Archive for the ‘ Folk ’ Category

COB “Spirit of Love”

| Folk

Spirit of Love

COB stands for Clive’s Original Band and Spirit of Love was their first album released in 1971 off CBS. Clive Palmer is a well known British folk musician that started out as one of the original Incredible String Band members. Palmer played on their groundbreaking debut lp and shortly left the band thereafter for reasons unknown to me. Palmer spent some time playing with legendary folk-jazz guitarist Wizz Jones then went on to form the Famous Jug Band. This group released one lp with Clive Palmer on board entitled Sunshine Posibilities which came out in 1969. COB found Palmer making some of the best music of his career while teamed up with top flight musicians Ralph McTell and Mickey Bennett.

Spirit of Love has a hymal, rural English vibe that is more folk than folk-rock. Palmer’s vocals are very calm and soothing and this disc is completely acoustic in nature. Tracks like Music of the Ages and Serpent’s Kiss are simply spellbinding, sounding hundreds of years old and only getting better with the passage of time. Some of these songs have exotic instruments like the Harmonium and Dulcitone while the banjo instrumental Banjoland has unexpected ocean wave sound effects. At times, Palmer and company sound completely lost in space, as heard on the excellent Evening Air. But it’s this naive charm and willingness to sound different that makes Spirit of Love such a great, ancient folk album. Other tracks such as the beautiful Wade In The Water and When He Came Home seem to have biblical references within the lyrics and a strong gospel influence.

Although maybe too low-key for some, I feel this is one of the best English folk albums out there. The band effectively hit a rural english country folk-psych sound that’s visionary and highly original, completely different to Palmer’s prior band, The Incredible String Band. This disc was recently reissued on the BGO label though originals are pretty hard to come by. The follow up to Spirit of Love, 72’s Moyshe Mcstiff and the Tartan Lancers of the Sacred Heart is just as good and highly recommended as well

“Music Of Ages”

:D CD Reissue: 2001 | Spirit of Love ]
:) Original Vinyl | Search eBay for Spirit Of Love ]

Karen Dalton “In My Own Time”

| Americana,Folk,Pop,RnB

In My Own Time

The first time you hear her voice. Listen to track 1 on this record (see below) and you’ll know what I mean. Karen’s got “whoa” factor that few singers can pull off and has been lauded by the likes of Bobby Dylan, Freddy Neil, the Holy Modal Rounders, and must have inspired Joanna Newsom. Yeh, the first time you hear that voice, it can transfix you.

We tend to favor garage rock and country rock records with a high ratio of original material, and tribute numbers seem to rarely ever surpass originals, but this sophomore LP comprised solely of cover songs will dash any preconceptions. Karen didn’t write songs, she interpreted really good ones. Her voice is described elsewhere in a million similar words and comparisons (“to describe it would take a poet” -Fred Neil), but all I’ll say about it, she’s got soul. It’s almost like how Miles used to say it’s not the notes you play, it’s the notes you don’t; Karen phrases in a way that pwns every tune.

Songs by Dino Valenti, Richard Manuel, Paul Butterfield mix with traditionals and pop classics recorded at legendary Bearsville Studios, featuring a couple players from the Bobby Charles sessions. The sound is akin to that of The Band on some takes, but riding solely on a clawhammer banjo on others. It’s something special though to close your eyes with this record and let her take you.Hard to get all the way through to Are You Leaving For The Country without feeling something; this one’s a mover.

The CD digipak 2006 reissue, with excellent liners, is the best way to go, containing an additional disc of alternate takes that are truly different versions, proving the strength of the material and versatility of the band. No idea what’s up with the backwards cut of Are You Leaving… but it sure would explain why people sometimes refer to this music as psychedelic folk. Her only other album, 1969’s It’s So Hard To Tell Who’s Going To Love You The Best will be essential for fans, but the above record is essential for everybody.

