Mavis Staples Tribute

Posted on by wolffkurt

Last night (Nov. 19) I was lucky enough to attend a special concert in Chicago celebrating the 75th birthday of Mavis Staples. Man, that was an experience—one that was unique to Chicago and showcased a huge range of American music from the past 50 or 60 years.

The show was being taped for a DVD release, so it had issues with flow and continuity—too many stops and starts to feel like a ‘real’ concert experience, which got a little frustrating after a while. It ran one ‘episode’ at a time, with a special guest (or two or four) taking the stage, usually backed by a crack 13-piece band that included stunning vocalists the McCrary Sisters and bassist/musical director Don Was.

But ultimately it was a spectacular experience.

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Sturgill Simpson’s ‘Metamodern’ Country

Posted on by wolffkurt

With his new album Metamodern Sounds in Country Music, Sturgill Simpson has put out what’s currently my favorite album of the year. This is country music that is meaty and fun but also thoughtful and rich. It’s ‘metamodern,’ as he describes it — a play on the classic Ray Charles collection Modern Sounds in Country Music — but it’s also got boots on the ground, a sturdy honky-tonk sound by way of Merle Haggard and especially Waylon Jennings.

At the same time, the music is not that straightforward. Stop at Waylon and I’m often fine with that. But Sturgill has a wider scope here. After all, the lead single does bear the curious title “Turtles All the Way Down.” Watch the video:

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Jason Eady shows country is alive and well in 2014

Posted on by wolffkurt

Say what you will about the directions mainstream country is taking these days, but outside the Top 40 there’s plenty of honky tonk to go around. Top of the heap right now is Jason Eady, a Mississippi native (and Texas transplant) whose new album Daylight and Dark lays down some of the strongest country music I’ve heard all year.

Daylight and Dark in many ways picks up where Eady’s acclaimed previous album, AM Country Heaven, left off.

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Robert Ellis follows ‘Photographs’ with ‘Lights from the Chemical Plant’

Posted on by wolffkurt

To call the music of Robert Ellis ‘country’ isn’t wrong, but it does miss the complexity of sounds and styles he regularly brings to his music.

The title track of his previous album Photographs stood out for its weepy melody and Ellis’s aching voice.

This year, though, Ellis has emerged with a new album — The Lights from the Chemical Plant — that’s every bit as strong, but shifts focus away from anything overtly honky tonk.

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Mickey Newbury, “She Even Woke Me Up To Say Goodbye”

Posted on by wolffkurt

One of my all-time favorite artists, Mickey Newbury had a knack for sad, slow, soulful songs that cut deep — but do so gently and thoughtfully. Newbury also had one of the finest voices in country music — a whole different style from someone like George Jones, but I would argue he was up there in that league.

Below is “She Even Woke Me Up to Say Goodbye,” one of Newbury’s finest songs. It’s a live version he performed on the Johnny Cash Show:

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The State of Mainstream Country in 2013

Posted on by wolffkurt

Even diehard mainstream country fans can’t deny that so many of today’s songs have similar themes, both melodically and lyrically. Much has been made lately of so-called “Bro Country,” with songs (sung by men, of course, who still dominate the charts) about tailgating, beer drinking, tight jeans and partying out in the country — often down a dirt road, by a river, or under the moonlight.

Nothing against beer, trucks or dirt roads per se, but things are clearly getting out of hand. Take a look at the video below that was put together by Entertainment Weekly critic Grady Smith — it makes the point pretty clearly.

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5 Essential Ray Price Songs

Posted on by wolffkurt

On Dec. 16, 2014, country legend Ray Price passed away after a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 87 years old, and he left behind a huge catalog of recordings and a musical legacy that is among the most impressive in country music history.

Price was a contemporary (and friend) of Hank Williams, and his early recordings reflect that sharp-edged honky-tonk sound. As the 1950s progressed, though, Price found himself more and more attracted to smoother countrypolitan stylings. You can hear it working its way into songs like “City Lights” and especially on his album Night Life. And it finally comes to full fruition on Price’s 1960s songs such as “Danny Boy” and “For the Good Times” — the latter a Kris Kristofferson composition that Price turned into a signature song.

Price and his band the Cherokee Cowboys developed a dance-friendly rhythm that became known as the ‘Ray Price shuffle.’ The band was an early starting ground, too, for such later legends as Roger Miller, Willie Nelson and Johnny Paycheck.

Price also co-owned Pamper Music, a publishing company that helped boost the careers of Harlan Howard and Hank Cochran, among others.

Price was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1996. And he continued performing up until very recently, when his health wouldn’t allow it.

Because it spans so many years and includes so many great songs, Price’s catalog is well worth exploring in depth. Below are five key tracks to help you dive in.

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With ‘Antiphon,’ Midlake Grows Up and Moves On

Posted on by wolffkurt

Like a lot of Midlake fans, when news broke that lead singer and longtime bandmember Tim Smith had left the band, I was worried that the group’s sound and songs wouldn’t hold up.

After listening to the new album Antiphon, though, any worries are laid to rest. It’s a fantastic album with strong songs and a sound that shifts the band back toward a psychedelic sound — yet still retains the wonderful melodic structures and vocal harmonies that have long been identified with the band.

Seeing Midlake live, too, only brings this experience home — this is still very much the same band.

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Pink Floyd ‘Live at Pompeii’ – Is the Director’s Cut Worth It?

Posted on by wolffkurt

Like a lot of fans, I first saw Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii in high school. I loved Pink Floyd at the time, and had really looked forward to seeing them play among ancient Roman ruins. But it was a midnight movie, and I dozed off here and there. And while the music and the setting were cool, I can’t say I fully appreciated the moods, ideas and concepts that the band or the film’s producers were going for.

Today, I came across a “director’s cut” of the Live at Pompeii. It’s a reworking of the film that was released in 2003, with additional interviews and some additional imagery of planets, sun flares and other space-themed visuals (which sounds cheesy, but in the context of the film it works).

I can’t remember exactly how this new version compares to the ‘original’ cut, but watching it now — more than 40 years after it was first released — the film turns out to be absolutely fascinating. Watch an embed below.

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Tompall Glaser and Jack Clement: Country Outlaw Heroes

Posted on by wolffkurt

Two major players in country music passed away recently. Two key outlaw artists, and two of my favorite country artists, both of whom were involved in creating some of the finest music to come out of Nashville–or anywhere–in the last several decades.

Last week, we lost “Cowboy” Jack Clement. Recently elected into the Country Music Hall of Fame, Cowboy was someone who wrote songs for Johnny Cash; worked at Sun Studios and helped jumpstart the career of Jerry Lee Lewis; produced records for such artists as Townes Van Zandt, Charley Pride, and Don Williams; and was a key ‘outlaw’ innovator, producing what is arguably Waylon Jennings’ finest album, Dreaming My Dreams.

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