One Man Guy by Loudon Wainwright III

2009 (10 tracks, 32:22)

folk

When you’re done, amble over to Rhapsody to hear Loudo’s spin on Mr Poole.

I, Jukebox

John Prine “Sour Grapes”

John Hollenbeck, “Foreign One”

Todd Sickafoose, “Bye Bye Bees”

Todd Rundgren, “Drunken Blue Rooster”

Loudon Wainwright’s High Wide & Handsome is billed as The Charlie Poole Project — not, you will notice, The Charlie Poole Album. And that’s fitting. Weighing in at two discs and containing a thick booklet complete with historical notes and biographical date, even an essay by Americana guru Greil Marcus, the album is something much more than a typical tribute album. But its sheer girth and lavish extras aren’t what set it apart: What truly amazes is that this isn’t just a set that cherry-picks the best or more famous songs associated with Poole, but it actually makes a respectable effort at representing the artist in his full, multi-faceted entirety.

That means something different when we’re talking about Charlie Poole than it would, say, Wainwright himself, or any other singer/songwriter from the past sixty years. Poole’s era was a different one indeed: A string-band minstrel who rose to prominence in the 1920s, Poole was a working musician at a time when being a working musician didn’t mean selling albums or packing stadiums. Instead, it meant traveling from one regional dancehall or honky tonk to the next and giving the people what they want. A musician like Poole may have been gifted at writing songs in a country-blues or folk vein, but if he wanted to eat he had to be all things to all people, which meant making music people could dance to — and making sure everyone in town was going to like what he played.

Read the rest at Stereo Subversion.

Don’t let us get sick
Don’t let us get old
Don’t let us get stupid, all right?
Just make us be brave
And make us play nice
And let us be together tonight
- Warren Zevon

It is Social Justice Awareness Week again at KUST – the twice yearly opportunity for us to explore an issue of importance to our community, nation or world in the context of music. Great River Radio has decided to tackle the very current and very hot problem of health care reform – the topic that we hear about every day, from the extremist pundits and the self interests and the sincere reformers. It is a very personal issue – if we haven’t found ourselves sick and broken and in need of healing yet, our loved ones have, and it is inevitable that we will all interact with America’s huge and complex health care system at some point in our lives.

We want to take this opportunity to bring to GRR listeners some songs that came to mind (including many requests from our listeners) as we ponder the health care debate that is underway in this country this very day. We will supplement the music this afternoon with some readings and thoughts on the situation – one which is too often obscured by rhetorical excess, misinformation and outright lies. If you have (like we have) tried to sort out the accurate information from the politics, you may have just thrown up your hands in frustration.

Unfortunately, we can’t explain the intricacies of the bill which just passed the House, or what the Senate will do to it next. We can’t tell you how the doctor and hospital you go to price their services. We can’t explain what constitutes a “pre-existing condition” and why it isn’t covered by your insurance. But we can entertain you for two hours with music about health, healing, hospitals, illness and, finally, mercy. Tune in to Great River Radio this afternoon as we tackle health care reform in our own tiny way, and catch music by Panda Bear, Fountains of Wayne, Loudon Wainwright, Tom Waits, Annie Lennox, Conor Oberst, Ben Kweller, Ted Hawkins, The Band, Mary Gauthier, The Replacements and others – songs selected by Brian, Dan and YOU.

Next week we’ll return to regular programming at Great River Radio, bringing you a mix of the music we’ve been listening to lately. Our regular feature, Confluence, will concern our best friends: dogs. Let us know your favorite dog songs and maybe Brian and I will bring Sonny and Finn into the studio!

Playlist
Chest Fever-The Band
Rockin’ Pneumonia and th Boogie Woogie Flu-Dr. John
Sick Day-Fountains of Wayne
Hurt-Johnny Cash
Everybody Hurts-REM
Rattle My Bones-The Suburbs
Everything Is Broken-Bob Dylan
How Can A Poor Man Stand Such Times And Live-The Del Lords
Don’t Let Us Get Sick-Jill Sobule
Allergies-Paul Simon
Sorry You’re Sick-Ted Hawkins
Doctor Robert-The Beatles
Doctor Blind-Emily Haines & The Soft Skeleton
Bitter Pill-Annie Lennox
The Healing Game-John Lee Hooker/Van Morrison
That Hospital-Loudon Wainwright III
Hospital Bed-Ben Kweller
Take Me Down To the Hospital-The Replacements
I Don’t Want to Die (In The Hospital)-Conor Oberst
When Water Comes To Life-Cloud Cult
Mercy Now-Mary Gauthier
Handle Me With Care-Travelling Wilburys

There have been times when I’ve found it difficult to pick a favorite record for a given year, but 2007 wasn’t one of them. Granted, any time Joe Henry releases a new album, it makes the Album of the Year race fairly tough to call for me, but 2007’s Civilians felt particularly timely and triumphant. Part of it was that the album was the follow-up to Tiny Voices– an album that had by then become my all-time favorite, by Henry or anybody else– and that it had been some four years in the making. But more than that, the album followed on the heels of a particularly turbulent political season and looked ahead to the election cycle that was to come, yet it was not, as Henry has always been quick to point out, a “political album.” Actually, it was a decidedly spiritual one, casting its eye to national affairs but also invoking God’s name on nearly every song and exploring profoundly theological matters– namely, the providence and grace of God, themes it addresses more poetically and richly than any other album I know of, save perhaps Sam Phillips’ A Boot and a Shoe.

Henry was 2007’s true MVP, not only for that album’s superb songwriting but also for his skilled work as a producer, both on Civilians and on a pair of albums he cut for other artists– Loudon Wainwright III’s Strange Weirdos and Mary Gauthier’s Between Daylight and Dark. These three albums are produced immaculately and cut with the same core band, which made them feel, at the time, a bit like a trilogy, though all three have very distinct characteristics. If Henry’s album is about poetry and spiritual exploration, Wainwright’s is about joy and humor, and Gauthier’s about gritty blues. All three are utterly excellent, though, and rank as three of the finest albums from 2007, which I still think of as The Year of Joe Henry.

But if the big story in 2007 was, for me, Joe Henry, it was, for everyone else, Radiohead. In Rainbows appeared from out of the blue at the tail end of the year and made huge waves for its unorthodox release strategy, but, with a little distance, the album is now starting to be celebrated not just for its cutting-edge marketing, but, more importantly, for its standing as a very fine Radiohead album. In fact, it’s become one of my favorites: The sound of it is (comparatively) warm, romantic, and comfortable in its own skin in a way that no other Radiohead album is. When I get a Radiohead itch, it is, more often than not, for In Rainbows.

Another trend: Rock and roll. 2007 was full of great rock, ranging from The White Stripes‘ Icky Thump– their hardest-rocking set, and one of their most peculiar– to Queens of the Stone Age and the loud, nasty, primitive roar of Era Vulgaris. My two favorites might be Arctic Monkeys‘ piledriving rock and roll set Favourite Worst Nightmare and Spoon’s sensational, inspired tribute to pop songcraft, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. Rounding out the rock and roll set is Dinosaur Jr. and Beyond, one of the decade’s most thrilling comebacks, an album of great hunger, energy, and roaring rock and roll vigor.

Behind Joe Henry, though, the thing I listened to most in 2007 was The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter, a blindingly great pop album for which I hold boundless affection. I’m not sure that anyone else loves the album in quite the same way that I do, but I stand behind it completely: Ritter reshapes American myth and music in his own image, and the album is both heartfelt and incredibly fun. More than anything else, it reminds me of the great Nick Lowe albums of the late 1970s– it’s a jukebox of great songs and styles, but it holds together due to the sheer magnetism of the singer and the consistent nature of the songwriting.

2007 was also the year of what is arguably my favorite soul album of the decade– it’s gotta be either Solomon Burke’s Don’t Give Up on Me (from 2002) or Bettye LaVette’s The Scene of the Crime. The latter album is an exemplary entry in the genre, for a number of reasons: Not only is it a crash course in the art of song interpretation, with LaVette pulling songs from diverse sources and styles and turning them all into not only soul songs, but soul songs that tell her own, unique story, but it’s also a primer on inspired collaboration; LaVette and her backing band, the Drive-by Truckers, create a speaker-rattling, soul-stirring roadhouse fury, and few soul albums released in the 00s match this one in sure, unhinged fervor or edginess.

And though he didn’t release any album of his own in 2007, Bob Dylan was nevertheless the source– or at least the source material– of one of my very favorite albums from the year, the dynamite two-disc soundtrack to I’m Not There. Dozens of vintage Dylan tunes covered by some of the best artists around, and the whole thing is virtually devoid of clunkers of filler. It’s inspired, and compulsively playable; it still finds its way into my stereo all the time.

