Rolling Country 2006 Thread

= big butts? (though only for the athletically inclined women, i'm guessing.) anyway, anthony, what's it called? (the cd and the book?)

Interesting reissue of Terry Manning's "Home Sweet Home," a real curio from 1970 on which the Memphis producer/musician (he runs Compass Point Studio in Nassau, a very great studio indeed, and the man has truly done it all, producing ZZ Top and Led Zep and Big Star and lots of others) does a 10-minute version of G. Harrisong's "Savoy Truffle," a maniacal Jerry Lee pastiche, and even a fine twisted version of Jack Clement's "Guess Things Happen." It's a parody of heavy 1969-era rock and a parody of the historical impulse as it is writ in Memphis. Remarkably solid and one of the funnest things I've heard in a while.

Also, Herrmuth Bronson does Musicians Spotlight, this month Charlie McCoy. "Of the musicians that you haven't played with, who would be the three you would most like to work with." "Allison Krauss, Alan Jackson, Diana Krall." The cover of this rag has a circular "violator" that says "#1 when you Google on 'Nashville Music'," but damned if I can figure out how a publication devoted to Music City can't get a little spell-checker going so they could spell Ms. Krauss's first name correctly.

the big butt classicism is from art and beauty, no i mean tehy are mostly from the chest up, faces in great detail, with out much background detail...

the man can draws i tell yah

here is the list:
On The Road Again Memphis Jug Band
Sobbin' Blues "King" Oliver's Creole Jazz Band (W/ Louis Armstrong) Kater Street Rag Bennie Moten's Kansas City Orchestra
Dark Night Blues Blind Willie McTell
All Night Long Blues Burnett And Rutherford
Minglewood Blues Cannon's Jug Stompers
High Water Everywhere Charley Patton R. Crumb's Heroes Of Blues, Jazz & Country Folk
Wild Cat Blues Clarence Williams' Blue Five w Sidney Bechet
Little Rabbit Crockett's Kentucky Mountaineers
Sugar Baby Dock Boggs
Mineola Rag East Texas Serenaders
I Got Mine Frank Stokes
Somebody Stole My Gal Frankie Franko & His Louisianians (W/ Ernes "Punch" Miller)
The Peddler And His Wife Hayes Shepherd
I'm Gonna Cross The River Of Jordan – Some O' These Days
Jaybird Coleman
Kansas City Stomps-Jelly Roll Morton & His Red Hot Peppers
King Joe Jimmy Noone
Mojo Strut Parham–Pickett Apollo Syncopaters (W/ "Tiny" Parham & Junie C. Cobb)
Big Bend Gal Shelor Family
Hard Time Killin' Floor Blues Skip James
Greenback Dollar Weems String Band

Nah, there's a photo of them on that one. They're standing on a porch, all wearing hats. No jugs, but some barrels in the background.

Caddle, Raise 'Em High: Had hopes for this well-meaning Southern rock thing. First track, "Mississippi Doublewide", is not bad. Most of the rest is Drive By Truckers with a worse singer and worse tunes. Songs don't sink in, and they don't especially kick.

For proof, here is my working list (so far) of the 40 best 2005 albums by artists from A to J in the alphabet (which is how far I've gotten so far, many many more to go, this project will take a while):

