthed demos and outtakes.

The reissue will also include a documentary DVD “Building the Wrecking Ball,” featuring studio footage and interviews with Harris and producer Daniel Lanois, as well as album contributors Steve Earle and Kate and Anna McGarrigle, and Neil Young, who wrote the title song.

Last month Harris celebrated her collaboration with Rodney Crowell, “Old Yellow Moon,” by winning the Grammy for Best Americana Album

In October of 2013 Emmylou Harris and Daniel Lanois, joined by Jim Wilson, Brian Blade and Malcolm Burn, performed “Wrecking Ball” in it’s entirety at the Marathon Music Works in Nashville. (see video below)

The Wrecking Ball reissues is slatted for release on April 8

In celebration of the reissue, Harris will hit the road with Lanois this spring. Check out tour dates below.

Disc 1

1. “Where Will I Be?” (Daniel Lanois)
2. “Goodbye” (Steve Earle)
3. “All My Tears” (Julie Miller)
4. “Wrecking Ball” (Neil Young)
5. “Goin’ Back to Harlan” (Anna McGarrigle)
6. “Deeper Well” (David Olney, Lanois, Emmylou Harris)
7. “Every Grain of Sand” (Bob Dylan)
8. “Sweet Old World” (Lucinda Williams)
9. “May This Be Love” (Jimi Hendrix)
10. “Orphan Girl” (Gillian Welch)
11. “Blackhawk” (Daniel Lanois)
12. “Waltz Across Texas Tonight” (Rodney Crowell, Emmylou Harris)

Disc 2 – Deeper Well: The Wrecking Ball Outtakes

1. Still Water 3:55
2. Where Will I Be (alternate version) 4:14
3. All My Tears 3:21
4. How Will I Ever Be Simple Again 3:36
5. Deeper Well 2:18
6. The Stranger Song 5:21
7. Sweet Old World (alternate version) 5:56
8. Gold 3:16
9. Blackhawk (alternate version) 4:40
10. May This Be Love (acoustic) 2:15
11. Goin’ Back to Harlan 2:35
12. Where Will I Be (alternate version) 2:13
13. Deeper Well 3:06

Emmylou Harris Wrecking Ball Tour Dates:

April 3 Los Angeles, CA The Wiltern
April 5 San Francisco, CA The Warfield
April 7 Royal Oak, MI The Royal Oak
April 8 Chicago, IL The Vic
April 11 Washington, DC The Lincoln Theatre
April 12 Brooklyn, NY TBA
April 13 Boston, MA The House of Blues
(additional tour dates to be announced)

Levon Helm Documentary To Open in Woodstock, N.Y.

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levon healthOn Saturday (April 13), nearly one year to the day after his death, ‘Ain’t In It For My Health: A Film About Levon Helm’ will open in Helm’s hometown of Woodstock, N.Y.

The documentary has been in the works since 2007, when director Jacob Hatley, who was hired to spend a weekend directing a video for Helm’s Grammy-winning Dirt Farmer, his first studio album since 1982. “Levon and I just happened to hit it off. I just ended up hanging out there. I found an excuse not to go home immediately.” Hatley says

“Jacob was the perfect fly on the wall for many months as we experienced the ups and downs of a wonderful time in all our lives,” Helm’s longtime musical partner Larry Campbell tells Newsday. “The result is a rare, artful, and honest glimpse into the fascinating world of one of our true American treasures, Levon Helm.”

The CD and DVD of the Oct. 3, 2012 tribute tribute concert ‘Love for Levon’ featuring friends, admirers and musical disciples such as Roger Waters, Warren Haynes, Gregg Allman and Lucinda Williams, has recently been released. Proceeds from the concert went to his family to help them keep his barn — the studio and live venue where his famous Midnight Rambles takes place to this day.

