Roots Music Column, July 3

This week I am very pleased to feature two incredibly strong releases from Canadian artists: Lee Harvey Osmond- Tom Wilson and crew- and Jim Byrnes. My Red Deer Advocate Roots Music column is accessible at http://tinyurl.com/lfg6hj, and I hope you will take a few minutes to poke around Fervor Coulee here on Word Press. I’ve updated a few posts, making sure all the reviews are available. Thanks to the labels, as always, for thinking of me, and the artists for making the music. Thanks for visiting, Donald

Dave Alvin & the Guilty Women- Dave Alvin & the Guilty Women

Dave Alvin & the Guilty Women

Dave Alvin & the Guilty Women

YepRoc

 Featuring a cavalcade of California and Texas- based female instrumentalists and singer Christy McWilson, Dave Alvin has again realigned his approach and songbook.

 As always, emotion and experience drip off every syllable Alvin sings. A collaborative musician and producer if ever one existed, Alvin is the core of this project; but the ladies- all nine of them- take (excepting on the twin-fiddle numbers) second fiddle to no one.

 Laurie Lewis, who is slated to again visit Red Deer this September with Kathy Kallick, is distinctly heard throughout the album, and Nina Gerber’s fiery electric guitar work bridges any gaps that may exist between the favoured styles of her bandmates.

 Maria Marie is rejiggered as a swampy Cajun stomper, California’s Burning has all the hallmarks of an Alvin classic, and Potter’s Field is darn lonesome. Karen Carpenter, Big Joe Turner, and Jimi Hendrix populate the songs.

The Gibson Brothers- Ring the Bell

The Gibson Brothers

Ring the Bell

Compass

 Recorded with a revitalized touring band, the brothers from upstate New York are nothing if not consistent. With their third impressive collection in a row, the formula remains true.

Strong original material is their forte, while a few well- known tunes are provided the distinctive Gibson Brothers’ treatment- not hard core or even traditional, but definitely bluegrass through and through. Their classic country influences are always apparent. Every Gibson Brothers album has a familiar tone, one that somehow simultaneously brings to mind Tom T. Hall, The Band, The Osbourne Brothers, and Tom Petty’s Heartbreakers.

 Eric and Leigh Gibson are bright bluegrass vocalists, and Eric’s five-string shines through their unembellished arrangements. The album opens with long, mournful fiddle notes that soon pick up into something deceptively upbeat. From descriptions of the past (Farm of Yesterday, Bottomland) to songs of a future (Forever Has No End, I Can’t Like Myself), with a bit of a stop at the church of bluegrass (Ring the Bell), the Gibson Brothers have emboldened their reputation as one of the finest contemporary bluegrass bands.

Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver- Lonely Street

Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver

Lonely Street

Rounder

Doyle Lawson has been operating a most successful school of bluegrass for thirty years; no matter who is in his band, Quicksilver remains precise and fresh, capturing the instrumental, emotional, and sacred intensities imperative to the bluegrass sound.

 With Lonely Street Lawson introduces yet another Quicksilver line-up, one that has already changed with the departure of vocalist Darren Beachley. And while such turnover must be frustrating to one of the music’s guiding minds, Lawson always presents stellar recordings featuring unbelievable three-part harmonies. Lonely Street is no exception.

Lawson is especially adept at providing country songs with a bit of bluegrass panache. He does that here with not only the title track, previously recorded by Patsy Cline, George Jones, and others, but also with a great little song from Marty Robbins, Call Me Up and I’ll Come Callin’ On You; this one features some nice mandolin from Lawson and fine fiddling from Brandon Godman.

 New songs including When the Last of Our Days Shall Come, Monroe’s Mandolin, and the instrumental Down Around Bear Cove provide listeners with additional reasons to seek out the latest from Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver.

 Lonely Street may not go into the books as a DL&Q classic recording, but there is much to recommend it to those who appreciate the finest in bluegrass trio harmonies and smooth bluegrass instrumentation.