2005
Jefferson Airplane – The Essential (RCA/Legacy reissue)
The Hold Steady – Separation Sunday (French Kiss)
Deana Carter – The Story Of My Life (Vanguard)
Fannypack – See You Next Tuesday (Tommy Boy)
Foxy/OXO/Company B – Ishology (Re/Empire reissue)
Desmond Dekker – You Can Get It If You Really Want: The Definitive Collection (Trojan reissue)
Bang Sugar Bang – Thwak Thwak Go Crazy!! (SOS)
Hard Skin – Same Meat Different Gravy (TKO)
Gary Allan – Tough All Over (MCA Nashville)
Buck 65 – This Right Here Is (Warner Bros. reissue)
George Brigman And Split – Jungle Rot (Bona Fide reissue)
The Electric Boogie Dawgz – Sloppy, Fast & Loud (Hooch)
Roky Erickson – I Have Always Been Here Before: The Roky Erickson Anthology (Shout! Factory reissue)
Shooter Jennings – Put The O Back In Country (Universal South)
Faith Hill – Fireflies (Warner Bros.)
Destiny’s Child - #1’s (Sony Urban Music/Columbia reissue)
The Duhks – The Duhks (Sugar Hill)
Derin Dow – Retroactive (Crapshoot Music)
Hank Davison Band – Hard Way (Elite Special)
Dierks Bentley – Modern Day Drifter (Capitol)
Hot Rollers – Got Your Number (Sweaty Betty)
The Ex – Singles, Period: The Vinyl Years 1980-1990 (Touch & Go reissue)
(Various) – Cameo-Parkway 1957-1967 (Abkco reissue)
Brooks & Dunn – Hillbilly Deluxe (Arista Nashville)
Black Lips – Let It Bloom (In The Red)
Shelly Fairchild – Ride (Columbia)
Doomfoxx – Doomfoxx (Armageddon Music)
Todd Tamanend Clark – Nova Psychedelia: 1975-1985 (Anopheles reissue)
George Brigman And Split – I Can Heart The Ants Dancin’ (Bona Fide reissue)
First Band From Outer Space – We’re Only In It For the Space Rock (Transubstans)
Detroit Disciples – Saving Grace (Route 44)
The Grand Trick – The Decadent Session (Transubstans)
Penny Dale – Undaunted (pennydale.com)
Annie – Anniemal (Big Beat)
Cowboy Troy – Locomotive (Warner Bros./Raybaw)
The Birthday Massacre – Violet (Metropolis)
Early Man – Closing In (Matador)
Human Eye – Human Eye (In The Red)
Crazy Frog – Presents Crazy Hits (Universal)
Blueprint – 1988 (Rhymesayers Entertainment)

country
singles
1) not ready to make nice--dixie chicks
2) running block--toby keith
3) will daddy sing danny boy tonight--hacendia brothers
4) like red on a rose--alan jackson
5) like we never loved at all--tim/faith
6) jesus take the wheel--carrie underwood
7) faith hill--stealing kisses
8) Trace Adkins "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk"
9) josh gracin--Big Brass Bed
10) Willie Nelson--Cowboys are Secretly, Frequently, Fond of Each Other
11) Bubba Sparxx Aint Life Grand
12) Scott Miller Citation
13) Tim McGraw STars Go Blue
14) Chris Cagle--Wal Mart Parking Lot
15) Brady Earnhart--Thank God Virgina is on our side
16) Jamie Johnson--The Dollar
17) George Strait--The Seashores of Old Mexico
18) Aaron Pritchett--Hold My Beer...

albums

1) kris kristofferson, this old world
2) jessi colter, this old fire
3) cyndi boste foothill dandy
4) Roseanne Cash black cadillac
5) josh turner--your man
6) Brokeback OST
7) Gary Bennett Human Condition
8) Bruce Springsteen--The Seeger Sessions

other music
singles
1) fergie--london bridge
2) gwen stefani--wind me up
3) theo blackman--chi chim chi ree
4) jessica simpson--public affair
5) Pharell/Ludacris--money maker
6) max tudnra--so long far well
7) beyonce--ring the alarm
9) alan jackson--like red on a rose
10) kd lang--love for sale

albums
1) alpendub-- jo delay
2) pharell--in my mind
3) gabriel kahune--craigslist leider
4) Marie Antoinette OST

There's another track that made me think of Rick Springfield crossed with Tom Petty, but I didn't take note yet of which one it was.

"Used to The Pain," maybe? Though maybe it's more Dwight Twilley? Phil Seymour? Somebody. Or even, uh, the Bodeans or one of those twerpy anal-compulsive bands that got overrated in Creem in the '80s? Or even later, like that shitty band who did the theme from Friends, or those dorks Del Amitri with the unbearable baby carriage video? With Chris Isaacs high notes, yikes. But suprisingly enough, I find myself liking it. And either way, yeah: Powerpop. ("Got It Right This Time" on now. Is that a drum machine?)

so, too, was "i can't stop loving you" a hit only in europe for leo sayer (and phil collins did it later on)? billy nicholls, whose 1975 "love songs" is an ancestor of the urban record, wrote it.

Melody of "Got It Right This Time" (the apparently drum-machined one) is "Only You" by Yazoo! Damn, this is really shameless...

