1. Joe Jencks, "Poets, Philosophers, Workers & Wanderers",Turtle Bear Music
2. Variious Artists, Tribute to the Travelin' Lady Rosalie Sorrels, rosaliesorrels
3. Tim Grimm, A Stranger in This Land, Vault Records
4. John McCutcheon, Trolling For Dreams, Appalseed Productions
5. Chris Hillman, Bidin' My Time, Rounder Records
6. Wailin' Jennys, Fifteen, Red House
7. Andy and Judy, This Old Town, Andy and Judy
8. The Talbott Brothers, Gray, The Talbott Brothers
9. Tim O'Brien, Where The River Meets The Road, Howdy Skies Records
10. Laura Zucker, Say Yes, Laura Zucker
Honorable mention to I Draw Slow, Wyatt Easterling, Trout Steak Revival and M Matthew Byrne.
Tom Russell has never been a GRAMMY nominee let alone the winner of such an award. Of course, he's not a 'prominent' singer-songwriter in a 'popular genre' but the artistry of his music, whether it be on his latest CD "Folk Hotel," or in many of his earlier releases, blatantly outshines many of the actual honorees.
Just give "All on a Belfast Morning" a listen:
Yes, "let us not confuse the pint with the pouring."
In this new release, Russell continues his penchant for writing about historical and cultural figures in a compelling manner as with "Folk Hotel" and its numerous references:
But in "Harlan Clancy," he goes present day in depicting a segment of life in rural America so pertinent in the 2016 election:
Our vocabulary is expanded in the provocatively titled "The Dram House Down in Gutter Lane" with listeners learning about harrigans, hags, rusty guts and more. His vivid use of such antiquated words is reminiscent of the late Dave Carter.
Dylan Thomas and his poetry are lauded in "The Sparrow of Swansea."
Russell writes and sings about fragility in life, of facing and combating demons, succumbing to or subsisting alongside them in a makeshift shelter. He is both earthy and eloquent. There simply isn't a better craftsman producing such work today.
Kris Kristofferson takes the listener along for a universal walk of separation and alienation through smell, sight and hearing and places the events on a day which is usually one in which families gather. There are no 'forced words" interrupting the flow and the mood of estrangement Kristofferson immediately creates remains throughout.
Well I woke up Sunday morning With no way to hold my head, that didn't hurt And the beer I had for breakfast wasn't bad So I had one more for dessert Then I fumbled in my closet through my clothes And found my cleanest dirty shirt Then I washed my face and combed my hair And stumbled down the stairs to meet the day I'd smoked my mind the night before With cigarettes and the songs I'd been pickin' But I lit my first and watched a small kid Playin' with a can that he was kicking Then I walked across the street And caught the Sunday smell of someone's fryin' chicken And Lord, it took me back to somethin' That I'd lost somewhere, somehow along the way On a Sunday morning sidewalk I'm wishing Lord that I was stoned 'Cause there's something in a Sunday That makes a body feel alone And there's nothin' short of dyin' That's half as lonesome as the sound Of the sleepin' city sidewalk And Sunday mornin' comin' down In the park I saw a daddy With a laughin' little girl that he was swingin' And I stopped beside a Sunday school And listened to the songs they were singin' Then I headed down the street And somewhere far away a lonely bell was ringin' And it echoed through the canyon Like the disappearin' dreams of yesterday On a Sunday morning sidewalk I'm wishing Lord that I was stoned 'Cause there's something in a Sunday That makes a body feel alone And there's nothin' short of dyin' That's half as lonesome as the sound Of a sleepin' city sidewalk And Sunday mornin' comin' down
Heard this today for the first time: This old guitar seen dusty roads and smokey bars, back seats of all my old cars, city lights and southern stars This old guitar it's told the truth it's told some lies Sometimes it sings, sometimes it cries It's who I am, it's my disguise This old guitar it's just wood and strings and steel This old guitar always knows just how I feel This old guitar it's seen it's share of broken hearts, it's got cracks and broken parts it's a symphony of scars This old guitar... hell, I have even gone and named it, I have cursed and blessed and blamed it Still my fingers have not tamed it This old guitar guess you could say we show our ages from all the songs and whiskey rages, crazy stages final pages. This old guitar it's just wood and strings and steel This old guitar always knows just how I feel This old guitar it's seen it's share of broken hearts, it's got cracks and broken parts, it's a symphony of scars. This old guitar has played for kings and played for paupers It's all the gold that's in my coffers Still I can't give it all it offers This old guitar it's just wood and strings and steel This old guitar always knows just how I feel This old guitar it's seen it's share of broken hearts, it's got cracks and broken parts, it's a symphony of scars
Sunday, October 15, 2017
Here's another offering in the perfect song grouping (again, not greatest song -- that's a different category.)