“Something On Your Mind”

:D CD Reissue: 2006 | Light In The Attic | Buy @ Amazon| Search @ eBay ]
:) Vinyl Reissue: 2006 | Light In The Attic | Search @ eBay ]

Mickey Newbury “Looks Like Rain”

| Americana,Folk

Looks Like Rain

Mickey Newbury’s 1969 release Looks Like Rain is one of the best singer songwriter country folk albums ever. It’s that rare thing of beauty, a perfect album, and could also be considered the outlaw movement’s very own Astral Weeks. Looks Like Rain is more of a folk record than Newbury’s later lps and similar to the Tim Hardin, Tim Buckley, Townes Van Zandt, and Fred Neil confessionals.

This highly desirable lp occasionally pops up on ebay though it’s somewhat hard to get and was recently reissued on cd (1998-) as part of the Mickey Newbury Collection from Mountain Retreat (box set). Newbury along with contemporaries Townes Van Zandt, Willie Nelson, and Kris Kristofferson stayed true to C&W’s traditions while adding a unique, sophisticated spin on songwriting and an emotional reach that was new to the music. Newbury’s importance to the world of Americana is still strong and deeply felt, and Looks Like Rain would be known as his first major work (his debut lp is solid and worth owning though more of a country baroque psych lp!).

One song off the above album, T. Total Tommy, clearly had commercial potential with delicate harpsichord and a catchy chorus. Each song is linked by the sound of rain and many of these tracks have clever arrangements and brilliant studio effects. The chimes and electric guitar on Write A Song A Song create an intimate atmosphere that is peerless. This is a quiet album for sure, a very personal statement that finds Newbury in superb voice, writing excellent lyrics and sounding down and out. I Don’t Think About Her No More, 33rd of August, and San Fransisco Mabel Joy are country folk masterpieces of the highest order. Every detail and nuance is so precise and well thought out, everything from the sitars that grace Mabel Joy to the distorted vocals that briefly highlight 33rd of August. The latter song has gorgeous Newbury vocals that are similar to Happy Sad era Tim Buckley.

While the studio production is a rare work of genuis and will catch your ear first, Looks Like Rain’s stories will eventually penetrate your heart and soul. It’s a very deep lp and Newbury’s tales speak of freedom, death, depression, failure, love, and happiness. This is definitely a must for country and folk fans and will proudly stand next to any of the best singer songwriter albums you care to name.

“I Don’t Think Much About Her No More”

[ Buy @ MickeyNewbury.com | Search @ eBay ]

Read the rest of this entry »

David Blue (self-titled)

| Folk

David Blue

At first listen (and glance, just check out the cover) it’s hard not to dismiss David Blue’s first LP as a shameless Bob Dylan imitation. And that would be a fair assessment. From the drunken delivery of his pal’s (yes, they were actually friends) unmistakable drawl to the grittier interpretation of Highway 61’s revved-up folk, Blue seems to be doing everything possible and more to convince the world that he is Bob Dylan.

So why even bother? Because the songs are actually pretty decent. It’s definitely the harder-driving ones that’ll snag you like a rusty old nail. A Bo Diddley beat is shredded to pieces on If Your Monkey Can’t Get It, a grinding cut that’s further damaged by a dissonant collision of overdriven guitars and screaming keyboards. Another standout, It Tastes Like Candy, closes the album with some fuzz guitar savage enough to find a permanent home on a Seeds record. And it’s all propelled by a primitive thump that never lets up.

Slightly less engaging are the quieter moments where he proves to be a fairly competent balladeer. The best of these are Midnight Through Morning and Grand Hotel, with their graceful piano/keyboard work and Blue’s attempts to actually hit a note here and there. And, no, the lyrics are not spared the treatment as he gets us tangled up in obscure, imagery evoking language we know we’ve heard somewhere before.

Although this album could only be crowned a masterpiece in some dreadful Dylan impersonator contest, it is a consistent, enjoyable ride if you give it a chance. And let’s be thankful that someone had enough sense to snatch that harmonica (conspicuously absent from the recordings) away from him before he really made a fool of himself.

Blue toned down the Dylanisms and continued releasing material into the 70s, occasionally under his real name (Cohen). David Blue was reissued on Collector’s Choice Music.