And the list goes on and on. Over the Rhine got playful with The Trumpet Child. Maria McKee made her more inspired and colorful album with Late December. Nick Lowe made his best-yet collection of country/rock/R&B gems with the easygoing, romantic At My Age. Arcade Fire mixed politics and religion for the fiery, ferocious Neon Bible. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss got contemplative for the sublime Raising Sand. Patty Griffin turned in another winning set, mixing country and folk and gospel, in Children Running Through. LCD Soundsystem made what might be my favorite dance recording of the decade, Sound of Silver. Nick Cave and some of his Bad Seeds rocked their way through midlife crisis in Grinderman’s self-titled debut. Andrew Bird made one of his most ambitious and provocative works, Armchair Apocrypha. Miranda Lambert gave mainstream country a much-needed dose of rock and roll in Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. The National turned in working-class poetry with their beautiful album Boxer. And on and on it goes; all told, I’m pretty sure 2007 was my favorite musical year of the decade.

But how about you?

See also: 2000; 2001; 2002; 2003; 2004; 2005; and 2006.

Much is often said about guitarists, drummers, singers–about who the “greatest of all time” is or was, about who the “greatest” of the moment might be. But pianists are frequently overlooked, perhaps in part because there aren’t many truly excellent ones in popular music. It’s arguably easier and definitely less painful to pick out a melody on a piano than it is to master even the most basic chords on a guitar. Anyone who has strained to reach an F major chord on a guitar can appreciate the simplicity of the same chord on the piano. And anyone who has spent any amount of time at a piano can admire the dexterity involved in crafting a terrific solo, unexpected chord progression, signature style, etc., on the piano.

OH thinks it’s important to recognize the most skilled piano-playing artists of the moment. So here they are. This is not a list of all-time greats; it’s the movers and shakers of the present. Or, as Jerry Lee Lewis might say, the shake-rattle-and-rollers.

10. Trent Reznor
Surprised? Although Reznor is best known for grinding, distorted industrial rock and pissed off lyrics, he started out as a pianist. A prodigiously good one, so the story goes. For the most part, the world has yet to hear first hand these impressive piano skills that Reznor is rumored to have. Sure, he’ll tease us with a little keyboard melody here (Ghosts I, track 1), a handful of chords there (“March of the Pigs”), but we’ll have to keep waiting for the day when he unveils his more advanced abilities.

9. Alicia Keys
Classically trained (at least until she graduated high school at 16), Alicia Keys has an undeniably unique style of songwriting. Her songs mix blues with pop and hip-hop sensibilities, a combo that made her a chart-topping artist at age 20. Oh–and she sings well, too. Each of Keys’s tunes, if a bit repetitive in an R&B loop kind of way, reveal a soulfulness that has always sounded wise beyond the youthful years of their composer. (Embedding of this song was disabled. Otherwise, it would be posted here.)

8. Patrick Wolf
Precocious, a bit egotistical, and incredibly prolific, 26-year-old Wolf has released four albums in the past six years and has a fifth one slated for 2010. Stylistically, he’s all over the map; you could probably describe his songs in terms of music from just about any other era and not be too far off the mark. Roxy Music, Bowie, and even The Killers seem present and accounted for. If hearing The Killers in Wolf’s music implies he’s as heavily influenced as they are by better and more important bands of that past, so be it. At least Wolf is a better keyboardist than Brandon Flowers.

(For Patrick at the piano, go here. For cooler stuff, see below.)

7. Amanda Palmer
AFP (that’s “Amanda Fucking Palmer,” as she refers to herself) is nothing if not original. She has developed to perfection her trademark Kurt Weill-meets-Black Flag-meets-The Smiths aesthetic, turning her artistic identity into a sort of indie brand with an undyingly devoted cult following. As a musician, Palmer has progressed since The Dresden Dolls debuted in 2001 and continues to find odd ways of putting chords in succession while still somehow making musical sense. It’s unfortunate that she and drummer Brian Viglione have disbanded the Dolls: separately, they are interesting; together–live–they are extraordinary.

6. Matt Bellamy
He sings in a dramatic falsetto. He rips on the guitar. He composes orchestral arrangements on the recent The Resistance. He sings in a dramatic falsetto with a guitar slung over his shoulder while playing the piano in an orchestrally arranged song–live. It’s a bird. It’s a plane. It’s Matt Bellamy of Muse. Enough said.

5. Casey Dienel
At 24 years old, Dienel is the youngest musician on this list. After studying classical vocals and classical composition at the New England Conservatory of Music, Dienel dropped out–but her music hasn’t suffered for it. She released a solo album in 2006 and subsequently formed a band, White Hinterland, whose 2008 debut was grossly overlooked and under-reviewed. On Phylactory Factory, Dienel flirts in her high-pitched, girly voice with jazz piano riffs and deceptively light-hearted lyrics. Deceptive because this is seriously well-crafted music by a relative newcomer who clearly knows what she is doing. (Fun fact: White Hinterland released a more experimental EP, Lumiculaire, later in 2008. The lyrics are mostly in French. And it’s one of the best stoner albums of the year. Don’t quote me on that.)

Go here for “Dreaming of the Plum Trees”.

4. Tori Amos
Ok, I’ll be honest: I’m writing this from the point of view of someone who doesn’t listen much to Tori Amos but who respects her songwriting abilities, based mostly on hearsay and limited personal encounters. (Personal encounters with the music, that is. Not with Amos herself. For instance, I think “Spark” is a badass song. And Amos saw the beauty in “Smells Like Teen Spirit” before a lot of other people did.) I’ve heard concert accounts of her playing more than one piano simultaneously. I can’t deny that she’s a pianist force to be reckoned with, even if her lyrics are a bit overly serious for my tastes.

3. Regina Spektor
Regina Spektor’s music is quirky, anti-folk, unpretentious catchiness. And then she throws in something serious (like “Laughing With” from Far or a fantastic cover of Lennon’s “Real Love”) and punches you right in the gut. Her lyrics are playful and mysterious, creating Edward Gorey-like worlds with recurring themes. (The name “Mary Ann,” literary allusions, and multiple languages continually appear). See her live, and hear a rare phenomenon: a singer who sounds better in person than on a recording. And, as a pianist, she’s capable of more than her simple arrangements allow us to hear–she began playing the piano as a child and eventually studied at the Manhattan School of Music. Perhaps someday she’ll throw a little Rachmaninoff into her concert repertoire.

2. Rufus Wainwright
As if it’s not enough that he’s of a fine musical pedigree (son of Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle), as though it’s not enough that most of his songs are glistening gems of lyrical and instrumental (and, yes, sometimes excessively theatrical) artisanship, Rufus Wainwright has now written an opera. In 2008, the Metropolitan Opera allegedly revoked Wainwright’s commission when the artist insisted on writing the libretto of Prima Donna in French instead of English. The Palace Theater of Manchester debuted the opera in July 2009. Prima Donna received mixed reviews at the Manchester International Festival, but nevertheless, OH is looking forward to seeing Rufus perform selections from the work at the New York City Opera on Thursday.

1. Ben Folds
His dork-rock style has lost some of its novelty, and his most recent solo album Way to Normal (and the fake pre-release version) and tour were disasters. But, you have only to listen to Ben Folds Five’s debut album from 1995 to understand why Folds tops this list. In a word: showmanship. Folds’s jazz/rock skillz are par excellence, but they’re also some of the most abusive in the biz. Fists, elbows, and feet are all fair game when it comes to body parts with which he’s willing to beat the piano. Folds is at his best best by himself or with a small band; the number of musicians and goofy visual distractions onstage made his last tour a ridiculous pseudo-hippie/college-pop hybrid. Strip away this camp and newfound psychedelia, and what you have is still the most impressive, improvisationally free pianist in rock right now.

Is it just me, or is INXS’s “Never Tear Us Apart” a pretty flocking great song?

When I came upon it this morning, I quickly punched the scan button to stop and listen to it in full. Bluesy, grandiose, sax-solo-y? Is it wrong of me to kind of love it?

I had the “Kick” cassette at some point in high school, and INXS makes me think of the older girls who I thought were so cool, and of my short-lived soccer career (INXS was featured on the get-pumped mix we’d listen to before games), of these other two girls (older, and fellow soccer players) who seemed to have styled their hair after Michael Hutchence’s, and, of course, of poor MH himself.

