Justin Townes Earle 2010-12-17
Royale
Boston, Mass.
(Stream and Download)
I should have gone to this show. What was I doing? I don't remember, but it probably wasn't as important as seeing Justin Townes Earle. Justin released his third album Harlem River Blues last year, and it's been in my playlist ever since. The quality of the recording is excellent. To friends who are automatically turned off by country, watch the video bellow. It's a live performance from Letterman. I'm loath to promote Letterman's show, but Paul Schaffer sits in and kills it. It will also determine in 3 minutes and 41 seconds if you like Justin Townes Earle.
Showing posts with label country. Show all posts
Showing posts with label country. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 09, 2011
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
When Chris and I first started the thejivefather I envisioned scouring the archives like some modern day Alan Lomax. Turning over the heap to find previously undiscovered music. So far, all of my entries have been about bands I have some familiarity with. There are many reasons for this. It is much easier to crank out a post on a band you know than one you don't. I recently started a new job that is not conducive to active listening. Enough excuses. Enough of self reflection. For this review I wanted to discover a band I knew nothing about.
With that said, Bluegrass Underground is hardly an unknown band. They have a catalog of music that stretches back to 1999. Founder Jeff Mosier played with Col. Bruce Hampton, and notes in his biography that he "shared the stage" with Leftover Salmon, Widespread Panic, Vassar Clemens, and Phish. The rest of the current Blueground Undergrass is David Blackmon is on mandolin and fiddles, Johnny Mosier on guitar, Kyle Spark on bass, Mark van Allen on pedal steel, and Vic Stafford on drums. For this review I downloaded their latest release Faces from emusic.com.
With that said, Bluegrass Underground is hardly an unknown band. They have a catalog of music that stretches back to 1999. Founder Jeff Mosier played with Col. Bruce Hampton, and notes in his biography that he "shared the stage" with Leftover Salmon, Widespread Panic, Vassar Clemens, and Phish. The rest of the current Blueground Undergrass is David Blackmon is on mandolin and fiddles, Johnny Mosier on guitar, Kyle Spark on bass, Mark van Allen on pedal steel, and Vic Stafford on drums. For this review I downloaded their latest release Faces from emusic.com.
Blueground Undergrass mixes the gamut of american roots styles in a very raw and informal way. So many bands shoot for this, but in the process end up loosing their voice. While I found them to be a bit too smooth on Faces, this live show carries enough edge to make them convincing. Take the supercharged bluegrass "Clintch Mountain Backstep" and "Old Joe Clark." I would have loved to be there for those tunes.
There is a bit of old AM radio country in "Lay Beside Your Mother." I should have played it on Mother's Day. Would have looked like a hero. I found the expanded version "Ole Love, Ole Tune" from the live show more meaningful than the pop infused version on Faces. Plenty of tight bass riffs. The cover of Bob Dylan's "The Times They Are a Changin" is way out there. Not to be cynical, but I was laughing a bit during the "group thinking is not thinking" part. Guess you just had to be there. Two other soulful highlights is the cover of "Helpless" and their song "Renee." There is a lot there to enjoy and take in.
The live recording is direct from the mixing board, so the mix is not optimal for home listening. It took me a couple of tracks to become comfortable with it. Thanks to Travis Viars for transferring and posting this show. Sound quality is B+ and runtime is 2 hours and 26 minutes.
There is a bit of old AM radio country in "Lay Beside Your Mother." I should have played it on Mother's Day. Would have looked like a hero. I found the expanded version "Ole Love, Ole Tune" from the live show more meaningful than the pop infused version on Faces. Plenty of tight bass riffs. The cover of Bob Dylan's "The Times They Are a Changin" is way out there. Not to be cynical, but I was laughing a bit during the "group thinking is not thinking" part. Guess you just had to be there. Two other soulful highlights is the cover of "Helpless" and their song "Renee." There is a lot there to enjoy and take in.
The live recording is direct from the mixing board, so the mix is not optimal for home listening. It took me a couple of tracks to become comfortable with it. Thanks to Travis Viars for transferring and posting this show. Sound quality is B+ and runtime is 2 hours and 26 minutes.
Friday, January 11, 2008
Time for a little taste of Austin. The Gourds first entered my life back in the early days of file sharing. This burning bluegrass version of Snoop Dogg's "Gin and Juice" was traveling around the internet, wrongly attributed as a Phish cover. This prompted an open letter of denial from Phish properly attributing the cover.
Awakened to this band out of Austin, I watched them release an intriguing collection of CD's featuring their mix of tex-mex cajun country rock. They were even featured on PBS' Austin City Limits. Although I've never been to Austin, this is the type of eclectic sound I'd expect to hear walking down the street. Kind of ironic then, that the one and only Gourds show on archive.org was recorded in Rhode Island.
Awakened to this band out of Austin, I watched them release an intriguing collection of CD's featuring their mix of tex-mex cajun country rock. They were even featured on PBS' Austin City Limits. Although I've never been to Austin, this is the type of eclectic sound I'd expect to hear walking down the street. Kind of ironic then, that the one and only Gourds show on archive.org was recorded in Rhode Island.
"We came up here to promote our music...promote music...we're almost out of music...and to drink beer...and we promote tooth decay" -Ants on the Mellon 4:23Three themes dominate this Gourds show: drinking, carrying on, and to a certain extent loving. Therefore the choice quote of this post. It seems that most of the shows I've chosen for this blog could be described by some as having a loose feel, but this one is different than the others. There is some significant banter and time between most songs, but it adds to the allure. Crafting a relationship with the audience is an important part of a live performance, and this is one way to do it. Choice cuts are "LGO," the "Maria" and "Illegal Oyster." The whole show played out like this:
Intro, LGO, Bottle and a Dime, Maria, Jesus Christ with Signs Following, Shamrock Bound, Whiskey and Blood, Take Me Back to Tulsa, Hell Hounds, Omaha, Ants on the Mellon, Illegal Oyster, Cracklins, You Boys Need a Spanking, Cranky Mullato, All the Labor, Grievin' and Smokin'Sound quality is B+. Runtime is 1:07:15 and is available in a variety of formats. Show recorded by Jerry C.
Kevin Russell, Jimmy Smith, Claude Bernard, Keith Langford, Max Johnston
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