Music Review: Cory Branan – “The No-Hit Wonder” (Bloodshot Records)

CORY BRANAN- The No-Hit Wonder

Nashville in the 70’s was a place of wandering, dusty minstrels tripping into town from distant small towns with little more than cheap guitars, grand dreams and a reverent yet defiant attitude regarding the power structure of Nashville music industry. The ripples where felt and absorbed back into the system and the result was the “Urban Cowboy” era. This was not an innovative time. Now that Music Row has again fell into lockstep with the sound of the cash register the bustling community of East Nashville is rekindling those early days.

In many respects Cory Branan’s “The No-Hit Wonder,” is the face of this rekindled spirit. Smart, sonic landscapes offering a deep stratum that delivers a bounty of country, pop (“Missing You Fierce”) and Southern soul (“Missing You Fierce”) gems as each song is sifted through. The record also benefits from having some of the finest backing musicians working – John Radford (Justin Townes Earle, Luella and The Sun), Sadler Vaden (The 400 Unit, Drivin and Cryin), Audley Freed (The Black Crowes) and Robbie Turner (Waylon Jennings, Charlie Rich.) as well as being supported by some of Americana and indy rock’s best talent.

No better example of that is the opener “You Make Me” which features none other than Jason Isbell on back-up vocals. A song for his new bride it strikes a fine balance of romance, rock-heat with ear-worm hooks as Isbell provides just the right amount of guitar and vocal support.

The title cut recalls hard times for a troubadore that burns bright instead of belly-aches as Craig Finn & Steve Selvidge of The Hold Steady providing further retained support. “The Only You” Shows the nuance of Branan’s craft – “I hear you got another boy and he looks a lot like me / And this one come with some kind of guarantee / Well I got me another girl and she looks like you at 23 / And while she sleeps I trace the places where your tattoos used to be.” This playful poignancy is straight from the book of Kristofferson.

Branan vocal style like Ryan Bingham with better range. This is most apparent in the Bakersfield-by-way-of-Uncle-Tupelo “Sour Mash.” Another furiously paced number that wears it’s hillbilly pedigree proudly, featuring more subtle accompaniment by Tim Easton. “C’mon Shadow” is a ragtime jubilation masking heartbreak that’ll have you tapping a toe and crying in your beer.

“All The Rivers In Colorado” is pure jukebox gold. A barroom weeper of tears and waterways made even more delightful with Caitlin Rose and Austin Lucas lending background vocals. “Daddy Was A Skywriter” is a Cajun-spiced tune about finding your way in this world with the guidance and love from mama and daddy.

“The No-Hit Wonder” is a work both expansive in influence as it is grounded in history. Smart song-craft, road-tested instinct of instrumentation and an ear for the attentive hook is it’s flesh and bone. This is not a stright-up country record in contemporary or classic terms. Its an Americana record – and all that comes with that gloriously, messy label.

And a damn fine one at that.

Official Site | Buy

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Watch Out! The Felice Brothers – “Lion” [VIDEO]

The Felice Brothers - "Lion"

One of the best bands I’ve had the privilege of seeing play live, The Felice Bothers have brought some of that playfulness to the video for their latest single “Lion.”

Shenanigans and tomfoolery abound. Clad in black there’s field strongman posing, football, and topped off with a random pie fight and beer shower,

This gives me an opportunity to, again, wonder how these guys weren’t tapped for T Bone Burnett’s upcoming “Basement Tapes 2“.

“Lion” is from the new album Favorite Waitress. Get it.

Watch Out! Jeff Tweedy on Portlandia

Jeff Tweedy On Portlandia

There’s so much to love about this Portlandia skit featuring Uncle Tupelo/Wilco’s own Jeff Tweedy.

To me Portlandia suffers from much of the preciousness it aims to lambast. On occasion it hits dead on. This is one of those times. Some in the Americana/roots/folk music camp (me) can go on and on about the old elusive chestnut of “authenticity.” Usually over many beers. Mostly this level of music geekery is tedious and pointless. Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein, with the help of Mr. Tweedy, make it hilarious.

“Were you in a coal oil fire?” Ha!

Tweedy will is doing a TV tour of sorts and will also be in the season finale of Parks and Recreation alongside members of Yo La Tengo and the Decemberists.

Happy Birthday Patterson Hood – Top 10 Songs [VIDEO]

PattersonHoodbyAndyTennille

As one of the founders and principle songwriters of the mighty Drive-By Truckers, Patterson Hood has created a wealth of searing narratives and complex and character studies that has put him on a short list of great contemporary songwriters.
On this occasion of his 50th birthday I take a daunting task at my top 10 , in no particular order, from that bounty.