 After swaying along to the sax solo in my car this morning, I started listening to the lyrics, and entertained myself with the memory of a lame joke that for some reason (um, LAMENESS, perhaps, TGOTS?) I really enjoyed from the flawed but wonderful movie “Elizabethtown.”

Do you know this movie? If you love music, and love people who love music, it is really worth watching. The plot kind of meanders, but there are a few epic scenes, and many lovely little moments. The leads — Kirsten Dunst and Orlando Bloom — are very nearly beside the point. The true gems are Paul Schneider, Judy Greer, Loudon Wainwright III, Paula Deen (yes, that one!), Patty Griffin (love of my life), and Susan Sarandon — who does the saddest tap dance you will ever see. And the “Freebird” scene! Oh!

Okay, I take it back, everyone must see this movie, and put up with its flaws for all the lovely, lovely moments it contains. Cameron Crowe, I love you.

Where was I?

Oh right. I was listening to the lyrics of “Never Tear Us Apart” this morning, and when it got to “two worlds collided / and they could never tear us apart,” I giggled to myself about the mysterious “they,” recalling an exchange in “Elizabethtown” where the Kirsten Dunst character is on the phone with the Orlando Bloom character and they start mocking each other for referencing an unspecified “they” and KD calls this “they” the “inimitable, collective THEM.”

I don’t know, there’s just something about that line that I like. Excessive personal concern with the inimitable, collective THEM, perhaps, TGOTS? Highly possible.

About six months ago, I invested about half an hour of my life directing traffic for some poor sap whose car had died in the middle of a busy Hawaiian road. I figured “OK, another experience checked off the life list. Don’t need to visit that one again. We move on.”

I must have figured too loudly. Somebody out there, some dastardly informant for the notorious Murphy, overheard the thought and passed it on to his Dark Boss, presumably for a fee. I hope those thirty pieces of silver are burning a hole in his pocket.

For, yesterday (18 October 2009), I invested another half hour directing traffic for some poor sap whose car had died in the middle of a busy Hawaiian road.

Except, this time, the poor sap was us.

I’ll let Quilly tell the rest of the story, in case you haven’t seen it already. She does a better job of telling these tales than I do, even when I’m at my best. And I’m still recuperating.

Dead car in the middle of the road …

  - O Ceallaigh
Copyright © 2009 Felloffatruck Publications. All wrongs deplored.
All opinions are mine as a private citizen.

Regia: Hoyt Yeatman
Sceneggiatura: Cormac Wibberley, Marianne Wibberley
Attori: Bill Nighy, Kelli Garner, Will Arnett, Zach Galifianakis, Gabriel Casseus, Loudon Wainwright III, Nicolas Cage, Penélope Cruz, Steve Buscemi
Fotografia: Bojan Bazelli
Montaggio: Mark Goldblatt
Musiche: Harry Gregson-Williams
Produzione: Jerry Bruckheimer Films, Whamaphram Productions
Distribuzione: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Italia
Paese: USA 2009
Uscita Cinema: 24/09/2009
Genere: Azione, Fantasy, Avventura
Formato: Colore Super 35 Stampato A 35 MM (1:2.35)

Trama:
Un’avventura comica sull’ultima evoluzione di un programma segreto del governo per addestrare gli animali e farli diventare delle spie. Dotati di un equipaggiamento ultratecnologico, questi addestratissimi porcellini d’India scoprono che il destino del mondo è nelle loro zampe. A essere scelti per la G-Force sono i porcellini d’India Darwin (che ha la voce di Sam Rockwell), il leader della squadra che fa di tutto per raggiungere i suoi scopi; Blaster (Tracy Morgan), un’eccessiva esperta in armi con un atteggiamento deciso e una predilezione per le cose estreme; e Juarez (Penelope Cruz), una sexy specialista di arti marziali; oltre all’esperta in riconoscimenti, la mosca Mooch, e una talpa col nasone, Speckles (Nicolas Cage), lo specialista informatico.

The song, “High, Wide and Handsome,” which nobly celebrates the raw pleasures of life, was written by the guy who played Captain Calvin Spaulding, the singing surgeon on the TV show M.A.S.H. It was also penned by a guy who went to school with Liza Minnelli in the third grade and by a former boatyard barnacle scraper.

The guy is Loudon Wainwright III, a veteran singer/songwriter/actor. For the movie “Knocked Up,” he co-wrote the music and played the role of Dr. Howard. Johnny Cash recorded one of Wainwright’s songs, and he has a couple Grammy nominations. Loudon is a badass.

L to R: Rufus Wainwright (son) and Loudon Wainwright (father)

In “High, Wide and Handsome,” Wainwright sings about Charlie Poole, a real-life, hard-drinking country artist who was popular in the 1920s and self-destructed young.

Link to an excerpt of the song on iTunes

National Public Radio interviewed Wainwright on Aug. 19, 2009, and he talked about growing up hearing the old expression, “high, wide and handsome,” which means “prosperous and wealthy and good looking and doing well.”

In the Americana-style song, Wainwright plays banjo and tells how Poole may have related to the colloquialism:

“High, wide and handsome – that’s how I like livin’.
High, wide and handsome – that’s how life should be.
Low, skinny and ugly – that’s for other people.
High, wide and handsome – suits me to a tee.

“Song, wine and women – they’re my three favorites.
Beer, gin and whiskey – that’s five, six and four.
Saturday night, I like eatin’ and dancin’.
And I sleep all day Sunday, so’s I’m ready for more.“

If there’s a better ode to lust, I haven’t heard it, and the conviction in Wainwright’s voice sounds like he’s been down this road a few times himself.

So the next time you feel like bustin’ loose, listen to Wainwright on the song “High, Wide and Handsome” on the album, “High, Wide and Handsome: The Charlie Poole Project,” released Aug. 18, 2009, Second Story Sound Records. His Web sites include www.thecharliepooleproject.com, www.lwiii.com and www.myspace.com/lw3lw3. Wainwright has a fan page on Facebook.

(Author’s note: Wainwright and I both have a Liza Minnelli connection. In the early 90s, I played a wedding reception in Houston, as the drummer for a jazz trio. A lady who looked a lot like Liza asked me if I knew where she could plug in a rechargeable battery for her camera. Turns out the bride and groom were Minnelli’s friends. With the crowd’s urging, Liza sang a song with the band. Yep, me and Loudon – Liza BFFs.)

Sources: www.thecharliepooleproject.com, www.lwiii.com and www.npr.org

Image by Jack Dylan

Here is part 2 mostly Day 2 (Oct 1) of what I might get to see for Pop Montreal.
5pm: Buffy Sainte-Marie doing a symposium at Espace Reunion.

7pm: Think About Life at Maison Radio Canada (Probably going to be a CBC Radio taping). Options will be Vertual Vertigo at Preloved.

8pm: Hey Ocean! at Club Soda (opening up for Joel Plaskett & The Emergency).

8:30pm: Brian Borcherdt at O Patro Vys (Part of the Ideal Friends & Hand Drawn Dracula showcase).

9pm: Dinosaur Bones at Il Motore. Options will be either Construction and Deconstruction at Jupiter Room or The Paint Movement at Divan Orange or Chris Page at Petit Campus or Cotton Mouth at Green Room

9:30pm: Fever Ray at Metropolis (I heard the lighting for her set cost $4000 so I am guessing its going to be a spectacular show if I get into the show). Options will be Julie Fader at O Patro Vys or Mono at Le Tulipe or Slim Twig at Cabaret Juste Pour Rire.

10pm: (Noticing alot of bands are playing at this timeslot) Hot Panda at Petit Campus. Options are Dog Day at the Green Room or Loudon Wainwright III at Ukrainian Federation (Should I check him out for like 1-3 songs?) or Screaming Females at Sala Rossa or Yukon Blonde (a band from BC) at Divan Orange.

10:30pm: Micachu & The Shapes at Cabaret Juste Pour Rire. Options will be Peter Project at Balattou.

11pm: Montag presents: Catalogue at Espace Reunion. Options will be Play Guitar at Cagibi or By Divine Right at O Patro Vys.

11:30pm:  Clues at Cabaret Juste Pour Rire (A band that you totally have to see live).