"I Came to a Western Island" - Archie Fisher
I came to a western island as far as a man can walk is my land I cleared ten acres and a house I built, into the side of the hill The roof leaks, the windows rattle and the grass in the high ground won't feed cattle The west wind blowin' off the sea makes it hard to grow a tree One cow in a lean-to bier, a spring close by and a driftwood fire A clear view of the settin' sun and 12 gauge hammer gun I keep sheep, I fish deep water in a high bowed boat called the Neptune's daughter She will ride any western gale and can carry a stack of sails Some nights when the bright lights flicker I sail to the mainland for my liquor I haven't got a woman to call my own but I never wake up alone A man needs to feel the ground and wind to tell him that the world spins round To watch the stars and taste the sea, and woman to keep him free I came to a western island, as far as a man can walk is my land I cleared ten acres and a house I built, into the side of the hill
This is a perfect song, different from a great song. The melody sweetly purrs and the lyrics vividly portray the subject matter with not a single word forced.
When fall comes to New England The sun slants in so fine And the air's so clear You can almost hear the grapes grow on the vine
The nights are sharp with starlight And the days are cool and clean And in the blue sky overhead The northern geese fly south instead And leaves are Irish Setter red When fall comes to New England
When fall comes to New England And the wind blows off the sea Swallows fly in a perfect sky And the world was meant to be
When the acorns line the walkways Then winter can't be far From yellow leaves a blue jay calls Grandmothers Walk Out In Their Shawl And Chipmunks Run The Old Stone Walls When fall comes to New England
The frost is on the pumpkin The squash is off the vine And winter warnings race across the sky The squirrels are on to something And they're working overtime The foxes blink and stare and so do I
'Cause when fall comes to New England Oh I can't turn away From fading light on flying wings And late good-byes a robin sings And then another thousand things When fall comes to New England
The singing begins around the 3:10 mark. "The Ballad of Charlie Asher"
got a little red horse that I like to ride around I’m not real social so I ride him out past town on a cabin porch there stood a long-haired man he stood in silence he didn’t raise his hand I’d ride by to a pond I’d found with my head down and my hair down and my eyes upon the ground after a while you know at night I’d lie awake wonder who he was in his cabin by the lake so I asked around I said who is that long-haired man they said that’s Charlie Asher, he don’t give a damn, he lives on what they gave him for his leg after the war and he just ain’t too much use to society no more got caught in the rain one day back by the pond beating it for home found an army coat on a log it said Asher on the pocket it smelled like dust scrawled in ink on one sleeve the words "in God we trust" well he don’t like a man who loses much no more so I took it as a gift and hung it by my door in my head I composed a thank you note sat at my desk and this is what I wrote well you don’t look like a man who loses much no more so I thank you for the gift it’s hanging by my door I took a kitten and I ran in real fast left it on the porch while he was down in back added to the note, hey dear Charlie here’s a friend, if he’s inconvenient I can take him back again. now two pair of eyes watch as I ride by Charlie and the cat on the porch side by side one winter day he was waiting by the path, cat around his legs, braid down his back. he said I’m Charlie Asher and I don’t believe we’ve met... well at least we ain’t talked yet Nice little horse there looks like he’s your friend when our eyes met I wished Charlie’s eyes would mend I went into town, he said, the other day your picture on a poster said to come and hear you play I didn’t know you was musical and I sure would be obliged if you’d bring you guitar down and play for me sometime well, it just so happens Charlie I wrote a song for you it’s down and dirty simple but the message still comes through your past is like a blanket boy woven tight and warm if you don’t know how to use it, it can do you harm don’t wear it on your head, boy don’t wear in on your eyes there it can smother you it can make you blind wear it on your shoulders like a coat or like a shawl it might get heavy sometimes but you can stand up tall now I play for Charlie he makes me tea we drink in silence quiet company he don’t offer information about what he’s seen and heard he just says play that song again you know I love the words
Posted this before but it deserves one more time (at least). Immerse yourself in this one:
Aren't some people just famous for being famous?
Isn't that about all that they do?
And couldn't the radio leave you feeling aimless?
Just a nameless person like you
But I sure heard the words Woody Guthrie sang
Even when they didn't quite rhyme
He knew the heart was the stuff, they'd ring close enough
Further down the line
I've painted houses, mopped floors, and washed dishes
Taught kids, cut grass and moved gear
Swung hammer, cleaned toilets and dug ditches
And I even sang songs to sell beer
But it was all for someone else's dream,
'Til I set out after mine
Said, "take this hammer, take it to the captain
Tell him I'm further down the line"
I crossed the Fraser, the Columbia, the Mississippi,
The Allegheny and the Ohio
Saint Lawrence, Susquehanna, Chattahoochee,
The Hudson and the Colorado
I saw the big rigs sleeping in the starry desert
Saw the snow piled 'round the Yukon pines
But I couldn't hang around too long in New York Town
Without lookin' further down the line
Some of the joints in New Orleans ain't pretty
But the waitresses'll call you "hon"
And a cop'll stay on the white side of the city
'Cause they paid for his hat and his gun
And there's a Gulf War vet by the overpass
Who says "Bro, can you spare a dime?"
