TERRELL's TUNEUP: Rev. Peyton's Code of the Road

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican 
Aug. 31 2012

You might think that a trio consisting of a crazy slide guitarist, his wife on the washboard and his cousin playing a bass drum and junkyard percussion might be little more than a fun little novelty act. But those who have enjoyed the recordings and/or the live shows of The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band, know that this group from rural Indiana goes way beyond the novelty spectrum.

“Reverend” Josh Peyton’s gruff vocals and flawless slide guitar; Breezy Peyton’s impeccable washboard and soprano harmonies are a powerful combination. And Aaron Persinger is the Gene Krupa of the plastic bucket. So this tight little band packs a big damn musical punch.

And cementing the deal is the Rev’s impressive lyrical skills, highly evident in the band’s new effort Between the Ditches. He’s not “poetic” in the traditional sense. Nobody’s going to mistake him for Leonard Cohen. He’s closer to Woody Guthrie — Woody Guthrie with crazy rhythm.

Peyton’s songs can be funny, poignant, much like the country bluesmen he emulates. He’s got a knack for taking everyday observations and annoyances — like, say, bugs getting into the house when someone leaves the door open — and turning them into romping, stomping singalongs.

Ditches represents a return to form for the Big Damn Band following last year’s Peyton on Patton, a tribute to Delta blues great Charlie Patton. Although the album was credited to The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band, basically it was a Josh Peyton solo album with Mrs. Peyton and Persinger making only minimal contributions. I missed them on that one. But the new record is charged up with all the thump, crunch and rumble of the full band.

This album picks off where Peyton’s last album of original material, 2010’s The Wages, left off. Like that previous effort, Ditches is full of bluesy, populist-themed songs about economic hard times and social decay.

“Shake ‘em Off Like Fleas” — the music of which sounds like “Polk Salad Annie” overdosing on gamma rays — is full of righteous rage against corrupt politicians, soulless corportations and other powers-that-be who rig the game against the rest of us. “A change is coming, a change in store / ‘cause there’s more of us than them and we’ve freed ourselves before,” Peyton sings.

The gentler “We’ll Get Through” definitely is the prettiest song on the album. The narrator of the song has been hit hard by the “tough times and tough timing,” but like Merle Haggard in the song “Someday We’ll Look Back,” he reassures his loved one that it won’t always be so bad

Some of the songs suggests images of displaced workers going down the road feeling bad, seeking better lives but finding mostly “cops and thieves and sons of bitches,” as Peyton growls in the refrain of the title song. In this song, Peyton warns, “The code of the road is take care/ The law can’t protect us out there … The code of the road is to share/ We have only each other out there.”

Meanwhile the song “Move Along Mister” — a slow song with Peyton’s slide evoking early Ry Cooder — is about a late-night confrontation between a worn-out, perhaps vagrant, traveler and an unfriendly cop. “I’m weary and hungry and I ain’t from around here, ” the singer tries to explain.

Other topical songs here include, “Don’t Grind it Down,” a protest against strip mining. In a melody similar to “Wabash cannonball,” Peyton sings, “If we lose our mountain and with it all them trees, I don’t know about you, I think I’d rather freeze.”

Then the Rev preaches against drugs on “The Money Goes” Where does the money go? “Up her nose,” of course. In a later verse he repeats the line “Looks like death” several times before adding, “Might be meth.”

But Peyton and band know how to have good fun too without making serious socio-economic points. “Brokedown Everywhere” is an update of the country classic “I’ve Been Everywhere.” Peyton alludes to that song in the refrain: “You’ve been everywhere / I’ve been broke down there.” Like he the old song, the singer lists several geographical locations, but describing his car troubles in every one. “South of Portland lost a wheel/ New York City broke the seal/ Nevada an alternator/ Memphis a radiator … “

For those already familiar with the band, there aren’t that many musical surprises on Between the Ditches — except perhaps the sweet mandolin in “Don’t Grind it Down.” Yet somehow on their seventh album, they’re only getting better. This just might be their best work yet.

Here’s something to look forward to: The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band is scheduled to play at Sol Santa Fe on Nov. 16. Mark your calendar.

TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAYLIST

Sunday, August 26, 2012 
KSFR, Santa Fe, N.M. 
10 p.m. to midnight Sundays Mountain Time 
Host: Steve Terrell
Webcasting!
101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell(at)ksfr.org

 OPENING THEME: Let it Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins by The Byrds
Jet Boy by New York Dolls
Telstar by The Tornados
Wiggy Waggy Woo by Barrence Whitfield & The Savages
Mojo Man From Mars by The Cramps
Punk With Gretches by The 99ers
Torture by King Khan & The Shrines
We Repel Each Other by The Reigning Sound
Goin' Down by The Monkees

Drunk Stripper by Bob Log III
White Lightning by Doo Rag
Nice Guys Finish Last by The Electric Mess
Gut Feeling, Slap Your Mammy by Devo
Club Mekon by The Mekons
30 Minute Love by The Terrorists
Pepper Spray by Light Bulb Alley
Everybody's Doing It by The Black Lips
Shut the Screen by The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band

Dinah Moe Hum by Frank Zappa & The Mothers
Dewayne's Drone by Night Beats
Soup by Can
Haunting at 1300 McKinley The Black Angels
Throwing My Money Away by Rosco Gordon

Tone Deaf by The Angel Babies (playing Albuquerque and Santa Fe next weekend.)
U Bug Me by Modey Lemon
G.G. Allen Died Last Night by Mike Edison
When I Were Young by Memphis Slim & Canned Heat
Somebody Stop the Bleedin' by Houndog
Rag Doll by The Four Seasons
Port of Amsterdam by Dave Van Ronk
CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis
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THE SANTA FE OPRY PLAYLIST

Friday, August 24, 2012 
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM 
Webcasting! 
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays Mountain Time 
Host: Steve Terrell 
101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrel(at)ksfr.org
 OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens & The Buckaroos
Foot Stompin' Friday Night by The Stumbleweeds
All the Way From Abilene by The Ex Husbands
Honky Tonkin' by Maddox Brothers & Rose
Whiskey in the Jar by Hazeldine
Something for Nothing by The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band
Little But I'm Loud by Rosie Flores
Slide Off of Your Satin Sheets by Johnny Paycheck
The Bull and The Beaver by Rick Shea & Patty Booker
Sadie Was a Lady by Johnny Bond

Goodbye Guitar by Tony Gilkyson
Lotta Lotta Women by Robbie Fulks
Those Brown Eyes by Michael Combs
Hard Travelin' by Woody Guthrie
Friday and Saturday Night by Wayne Hancock
High Waters (Bad Blood) by Dave Evans
Southern Family Anthem by Shooter Jennings
Billy's First Ex Wife by Ronny Elliott

Waiting at the Turnpike by Dad Horse Experience
Girl Called Trouble by The Watzloves
John Hardy by The 69ers
Fenry Wolf by Zeno Tornado & The Boney Google Brothers
1957 Ford Meteor by Menic
When the Police Came by Mama Rosin
Leaving Now by The Salty Pajamas
Blue Moon of Kentucky by Rev. Beat-Man
They Call Me Country by DM Bob & The Deficits

Fraulein by Jim Dickinson
Mr. Spaceman by Mystic Lizard
Long Lonely Road by Honky Tonk Hustlas
Whine de Lune by Trailer Bride
Cold and Blind by Possessed by Paul James
Tall Buildings by Soda Gardocki
Diggy Liggy Lo by Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets

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TERRELL'S TUNEUP: Can't Beat a Dad Horse

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican 
Aug. 24, 2012


A few decades ago I was talking to a musician friend who had just come back from a trip to Ireland. He’d gone there, he said, to learn more about traditional Irish music.

However, once he got there he realized that the Irish musicians he met weren’t all that into Irish music. Instead, my friend said, they far more interested in learning from him about the music of Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, and Merle Haggard.

Indeed, lots of Europeans eat up American country and folk music. And lots of those people actually make such music, often with interesting results. Here’s a look at some recent European alternative country CDs I’ve acquired.

*  The Dad Horse Experience XXL Live In Melbourne. Dad Horse Ottn — don’t ask me where the name “Dad Horse” comes from — is a German banjo picker who bills himself as a gospel singer. “Keller-Gospel” is what he calls his brand of music, “keller” being the German word for basement.

As Ottn explains in the introduction to one of the songs on album, he makes gospel music not meant to be played in churches, but in “the dark basements, the rooms your parents used to send you when you did wrong, where it’s cold and wet and really dark, so the light is needed.” 

And indeed, while he doesn’t come on like some pious evangelist, and he’s not above using a little profanity when needed, Dad Horse’s songs deal with religious and spiritual struggles. In this respect, he reminds me of the Colorado band Slim Cessna’s Auto Club.

Ottn normally plays as simply The Dad Horse Experience, a one-man band, with his banjo, bass pedal, and sometimes mandolin and kazoo. But on his Australian tour last year, he picked up a guitarist and drummer — and, as Giant Sand recently did with “Giant Giant Sand” — he altered the name of the band, adding “XXL.”

In his heavy German accent, Ottn sings some familiar American tunes like “Will the Circle Be Unbroken,” Hank Williams’ “Lost Highway,” and “St. James Infirmary Blues.” But more interesting are his originals. Had he been well-known in the U.S. 10 years ago, his “WTC in Heaven” would have been as controversial as Steve Earle’s “John Walker’s Blues.”