Your’s not here? Add it to the comments.

Based loosely on Ray McKinnon film short “The Accountant”, the song is about family pride, greed and vengeance.

Hood’s great Uncle encapsulates the complexity of war by remarking “I never saw John Wayne on the sands of Iwo Jima” while watching said movie.

Act I of the DBT’s “Southern Rock Opera,” Hood delivers HISTORICAL soliloquy ON growing up Alabama and how George Wallace, Bear Bryant and Ronnie Van Zant shaped the environment.

Dirty South is where I fell in love with The Drive-By Truckers. Here’s one reason why.

Here’s another in acoustic version.

Hood displays his awesome storytelling chops before this excellent cut.

The title track off Hood’s latest. Inspired by the impending mortality of his Great Uncle.

Soulful and rips your heart out.

A delicate beauty that compliments hood’s voice well.

A reflection on Drive-By Truckers touring hard through rough times.

Metal Meets Americana [VIDEOS]

Americana Metal

Growing up in North Texas you’re surrounded by two kinds of music, country and metal.

I’m still a fan of both and judging by the videos below I’m not the only one. These performers don’t have that ironic “I bought a Sabbath shirt at Hot Topic” crap, but appear to really be celebrating the unity of great music.

Drive-By Truckers – “Strutter” (Kiss)

Lucinda Williams – “It’s A Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock & Roll)” (AC/DC)

Ryan Adams – “Wasted Years” (Iron Maiden)

Hymn For Her – “Bron-Y-Aur Stomp” (Led Zeppelin)

Cyril Neville – “Working Man” (Rush)

and for fun….

The Avett Brothers Sing Heavy Metal 9/30/2013… by screeps

The Avett Brothers Sing Heavy Metal from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon

The Avett Brothers Sing Heavy Metal

Two musical loves of mine is classic heavy metal and Americana music. I know this skit from from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, featuring the Avett brothers covering Iron Maiden’s “Run to the Hills,” Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man,” and Metallica’S “One” is done for laughs, but part of me would love for it to be real. I mean if Ryan Adams can do Iron maiden straight why not?

The fake release is described thusly “If you’re looking for a sunnier, gentler sound of heavy metal classics like Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man,” then pick up a copy of “The Avett Brothers Sing Heavy Metal.”

I know I would.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=St7TR2ZVbP8

Americana For All

carolina chocolate drops

I’ve been kicking around the ideas to address Giovanni Russonello’s “Why Is a Music Genre Called ‘Americana’ So Overwhelmingly White and Male?” i heard my mom’s advice in m mind,
“just walk away from the stupid.” Part of it was my dad’s voice “Teach ’em a lesson.” i’ve decided to go with dad on this one.

Russonello’s piece frames the recent six-week “Americanarama” tour to argue that the tour’s roster, which included Bob Dylan, Wilco, My Morning Jacket and Ryan Bingham – represents a larger cultural exclusion rampant in the genre.

Setting aside the argument that the “Americanarama” bill does not really represent the contemporary Americana genres, let’s address the premise of “Overwhelmingly White and Male”

Early country, folk and bluegrass have generally appealed to a predominantly anglo audience. Partly because many of the songs are from European source material performed by mostly white people. The trend in these genres have mapped closely to the trends in American society in general and, as opportunities have arisen, woman and people of color have stepped up to represent their unique take on the music.

The difference is that Americana proper (and it’s cousin alt.country) have never been exclusionary.

It’s introduction into popular culture came in the 80’s as MTV gave us the L.A. cow punk band Lone Justice , featuring the gritty soul of Maria McKee, and their “Ways to be Wicked” and “Sheltered videos in rotation with Jason and the Scorchers and The Georgia Satellites on the 24- hour feed.

At the same time kd Lang and Roseanne Cash joined Steve Earle, Dwight Yoakam and Lyle Lovett in shaking up Nashville.

Soon after bands like The Meat Purveyoyers, Freakwater , Neko Case, Gillian Welch, the Cowboy Junkies, Hem, Tarnation – all bands prominently featuring female artists – laid the groundwork for Americana.

An allum of the watershed “O Brother where art thou” roster, Alison Krauss, has the enviable honor of having won the most Grammys by a female artist with twenty-seven (!)

Hardly the good-old boys club that article paints for the genre.

Then there’s this:

“… if an art form is going to name itself after this country, it should probably stop weatherproofing itself against America’s present-day developments. And it hardly seems like enough to say you’re carrying on the legacies of black gospel and blues if the performers and listeners venerating them are almost all white.”