Who's he kidding? These days a dollar won't be getting
You any further down the line, boys
I saw the stars and bars flying in Dixie
And doomsday prophets on capitol hill
I saw a fast food mall named after Walt Whitman
And Gettysburg ghosts wandering still
If our families are so broken,
How do we make a family out of humankind?
We still got promises to break
And miles to go before we wake further down the line
I saw the homeless and the houses sitting empty
I heard the explanations of learned men
Nowadays they'll rob you with a computer
'Cause it's faster than a fountain pen
And if smarter people haven't found a gap in the armour
Why do I keep trying?
I still believe there's a world dying to be born
Further down the line, friends
Further down the line
Aw Woody, I been through all kinds of weather
Been searching all the faces for a sign
As you know, love's hard to keep together
As the miles and the years unwind
And you never run out of blacktop
Nah, you just run out of time
That ribbon of songs keeps on winding along
Ever further, down the line
In both Ferron's "Cactus" and Garnet Rogers' "After All" are personal struggles with successful outcomes, if you will.
...When I was young I was in service to my pain. On sunny days you'd find me walking miles to look for rain. And as many times I swapped it all just to hop a moving train. Looking back, it was a most expensive way to get around... ...Seems to me the tools for being human are wicked crude...
It concludes:
...Now when I imagine life is only time and space... then I guess I've seen the best of it upon your tender, loving face. And the faith that you bestowed in me gives me a solid sense of place. I learn to say...Fire, Water, Earth and Air... I learn to say Fire, Water, Earth and Air... I learn to say Fire, Water, Earth and Air... I'll see you there."
Here's Rogers (a poen by Henry Lawson): 'The light of passion in dreamy eyes. The page of truth well read. The glorious thrill in a heart gone cold of a spirit once thought dead. The song that goes to a comrade’s heart. The tear of pride let fall. My heart grows brave And the world to me Is a good world after all... Might well be I saw too plain Or maybe I was blind But I'll keep my face to the dawning light Though the devil stand behind. Though the devil stand behind my back, Shall I see his shadow fall, I'll read in the light of the morning stars A good world after all. ...Rest for your eyes are weary, love We drove the worst away. The ghost of the man I might have been Is gone from my heart today. We'll live for life and the best it brings Till our twilight shadows fall. My heart grows brave And the world, to me, Is a good world after all. My heart grows brave And the world, to me, Is a good world after all.
Joe Crookston remains a relatively unknown singer-songwriter probably due to lack of touring in certain areas of the country (not crossing the Mississippi all that often nor coming out West) but he certainly has an extensive repertoire of engaging, memorable songs. Enjoy.
This is not a CD for background 'listening' as the music and lyrics are subtle and need full attention in order to benefit from, let alone appreciate, what is being presented. Definitely recommended if primarily quiet, reflective folk music is your liking.
The latter half of the CD finishes particularly strongly with cuts #7 through #13 all recommended. But discover your own favorites.
The most enjoyable cuts:
* #2 "Railroad Man"
* #7 "Lady in the Elevator"
* #8 "Who I Am"
* #9
"Evangeline"
* #10 "The Things He Saw"
* #11
"Washington Said East"
* #12 "Before I Go"
* #13 "Thank You"
All cuts are FCC compliant except for "Another Day" at the 0:57 mark.
Any time the words truckstop and honeymoon are paired up in any sort of setting, well, that's definitely a need-to-know-more longitude and latitude. In this case, it involves a two-person husband and wife band ensconced at present in Lawrence, Kansas. Them and four kids ... so maybe there's something more to truckstops than most of us know.
"Big Things and Little Things" is very witty at times, a melding of folk and bluegrass serenaded with lots of banjo, some mandolin, guitar and more.
The best cuts to these ears, mind and heart:
* #1 "Big Things and Little Things" - a political cut
* #3 "The Governor of Kansas" - a love versus hate cut that is also political
* #5 "Ugly Part of Town" - why is such always the most irresistable area?