12am:  Said The Whale at Jupiter Room *I want to see live again*. Options will be Young Galaxy at Il Motore or Cousins at Calgibi or Fow Jaws at Divan Orange or Hooded Fang at Les 3 Minots

1:10am: Katie Stelmanis at Casa Del Popolo

1:30am: Sister Suvi at Balattou

If I am forgetting someone else please tell me.

by Michael

Apparently the entire Wainwright Family (Loudon Wainwright III, Rufus Wainwright, Lucy Wainwright Roche, and Martha Wainwright) will be playing at the Highline Ballroom tonight as the early show before The Roots’ weekly spot (Note:  Eventually I will go see that).  As each family member’s songs have taught us, the McGarrigle-born Wainwright children don’t really get along with Loudon (see:  “Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole,” “Dinner at Eight,” “Do I Disappoint You,” “Rufus Is a Tit Man,” (awkward!) “A Father and a Son” or “Hitting You”), and so my money is on this blowing up into a huge fight on stage.  Or maybe bridges have been rebuilt, apologies accepted, and four spectacular musicians will put on a fucking amazing show.

Sadly, I am poor, and just bought Decemberists tickets, so I will never know, but please let me know what happens.

I Am the Way by Loudon Wainwright III (listen here)

Firstly, a disclaimer, the song I posted may not be suitable for everyone, it’s a parody of Jesus Christ, but do listen to the lyrics; they are clever.  Many of you may have heard of Rufus or Martha Wainwright,  but their father, Loudon Wainwright III is the most interesting of the Wainwright clan.   His style is certainly his own, and he certainly brings his humour to his music. His eclectic music has landed him roles in M*A*S*H, Knocked Up, the 40 year old Virgin, and others.  His many other songs include Lullaby, The Swimming Song, Down Drinking at the Bar, and Daughter.

Wainwright is coming to Montreal as part of the Pop Montreal festival, and for those of you who are disappointed that Sufjan Stevens is already sold out, this may be a good second-choice.

Also, as with about half of my music, my dad introduced me to him. Thanks, Dad.

Drain the pool, dump the beer belly, the hiatus has ended. Happy Birthday Loudon, BTW, Sept 5. Congrats on the new Charlie Poole hat-tip. Here’s the EPK.

Anyone swim nude during the last three months? Thought so. More LWIII for that occasion after the jump.

Okay, to kick things off here at the Blog – we’ve got a whole slew of great concerts in New York’s Backyard this month.

The Black Crowes in 2009

Tonight The Black Crowes are playing a full park at Summerstage with Levon Helm. We’re sending some lucky listeners out to see the show and we hope they enjoy it! You may have heard that Levon has been easing up on his voice lately. At Gathering of the Vibes in Bridgeport, CT in July he was completely forbidden from singing by his doctor. But apparently he will grace the crowd at Central Park with a few songs this evening. And speaking of voices, David Holt, one of the listeners who will be at the show, told us that Westchester Medical Center is going to be featuring his voice in an upcoming spot for the air. If you miss the show tonight, don’t worry. The Crowes will be playing again tomorrow night at the Capitol One Bank Theatre in Westbury.

We also have some listeners going to see the Killers play this evening at the PNC Bank Arts Center in New Jersey. They just came off of a great show last night at the Nikon Theatre at Jones Beach and are sure to wow the crowd again tonight.

Also tonight, one of my favorite artists, Elvis Perkins, will be playing with Ra Ra Riot at The Housing Works Bookstore in New York City. Ra Ra Riot, as you know, played the first night of All Points West, smack dab between The Fleet Foxes and The National. In any case, the tickets are $15 but I highly suggest you check it out because all proceeds are going to support the Yellow Bird Project (YBP), and their release of the Indie Rock Coloring Book. If you haven’t heard of YBP, they “harness [bands'] magical indie powers to help out those in need” by letting bands have a hand at designing t-shirts which they sell on their website. Check them out!

Red Molly, a hidden gem at The Pleasantville Music Festival, will be playing on September 7th at another festival, the American Roots Outdoor Festival in Piermont, NY. They’re an acoustic folk trio featuring three women, and they’ve got a great sense of humor and a very acute sensibility to their music.

And the Kings of Leon are coming to town! Catch them first at the IZOD center on September 12th, and then at Nassau Colisseum on September 14th. You’ve heard “Use Somebody” and “Sex On Fire” recently on The Peak, but if you take a trip back a few albums you’ll find the hilariously dirty “Soft” on Aha Shake Heartbreak. And if you’re thinking about going, don’t forget to brush up on “Molly’s Chambers,” their first single off of their very first studio album Youth and Young Manhood.

Mike Gordon

And there’s plenty more: Mike Gordon of PHISH will be performing on Tuesday the 8th at the Music Hall of Williamsburg. Mike will be sure to play some cuts off of his latest 2008 record The Green Sparrow, as well as some other great hits.

For all Beatles fans out there the Fab Faux will be headlining a show at the Beacon Theatre on September 12th. Hailed by Rolling Stone as “cerebral,” and appearing on David Letterman at the beginning of the year, the Fab Faux are a great way to re-hear the music of the Beatles.

And it continues! The Decemberists will be playing two shows: one on the 19th at the Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza with a special set chosen by lottery, and the other on the 22nd at the Wellmont Theatre in New Jersey. Snow Patrol will be working their way through their U.S. tour (with a minor detour to Canada) by playing two shows at the Beacon Theatre on the 22nd and 23rd.

Pheonix

Also, be sure not to miss the fantastic French newcomers Pheonix at Rumsey Playfield on the 25th, as well Mat Kearney also coming to Irving Plaza on the 29th. (Note: Mat  Kearney is not to be confused with Pat Carney, the drummer for the Black Keys who recently formed his own solo project, Drummer, in which he plays bass. Talk about confusing.)

And that’s not even the half of it! Get the full concert listing on the Peak’s website. For example, Rodrigo y Gabriela, the Latin influenced guitar duo are coming to town, as well as Loudon Wainwright III, who will be playing a show the HighLine ballroom on the 15th with son and daughter Rufus and Martha Wainwright. And if that wasn’t already enough of a family affair, The Roches will be playing with them. The Roches are formed by Loudon’s third child, Lucy, plus his wife Suzzy, and sisters-in-law Terre and Maggie. If you’re confused at this point, don’t worry, I am too. I promise I will draw a family tree and post it ASAP.

U2

And how could this concert watch be complete without mention of U2 playing at Giants Stadium? The shows will be on the 24th and 25th. To make their apprearances even sweeter, The Peak will be sending some listeners to the shows. Stop by the Listener Advisory Board from September 8th through the 18th to sign up.

All of this and more to come throughout September. Again, check out our full concert listing on the Peak’s website by clicking here.

And if you’re not concert-going enjoy the last weeks of summer, which I guess means more rain.

Happy Friday everybody,

Don’t forget to tune in to The Roots Music Project on Saturday (8/29) from 12-2pm for the finest in Roots & Americana.

This week I will preview both The Jamboree and The Detroit International Jazz Festival which are happening over Labor Day Weekend. Look for music by The Ragbirds, Irma Thomas, Black Jake & The Carnies, Booker T. & more.

I’ll also get to Loudon Wainwright’s new 2-CD tribute to Charlie Poole and the debut from Sarah Jarosz…

Tune in to 89.1 FM or online at: www.wemu.org

Cheers,
Jer

www.rootsmusicproject.com
www.wemu.org

In my recap of the year 2000, I said that I had a tough time, that December, picking my favorite record from the preceeding twelve months. That happens sometimes. But it didn’t in 2001, a year that was, and is, completely owned by a single album, at least in my mind.

My favorite album of 2001– then, now, and always– is Bob Dylan’s Love & Theft, an absolute monster of an album: An outrageously funny and poetically complex album on which Dylan plows through the entire history of American song with joyful abandon, and cracks knock-knock jokes and silly puns about the end of the world. This is the album by which all other comebacks should be measured– and make no mistake, as great as Time Out of Mind was, this is where Dylan truly regains the full range of his powers. In fact, he outdoes himself in terms of sheer confidence, energy, and cackling wit. Moreover, this album was my gateway drug into what I’ll reluctantly call Americana– specifically, the blues, country, swing, pre-war parlor songs, the works.

As wide a shadow as that album casts over 2001, there was actually a plethora of rich and remarkable records from that year. Two of my favorites represent extreme musical makeovers: Over the Rhine’s Films for Radio and Sam Phillips‘ Fan Dance. On the former, the Ohio duo– best-known for their quiet, intimate brand of folk– dressed up their sound in bright, vibrant Technicolor, and the result is an enticingly varied and full-bodied pop album that adorns their intimacy in new ways, but does nothing to dilute it. The latter, meanwhile, represents Sam Phillips‘ shift from electric pop to a more folksy, acoustic sound: It’s an album of intimate performances in which the joys come from the sounds of the instruments and the mysteries born in Phillips’ lyrics.