The claim that Americana is “carrying on the legacies of black gospel and blues” is specious. True, some artist incorporate gospel and blues within their style, to say that Americana is carrying on the legacy of those sage musical genres is insulting to these thriving genres and their decades of practitioners.

And the argument that since the genre appeals to a particular segments of the population signifies that genre exclusion of others is ridiculous. Much of music is self-identity. If a segment of society don’t see themselves in the performers and their stories it follows that they wouldn’t be compelled to buy the music or attend the shows. Early hip-hop was a primarily African -American cultural phenomenon which has now transcended. As for as I know on one was accusing hip-hop of excluding anglos.

Just as people of color have taken different roads to Americana, and have contributed to it’s evolution. Los Lobos and Alejandro Escovedo bring a uniquely chicano take to the music. The Carolina Chocolate Drops and newcomer Valarie June have infused the genre with African-American string-band and folk-soul influences receptively.

Russonello places Dylan as the “the father of Americana” (I would argue Gram Parsons or Townes Van Zandt) and then points to the current shining light, Jason Isbell, as not heading the lessons of Dylan and providing anything “new.” The argument could be made that Dylan at the beginning of his career, as Isabell still is, brought nothing that hadn’t already been done by Guthrie and Seeger. Russonello then makes the case that “Music gets its power from a keen, contemporary perspective” and then “it feels facile to let this one strain of yellow-page nostalgia represent it.”

This is just lazy. Though the form, the music and singing styles harken back to a yesteryear , topics are either contemporary, like Isbell, Todd Snider and Steve Earle or dealing with the great human truths – love, hate, death – that transcend any time period.

Though the article does a serviceable job of tracing roots music’s trajectory thorough time, the conclusion shows a bias of the writer. Anything this white and male met be a conspiracy..

Americana does reflect an idealized notion of the the past (as Americans are prone to do,) but to confuse the predilections of subjective taste enjoyed by some as a kind of organized Jim Crow-style musical segregation insults a music and musicians that I celebrate daily. It also, ironically, displays a type of bigotry that all cultural forms must undergo some forced, artificial desegregation toward some imagined moral purity.

Let freedom twang!

Tompkins Square to Release ‘Live At Caffè Lena: Music From America’s Legendary Coffeehouse, 1967-2013’

Live at Caffe Lena

Since 1960 the tiny performance space of  Caffè Lena, located in Saratoga Springs, New York, has played host to some of  of the most influential artists across diverse genres of music; traditional folk, blues, singer-songwriters, jazz and bluegrass. 

Many of these decades-spanning performances were fortunately caught on tape and will be made available as ‘Live At Caffè Lena.’ The collection is  a 3-CD box set, containing 47 never-before released tracks by Dave Van Ronk, Mary Gauthier, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Kate McGarrigle, Rick Danko, Anais Mitchell, Sleepy John Estes, Arlo Guthrie, Sarah Lee Guthrie, and more. Included are unpublished photographs. Images include selections from the archive of esteemed photographer Joe Alper, who captured many iconic, intimate portraits from the folk era of the 1960s.

From the press release: “‘Live At Caffè Lena’ documents an important folk universe that was and is still happening in upstate New York, a story heretofore largely untold. The release of this collection comes at an auspicious time in light of renewed interest in the New York folk scene of the 60s as depicted in the forthcoming Coen Brothers film, ‘Inside Llewyn Davis.’ The film is loosely based on Dave Van Ronk’s 2005 memoir ‘The Mayor of Macdougal Street.’ Van Ronk, a Caffè Lena regular, served as a mentor to many artists, some who would go on to eclipse his fame. His 1974 recording of “Gaslight Rag”featured on the box set references the Gaslight Café, a famed Greenwich Village venue that along with Caffè Lena was a catalyst for the folk music revival.

Caffè Lena embodied the spirit of the folk boom, the era and its artistry, building a reputation as a hotbed of creativity and connection. It was also a safe haven and nurturing space for artists, its atmosphere cultivated personally by Lena Spencer herself. She would graciously house wayward artists, sometimes for months at a time. But she was not merely a host. She championed artists, from Bob Dylan as early as 1961 all the way through the 80s until her passing. Her passion for identifying and promoting talent is evident throughout this 3-CD set. That Caffè Lena is still open for business tonight is a testament to her legacy.”

‘Live At Caffè Lena.’ will be available Worldwide on Tompkins Square, September 24, 2013 – Pre-order here.