Also love the guitar explorations at the end of the opening track, "Once In A Lifetime." Keith's finally found space to show off, I guess -- five over-five-minute cuts, one of which goes over six ("Stupid Boy," which hasn't kicked in yet and seems to wait too long to let the guitars kick in, but the title's intriguing so I have high hopes.) Aforementioned opener is also the second longest track on the album -- how often does that happen on a country record? Second track also goes over five minutes, with Elton John orchestrations then more guitars at the end. "Raise The Barn" with Ronnie Dunn, 5:12, start off Stones-like and goes into a cool disco-funk break at the 3-minute mark, plus lots of gospel hallelujahs and stuff tosssed into the mix in tribute (the liner notes say) to New Orleans overcoming Katrina. A really interesting record, even if the John Waite rip does claim that "everybody needs somebody sometimes".

kogan, i think its supposed to be bad, but that said, ive always enjoyed the theme tune things by charollote church, i find them cheeky fun

(Also should add that, what with Jon Tester's victory, this has been quite a week for Montana. I almost imagine Disney planning that way, like they pegged the state as the future before the news media did. Word now is that unemployed Detroit auto workers are moving there...)

And yeah, Knopfler/Buckingham makes obvious sense in re: Keith Urban's guitar.

"Best of Both Worlds" has a pronounced* southern accent in the verses (but not particularly a country way of phrasing). The southern accent is barely present on "Who Said" (which nonetheless has a twangy guitar), except for the twist she puts on a few words at the end of a line: "magazines," "my way." And it seems gone altogether from "I Got Nerve."

*One does tend to pronounce one's accent, doesn't one?

[Haikunym, I'm sure some of the teens who bought the soundtrack noticed the southern (though not all that country) accent. Why in the world wouldn't they? Btw, a large number of teenpop stars were born in the South, though many of 'em ended up in NY or LA.]

A. They wouldn't notice any traces of accent because they don't care about it one way or another, unlike people like us -- even if they do have southern or non-southern accents of their own.

B. They wouldn't notice any traces of accent because the songs' excessive noisiness and brutal futurist onslaught make it very difficult to discern anything about Miley's voice at all.

C. They wouldn't notice any traces of accent because they are too busy chanting the lyrics at the same time as the singer.

D. My daughter doesn't hear any accent. Then again, she and all her 11-year-old friends hate Miley and think she's corny. So the target audience is probably younger than that.

depends on what suburb; closer in, like antioch or north of town, or out east like gallatin, it's reeeall southern. franklin and williamson co. there are just more rich people from other places and songwriters who moved here from new york and l.a. so that's another kind of accent. and shit, you can go to east nashville and sit in the booth at the quite good mexican joint on gallatin pike on a friday night and not hear a southern accent anywhere.

bill friskics-warren compares urban's new one to prince in a washington post piece he did. which makes sense, altho he's no prince. it's sure a frantic record, tho.

listened again to new darryl worley, and this time it sounded a bit flatter, and too many guitars competing in one sonic space. he sings real well and although the songs aren't quite as good as some of the riffs--he does a great faces/stones rip--it's kinda like seeing a really good blues band on thursday night and you go home early and not quite drunk like you would be on the weekend (if you living the blues lifestyle, that is. I had two stella artois last night with my meal and I feel it today, just gettin' old...)

xps

The top 20 have yet to be revealed, but so far no Montgomery Gentry
(though another post suggested that they weren't "really country," though I guess K. Urban is.) Also, a lot of hatred for Brooks & Dunn on that blog, though Brand New Man made the list.

I am hereby interested in checking out Tracy Lawrence and Colin Raye someday (though I don't remember liking them) (and though the guy on that blog, while smart, definitely likes a lot of stuff I don't.)

Here's what I wrote upthread about a Carlene Carter album he loves:

The Carlene Carter album I bought seems consisently kinda fun but never quite fun *enough*, at least so far. Maybe I wish her poppabilly was more rockabilly, "The Sweetest Thing" is slow, and could amost be a Lorrie Morgan hit from around that time; "Goodnight Dallas," which I like more than most of the tracks, has mariachi horns and yodels, so it's "western" I guess. I'm still waiting for at least one track though to jump out at me as much as, say, "Montgomery to Memphis," which jumped right out of the self-titled Leann Womack CD I bought the second I finally put it in the changer today. So right now I'd say Leann beats Carlene beats the Sweethearts, though Carlene could still win this race...carlene's CD doesn't quite make the cut, i don't think, though yeah, maybe as don suggests her new wave era stuff is less perfunctory than what she was doing in '90 (when she was actually having hits, i take it.) even "me and the wildwood rose," about growing up at grandma's and singing for miners with her little sister, doesn't quite connect. i like the rockpile-abilly powerpopsters ("i fell in love," "my dixie darlin'," "come on back," "one love," the mariachified "goodnight dallas") okay but never love them. most surprising cut, just 'cause i never knew carlene did such stuff, is that stately lorrie morgan approximation i mentioned, but i doubt i'll need to hear it again.