Joe Henry, meanwhile, released the first of what would become a magnificent four-album run in the 2000s: Scar isn’t quite on the same level of excellence as the albums that followed– and in some ways, I think Blood from Stars takes the Scar aesthetic and improves upon it dramatically– but it’s a thrilling album nevertheless. It begins Henry’s fascination with the dark back alleys of American song, though where Dylan’s album is spirited and rough around the edges, Henry’s is carefully-orchestrated, chilly and cool. “Richard Pryor Addresses a Tearful Nation” might still be his finest song.

On the country-rock front, Buddy and Julie Miller released their excellent, self-titled joint album, which remains a joy to this day. It’s a spirited and heartfelt album that runs the gamut, both musically and lyrically, ranging from traditional country to Stonesy rock, from heartache to sexy flirtation.

2001 was also the year of my favorite White Stripes album– or at least, my favorite for today. It’s hard to choose, but I lean toward White Blood Cells as the perfect distillation of their curious genius, encompassing country and blues, garage rock and bubblegum pop.

Gillian Welch and her long-time cohort, David Rawlings, on the heels of a giant popularity boost from the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack, released their meditative, reflective folk album Time (The Revelator)– and album so stark and simple that I confess it took a few years before I really caught the fever for it, but its poetry and steady strumming eventually cast their spell on me.

Of course, Radiohead released their follow-up to Kid A, an album that was, at the time, unfairly written off as Kid A’s lesser, younger brother. But time has revealed it to be much more than a collection of unused songs, or an uninspired sequel: It’s got a character all its own, and its construction speaks of a vision well beyond simply unloadind a batch of B-sides. Sonically, it’s as rich and intoxicating as anything they’ve done.

A few other standouts: Ron Sexsmith teamed with producer Steve Earle for his ragged, country-tinged Blue Boy; Pulp’s swan song, the lush and beautiful We Love Life, proved to be their best work since Different Class; Nick Lowe released his smooth-talking, late-night seduction album, The Convincer; Spoon created a template they would later perfect on Girls Can Tell; Dolly Parton returned to her roots for the very fine Little Sparrow; and Loudon Wainwright III made what may be his most personal album ever, Last Man on Earth.

That was 2001 for me; what are the records that stood out to you?

Here are this week’s new music releases:

Herb Alpert & Lani Hall – Anything Goes
The Antlers – Hospice
Brendan Benson – My Old Familiar Friend
Terence Blanchard – Choices
Breathe Carolina – Hello Fascination
Broadway Calls – Good Views, Bad News
Cascada – Evacuate the Dancefloor
Clan of Xymox – In Love We Trust
Joey DeGraw – Say Something Strong
GWAR – Lust in Space
Colin Hay – American Sunshine
Joe Henry – Blood From Stars
Hiroshima – Legacy
The Hot Club of Cowtown – Wishful Thinking
Inward Eye – Throwing Bricks Instead of Kisses
Ledisi – Turn Me Loose
Nathen Maxwell and the Original Bunny Gang – White Rabbit
Delbert McClinton & Dick50 – Acquired Taste
Reba McEntire – Keep on Loving You
MUTEMATH – Armistice
David Nail – I’m About to Come Alive
New Tales to Tell: A Tribute to Love and Rockets
Christopher O’Riley – Out of My Hands
OTEP – Smash the Control Machine
Sean Paul – Imperial Blaze
Jack Peñate – Everything Is New
Pissed Jeans – King Of Jeans
Rasheeda – Certified Hot Chick
Jay Reatard – Watch Me Fall
Rocksteady: The Roots of Reggae
Brady Seals – Play Time
Sister Hazel – Release
Sugar Red Drive – Sugar Red Drive
Third Eye Blind – Ursa Major
Loudon Wainwright III – High Wide & Handsome: The Charlie Poole Project

Here’s the list of new releases for the week of August 18th, 2009.  The artist’s names link to their websites or MySpace pages and the CD title links go to either Amazon or CD Baby for easy ordering.

PAUL BURCH – Still Your Man (Ramseur)
One of my favorite unknown artists, Burch sings and writes modern love songs here, recorded with a delightful  retro sound. With Fats Kaplin, Jen Gunderman and Dennis Crouch. Check the great video on his site for more info. Highly Recommended!

JOE HENRY – Blood From Stars (Anti-)
This is  a darker journey for the moody and prolific singer, songwriter and producer. Undoubtedly influenced by two recent records he produced – Allen Toussaint’s The Bright Mississippi and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott’s A Stranger Here — Blood From Stars marries blues song form with jazz liberation; folk narrative with beat articulation.

HOT CLUB OF COWTOWN – Wishful Thinking (Gold Strike)
Back together and  after a few years off, no one does acoustic western swing as well as this trio. Fronted by the amazing guitar of Whit Smith and the fiddle of Elana James, this is their first full fledged studio album in seven years. Great stuff!

JIM LAUDERDALE – Could We Get Any Closer? (Sky Crunch)
Jim has been busy this year touring with Elvis Costello but has found time to record another set of original traditional style bluegrass and high lonesome folk tunes.

DELBERT McCLINTON & Dick50 – Acquired Taste (New West)
Delbert is the man who reportedly taught John Lennon how to play the harmonica, (“Love Me Do”) Working with producer Don Was for the first time, Delbert has been putting out solid music for over 40 years. His smoky voice and unique blend of country, blues, soul and juke joint is always well done.

RICHARD THOMPSON – Walking On The Wire 1968-2009 (Shout Factory)
Another 4-CD retrospective from one of the most amazing and unknown artist on the planet. Nothing unreleased here but a nice collection.

TWO TONS OF STEEL – Not That Lucky (Smith Entertainment)
Hard-drivin’ honky tonk from Austin, Texas… produced by Lloyd Maines.

LOUDON WAINWRIGHT III – High, Wide And Handsome (2nd Story Sound)
Subtitled The Charlie Poole Project, Loudon pays tribute to this obscure banjo player from the 20’s. A budget priced two-disc set, Wainwright enlists the help of his entire family along with guest Chris Thile to flesh this one out. Here’s an excellent You Tube video about the project. Cool stuff…

…coming soon: SAM BAKER, JOHN FOGERTY, JACK INGRAM, the subdudes, WILLIE NELSON…  more new releases.

Here’s a link to this week’s Americana Music Association’s Americana Airplay Chart

Bill Frater
Freight Train Boogie

Following my trip down to Calgary for their Folk Festival two weeks ago, I made a much shorter trip this past weekend to attend the Edmonton Folk Festival on Friday and Saturday. I didn’t attend Thursday or Sunday on account of other commitments, but I managed to catch a number of talented acts – some I was familiar with and was looking forward to, and others who I had never heard of before, and blew me away.

I’ve uploaded photos from the festival to my Flickr page. Here’s a recap of my experience at the festival.

Friday Night
I arrived on Friday in time to catch the last 30 minutes of the workshop featuring Neko Case, Kathleen Edwards, and Chuck Brodsky. I’d heard some songs by Case and Edwards and generally liked them; I’d never heard of Brodsky.

Chuck Brodsky performs at a session also featuring Neko Case (left) and Kathleen Edwards (right)

Brodsky acquitted himself well, playing a standard folk style. As a baseball fan, I was disappointed to find out I missed his song “Dock Ellis’ No-No”, about the Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher who threw a no-hitter while allegedly on LSD. Turns out Brodsky writes a lot about baseball – he made an album titled “The Baseball Ballads”. Case and Edwards also sounded good, though I didn’t recognize any of the songs.

The mainstage acts followed. First up were The Wailers. Only 1 original member of Bob Marley’s legendary band remains, but the current lineup represents the Wailers’ reputation well.

They played a number of classics such as ‘Exodus’, ‘I Shot the Sheriff’, ‘Jammin’, and ‘One Love’, mixed in with other numbers. They were what I was hoping they would be – fun, energetic, and true to the band’s history. A solid set; if you have a chance to see them live, do it.

Neko Case
I’d heard the odd Neko Case song (and made a point of listening to music available on her MySpace page Friday afternoon), but wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. Neko plays a folk-country-rock style that was mostly mellow with a few upbeat tracks thrown into the mix. She is an excellent live performer; I especially enjoyed her interaction between songs with sidekick Kelly Hogan.

Neko Case performs on Friday night at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival.

Raul Malo, formerly of The Mavericks, closed out the night. Anticipating a long day on Saturday, I headed home before his set. Apparently I missed a good show; Malo, according to Andy, plays a country-rockabilly style along the lines of Roy Orbison and Chris Isaak, and was a lot of fun.

Saturday Sessions
This was the day I was looking forward to, mostly because of the two Joel Plaskett sessions.

Talkin’ Bout My Generation: Ben Sures, Joel Plaskett, Jill Barber, Johnny Flynn
I made my way to this session to start the day.