“If Your Monkey Can’t Get It”

[ Purchase @ amazon | LP search @ eBay ]

Steve Young “Rock Salt & Nails”

| Country Rock,Folk

Rock Salt & Nails

Steve Young’s first solo record, Rock Salt & Nails, is essentially stripped down, a somewhat simple recording, yet adventurous, way ahead of its time, and gorgeous. Every song’s a genuine treat, with sincerely masterful production combining outlaw country, rock, folk, blues, and a touch of gospel.

That’s How Strong My Love Is, the infinitely relistenable opener on this record, sounds just as fresh as anything from the Ryan Adams and David Rawlings collaborations, and features a careful organ part from the poster boy of country rock himself, Gram Parsons. Bluegrass standard Rock Salt and Nails gets a nice pensive treatment, and the fiddle sound on this record- it’s so dang bright and surreal sounding (I can’t help but wonder if, however unlikely, they snuck a few well-tuned Moog synthesizers into the studio!) The production doesn’t stand out, but remains ingenious, as in the restraint of those bouncy double electric guitar lines, unleashed only in the very chorus of One Woman Man. I’m unclear on whether the raga-like Coyote is more aptly titled for its lyrical content or representing Steve’s wild lonesome howl on each stanza. And if you let Love In My Time take you with it, it will. A short song but so effective with the all-for-it gospel backup, it’s a great example of Steve Young’s solid, unwavering vocal power. Seven Bridges Road, conveniently placed at track 7 on this disc, is his most well known tune though not from this rendition, but the Eagles’ cover version.

The reason I love this record is for its subtlety in production, a wonderful interplay of country licks hovering at just the right level, creating a playful and relaxed musical atmosphere. The warm, fuzzy strings adding mood and color. Holler In The Swamp, a brilliant tune with full rock band, feels like it could take right off; the musicians behind the wheel of this record simply nail it with an understated drive, the intensifying string section making you want more and less at the same time. It closes with a mighty fine version of Hank Williams’ My Sweet Love Ain’t Around, and it’s nice to know that it’s Gene Clark blowing harp in your headphones.

Some will debate the nature of authenticity in music, but if anything is ‘authentic,’ I know that it’s this classic, country-rock shaping LP. Shamefully out of print for so long, you might construct the album for yourself by combining the mp3s below with Lonesome On’ry & Mean, an overview compilation of Steve Young’s works.

mp3: Coyote
mp3: Love In My Time

mp3: Gonna Find Me A Bluebird
mp3: Hoboin’


[ Buy “Lonesome On’ry & Mean” from Amazon]

Bob Lind “Since There Were Circles”

| Americana,Country Rock,Folk

Since There Were Circles

This is a really interesting release, and a perfect example of how important it is to support well-designed reissues. I can’t figure out why Richie Unterberger trashes the album, causing me to believe it may have been a hit-and-run by one of my favorite reviewers; 2 stars (allmusic) is off the mark for this fine, fine record.

City Scenes makes a perfect album opener. Introducing the modest, effective orchestra of driving acoustic guitar, piano accents, electric slide guitar, and laid-back drum kit (not to mention players The Dillards, Bernie Leadon, and Gene Clark), Lind immediately wraps his nice voice around poetic storyteller verses. It closes with an unexpected little treasure of an outro, adding a sweet, smooth french horn line. Fine songcraft.

Listening to Loser, I can’t help but imagine Lind as a roots-rock David Bowie; either by inflection of the voice or it’s the lyricism, perhaps, they are kindred spirits. Bob keeps it pretty soulful and groovy on tracks like She Can Get Along, with its vocal workout ending, and the lazy Not That I Would Want Her Back, featuring more orchestral backing on the choruses. The softer numbers are melodic gems that will stay with you. Theme From The Music Box and the title track, Since There Were Circles, are melancholy and wonderful. Five bonus tracks supplied by Bob Lind himself stand apart from the flow of the album, but stand strongly on their own.

Get yourself this beautiful 2006 reissue from the fine UK label RPM Records and give it up to Bob Lind, who certainly had much more music left in him after his 1966 #5 folk hit, Elusive Butterfly. I keep coming back to this esoteric beauty.