‘Live At Caffè Lena: Music From America’s Legendary Coffeehouse, 1967-2013′

DISC ONE 
01 Intro  – Lena Spencer / Guy Carawan Cripple Creek 1970 
02 Hedy – West Shady Grove 1968 
03 Intro by Lena Spencer / – Sleepy John Estes Holy Spirit 1974 
04 Frank Wakefield and Friends - Will The Circle Be Unbroken 1971 
05 Jean Ritchie - West Virginia Mine Disaster 1969 
06 Billy Faier - Hunt The Wren 1967 
07 Greenbriar Boys - Hit Parade of Love 1968 
08 Mike Seeger - O Death 1971 
09 Jacqui and Bridie - Hello Friend 1974 
10 Tom Paxton - Morning Again 1968 
11 David Amram - Little Mama 1974 
12 Patrick Sky - Reality Is Bad Enough 1971 
13 Rosalie Sorrels - Travelin’ Lady 1974 
14 Smoke Dawson - Devil’s Dream 1968 
15 Utah Phillips - The Green Rolling Hills of West Virginia 1974 
16 Michael Cooney - Thyme It Is A Precious Thing 1974 
17 Kate McGarrigle and Roma Baran - Caffè Lena 1972 
 
DISC TWO 
01 Intro by Lena Spencer / Dave Van Ronk - Gaslight Rag 1974 
02 Jerry Jeff Walker - Mr. Bojangles 1968 
03 Barbara Dane - Mama Yancey’s Advice / Love With a Feeling 1968 
04 Roy Book Binder  - Ain’t Nobody Home But Me 1974 
05 Intro by Lena Spencer / David Bromberg - The Holdup 1972 
06 Ramblin’ Jack Elliott - Pretty Boy Floyd 1992 
07 Arlo Guthrie - City of New Orleans 2010 
08 Aztec Two Step - The Persecution and Restoration of Dean Moriarty 1989 
09 Happy And Artie Traum - Trials Of Jonathan 1974 
10 Rick Danko-  It Makes No Difference 1988 
11 Paul Geremia –  Something’s Gotta Be Arranged 1989 
12 Robin and Linda Williams –  S-A-V-E-D 1987 
13 John Herald –  Ramblin’ Jack Elliott 1991 
14 Pete Seeger-  Somos El Barco (We Are the Boat) 1985
 
DISC THREE 
01 Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion - Folksong 2013 
02 Anais Mitchell - Wedding Song 2013 
03 Bill Morrissey - The Last Day Of The Furlough 1990 
04 Patty Larkin - Island Of Time 1992 
05 Greg Brown - Flat Stuff 1989
06 Mary Gauthier - I Drink 2013 
07 Sean Rowe - Old Black Dodge 2013 
08 Tom Chapin - Cats In The Cradle 1987 
09 Intro by Lena Spencer / Christine Lavin - It’s A Good Thing He Can’t Read My Mind 1987 
10 Bill Staines - Sweet Wyoming Home 1990 
11 Bucky and John Pizzarelli - I Like Jersey Best 1989 
12 Rory Block - That’s No Way To Get Along 1989 
13 Chris Smither - Killing The Blues 1989 
14 Tift Merritt - Traveling Alone 2013 
15 John Gorka - Down In The Milltown 1990 
16 Lena Spencer-  Dear Little Cafe 1972 

Americana Music Support at the Late Show with David Letterman [VIDEO]

David Letterman

David Letterman, and his Late Show booking crew, have been long-time enthusiastic supporters of country and Americana music. Recently it seems like Dave has invited a roots artist to play every night of the week, and this is great new for the artists needing exposure and fans looking for great music.

And as Saving Country Music tells it, the Late Show was the one that reached out to many of these artists to perform on the program. Many of them, like dale Watson and Shove;s and Rope, getting national exposure for the first time.

Here’s to you, Dave and crew, for championing great roots and Americana music like the clips below.