Sures, playing a traditional folk style, hosted the session, and kicked it off with a humourous song titled “My Last Girlfriend”. Plaskett, accompanied on guitar by his father Bill, followed with “Lyin’ on a Beach’ off of his album ‘La De Da’.

Jill Barber performs at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival.

Last to perform in each round was Johnny Flynn. This was the first time I had heard him, but he came highly recommended by a co-worker. Flynn did not disappoint; he opened with just himself on steel guitar, and accompanied by a cellist, and played a roots-style that was full of passion. I don’t remember the name of the first song, but the second one he played is “The Wrote & The Writ” off of his debut album “A Larum”. My note, not knowing the name of the song at the time, was simply “jf-this song is off the hook”. Pretty much captures how I felt at the time.

Each artist played 3-4 songs. Other highlights include Plaskett breaking out his $7 electronic keyboard (from Value Village) to play “Rewind, Rewind, Rewind”, then playing “Happen Now” (with Jill Barber on backup vocals), my favourite of his songs, to close. Barber herself sang a song in French, “Toutes Mes Reves” (All My Dreams), then closed with a pretty wicked cover of Hank Williams’ “I’m So Lonely I Could Cry”.

Concert: Danny Michel
There was half an hour between the previous session and Joel Plaskett’s concert at 1. On the way there, I stopped by Danny Michel’s concert for a few songs. I’ve heard his most recent album, ‘Feather, Fur & Fin’, which is pretty solid. He played the title track as soon as I got there, then a couple of other songs I didn’t recognize before playing ‘Sweet Things’ Danny often plays with a loop/sound machine, but it was just himself on electric guitar at this point. I left a bit early to get to the Plaskett show in good time.

Concert: Joel Plaskett

Joel Plaskett at his concert on the Saturday of the Edmonton Folk Festival.

Joel is always engaging with the crowd between songs, giving preambles before songs such as ‘True Patriot Love’ and ‘Work Out Fine’. He’s an energetic live performer, and probably won himself a lot of fans (as did most performers). I especially liked that a good amount of his set came off of albums besides ‘Three’ (by my count, just over half the set). I always enjoy hearing from an artist’s full catalogue, rather than just hearing the latest work.

Intermission
As Oysterband played on the mainstage from 2-3, I took the opportunity to browse the merchandise tent, get food, and wander the festival grounds. The merchandise tent was full, and had an excellent catalogue of artists’ CDs as well. Some had already sold out. There seemed to be less food vendors than at Calgary, and local non-profits (save radio stations such as CKUA and CJSR) weren’t present either. One other thing that’s different from Calgary is that the site is much larger and spread out. I enjoyed the compactness of Prince’s Island Park; you could get anywhere quickly, and you could still enjoy the music perfectly well from the Beer Gardens, which isn’t possible in Edmonton. On the other hand, the hill at Gallagher Park offers outstanding views of the stage and the downtown Edmonton skyline. The hill alone makes it worth the trip.

Megatunes: Danny Michel, Jill Barber, Fred Eaglesmith, Loudon Wainwright III
Danny Michel hosted this session, which was recorded for CBC Radio 2’s Canada Live program, and will air on Thursday, August 27th. It will be available on-demand on the Canada Live website and in podcast form on iTunes as well. This was a fantastic session, and I recommend you catch it in one of the above listed formats.

Michel opened with “White Lightning”, and Jill Barber followed with a song I didn’t recognize. Fred Eaglesmith was up next. Fred, for anyone who has never seen him before, likes to tell stories. Each song he performed was preceded by a 2-3 minute (at least) introduction. The first song, “Wilder than Her”, was recorded by Dar Williams, who considers it a lesbian anthem. Fred made a couple of jokes, including one about how all we writes now is lesbian anthems (once the royalty cheques started coming in), before segueing into the song.

Loudon followed. He prefaced his song by introducing the Charlie Poole Project, dedicated to preserving the memory of the aforementioned musician, who has not yet been inducted into the country music hall of fame. Loudon’s new album “High, Wide, & Handsome’, pays tribute through covering Poole’s work.

Danny followed with “Sweet Things”, and Jill played a song accompanied by piano and clarinet. Fred was accompanied by the Ginn (sp?) Sisters from Schulenberg, Texas on the next song, which was preceded by a long story and a joke about the last supper.

The next round saw Danny play “Whale of a Tale”, which I also caught at the morning concert. Jill Barber followed with an excellent rendition of her hit song “Oh My My”. I didn’t catch the name of Fred’s next song, which was his last before Loudon played a song about Tonya Harding.

To close out, Danny played “Feather, Fur, and Fins”, before Loudon got to close the show. He played his famous hit, “The Swimming Song”, and Danny jumped in to sing a couple of verses. It was a great rendition, and a great way to end the session.

All four performers acquitted themselves well. I particularly enjoyed Jill and Loudon. Fred is an entertaining performer, and Danny is good enough to share a stage with anyone.

Concert – Alex Cuba
Alex Cuba followed. I caught a bit of him on Friday night as he played between Neko Case and Raul Malo on the mainstage.

Cuba played electric guitar throughout the show, some songs by himself and some with a three-piece band. The highlight was definitely his cover of “Bad Timing” by Blue Rodeo, with the lyrics sung in spanish. Cuba was fun to listen to, though not one of my favourite few acts of the weekend. He’s coming back to Edmonton (or St. Albert, to be precise) on February 4th, and I would consider seeing him again.

Saturday Mainstage
Johnny Flynn & The Sussex Wit
After his stellar performance in the morning session, I didn’t want to miss any of Johnny Flynn on the mainstage, so I left Cuba’s set a little early to make my way back to the hill.

Johnny Flynn on steel guitar performing at Folk Fest.

Johnny Flynn was the surprise, and therefore the highlight of the festival for me. I knew what to expect from Plaskett, but Flynn exceeded any expectations I had. Ok, maybe they get 1a and 1b status. Anyway, I highly recommend Flynn’s music. I don’t know how to best describe it, though the phrase I jotted down during his set was “roots infused music with a punk ethos” (hence the title of this post), which for me captures its spirit well.

The set itself was outstanding, as he ran through most of the songs from “A Larum”. Unfortunately, the hill was largely empty, and many fans in the audience (including the ones on the tarp beside me) spent much more time talking amongst themselves than paying attention. Their loss, in my opinion.

Beer Gardens
After Flynn, I went to the beer gardens to meet up with friends as Patty Griffin set up. I intended to return for Iron & Wine (who was after her), but ended up getting sidetracked and didn’t return until the final act was taking the stage. So let’s just skip ahead. One thing to note: I like the proximity of the beer gardens to the stage at Calgary; you can hear (and see on the big screen) the bands perfectly fine. In Edmonton, you can barely hear the music coming through the speakers and you’re a good distance away. On the other hand, a hot day calls for some Rock Creek Cider, so I don’t regret this decision at all.

Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings

Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings at Folk Fest

The Dap-Kings opened with a couple of instrumentals, before bringing Sharon out. If you aren’t familiar with her background, stop right now and read it. It’s a great story of perseverance and determination to succeed.

The music in this set was good, but the performance was even better. Sharon danced all night (she’s 53 years old!), and the Dap-Kings know how to perform on stage as well – right down to dressing up. Sharon pulled guys on stage to dance with her (I call this the “Reverse Springsteen”), and invited a group of girls to join her as well. The performance highlight was towards the end, when Sharon showed off her dance moves talking about her ancestors (don’t remember the name of the song). Unfortunately, a lot of fans had left by the time they took the stage, and many more continued to file out throughout the set. They missed a fun hour of music.

Summary
One of the great things about going to festivals or shows (or really, anything in life), is the beauty of the unexpected – when you go into a situation not knowing what to expect, or having low expectations, and then seeing something phenomenal. For me, Flynn and Jones’s performances rank near the top for “best unexpected performances” at a live show. Seeing Matthew Barber open for Chris Isaak in 2007 probably rounds out the list. Their shows, my first time hearing Flynn’s music, Plaskett’s excellent sets and a great rendition of “The Swimming Song” with Loudon and Danny are what I’ll likely remember when I think back to Folk Fest ’09. It was a great (half) weekend of music, sunshine and friends; I think I’ll be back next year.

Joe Henry with Ramblin' Jack Elliott

My friend Andy Whitman recently wrote that Joe Henry just might be the Artist of the Decade. That’s no small compliment after a decade that’s given us landmark recordings from Radiohead, Outkast, and Tom Waits– to name just three– but who am I to disagree? As Andy notes, Henry’s released three albums over the past decade, with a fourth on the way, and out of those four, three are stone, five-star classics; 2001’s Scar, meanwhile, is merely a four-and-a-half-star near-masterpiece. If anyone else has a track record so sterling, I’m not familiar with them.