Ain’t In It For My Health will screen at Upstate Films in Woodstock on Saturday, April 13 (132 Tinker St., upstatefilms.org). On the same night of the film’s screening, a special “Midnight Ramble” concert will take place in Helm’s Woodstock barn. The doors open at 5 p.m., and the event will feature a barbecue and another screening of the documentary, as well as a performance and Q&A session with The Levon Helm Band. Tickets are $125 and available for purchase at levonhelm.com.

Mumford and Sons Announce “The Road to Red Rocks” Concert Film

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Fresh on the heels of their best-selling  sophomore album, Babel, Mumford and Sons have announced the release of a new concert film, The Road to Red Rocks.

The film documents an August 2012 at the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, Colo., supporting that same album. The DVD will on Blu-ray and in a special package including vinyl and a 96-page booklet. The Road to Red Rocks is set for release on 11/26 in the U.K. and 11/30 in New Zealand and Australia, but won’t be released until 1/22 in the U.S.

Check out the film’s trailer and the performance set list below.

The Road to Red Rocks Set list
1. Lovers Eyes
2. Little Lion Man
3. Below My Feet
4. Roll Away Your Stone
5. Lover of the Light
6. Thistle & Weeds
7. Ghost That We Knew
8. Awake My Soul
9. Whispers
10. Dustbowl Dance
11. I Will Wait
12. The Cave

Levon Helm Documentary “Ain’t In It For My Health” Coming To Theaters/DVD

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The 2010 documentary  Ain’t In It For My Health: A Film About Levon Helm, will be released in movie theaters nationwide for the first time next year.

The film follows longtime Band singer and drummer, as he works on 2010’s Electric Dirt,  the follow up to 2007’s Dirt Farmer , the winner of the inaugural Grammy for Best Americana Album.

Director Jacob Hatley shot the film over more than two years, spending time with Helm and his family at the Helm’s Woodstock, New York, home, the famed locale of Helm’s Midnight Ramble concert series.

Film distributor Kino Lorber said, “It was a privilege to meet Levon at one of his last Midnight Rambles and verify personally how insightfully this music-packed film captured the generosity of spirit, the humanity and the immense talent of one of America’s greatest musical artists. We see this as a mission now to be able to open the film, and Levon’s life, to legions of fans, followers and new audiences, who will be thrilled to discover the scope and depth of his contribution.

Levon Helm died on April 19th in New York of throat cancer. He was 71.

 

Video Premier- Emmylou Harris : Goodnight Old World

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Goodnight Old World is the first video from Emmylou Harris’ upcoming album Hard Bargain. The video  will be included as a DVD with the Deluxe Edition of album. Harris co-wrote the song with Will Jennings, as a  bittersweet lullaby to her newly born grandchild, contrasting a grown-up’s world-weariness with a baby’s wide-eyed wonder.

Producer Jay Joyce uses same ethereal, gauzy atmosphere that Daniel Lanois used with Harris’ acclaimed 1995 release Wrecking Ball and the technique suits Harris’ voice like a velvet glove. The song is melancholy and hopeful in the same way that old country songs used to be morally ambiguous and almost Gothic in their style.

This is a great glimpse of a highly anticipated album I hope meets this first cuts high standard.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54cxG3lOS58&feature=youtu.be[/youtube]

Merle Haggard – Legendary Performances Giveaway

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’tis the season for giving and Ranch Twang is ready to do just that. I have a copy of Shout Factory’s Merle Haggard – Legendary Performances DVD that I will be giving away to some lucky reader.

Here’s the copy from the package:

“From the vaults of the Country Music Hall Of Fame and Museum, this collection features nearly two decades of Merle Haggard performances in his prime not seen since their original broadcast. Now, for the first time on DVD, experience the hits through a chronology of vintage live performances such as “Branded Man” (Country Music Holiday,1968), “Mama Tried” (Billy Walker’s Country Carnival, 1968) and “Okie From Muskogee” (The Porter Wagoner Show, 1970).”

I watched my own copy of the DVD and it’s good stuff and a must have for any Hag fan.