Various Artists- Appalachia: Music from Home

Various Artists

Appalachia: Music from Home

Lonesome Records

 Recently, I have spent my Monday evenings watching Appalachia: A History of Mountains and People. A beautifully assembled documentary of the Appalachia area, the four-part series captures a region of the Americas too often portrayed in stereotype. And if the geography and people of the region are central to the story, the third pillar of the series has to be the music serving as soundtrack.

Appalachia: Music from Home is a 20-track collection of largely old-time mountain tunes that fleshes out the history of the region through song with a bit of blues, folk, and bluegrass mixed in. It is an impressive collection featuring music from varied sources. Naturally, it works as a companion to the PBS series, but it also stands on its own as a summary of the importance of music to the people of Appalachia.

 While many of the songs are familiar (Soldier’s Joy, Roll On Buddy, Shady Grove) the performances are not necessarily ones most will have in their collections. Highpoints are a live take of Darrell Scott’s Banjo Clark, Dock Boggs’ Coal Creek March, and Jean Ritchie’s Pretty Saro. Ralph Stanley delivers Gloryland and the Traditional Sacred Harp Singers perform Weeping Mary.

 Beautiful arrangements place focus on instrumentation, capturing the sense of place that cannot easily be duplicated by those not of Appalachia. In a few words, singers capture generations of family and community history.

T. Nile- The Cabin Song EP

T.Nile

The Cabin Song

Outside Dstribution

 Currently the indie-darling of the Canadian, modern-folk circuit, British Columbia’s Tamara Nile maintains the significant interest generated by her charming debut album of a couple years back.

 This elegant little EP of five songs and a pair of acoustic, instrumental interludes arrives in advance of an album due in 2010. Vocally, Nile reminds one of Edie Brickell (especially on Rock Watcha Got) minus the intense affectations of Mrs. Paul Simon. The arrangements are more intricate than last time out, with percussion pulsing in the distance and Bob Hamilton’s Dobro colouring the margins. Unfortunately, her pointillist banjo plinking isn’t nearly as prominent.

Roots music column, June 5

Good day, roots music fans,

In this week’s column, I advance several area shows and festivals as well as highlight the five albums I am placing on my ballot for this years Polaris Music Prize: the latest from The Great Lake Swimmers, Maria Dunn, The Swiftys, The Wooden Telegraph, and Jayme Stone & Mansa Sissoko. More information about the Polaris Music Prize is available from http://www.polarismusicprize.ca/

Thanks for dropping by- Donald

(Written first week of June, 2009) This week I’ll be submitting my first ballot nominees for the Polaris Music Prize. Awarded annually, this prize amounts to $20 000 for the album deemed by a panel of Canadian music writers and broadcasters as ‘best’ of the (June to May) year, regardless of sales or genre.

I’m honoured to be among the jury members from across our country. While my rootsy nominees seldom make it to the ‘short list’ of finalists, I usually place a couple on the ‘long list’ of 40 nominees. So, here they are- the five albums I consider the ‘best albums of the year!’

 In no particular order-

 Great Lake Swimmers- Lost Channels (Nettwerk) Existing on the fringes of roots music, Tony Dekker’s Ontario-based Great Lake Swimmers are, in my opinion, a perfect listening choice for those tired of Blue Rodeo, ready for challenging sounds that bring to mind Bon Iver, The Black House, Blue Oyster Cult, and XTC. Lost Channels enraptured me from first listen, and Pulling on a Line may be the singular finest new song I’ve heard in six months.

 Woodland Telegraph- Sings Revival Hymns (Northern Folklore) Woodland Telegraph comes out of Lethbridge via Kananaskis Country, where Matthew Lovegrove spent the winter of 2007 writing the music that became Sings Revival Hymns; his intention was to re-create the Canadian Rockies and their history in song. Lovegrove’s deep, melodic voice takes some getting used to, but once one accepts it the magic flows from the speakers. The music is charged, and sweeps away musical inertia through challenging melodies and time signatures.

The Swiftys- Ridin’ High (Self-released) Not hearing new material for several years from The Swiftys, I had to reacquaint myself with Shawn Johnson and Co.’s approach to rootsy, country rock. Ridin’ High is a more engaged, mature collection of songs, not as immediately welcoming as their previous material but every bit as attractive. If these guys were from Austin, they might be just another band; since they are ours- well, at least western Canada’s- they ‘ride high’ in my esteem.