But even that formidible body of work is just part of what makes Joe Henry the champ. You see, he does a bit of producing work, as well. And in its own way, that work is just as essential as the albums he makes under his own name. So, in celebration of Joe and in honor of his upcoming Blood from Stars, here’s my countdown of the ten finest examples of his gifts as a producer– and make no mistake: He’s as gifted as any producer working today. For the purposes of this list, I’m not going to count his own records. That said, these are all thoroughly, crucially, Joe Henry albums– and all are excellent.

10. Aimee Mann
The Forgotten Arm

When Aimee Mann set to making her rock-and-roll concept album, she told Paste that she wanted a producer for whom The Beatles weren’t the sole reference point, the beginning and the end, of rock music. Who she got was Joe Henry, and their collaboration stands out as unique in both of their catalogs: Henry invited his band into the studio and they knocked these songs out live from the floor, and the result is vibrant, muscular rock that makes faint reference to various recordings from the 1970s but doesn’t sound particularly similar to any one artist. This one rocks harder than anything Henry’s been involved with, outside his own Tiny Voices and Blood from Stars, and if you think rock and roll this fluid and free is a minor achievement, just listen to how fussy Mann’s other albums tend to be and you’ll realize how liberating her work with Henry was at the time.

09. Susan Tedeschi
Hope and Desire

Susan Tedeschi is often pigeonholed as a blues singer, but in truth the lady can sing anything– something Joe Henry helped her to prove when he oversaw this fine album, helping her to select material that was varied and eclectic, and bringing to each the appropriate arrangements without distracting from the singer’s own voice, which remains the centerpiece. Henry is unparalleled when it comes to recording vocalists like Tedeschi, and this album’s the proof.

08. Mary Gauthier
Between Daylight and Dark

Henry’s approach as a producer has sometimes been described as “less as more”– and while that’s a bit reductionist, it’s generally fairly accurate. Working with Mary Gauthier, he helps the singer locate the deep, damaged heart of the blues, in the process proving that you don’t need a lot of glitz or polish to make the blues come alive; in fact, just the opposite is true, as Henry surrounds Gauthier with a sympathetic and understated band that highlights every nook and cranny in her voice, and underscores every painful word she writes.

07. Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint
The River in Reverse

This record is a minor miracle: Vintage Allen Toussaint chesnuts and a handful of brand new compositions become a celebration of New Orleans, an angry protest of the response to Hurricane Katrina, a showcase for the unique gifts of both artists involved, and a collaboration in the truest sense. Henry comes into play with that last point– as the supervisor and facilitator of this ingenious pairing, he keeps everyone on equal footing, and the result is a brilliant balancing act. The music itself sounds great, crisp and alive, and it’s easily the best thing Costello’s done in fifteen years or more. Henry even coaxes the reclusive Toussaint back to the microphone, itself fairly miraculous.

06. Bettye LaVette
I’ve Got My Own Hell to Raise

A lot of times, veteran artists try to stage a comeback with an album full of star-studded cameos, gimmicky arrangements, and pandering song selections. Joe Henry knows better: In re-introducing the great soul singer Bettye LaVette to American listeners, he simply relied on great songs– classy material that showcases the singer’s power and versatility– and a stellar backing band. Beyond that, he simply sat back and let LaVette do the rest– and given what an incredible singer she is, that was precisely the right thing to do. This is how every comeback album should be approached.

05. Loudon Wainwright III
Recovery

LaVette’s wasn’t the only career Henry jumpstarted this decade; he also breathed new life into Loudon Wainwright. Wainwright had never been recorded particularly well before working with Henry, but Joe’s backing band and deft touch made for  the two most full-sounding, spirited recordings of Wainwright’s career: 2007’s joyous Strange Weirdos, and this gem, which re-interprets many of Loudon’s classic songs, but instead of guy-and-guitar arrangements, Henry records Wainwright with his full band. He gets major kudos for the concept alone, and the execution is flawless– but then, I always thought Wainwright’s older work was a bit thin in the recording department. Regardless, there’s no denying that Henry’s guidance in the song selection is masterful, and for introducing Wainwright’s gifts to a whole new generation of fans, he earns our gratitute.

04. I’m Not There Original Soundtrack

Henry only produced a handful of the tracks on this sprawling, multi-artist celebration of Bob Dylan tunes, but it’s essential Henry for this reason: It shows his range and versatility as a producer, because it finds him working with several different artists and bringing to each one exactly what they need. He assembles his crack studio band to pick and sing their hearts out with Ramblin’ Jack Elliott; he keeps things simple and sparse for Marcus Carl Franklin, keeping the focus on the impact of the voice and the words; and he adds tasteful gospel thunder to John Doe’s take on “Pressing On,” as good as any track on the record.

03. I Believe to My Soul

Joe Henry is virtually single-handedly responsible for the resurgence of soul music in the 00s, for his shrewd nurturing and enthusiastic support of such legendary talents as Solomon Burke, Bettye LaVette, and Allen Toussaint. Indeed: Make a list of the eight or ten best soul albums of the decade, and at least three or four of them are bound to be Henry joints. Make this one of them; assembling five of the all-time greats of soul music, Henry creates a multi-artist soul compilation that’s full of soulful, elegant arrangements; vocal performances of tremendous power and nuance; and songs that are either newly-recorded or freshly interpreted. In other words: It’s pretty much perfect.

02. Allen Toussaint
The Bright Mississippi

Henry often says that he sees his role as producer simply as that of the casting director: He brings the right people together, offers them comfort and encouragement, and stays out of their way while they do their thing. That might sound like a detached approach to take, but it’s actually an inspired one, something that’s made clear by this magical recording. Henry recruits a group of ace musicians, puts them in a room together, and presses ‘record.’ And with that, he’s produced the most thrillingly alive and joyful instrumental album of the decade. It’s like bottled lightning.

01. Solomon Burke
Don’t Give Up on Me

A masterpiece of minimalism, a triumph of simple-but-soulful recording, a soul record of astonishing power and range, a comeback album that’s as tasteful and elegant as they come… everything Henry excels at seems to be present here, on this Grammy-winning masterpiece that sparked a whole new interest in soul music in the early part of the decade. The setup is just about as simple as it gets– Henry surrounds the veteran singer with just a rhythm section and Burke’s own church organist– but the results are varied and completely wonderful: Henry asked for songs from some of his famous friends and got terrific, brand new compositions from the likes of Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, Tom Waits, and Brian Wilson. It’s material worthy of the King of Rock ‘n’ Soul, and Burke delivers on each song. Henry’s production keeps the focus where it sould be, and the result is so thoroughly a showcase for Burke, it isn’t until a few listens go by that you realize just how masterful Henry’s work really is.

“No written appreciation of [Joni] Mitchell’s work has ever gotten at the depth and texture of the feelings her work provokes in me.”   This is quite an audacious statement to put in print when one is offering a collection of essays that attempts to do exactly this.   This statement alone from Will You Take Me As I Am rapidly telegraphs to the reader the author’s doubts about anyone’s capacity to do so.

Michelle Mercer presents here a bit of spot-on analysis that derives from cooperation in the form of face-to-face interviews with her subject.   The unfortunate part is that for every bit of clarity we see concerning Mitchell’s work, it’s more than offset by ramblings taking the reader on too many tangents and rabbit trails and impertinent subjects.

The introduction starts off well, but as Will progresses, it reads like a graduate student’s paper on music, music appreciation, and even philosophy and religion (St. Augustine is often mentioned).   Other musicians, such as Loudon Wainright III, are discussed for no apparent reason, and the writing wanders far off course from Joni’s Blue album creation period.

Mercer also throws in some unnecessary and blatantly offensive comments about the late and highly talented Dan Fogelberg (such as “Fogelberg’s optimism for simple lyrics…   Fogelberg’s lackluster music and lyrics…   I couldn’t stand any more of Fogelberg’s mellowness…”), the context of which she admits is “admittedly dangerous territory.”   Shame on her.

Bottom line, Joni Mitchell is a genius musician, singer-songwriter, poet or whatever one wishes to call her.   It would likely take a literary genius to translate her work into something Copland-like for the common man, woman, or reader.   Three writers come to mind who might have been better equipped to handle the assignment (Truman Capote, Norman Mailer, Joan Didion) and Ms. Mercer does not seem to stand with them in terms of skill.