#22
I Fell In Love
Carlene Carter
1990

Talk about your legacies. Daughter of June Carter & Carl Smith, stepdaughter of Johnny Cash and stepsister of Rosanne Cash, few artists had to emerge from as many shadows as Carlene Carter did. While she’d been putting out records since the mid-70’s, she still had experienced very little success. When she surfaced on Warner Bros. in 1990, she finally broke through, with an album that paid homage to her heritage while still moving country music progressively forward. The breathtaking creativity on I Fell In Love makes contemporary rockers like the title track and “Come On Back” co-exist with covers of her father’s “You Are the One” and the Carter Family’s “My Dixie Darlin’”, and it actually sounds like they belong together. Despite some excellent covers, Carter best honors her family through her own pen. “Me and the Wildwood Rose” tells the story of growing up as a Carter through her own eyes, and recounts the death of Mother Maybelle, when the family gathered at the grave and “stood in a circle and sang.”

Download This: “Come On Back”, “Me and the Wildwood Rose”, “You Are the One”

saw vince gill on leno last night, with a big band, horns, and doing white r&b. he doesn't get *out* of himself as a singer, but i suppose that worked on this particular song...too suave to externalize his soul and all that. but he sings well, not as well as he plays guitar. he's truly great and played some rippin' stuff. (but, for a lesson on how much better a guitarist can be and still be steeped in the same kind of stuff that any number of country guitarists and r&b guys are, i wish i had a video of robben ford at the ryman a couple weeks ago. he made james burton and steve cropper look like kindergarteners. just think if he got on, say, dierks bentley's record and they just let him loose.)

anyway, it was pretty good and now i have to find a copy of those four discs from somebody.

anyway, on beefheart, i always thought "doc" peaked higher, but "ice cream" had a droll charm, esp. in the amazing interaction of guitars and drums on the title track, which really extends blues rhythms into something new.

xp

Rum, Sodomy and the Lash probably has the greater individual songs, Red Roses For Me has more energy, and I end up skipping forward less when I'm listening to RRFM.

The Poguetry In Motion EP is a marvellous thing, also; not sure where that's been reissued, but two of the four songs "Rainy Night In Soho" / "The Body Of An American" stand with their very best. The other two aren't too bad, either.

sort of gentry or big and rich lite, sentimental, the usual problems with women, playing way beyond their leauge, and arythymic singing, an inability to keep the energy up and wow are the lyrics just awful:
for some red heat real fast picken turbo grass areosmith or cootton eyed joe a little star light moonshine down home party time and let it go with my countrfied show...

these people are from grand prarie alberta, i thnik, which means all of the (innumerable) southern/small town signifers strike me as posing without committing

grand prarie has got 60k people.

(where is the coutnry about being broke and homeless even if you are a rig pig making 100k a year, i mean grand prarie is prime oil country, and with the insane prices, the drinking, the lack of housing, the fucking and the gambling, plus working 70 hour weeks, and thousands of people from newfoundland, you would figure there would be a whole subculture of oil songs...there is one by corb lund, but there should be more)

They're all now on the Rum Sodomy And The Lash CD. I used to own the EP on vinyl, and got rid of it somewhere along the line; nice to have those tracks again. I thought I had another EP, too, with "A Pair Of Brown Eyes" and "Muirshin Durkin" (one of their best tracks ever, now on the Red Roses CD), but AMG doesn't seem to list that anywhere, so it must be long forgotten. And I associate those two EPs with two Fear And Whiskey-era Mekons EPs I had copies of way back in my Army days (whilst reviewing both Red Roses and Fear and Whiskey for the Voice in my spare time): Crime And Punishment and Slightly South of The Border (not to mention the even greater and I assume rarer English Dancing Master, from a few years before, when not even critics cared about the Mekons) Why was I so quick to purge my shelves in those days? Sigh. I will likely never see them again.

I really really wish those faceless dolts would go away.

Now playing: my sleeper pick for country (absurdly broadly defined) album of 2006: The Memory Band, Apron Strings on DiCristina. They've zenned into the Fairport tone and soul, the fiddle player is beyond awesome and "I Wish I Wish" is a beautiful transformation of a traditional ballad that's also the best possible fuck you to re-virginizing evangelicals everywhere.