 Maria Dunn- The Peddler (Distant Whisper) I must stand behind Edmonton’s Maria Dunn and advocate one final time for The Peddler. An album of rare acuity, this disc is populated with characters historical and imagined. Joined by long-time collaborators Shannon Johnson and The McDades, Dunn’s sweet and gentle manner tempers the darkness that shades many of her songs. Her voice and phrasing, as well as her blending of Scots-Irish folk sounds, are immediately and appreciatively identifiable.

 Jayme Stone & Mansa Sissoko- Africa to Appalachia (Self-released) Released last summer, this one was almost forgotten, but the intense exploration of the Malian roots of the 5-string banjo will not be denied. Stone, Sissoko, and their collaborators successfully amalgamate African sounds- kora, percussion, ngoni, and vocals- with the fiddles and banjos of the Appalachia, producing a unification of rhythms that is lively, memorable, and awe-inspiring.

 As I am limited to five nominees, I couldn’t put forth terrific albums released by The United Steel Workers of Montreal (Three on the Tree), Rae Spoon (Superioeyouareinferior), David Baxter (Day & Age), Annabelle Chvostek (Resilience),  One Hundred Dollars (Forest of Tears), Romi Mayes (Achin’ in Yer Bones), and The Deep Dark Woods (Winter Hours,) all of whom released music worthy of mention and listening.

 (For the record, I ended up dropping Maria Dunn’s album-knowing full well it had no chance of making the long list- in favour of David Baxter. That didn’t work out either; as things progressed, only one of my five nominees made it to the long list of 40 albums- Lost Channels. In baseball, hitting .200 is called, I think The Mendoza Line. In nominating albums for the Polaris Prize, it means being out of touch with the ‘mainstream!’ Oh, well. Maybe next year I’ll be able to convince more writers and broadcasters from across Canada of the value held by roots performers. Or, at least, the ones I value! Donald)

Nick Lowe- Quietly Please…

Nick Lowe

Quietly Please…The New Best of Nick Lowe

YepRoc

It is collections such as this recent two-disc set of Nick Lowe music that keep me going to music stores in the (usually) futile search for magic.

While the selection at most area CD stores has continued to dwindle as DVDs and game system cartridges have taken over the market, one is still occasionally rewarded for taking the time to place hard earned currency on the counter to purchase the soon-to-be antiquated compact disc.

Nick Lowe has had his formidable catalogue resurrected and repackaged a number of times, and being the fan that I am I have purchased most of the collections. Upon reflection, each of the albums have served a purpose during the particular time they were discovered.

I bought 16 All-Time Lowes while attending university and while the album wasn’t my introduction to the cutting wit and word play of John R. Cash’s former son-in-law, it allowed me exposure to a number of songs I hadn’t previously encountered. Labour of Love was a favourite high school album, but at the time I hadn’t delved far enough to discover Pure Pop For Now People.

Basher: The Best of Nick Lowe was purchased on cassette while living in the fairly remote Northern Saskatchewan community of La Loche, and served to brighten many an exhausting weekend day while preparing lessons and materials in my classroom. This extensive collection, while missing many personal album favourites- “We Want Action,” “Tanque-Rae”, “Man of a Fool,” and “My Heart Hurts” as examples- captured the essence of Lowe in a more comprehensive fashion than the previous set.

I have a vague recollection of purchasing The Wilderness Years on a trip to Edmonton’s Sound Connection store, but I can’t find it on my shelves, so perhaps I only dreamed of that acquisition. I missed out on The Doings box set, but recently uncovered a copy of it. More extensive than any other Lowe collection, it boasts the bonus of many live cuts and additional rarities. Only for the real Lowe fan, the set is well worth the search.

And I won’t even start in on my Brinsley Schwarz sets.

Which brings us to Quietly Please…The New Best of Nick Lowe. With 49 tracks, this compilation ranges from Brinsley Schwarz’s 1974 take of “(What’s So Funny About) Peace, Love, and Understanding” through to cuts from 2007’s At My Age. Many favourite songs are again missed, but the majority of the essentials are either here or readily available on Basher. While I knew (and continue to know) I really did not need another Lowe set, this one attracted me because I’ve come to trust YepRoc as a label. Their reissue of Jesus of Cool was very well done, both from music contents and packaging stand points.