* #6 "Ice Cream Man" - would get someone in a coma moving
* #7 "Montague
Street" - loved this best cut of all
* #8 "The Optimist" - a unique take
* #10 "Do You Really
Have to Ask" - a need-to-know story in a call and respond song
* #11 "Now We are Six" - the blending plus development of a family
* #15
"Got No Use" - the primary subject is guns but ultimately more expansive
"Tonight the moon came up, it was nearly full Way down here on earth, I could feel its pull The weight of gravity, or just the lure of light Made me want to leave my only home tonight Now I'm just wondering how we know where we belong Is it in a photograph or a dashboard poet's song? Will I have missed my chance to right some ancient wrong? Should I find myself between here and gone ... Now I could grab my keys and peel out in my truck With every saint on board bringing me their luck I could drive too fast, like a midnight thief As if there was a way to outrun the grief Now I'm just wondering how we know where we belong In the song that's left behind, in the dream I couldn't wake from Could I have felt the brush of a soul that's passing on? Somewhere in between here and gone ... Up above me, wayward angels A blur of wings and grace One for courage, one for safety One for just in case ... I thought a light went out, but now a candle shines I thought my tears wouldn't stop, but then I dried my eyes And after all of this, the truth that holds me here is that this emptiness is something not to fear Yeah, I'll keep wondering how we know where we belong After all the journeys made and the journeys yet to come When I feel like giving up instead of going on Somewhere in between ..... Yeah, I'm just wondering how we know where we belong Is it in the arc of the moon leaving shadows on the lawn? In the path of fireflies and a single bird at dawn? Singing in between here and gone"
"It's like I'm sittin at a bus stop, waiting for a train Exactly how I got here is hard to explain. My heart's in the right place – what's left of it, I guess - My heart ain't the problem – it's my mind that's a total mess. With these rickety old legs and these watery eyes It's hard to believe that I could pass for anybody's prize. And here's what I know about the gifts that God gave Ah, you can't take them with you when you go to the grave. It ain't over yet. Ask someone who oughta know - Not so very long ago, we were both hung out to dry It ain't over yet – you can mark my words - I don't care what you think you heard We're still learnin' how to fly. It ain't over yet – for fools like me, who were built for the chase, It takes a right kinda woman to help you put it all in place. It only happened once in my life, but man, you shoulda seen - Her hair two shades of foxtail red, her eyes so far out sea blue green. I got caught up makin' a name for myself – you know what that's about - One day your ship comes rollin in, the next day, it rolls right back out. And you can't take for granted – none of this shit – The higher up you fly, boys, the harder it is you gonna get hit. It ain't over yet. I'll say this about that. You can get up off the mat, Or you can lay there till you die. It ain't over yet. Here's the truth, my friend – you can pack it in - And we both know why. It ain't over yet. Silly boys, blind to get there first - Think of second chances as some kind of curse I've know you forever and ever, it's true - If you came by it easy, you wouldn't be you. You make me laugh You make me cry You make me forget myself Back when down on my luck kept me up for days, You were there with the right word to help me crawl out of the maze. And when I'd almost convinced myself I was (hipper) than that You stepped up with a warning shot, fired sweet and low across the bow. No, you don't walk on water, and your sarcasm stings, But the way you move through this old world Sure makes a case for angel wings. I was halfway to the bottom when you threw me that line - And I'll quote you now verbatim “Get your head out of your own behind.” It ain't over yet. What you wanna bet? One more cigarette ain't gonna send you to the grave. It ain't over yet. I seen your new girlfriend – things sure to live in it - Great big old sparkle in her eye. It ain't over yet."
AMERICAN ROOTS MUSIC FIELD Best American Roots Performance:
WINNER: "House of Mercy" — Sarah Jarosz
"Ain't No Man" — The Avett Brothers
"Mother's Children Have A Hard Time" — Blind Boys Of Alabama
"Factory Girl" — Rhiannon Giddens
"Wreck You" — Lori McKenna
Best American Roots Song:
WINNER: "Kid Sister" — Vince Gill, songwriter (The Time Jumpers)
"Alabama at Night" — Robbie Fulks, songwriter (Robbie Fulks)
"City Lights" — Jack White, songwriter (Jack White)
"Gulfstream" — Eric Adcock & Roddie Romero, songwriters (Roddie Romero and The Hub City All-Stars)
"Wreck You" — Lori McKenna & Felix McTeigue, songwriters (Lori McKenna)
Best Americana Album:
WINNER: This Is Where I Live — William Bell
True Sadness — The Avett Brothers
The Cedar Creek Sessions — Kris Kristofferson
The Bird & The Rifle — Lori McKenna
Kid Sister — The Time Jumpers
Best Bluegrass Album:
WINNER: Coming Home — O'Connor Band With Mark O'Connor
Original Traditional — Blue Highway
Burden Bearer — Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
The Hazel Sessions — Laurie Lewis & The Right Hands
North And South — Claire Lynch
Best Folk Album:
WINNER: Undercurrent — Sarah Jaroszh
Silver Skies Blue — Judy Collins & Ari Hest
Upland Stories — Robbie Fulks
Factory Girl — Rhiannon Giddens
Weighted Mind — Sierra Hull
"Gregory Alan Isakov used to be a vegetable farmer who played folk music. Now he’s a folk musician who works a vegetable farm. Work, he said, is good for you. He spent all day Thursday with his corn, not wandering around the field in a “Field of Dreams” kind of way, but in a cleaning-corn kind of way. Then he came inside, cleaned up, ate some of the vegetables he grows and wrote more music. “I’d go crazy if I didn’t work,” he said. “A lot of artists look at life through the window of a tour bus. That’s not good for my art. Work is a really big part of who I am.” Isakov is like all the greats, in that, his music seems so effortless that you think, “I could do that!” And maybe you could, but only if you’re that talented and willing to work at it. Isakov has been traveling all his life, and his songs show it, with their masterful stories of miles and landscapes and the search for a sense of place..."