“Loser”

[ Buy from Amazon | Buy from RPM Records | BobLind.com ]

Brinsley Schwarz “Silver Pistol”

| Americana,Country Rock,Folk,Pop

Silver Pistol

This was the Brinsley’s first acknowledged classic, Silver Pistol, released in 1972. To me, Brinsley Schwarz is the best rock music Nick Lowe has ever made though I know many new wave fans will disagree with this statement, favoring his 78-79 solo material.

The Brinsley’s began making records in 1970 with more of a rambling late period psychedelic jam band approach. Silver Pistol is when the band really came into their own with some outstanding original material from Nick Lowe that recalled the intimacy of the Band. Though unlike the Band, many of these songs have more of a reckless punch and new guitarist/songwriter Iam Gomm contributes four great, driving country-rockers to this impressive set.

While 72’s Nervous On The Road is usually cited as their finest work, I think Silver Pistol is just as good with creative songwriting and wonderful songs. Tracks like Merry Go Round have a warm downhome feel with jangly McGuinn style rickenbacker guitar chords and prominent Garth Hudson influenced organ playing. Egypt even seems like it could have been a lost outtake from the first couple of Band albums, it’s that stellar and full of cerebral organ work. In Dry Land the band really nails down the American country-rock sound while sounding individual and completely original. Another song, Nightingale is a very beautiful, personal statement that features accordian and beats most U.S. bands in the Americana sweepstakes.

Following the Silver Pistol lp, Brinsley Schwarz made three other great albums and eventually broke up around 1974-1975. They, along with Eggs Over Easy, are considered the founding fathers of England’s early 70’s pub rock movement. These groups played an English version of U.S. country-rock throughout England’s numerous, local pubs. I think pub rock can be a little more aggressive at times then U.S. country-rock and most of these groups found their main inspiration from the Band. It’s also important to note that on Silver Pistol the Brinsley’s cover two Jim Ford tunes. Jim Ford released one very good solo album in the early 70’s and during the Silver Pistol sessions was a key influence to Nick Lowe and Brinsley Schwarz.

In 2004, BGO (Beat Goes On) reissued the excellent Silver Pistol along with Please Don’t Ever Change (another good one). These albums are essential to fans of roots music and country-rock and have a ragged charm that’s all their own.

“Nightingale”

[ Buy from Amazon | Search eBay ]

Love “Forever Changes”

| Folk,Psych

Forever Changes

I think everybody must remember where they were the first time they heard Alone Again Or. For me it was a high school summer, driving my car, just marveling at the beautiful guitar line and mariachi rhythms, and the building drama of the chorus that goes so close to the top and never over. Any sucker riding shotgun over the next two months would be subjected to this powerhouse lead-off track from Love’s third record.

It’s important to not let Alone Again Or overshadow the rest of this classic disc. The masterful songs on Forever Changes manage to accept and transcend the sound of the era. In a Los Angeles scene where the Byrds were absent heroes and the Doors would shortly become immensely more popular, Love was and will remain the coolest, baddest group from this time and place.

Forever Changes is one of those albums where every moment of sound is as thoughtful as the last. The tunes are led with an acoustic rock combo and string orchestra with horns. Lyrically, the album represents both the light and dark sides of the 60s; these were reportedly Arthur Lee’s last words, as he believed he was soon going to die, and in reality his band was falling apart.

Tracks like Maybe The People Would Be The Times Or Between Clark And Hilldale drive with a southern California sound forged by Love, part folk-psych and nearly part tropicalia. Lee’s voice is authoritative but welcoming on A House Is Not A Motel and lean electric guitar leads provide quintessential psych sounds. The poetry can get dark sometimes, in The Red Telephone with its suicidal hint, but it remains somewhat down-to-earth when “The snot has caked against my pants…” opens Live And Let Live.

I have read all manner of scandal from contemporaries of Love, including one wondering why the band hadn’t chosen Hate for their band name. Their story, revolving around the genius of Arthur Lee won’t equal the story told on this record; while not a concept album or rock opera, it gives an eerie glow of some tale, or lesson never learned. A beautiful, haunting suite.