But, I was still going to pass dropping another $20 or so into the Lowe and Co. coffers until I encountered the impossible to ignore ‘deluxe’ package featuring a bonus DVD.

I’ve written elsewhere about my disdain for the ‘deluxe’ package marketing ploy as the results have often left me wanting. Plus, too often such packages come out a few weeks or months after I have purchased the standard set, and appear to be just another way to encourage completist fans to spend even more money. But, because the ‘deluxe’ package of Quietly Please…came out at the same time as the standard 2-disc set, I put aside my typical bias and plunked down the $30. And I couldn’t be happier with that decision.

Songs from all the albums are included, and the package also touches on Bowi, Rockpile and Little Village. Set producer Gregg Geller limited himself to songs written or co-written by Lowe, so no “Switchboard Susan” this time. Any studio remastering or tweaking that may have occurred does not interfere with the memory of many of the songs from vinyl. The tunes are arranged chronologically, and provide more than a couple hours of Lowe glory.

Not only can I not argue with the compilers music choices- hell, “Wishing Well” from Pinker and Prouder than Previous is even included- the set is beautiful to look at. A wonder to hold, even.

The quad-panel digipak unfolds to show a collage of scattered Lowe leavings including photos, ticket stubs, and pins. Photos of Lowe- from shaggy-haired pub rocker to dignified elder statesman- grace the disc trays. A well-written essay and producer notes comprise the package booklet with colour reproductions of all the album covers included. The song notes are extensive and include musician credits and chart positions.

The bonus DVD is also a greater than expected treat. The nine song videos- including the familiar “Cruel to Be Kind” and “I Knew the Bride (When She Used to Rock and Roll),” as well as several I had never before seen, such as “Ragin’ Eyes” and “Cracking Up”- and allows one – if so inclined- to participate in an individual drinking game: each time a member of Rockpile appears, take a drink. Bonus swallows for spotting other Lowe associates, including Carlene and Paul Carrack. Several of the videos are cheesy and all are dated.

The early pieces- “I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass,” Little Hitler,” and “No Reason” appear to be culled from a television performance and are, for me, priceless.

The contained live show featuring Lowe’s studio band- from Brussels and October 2007- is a lovely addition, and highlights the sparse majesty of Lowe as he approaches 60! The voice is still there, but of course not quite as spry as in the late-70s. The show is nicely shot, using a variety of camera locations and the sound is excellent. Lowe performs alone and with the band, and some of the songs featured- including “Shting-Shtang,” “Heart of the City,” and “All Men Are Liars”- are pleasant surprises.

One can download Quietly Please…The New Best of Nick Lowe if so inclined, but that would be the wrong decision. This is that not-so-rare set that calls out to be enjoyed in a non-virtual manner; you can find packages that are worth buying, but you have to look for them.

 Time has been taken to produce an outstanding collection of music, beautifully housed. I’m pleased that someone- be it the folks at Proper (UK) or YepRoc-  is still willing to take the time to invest in music in this manner. I doubt the collection is expected to sell more than a few thousand copies, and yet here it is- a superbly crafted project.

We owe it to ourselves to pursue such efforts.

FYI: NICK LOWE
THE BRENTFORD TRILOGY
[pre-order]
For the first time in one collection, Nick Lowe’s classic solo albums, The Impossible Bird, Dig My Mood and The Convincer have all been assembled into The Brentford Trilogy. The three CD set includes a new book with extra photos and a new interview with Nick by Paul Gorman. This is a limited edition release and will not be available after 6/23!

*Every customer that pre-orders The Brentford Trilogy box set will get all three albums delivered digitally to their Stash immediately to start enjoying right away!