Ryan Adams – Lucky Now – December 5, 2011

Shovels & Rope – Birmingham – David Letterman January 30, 2013
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfPnGEgtDXI

Elizabeth Cook – If I Had My Way, I’d Tear This Building Down – March, 14 2013

Dale Watson & His Lonestars – “I Lie When I Drink” – June 24, 2013
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHcRTTy0Epg

Ray Wylie Hubbard – Mother Blues – David Letterman – January 9, 2013
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r92RkIKm6Wc

Marty Stuart “Country Boy Rock & Roll” June 29, 2010
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcJ80pKqsA0

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit “Codeine” – November 2004
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUzc7cUaPWs

Pokey LaFarge – “Central Time” – 16 July, 2013
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=82hWDlADJDg

Tom Russell with Andrew Hardin – “Tonight We Ride” – 2009

Justin Townes Earle – “Harlem River Blues” – January 5, 2011

Andrew Bird with Tift Merritt and Alan Hampton – “If I Needed You” (Townes Van Zandt) – 10/30/2012
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8TdDJe6-xY

Jamey Johnson with Alison Krauss – “Make the World Go Away” 10/12/2012
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bu-hSTup6CQ

Steve Earle – “Copperhead Road” – 1988

Emmylou Harris , Alison Krauss and Gillian Welch – 2001
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4D8YEgANLow

Willie Nelson – “Always On My Mind” – date?

Earl Scruggs and Friends – Foggy Mountain Breakdown – May, 12/07

The Most Influential Americana Album: Will the Circle Be Unbroken – The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

Will-The-Circle-Be-Unbroken

When asked what album best symbolizes the dawn of the Americana genre folks with a long memory, or a deep knowledge of music history, might choose The Band’s “Music from Big Pink.” Bob Dylan’s once touring band released their debut in 1968 to critical-acclaim but poor sales but later historical acclaim.

Others might select the more recent roots music foray into popular consciousness, the soundtrack to “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” The Coen Brother’s Depression-era, satirical ode to Homer’s Odyssey provided the perfect format for singer/songwriter/producer T Bone Burnett to weld his sepia alchemy. Burnett gathered bygone era bluegrass, country, gospel, blues, and folk music and shaped a platinum-selling, Grammy-winning soundtrack that payed more than a backdrop, but played more of a sonic companion to the film/

And then someone might choose any one of Gram Parson’s solo works as well as his work with The Byrds, the Flying Burrito Brothers and International Submarine Band.

All the above are exemplary works of cross-genre efforts that laid the groundwork for this mutt genre we call Americana.

My choice would be Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s “Will the Circle be Unbroken.”

The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band was founded just south of Los Angeles, in Long Beach, California, by singer-guitarist Jeff Hanna and singer-songwriter guitarist Bruce Kunke. The two performed together in local bands and neighborhood jam sessions brought guitarist/washtub bassist Ralph Barr, guitarist-clarinetist Les Thompson, harmonicist and jug player Jimmie Fadden and guitarist-vocalist Jackson Browne. After a few months Jackson left for a solo career and was replaced by John McEuen.

After some moderate early career success the band their fourth album, “Uncle Charlie & His Dog Teddy,”in 1970. The album leaned more on a traditional country and bluegrass sound, and yelled the band’s best-sellng and best-known single, a cover version of Jerry Jeff Walker’s “Mr. Bojangles.”

During a Boulder Colorado jam session, involving none other than Earle Scruggs and his band, the idea was hatched to head to Nashville to record with some of the living legends of country music. Soon after, the scruffy long-haired California band arrived in conservative to Nashville to collaborate on the album later known as “Will the Circle be Unbroken.” With Scruggs help the the band recruited Roy Acuff, Jimmy Martin, Pete “Oswald” Kirby, Norman Blake and Mother Maybelle Carter.

The performances have a feeling of ease and informality , much like the jam sessions that led to their creation. Some of the greatest songs to music history by Hank Williams (“I Saw the Light,” Honky Tonkin’,” “Honky Tonk Blues”) Jimmie Skinner (“You Don’t Know My Mind,”) as well as compositions by the performers themselves and well-known traditionals.

All the tracks on the album was recorded on the first or second take straight to two-track masters.As great as the music is another tape that ran during the sessions captured the colorful, enlightening, and after hilarious, dialog between the performers.

Before breaking into his “The Precious Jewel,” Roy Acuff confides to his accompanying musicians his “Secret of his policy in the studio.” “Whenever you once decide you’re going to record a number put everything you’ve got into it, because..Don’t say “Oh we’ll take it over and do it again.” because every time you go through it you lose a little something….let’s do it the first time and to hell with the rest of them”

The band then goes on to take his advice and nails the rollicking weeper in one take

The band egg each other on. kid around and discuss song arrangements and origins. Then there’s one-of-a-kind moments like the first meeting of folk legend Doc Watson and the equally legendary Merle Travis, after whom Doc Watson’s son, Merle, was named.

The album was nominated for two 1973 Grammy awards including Best Country & Western Vocal Performance – Duo Or Group for the A.P. Carter title song. More importantly it bridged generations across geography, culture and politics and laid the groundwork for the music that reminds us of our shared heritage and nourishes our souls