remember when our songs were just like prayers. like gospel hymns that you called in the air. come down come down sweet reverence, unto my simple house and ring… and ring. ring like silver, ring like gold ring out those ghosts on the ohio ring like clear day wedding bells were we the belly of the beast or the sword that fell…we’ll never tell. come to me clear and cold on some sea watch the world spinning waves..like some machine now i’ve been crazy couldn’t you tell i threw stones at the stars, but the whole sky fell now i’m covered up in straw, belly up on the table well and sang and drank, and passed in the stable. that tall grass grows high and brown, well i dragged you straight in the muddy ground and you sent me back to where i roam well i cursed and i cried, but now i know…now i know and i ran back to that hollow again the moon was just a sliver back then and i ached for my heart like some tin man when it came oh it beat and it boiled and it rang..it’s ringing ring like crazy, ring like hell turn me back into that wild haired gale ring like silver, ring like gold turn these diamonds straight back into coal.
To honor those marching yesterday for the cause of humanity:
"They said some men would be warriors and some men would be kings And some men would be owners of land and other man-made things And false love as the eternal flame would move some to think in rings And gold would be our power and other foolish things But you who dream of liberty must not yourselves be fooled Before you get to plea for freedom, you've agreed to being ruled If the body stays a shackle then the mind remains a chain That'll link you to a destiny whereby all good souls are slain And it won't take long, it won't take too long at all It won't take long, and you may say "What has that got to do with me" and I say, "You mean to tell me that's all?" Of three men in a desert wandering, one is knowing and two are scared They say time is in the river, but the river is not there Dry in spirit dry in body two will lend themselves to death And in grief one weeps into his hands and drinks his bitter tears 'Cause it don't take long, it don't take too long at all It don't take long, and you may say, "I don't know what you're talking about," and I say "You mean to tell me that's all?" And as I stand before you now, I am hopeful in my rage You know love has finally called for me, I will not wilt upon its stage But still smaller than my nightmare now do I print upon the page Do we have to live inside its walls to identify the cage? 'Cause it takes so long, why does it take so long, But it takes so long, and you may say, "I don't really care what you're talking about," and I say, "Are you trying to say you don't belong?" I am my mother's daughter, but I have seen myself in you It's this blessing that I follow now, and so I must speak true I dreamed of thousands dying, it was you and you and you, And while the city sleeps so quietly there is something we must do And it won't take long, it won't take too long at all, It won't take long, and you may say, "I don't know if I want to know what you're getting at," And it makes we want to say, "So long." Because grief will come in measures, only grief alone will know And you'll see it on your family, on your own face it will grow And they'll try to keep you hungry, then they'll tell you to eat snow You know pride can be a moving thing if we learn the strength of "NO!" And it won't take long, it won't take too long at all, It won't take long, and you may say, "I don't think this has anything to do with me," "But did you ever think you could be wrong?" At noon on one day coming, human strength will fill the streets Of every city on our planet, hear the sound of angry feet With business freezed up in the harbour, the kings will pull upon their hair And the banks will shudder to a halt, and the artists will be there 'Cause it won't take long, it won't take too long at all, It won't take long, and you may say, "I don't think I can be a part of that," and it makes me want to say, "Don't you want to see yourself that strong?" Division between the peoples will disappear that honoured day And though oceans lie between us, lifted candles light the way Half will join their hands by moonlight, the rest under a rising sun As underneath the sun and moon, a ritual'd wailing has begun And it won't take long, it won't take too long at all, It won't take long, and you may say, "I don't know how to be a part of what you're talking about," and it makes me want to say, "Come on!" And beware you sagging diplomats, for you will not hear one gun And though our homes be torn and ransacked we will not be undone For as we let ourselves be bought, we're going to let ourselves be free And if you think we stand alone, look again and you will see: We are children in the rafters, we are babies in the park, We are lovers at the movies, we are candles in the dark, We are changes in the weather, we are snowflakes in July, We are women grown together, we are men who easily cry, We are words not quickly spoken, we're the deeper side of try, We are dreamers in the making, we are not afraid of "Why?"