Scott H. Biram- Something’s Wrong/Lost Forever

Only one review in today’s column. Scott H. Biram’s new album comes out this coming Tuesday and I’m pleased to feature it in my Roots Music column in the Red Deer Advocate. This link will get you there, and I thank you again for stopping by Fervor Coulee. Donald

http://tinyurl.com/p7pe54 

Scott H. Biram

Something’s Wrong/Lost Forever

Bloodshot

 Scott H. Biram. Now there stands a man on a mission.

 Biram is on a journey to make a melding of the triple forces of Hank Williams, hillbilly blues, and rock ‘n’ roll legitimate. And on his seventh album, he does so in a manner that is much more appealing than most of the music released by Hank III and others who have similarly attempted to bring together disparate music styles.

 With a hard rockin’ beat, sound collages, and vocal effects that somehow make his claim all the more justifiable, Biram has produced a creative, challenging version of what used to be referred to as alt. country. Indeed, Biram’s music has as much in common with R L Burnside’s nasty Fat Possum releases as it does the songs of Jon Langford, The Sadies, or Justin Townes Earle.

 Irreverent, profane, and slightly off kilter, Biram somehow makes it all work, and he has created a country-blues vision that packs a punch while retaining melody. The Dirty Ole One Man Band, as Biram is often referred, produced the album almost entirely on his own, with additional musicians featured on only two songs.

Still Drunk, Still Crazy, Still Blue not only has a title worthy of Robbie Fulks or Dale Watson, but Biram’s desolate lyrics- including “sweat gets so cold alone every night,”- capture desperation in a manner worthy of more familiar songwriters.

 Judgment Day would fit with the outtakes from Fred Eaglesmith’s spellbinding Tinderbox album; Biram’s rapid-fire proselytizing warns of what is coming, as the gator snaps at your heels.

 Wildside is an impassioned love letter to a woman who has long move on, but whom apparently remains susceptible to backsliding.

 The album’s strongest cut may well be the trucking anthem Draggin’ Down the Line; one needn’t have driven a rig to relate to the pressures and daily grind being described: “Starin’ out the window at the world just movin’, thinkin’ ‘bout changes and the friends I keep losin’.”

 How does one summarize an album such as Something’s Wrong/Lost Forever? There is some Dan Penn southern country soul mixed in with the electric lead guitar along with elements of Tony Joe White’s swamp rock, but Biram isn’t nearly as refined musically. His voice is huge and weathered with miles but, as demonstrated on Leadbelly’s Go Down Ol’ Hannah, controlled and eminently listenable. This album is dark, and its images, messages, and sounds reverberate long into the night.

 I’d say that I don’t really want to know Scott H. Biram after listening to his enjoyable, disquieting album. Unfortunately, I think I do know him. He is me. And you. We all have thoughts that are safely hidden in shadows. The difference is, Biram puts his to music and rhyme.

Jay Clark- I’m Confused

Jay Clark

I’m Confused

JayClarkMusic.com

 This one has taken much too long to review; I’ve been enjoying it for months.

An East Tennessean now calling Alabama home, Jay Clark is one of hundreds of singer-songwriters producing quality music, offering insights into the way he perceives the world. Like John Prine, whom he vaguely recalls, what separates Clark from others in the roots world is his willingness to turn the focus away from himself while maintaining an integral intimacy with his subjects.

An ambitious album, I’m Confused takes its title from a song subtitled A Christian’s Lament of How the Right Wing of the Republican Party Has Distorted My Faith. Clark is unabashedly a Christian man, one that has seen his country split along religious and political lines that appear counter to common sense. And while the climate and mood of the United States appears to be changing, Clark’s exploration of paths down which Americans have wandered for eight years is astute.

Not everything is maudlin. A trio of drinking songs- Another Round, Free Beer Tomorrow, and Lifetime of Drinkin’- allow Clark to stretch into a lighter arena, although the latter song is as lonely as anything Guy Clark (no relation) has written. Third Shift in the Coal Mines delves deep into Clark’s rural roots; with its stark images and mournful moan, this number recalls Darrell Scott.

Over the course of three albums, Jay Clark has displayed a consistency of performance and songwriting that is staggering. I’m Confused is well deserving of the effort it will take to track down; with songs of the quality of Anna Lee and Reflectors, Clark remains in my Top Five of contemporary singer-songwriters.