“Maybe The People Would Be The Times Or Between Clark And Hilldale”

:D CD Reissue | 2008 | Rhino | Collectors Edition | buy from amazon ]
:) Vinyl | Elektra | search ebay ]

The Fugs “Village Fugs”

| Folk,Pop,Punk

Village Fugs

This is also known today as The Fugs First Album. These guys weren’t really musicians, certainly not vocalists, they were beat poets and activists that wanted to be musicians. The record was made possible because their friend Harry Smith, curator of the Anthology of American Folk Music, convinced Folkways to let them record in their studio. Thank you, Harry Smith.

A classic. What we have here is not only a genuine artifact from the downtown 60s scene, but actually a pretty listenable record. The Fugs pumped up their line up for this record with Peter Stampfel and Steve Weber from The Holy Modal Rounders (pictured right), and Steve even contributed one of the Fugs most well loved songs, Boobs A Lot. Ed Sanders and Tuli Kupferberg are the real poet masterminds behind the Fugs, however, and their songs are often offensive or hilarious, concerning sex, drugs, and politics.

This album should be viewed along side another album called Virgin Fugs, which is a bootleg containing outtakes from the same recording sessions. Songs vary from stony diatribe drones to loose pop songs like Supergirl, one of my favorites. And I’ve always got a big kick out of Nothing: “January nothing, February Nothing… Reading nothing, writing nothing, even arithmetic, nothing… Harry Smith and Allen Ginsberg, Nothing Nothing Nothing.” The aesthetic of the Fugs is instant punk, not the sound particularly, but the do-it-yourself approach. The sound of Village Fugs teeters between that of a skiffle group and an amateur R&B combo. The percussion is always plentiful and varied, like they raided some restaurant’s kitchen, and Ken Weaver rounded it out on the drums.

It may not be music you put on to relax to, or set the mood, or dare to DJ with… but you have to hear it!

“Supergirl”

[ Buy from Amazon | Search eBay ]

Mason Proffit “Wanted”

| Country Rock,Folk

Wanted

Mason Proffit were an unknown country-rock band that released 5 good albums between 1969 to 1973. They originally formed out of the ashes of Sounds Unlimited, a hard edged Chicago garage band with a good sense of melody and song structure. Mason Proffit had strong elements of blue grass and folk in their sound but could also rock hard when the mood suited them. They were all excellent musicians and wrote poetic lyrics that occasionally reflected the times (war, protest, and religion).

Wanted was one of the first country-rock records, released off the Happy Tiger label (Dunwich) in 1969. Terry (guitar and vocals) and Johnny Talbot (guitar and vocals) were the foundation of Mason Proffit and often sang beautiful tenor harmonies. Wanted should really be up there with the country rock innovators but many feel that Mason Proffit lacked notoriety because their records were released off small independent labels. It’s an ambitious album to say the least and similar to latter period Byrd gems The Ballad of Easy Rider (1969) and Untitled (1970).

Two Hangmen is a folk-rock song that received lots a radio exposure back in the late 60’s and is now considered a folk-rock classic. It’s by far the most popular song on this record that has many more impressive moments throughout its 30 minutes plus running time. Some songs have sweeping orchestrations, such as the excellent country-rocker, You’ve Finally Found Your Love and a sensitive banjo ballad, Till The Sun’s Gone. Other tracks such as Voice of Change and Rectangle Picture are tuneful, quality songs that skillfully integrate political views and protest the current Vietnam War. A personal favorite is Sweet Lady Love, a pounding bayou rocker with pedal steel guitar and a great acid fuzz solo towards the end. It almost sounds like a great lost Creedence Clearwater Revival track and justifies purchasing this album alone.

For many years Wanted was unavailable but in 2006 the Water record label gave this great album a new lease on life. Mason Proffit would go on to make 4 other fine records though Last Night I Had The Strangest Dream (1971) is often quoted as their masterpiece.

“Sweet Lady Love”

[ Buy from Amazon | Search eBay ]