To honor those marching yesterday for the cause of humanity:
"it was the best of times it was the worst of times in my tale of two americas one side basking in the glare of self-congratulation everywhere in my tale of two americas "and for what" cried the other "you reward yourselves like thieves with your guns and your greed" there were those who thought a military could be used to keep the peace there were those whose thirst for war would never cease there were some who say god wants laws based on their religion in my tale of two americas there are those who say religion is a personal decision in my tale of two americas some dream of a country where they could choose their partners freely and have their love recognized some dream of wilderness where wild animals roam free and there's not a single oil well in sight you can buy up all the tvs newspapers and radios tell a lie til you convince yourself it's true you can spend a billion dollars to attack the other guy hire some writers to report it like it's news and those who never knew war sent other people's kids to battle in my tale of two americas they called each other warriors sat real high up in the saddle in my tale of two americas those who never knew peace looked for someone to attack hunted terror, left no child alone they said to stand against them was an unpatriotic act there are those who say "freedom starts at home" you can steal a million votes, you can fill the air with lies in the end you know it's you who's gonna lose if i could have one question i could ask the wise: what kind of future are you gonna choose?"
To honor those marching yesterday for the cause of humanity:
"The American flag is tied to a fence on an overpass With a homemade sign written in red, white and blue And it reads "Welcome home, Jason Miller, Private First Class" And I don't even know him but I'm grateful for any good news What's become of my country torn by contradiction The spirit of freedom propped up by a culture of fear Where's it's unpatriotic to protest or even to question Have we learned nothing from history or the last couple years CHORUS: And the rain pours down On the fallow ground And the fruited plain as barren as the sand Is it not within our will How long must we wait until The seeds of peace find purchase in this land He stood on the deck and he said we'd accomplished our mission And he twisted the facts 'til he knew it could pass for the truth Vengeance can fill any fool with conviction But he can't wash the blood of the fallen from his cowboy boots CHORUS I will not be shamed into silence by partisan thunder And I won't fall in line and march to the drums on the wind How many more daughters and sons will we see plowed under How much longer must we wait 'til the harvest comes in 'Til the sun shines down On this hallowed ground And the fruited plain so bountiful and grand Is it not within our will How long must we wait until The seeds of peace find purchase in this land"
From back in the the Bush days and sadly still appropriate.
To honor those marching yesterday for the cause of humanity:
"When evening comes, I hurry home, close and lock the door I'm tired of our boy king who likes to play at war He drops his toys upon the floor before he goes to bed The papers say "mistakes were made" and villagers are dead Jesus caught the souls of men and he loved them every one He said to love our neighbor and mercy would be done How can I love the guy next door, I don't even know his name Jesus loved the whole wide world and said go do the same Chorus: Oh Mercy My neighbor's getting older and I help take out her trash When New York needed all of us I sent a little cash "Love other people like yourself," the preacher says we must To hear the news you'd think there were no people here but us They offer us a package deal to sell us the attack We save the world, we get revenge, bring all our soldiers back It's war as news product wrapped up in cellophane They tell us guns are butter and this war is humane Oh Mercy, Oh Mercy Now I'm confused because they show people just like me Do we have to kill them all to make their country free Axis of evil, hell its just a daily life Of people pinned to the wall by a crazy man's knife So who is my neighbor that I'm supposed to love My neighborhood gets smaller as Bush comes to shove I'll start by crossing off the map some people overseas Til they and you and you and you are all my enemies Oh Mercy, Oh Mercy"
To honor those marching yesterday for the cause of humanity:
"A woman stepped on the bus like any one of us After a hard workin’ day She walked halfway back To a seat marked for blacks and took her place She was someone who Really understood How a law could be a crime When she wouldn’t give her seat to a white man on his feet yea, it was time to CHORUS Be the change you want to see around you Be the right in a world of wrong Be the one, the one to make a difference Be the change Be the change Many years before Another place another war In a struggle to be free A wise barefoot man had his own plan To fight the enemy He said it makes no sense To use violence As a means to an end We must rise above What they would do to us Or we become like them CHORUS It’s the pull of a lever It’s the sound of your voice It’s now or never It’s a choice To, CHORUS"
Garnet Rogers amply displays his wicked sense of humor throughout the pages of "Night Drive, Travels With My Brother."