The DVD  listing:

“Branded Man” – Country Music Holiday (1968)
“The Bottle Let Me Down” – Country Music Holiday (1968)
“Swinging Doors” – Country Music Holiday (1968)
“Mama Tried” – Billy Walker’s Country Carnival (1968)
“I Started Loving You Again” – Billy Walker’s Country Carnival (1968)
“I Take A Lot Of Pride In What I Am” – Billy Walker’s Country Carnival (1968)
“The Fightin’ Side Of Me” – The Porter Wagoner Show (1970)
“Okie From Muskogee” – The Porter Wagoner Show (1970)
“Daddy Frank (The Guitar Man)” – CMA Awards (1972)
“Workin’ Man Blues” – Pop! Goes The Country (1974)
“Movin’ On” – Pop! Goes The Country (1975)
“The Roots Of My Raising” – The Porter Wagoner Show (1977)
“Ramblin’ Fever” – Pop! Goes The Country (1977)
“That’s The Way Love Goes” – CMA Awards (1983)
“San Antonio Rose” – Johnny Cash Christmas Special (1983)

Extras:
Merle Haggard Interview (1981)
Merle Haggard’s Hall Of Fame Induction (1994)

Leave a post below with your favorite Hag song and I will randomly choose a winner at the end of the week (12/19). Good luck!

Twang Nation Christmas List

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Postings have been slow going here at Ranch Twang. The holidays have me running like a headless chicken and my trips to Washington DC on my solid-gold private plane to ask for a bail out. Since I’m the only employee of Ranch Twang I’m none too happy about my audacious behavior while my job hangs in the balance. That check better be in the mail or Christmas presents are going to be as rare as hen’s teeth. But of the bail-out..er..rescue comes in time here, dear Twangers, is my shopping list:

At Folsom Prison Legacy Edition – Johnny Cash’s 1968 watershed concert is given the Legacy treatment with the inclusion of both of the days performances, One show at 9:40 in the morning and another at 12:40 in the afternoon – the first show was exclusively used for the official record. The performance was like an old-style showcase and all the performers are present – Carl Perkins, the Statler Brothers, Radio DJ Hugh Cherry and the Carter family. Also included is a documentary DVD featuring interviews with Roseanne Cash, Merle Haggard, Marty Stuart, and several former inmates who attended the famed concert.

Merle Haggard: Legendary Performances – A Shout! Factory and the Country Music Hall Of Fame produced DVD of many of the Hag’s vintage live performances such as “Branded Man” (Country Music Holiday,1968), “Mama Tried” (Billy Walker’s Country Carnival, 1968) and “Okie From Muskogee” (The Porter Wagoner Show, 1970).

Country Music: The Masters by Marty Stuart – A breathtaking scrapbook by singer/songwriter/musician and country music historian Marty Stuart has created the closest thing  to pressing the wild and beautiful soul of country music between two covers – Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, Bill Monroe and more are candidly featured in Stuart’s own photos that span his 40 year career. The book somes with a CD including the song “Dark Bird,” an unreleased cut dedicated to Johnny Cash and written by Stuart after Cash’s death. There’s also a nice introduction from Boxmaster’s front man and actor Billy Bob Thornton.

Classic Christmas by George Strait – Who better to deliver your yule tides then the man with the pipes that could wrench away Bing Crosby’s hold as the voice of Christmas? “We Three Kings,” a playful “Up on the Housetop,” classics like “Hark, The Herald Angels Sing,” “Deck the Halls,” “O Come, All Ye Faithful,” and “We Wish You A Merry Christmas.” Aa great album to listen to by the fire while putting a little whiskey in your egg nog.

And last, but certainly not least, premier roots and alt.country record labels Bloodshot Records (Justin Townes Earle, Ryan Adams, tge Old 97s) and Hyena Records (Dale Watson, Grayson Capps) and legendary alt.country/roots magazine (now web site) No Depression are all having a blowout holiday sale. Go clean ’em out!

For all of you on the naughty list, look for the full Rascall Flatts catalogue in your stocking.