It was Capote who so bitingly observed of the Rolling Stones, “The drummer is 90 percent of the band!”   He or Mailer or Sacramento’s own Didion would likely have written in just as clever and enlightening a vein about Ms. Mitchell.

If you want to actually understand Joni’s Blue, consider taking the money you would spend on this book and instead purchase the CD.   It will serve you well.

Free Press, $24.99, 240 pages

Reprinted courtesy of Sacramento Book Review.

From Plan B #6. I’ve always liked this article, mainly cos the interview didn’t exactly get off to a flying start…

Martha Wainwright
Martha Wainwright didn’t like me. I wasn’t sure about her. Difference is, I hadn’t made my mind up beforehand.
“Tell me a story about the last time you fell off your bicycle,” I ask, by way of opening gambit. It’s a trivial question, sure: but I don’t like to ask about famous friends or family members; I feel that it’s insulting to do so. Should have known better: Martha’s finest song – the single, ‘Bloody Mother F***ing A**hole’ (written about her dad Loudon Wainwright III: someone you’ve never heard but I used to venerate as a teenager for one crap, joke song ‘Dead Skunk In The Middle Of The Road’) – has the relevant letters blanked out on the CD so as not to cause offence. Should have known better: she looks like Mariah Carey trying to be Sheryl Crow, and covers The Rolling Stones’ ‘Street Fighting Man’ with all the passion of a cast-member of Sex And The City. Should have known better: the stand-out lyric from her debut album Martha Wainwright, eight years in the making, goes, “Oh I wish, I wish, I wish I was born a man/So I could learn how to stand up for myself”. Should have known better.
I didn’t.

Lazing back in her chair in the fancy café next to Brighton’s Komedia, she jolts awake: “Are you serious about this?” she asks, shortly. “This is not going to go well, because I’m not particularly clever or funny or…”
…or interested in being here. This isn’t a test. You don’t need to be smart to answer dumb questions: just a little interaction is required. Martha’s music is odd. It’s almost like there’s an artist struggling to break free of the productive restrictions she places round it. You can admire the craft: watching her perform live reminds me of Desperate Housewives, Ally McBeal, something with comedian David Cross in – one of those US shows full of tanned, cynical actors casually tossing one-liners aside. You appreciate them for their biting wit and sculpted performance but you know damn well this isn’t real life, it doesn’t engage like a Ken Loach film or Caroline Ahern sitcom.
This isn’t honesty. It’s an act.
“Shouldn’t we just talk about the record?” Martha asks. “I’d feel more comfortable talking about what everyone else wants to talk about.”
You mean journalists enjoy asking those stupid queries: about how she’s toured with her brother Rufus and met Bob Dylan (she claims he wanted to fuck her), how long it took to record the album, which of her family’s records she’s appeared on as a guest (her mother is Kate McGarrigle), that her songs are “deeply personal”. Jesus. Why not bypass the interview scenario altogether and give out one-sheets instead?
Let’s talk about the record: it’s great background music for when you’re otherwise occupied. Polished, glistening, resonant…the voice has enough twists and disarming turns to delight the room. ‘Far Away’ starts with a teasing lift from The Carpenters, and recalls the lilting joyfulness of Canadian singer Jane Siberry: ‘Factory’ borrows from Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours (tellingly, Martha praises the production values on that album over its actual songs): elsewhere there are nods in the direction of Frank Sinatra, Chrissie Hynde, ancient folk song and (gulp) Tori Amos. The record is excellent. It’s a shame that now, whenever I hear it, enjoyment is tempered by the memory of bassist/producer Brad Albetta’s onstage facial expressions, gurning during ‘Ball And Chain’ like he’s partaking in a bout of particularly strenuous love-making.
I look at these people on stage – 15 years my junior – and realise: even if I live to be 103, I’ll never be as adult as them.

OK. Let’s pretend I know little about you. I’ve never heard your brother, your mother…I like the record. That’s it. I like the record. OK. Go. Why did you start singing?
“What makes anyone want to sing?” she repeats. “I can sing. Obviously, I was born with an ability to sing, probably given to me genetically by my parents, and I love to sing and it sounds pretty good when I do sing. Knowing how to sing, and having it sound good when I did made me want to do it more, and then it became about expressing myself…”
Some people make records for attention: some because they’re so fucked up it’s the only way they can communicate with the outside world: some, because they’re think they’re going to get rich and famous. What about you?
“I do it partially for attention because I’m an insecure person who doesn’t quite know what her role is in life. I’m not doing this in my attic for the sake of my own satisfaction or therapy. Obviously, these songs are very autobiographical and I wrote them out of a need to express myself, but I also try to write the songs with a sense of poetry and musicality with the full knowledge I’ll be on stage presenting them to people. I’m not just doing them for myself. I want people to like me – but that doesn’t mean I change what I do to make people like me.”
OK. Right. Good. Reading her lyrics, Martha’s obsessed with sex, loneliness, the illusion of familiarity, the fact that men seem to get all the breaks in life (“And the boys they run faster/And they throw harder and get stronger” – ‘These Flowers’) and her own insecurity. It’s a very American record: self-obsessed like her dad, dwelling on problems sometimes created to compensate for a lack of real ones. It’s art as theatre. And, despite her protestations, this is songwriting as therapy: particularly the magnificent, scathing single that boasts sentiments any alienated, ignored child can relate to.
Do you need to be in a particular frame of mind before you write a song?
“For me – because I’m writing about my own particular experiences, not politics, or…”
She yawns, bored.
“…other people’s – I have to make sure all the sensories are fully opened and prepared to be massaged, even if it’s painful or difficult or painful.”

In fairness to Martha, I will say this. Everyone has off-days. Later, she indicates from the stage – while obviously trying to rouse herself – she’d had too much tequila the night before. There’s nothing worse than having to do an interview with someone when you don’t want to. (I should know.) Still. It doesn’t help me. All I have is this here 40 minutes, and I need to make the most of that.
Stung by her indifference, I turn to her hitherto silent colleague at the table, producer Brad (if I’d known then about his facial expressions I’d have refused to sit in the same room).
Did you have a clear idea of what you wanted the songs to sound like?
“Sometimes,” he replies. “Like in ‘Far Away’, she’d recorded it with a friend and I thought that version was really good but I heard a lot of background vocals. Sometimes it can take her a little while to get to a certain place.”
“A lot of these songs I wrote years ago,” Martha interrupts, “and it was a real challenge to keep myself interested while making this record: it wasn’t the funnest experience for me, but you have to find a way to recreate it every time. Sometimes you do have to change the person it’s about. A lot of time it’s to do with acting – that’s the entertainment side of it.”
“Martha’s a great actor,” laughs Brad.
“The thing I like best about live music is when you feel like you’re about to crash at any point,” she muses. “Otherwise it gets too…”

Food arrives. Prawns and salad and what looks to be slightly overdone garlic bread. Martha loosens up when I tell her that I’ve spent the afternoon cooking spinach and mushroom lasagne: “Maybe we should have come over to yours,” she exclaims. She offers me a good tip, making lemonade (the trick is to boil the sugar and water down to a syrup, with the lemons, and then add the chilled water). “Martha’s a great cook,” Brad comments. “She’d come down to the studio with bags of different ingredients. Her cooking is a lot like her singing – a lot of flavour.”
Nice.
“I like to invent foods: everything’s a fridge soup,” Martha says. “I’m on a French/Middle Eastern savoury tip right now: I use thyme – with chicken. I’m a big fan of paprika –you have to go easy on it. I use a lot of lemon, fresh, to counter my love for fatty foods.”
How would you describe your music?
She ponders: “Like a spicy…there are two things going on: a certain harshness and a fearful vulnerability, a softness. There’s not much in between. I don’t know where the vulnerability comes from. Being a girl…”
“That’s also a key ingredient in your family’s approach to music,” Brad suggests. “They’re very bold. Everyone puts themselves on the line.”
“Yeah, we used to get cut down very fast.” Martha smiles. “In a good way.”
Is honesty important to you in your songs?
“Totally,” she says emphatically. “I have songs that I’m too honest about and I don’t play them, because they’d hurt people. I look and I feel very emotional when I sing, and very exposed. I can’t just play. I have to drum up some feeling…”
She pauses.
“I’m revealing all my tricks,” she gently laughs, before adding. “They’re not tricks. As any actor will tell you, when you pick a certain method you do start to feel these emotions and it soon becomes incredibly dramatic. If the audience is not fully there, you still have to give them as much as you can because you want to walk away with some sense of satisfaction that you did a good job.”
Martha pointedly looks at her watch. Guess my time must be up.
“Do you have enough?” she asks.