Such as: "Being in a band is a bit like running away to join a low rent circus or a badly organized pirate ship" "Smales Pace was run by a trio of brothers with a love for folk music coupled with a fiduciary death wish" About a photo shoot: "...It was the middle of the day, and we were squinting and smiling against the bright sunlight, while dutifully holding our instruments up, so that people in the future would know we were musicians and not actually heading to the Texas Book Depository." "It looked less like a folk club and more like the sort of place where a group of men might gather to empty their pistols into some poor wretch tied to a chair while yelling 'Long Live Mother Russia.'" When pulled over on the highway by the police: "...the air inside the van smelled of gin and limes and tonic water and cigarette smoke. The cops would know there were only two possibilities. We'd either been drinking or we had kidnapped Noel Coward."
It's a marvelous and intimate read.
Michard Howard has an intriguing music background coming from the punk rock genre. His songs are oblique with plenty or reading-between-the-lines spaciousness.
"She’s okay with wet cigarettes and roses in her hair She is the finest thing She’s alright with Brooklyn, and she’s alright by me Oh darling, you were meant for me Her mother was a mystic, she is a magical child Her love is the sweetest thing We both agreed the Boomers sucked and we wondered why the 60’s died Well some things, they just aren’t meant to be Meet me at the front lines, I hear there is something going on I ain’t sure what it looks like, but I’m sure that you and me can carry on And we’ll carry on And all the king’s army came along She took her body back in time, and she came back as a subway line Beneath those New York streets I came back as the Y.P.G. all bleeding out in the infantry But what’s that got to do with you and me Meet me at the front lines, I hear there is something going on I ain’t sure what it looks like, but I’m sure that you and me can carry on And we’ll carry on And all the king’s army came along Then one by one we occupied where the brokers guard the money lines And there we made our stand They mocked what we were fighting for “Poor boy, give up your father’s war” But my darling she’s too good to me Now halfway through her cigarette with asphalt in her hair She is the finest thing We sank into each others’ eyes under billy clubs and flashing lights Oh darling, you were meant for me Meet me at the front lines, I hear there is something going on I ain’t sure what it looks like, but I’m sure that you and me can carry on And we’ll carry on And all the king’s army came along"
+++++++
"Writhing and wringing in gasoline dreams Together accepting some damned destiny We let out the string so recklessly Not daring to reckon the risk it would be To be gone in a gasoline dream Remember the miracles that burst in your veins Undressing for centuries, face first through the green In pitch perfect shadows, hot hallowing scenes Then I stole out the exit so purposefully Gone in a gasoline dream I mirrored the moon across tangerine sands Bound by some circumstance I will never understand As the raven went ransacking sycamore trees Eyes pine to peel back the past back to the start Gone in a gasoline dream My lover your weeping could not set us free This quake will end quickly, it will end in defeat Awake from your wondering, from this gasoline dream I am gone I am gone wherever that be I am gone I am gone wherever that be When you call out my name, when you reach out for me I'll be gone in a gasoline dream"
+++++++
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"I came in hot to a Northwest city where Timmy pounds the steel
He has the words To Hell With The Government flung out in a trash tattoo I was feeling like whole bunch of wild dogs. I was feeling like a speeding train I was thinking about a girl from Gainesville, how I gotta get back there soon I hate turning back like the east hates west, and I really hate your town I made a bet and put my money down on a horse named “California” I missed the race and I’m low on sleep and I’ll probably lose my mind But I’m pushing hard until I hit New York, where I gotta pick up a typewriter I was moving fast leaving burning tracks. Lord knows I’m a misguided fool I fought my way from town to town, but I don’t think the West was won I held my fist and I burned my list and I drank like I had nothing to lose ‘Til god and you and me made sense and I finally came undone, unglued I went up on a mountain, but I came back down again I sold the rifle on my shoulder to pay for my last meal I took my dagger from its holder, and I turned it back on me I opened up my chest. And in the emptiness, all I wanted was to feel I sold my heart to the Butcher, he fed it to the hipsters and the wannabes I gave the rest to the witches, to the brokers and the thieves They said “There ain’t no revolution, no there’s nothing on TV” Hog Butcher, Hog Butcher what’d you do to me? Can you help me get to heaven?"
Top Five Songs of 2016, "It's For Folks," WHYR, Baton Rouge, LA
Disclaimer: The selection is based solely on the judgment of the host of
"It's For Folks," Ken "Dr. K" Nagelberg. Judgment was based on having a
melody that quickly is absorbed by listeners but remains fresh after
multiple listening; lyrics that show depth of emotion, complexity, and/or
expression of an important idea or human condition; vocals (where used)
that are well performed, on pitch, and harmonies (where used) that are
pleasing and blend well; instrumental skills; and high quality mixing and
mastering. The songs do not necessarily represent the Top Five Albums, but
they have all been played multiple times during the year on "It's For
Folks." Selected artists may feel free to use their selection in
promotional materials, so long as they credit "It's For Folks, hosted by
Ken "Dr. K" Nagelberg, from WHYR, Baton Rouge Community Radio." Thank you, artists, producers, and record companies for all the good folk music you
sent me this year!
Ken
*#1*--Gina Forsyth/Sparrows/Copper Rooster & Other Tunes & Tales/2016/Waterbug *#2*--Lauren Heintz/Travelin’ Fool/Where I Belong/2016/Gatorbone *#3*--Scott Wolfson & Other Heroes/Sara’s Hole in the Ground/Welcoming the Flood/2016/(self) *#4*--Rebecca Folsom/Extraordinary Days/Extraordinary Days/2016/(self) *#5*--Thomas Hine/Just Like Juan Ortiz/Some Notion or Novelty/2016/THM
Best Of 2016 Playlist (Part 1)The Acoustic Revival
The Acoustic Revival is heard weekly on 90FM WWSP for three hours on Sunday mornings. This playlist is from the first of two Best Of 2016 radio shows. I will host Part 2 next Sunday morning from 9-noon CST on 90fm.org.
90FM is the largest student run FM station in the Midwest, with 30,000 watts of power and covering all of central Wisconsin. I am a volunteer and have been with 90FM since 2001.
Here is my playlist from Sundays show. Part 2 Best Of coming next week. 62 discs all told...486 albums received and reviewed.
Qualifiers for "Best Of" same as in other years:
* Chosen from albums received, recognizing that there were many other great albums made in 2016 that never made it here.
* Chosen from albums received in 2016, and may have been produced in 2015.
* Chosen for the depth of great songs on a particular album - usually four or more that were marked for radio play.
* Chosen because I really liked them!
Best Of 2016 Playlist, Part 1:
1.Slaid Cleaves - One Good Year - Broken Down - Rounder (For New years Day!) 2.Jason Wilber - A Song For You - Echoes - Self 3.Lizanne Knott - It Ain't Necessarily So - Excellent Day - Proper 4.Mark Erelli - For A Song - For A song - Self 5.Birds Of Chicago - Barley - Real Midnight - Five head 6.Paul Sachs - the Best Hope Can Do - Love Is Love - Self 7.Dead Horses - Golden Sky - Cartoon Moon - Self 8.Dead Horses - Red pony - Cartoon Moon - Self 9.Adam Steffy - No Place To Hide - Here To Stay - Mountain Home 10.Mountain Heart - She'll Come Back To Me - Blue Skies - compass - Burning Bridgett Cleary - The Mountain - These Are The Days - Self 11.The Bombadils - Wild Mountain Thyme - New Shoes - Borealis 12.The Bombadils - I'll Remember You Love In My Dreams - New Shoes - Borealis 13.Matt Patershuk - Harviestown - I Was So Fond Of You - Self 14.The Belle Hollows - Jonah - Millers Creek - el Hill 15.Jack Tempchin - Around Midnight - One More Song - Bluelan 16.Moors and Mccumber - Quick As I Can - Live From Blue rock - self 17.Levi Parham - Wrong Way To Hold A Man - These American Blues - Music road 18.Matt Patershuk - The Prettiest Ones - I Was So Fond Of You - Self 19.Old Man Kelly - Jesus Is My Co-Pilot - Off My Lawn! - Self 20.Rob McNurlin - Got Enough Jesus - The Gospel Guitar - Buffalo Skinner 21.Coty Hogue - Are You Down - Flight - self 22.Rob Heath - Drive - The Key - Self 23.Old Man Kelly - Exitville - Off My Lawn! - Self 24.James Lee Stanley - the Street Where Mercy Died - A Live At Last - Beachwood 25.T-Sisters - Shadoop - T-Sisters - Self 26.Matt Woods - No News - How to Survive - Lonely Ones 27.Johnny Nicholas - How Do You Follow A Broken Heart? - Fresh Air - Self 28.Seth Walker - the Sound Of Your Voice - Gotta Get Back - the Royal Potato Family 29.David Bromberg Band - A Fool For You - The Blues, The Whole Blues, and Nothing But The Blues - Red House 30.Birds of Chicago - Sparrow - Real Midnight - Five Head 31.The Rifters - Architecture O A Fire - Architecture Of A Fire - Howling Dog 32.Steve Dawson - Riley's Henhouse Door - Solid States and Loose Ends - Black Hen 33.Gillian Welch - Wichita - Boots No 1 - Acony 34.Gillian Welch - Annabelle - Boots No 1 - Acony 35.David Mallet - Hard To Live These Country Songs - Celebration - North Road 36.Doolin' - Le Jupon Blanc - Doolin' - compass 37.The Rifters - I Can Live With - Architecture Of A Fire 38.Howard and Skye - Milkweed - Self