With a melody similar to “St. James Infirmary,” Ottn sings, “Well, some said that it was Mohammad Atta/And some said that it was the CIA/Well, I asked myself, where was Jesus?/Three thousand were killed that day.”

Then in the last verse, he sings ‘Well, I walked through the clouds, glanced, and wondered about/All the walls they like glooming black gold/And the traders are trading as they ever used to do/Now in heaven they’re trading their own soul.”

Though most of his songs about sin and salvation sound serious, Dad Horse has a wicked sense of humor. The best example of this is the song “Lord Must Fix My Soul,” in which the singer confesses to his past sins. Unfortunately, in this live setting, Ottn interrupts the flow of the song too often with his stage patter. It’s worth seeking out the studio version on the 2008 album Too Close to Heaven.

The album ends with the only real rocker on it, “I’m Not Here Anymore,” which gives the XXL part of the act a chance to earn their keep. The lyrics here aren’t especially spiritual, but your soul will feel uplifted.

* Salty Pajamas. This self-titled album boasts some country-flavored craziness from Germany, which, like the Dad Horse CD, was sent to me by the German company Off Label Records (a dynamic little outfit that is also responsible for albums by DM Bob & The Deficits and the Brazilian one-man band O Lendário Chucrobillyman). This is a trio, featuring guitar, banjo, and drums, plus other various instruments as needed. Singer Jonas Hauter sings through an old CB radio microphone. 

The first song, “Meat Country,” is a country stomper with a melody that lilts toward childlike The Incredible String Band/Neutral Milk Hotel territory. The instrumental section almost sounds like raga rock played on banjo. The banjo is out in front on the minor-key “Leaving Now” and the upbeat “Alligators,” while “Monsters Undur Bed” and “Dead Pirate Song” are lo-fi folk rock (I almost can hear Neil Young singing the latter). And the melody of “The Taste of Tea,” an ode to marijuana, reminds me in a funny way of “Achy Breaky Heart.”

The Pajamas show a garage-rock influence on guitar-centric songs like “Spell,” “Wooden Friendship, ” and “Alliene,” which might make the ears of Yardbirds fans perk up.

*  Railroad Blues Anthology by Menic. O.K. , I’m cheating here, a little. The man called Menic lives in Switzerland. He’s played fiddle for Zeno Tornado & The Boney Google Brothers, and this album is released by the Swiss Voodoo Rhythm label. But he’s actually from near Boston. So technically, it’s not 100-percent European.

The first thing that struck me about this record is how tame it is compared with other Voodoo Rhythm products. There’s far less screaming, slop, tomfoolery, and twistedness than you’ll find on most albums from the label, which has the motto “Records to Ruin Any Party.” In fact, songs here sound a lot closer to those of James Taylor than to the music of Zeno Tornado or Reverend Beat-Man.

Don’t get me wrong. There’s plenty of good stuff here. Stripped-down, stomping folk-blues numbers like “Shake My Bones” and “She Made Me” are tasty, and the banjo-driven “Jack Rabbit” is lightweight but sticks to your ears. Best of all is the rockabilly-infused “1957 Ford Meteor.” Actually, I wish the whole album sounded like this one.

Andre Blames Obama

It's been a few months since the last Andre Williams album, but he's got another on the way.

Alive/NaturalSound will release a new Andre studio album Life on Oct. 2.

The company is offering a free MP3 of a song called "Blame Obama" from the venerable R&B codger.

Listen or  download below.



And here's another song from the upcoming album. There's no download, but you can play it.

The Death of Music Blogs?

Lord, I hope not, but this article in the Free Music Archive blog makes a good argument that  the MP3 blog has seen it's day -- thanks partly to the evil Recording Industry Association of America and federal law enforcement.

The article, by Casey Rice, brings up cases in which music blogs have gotten in trouble by posting MP3s sent to them by record label publicists.

I didn't get seriously riled until I came to this paragraph:

MP3 blogs have also come under fire from law enforcement. Take for example, the hip-hop site Dajaz1, which was seized by the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigrations and Customs Enforcement division at the prompting of the RIAA. Dajaz1 is exactly the kind of blog that is serviced by major label promotions departments, yet it found itself in the crosshairs of government enforcers with little understanding of the contemporary music industry and the tastemakers who help power it. How is it possible that the labels’ legal guns have no clue what its promotional division is up to? How can Homeland Security shutter a site for an entire year with no apparent recourse? Few would argue that seizing sites that traffic in illegal pharmaceuticals or tainted baby formula isn't a good thing, but there are serious issues raised when the US government suppresses speech on the mere accusation of infringement. Policies to combat commercial piracy are one thing. The haphazard shutdown of blogs that exist to expose people to new music, and which receive countless MP3s from the major labels, is another. It’s easy to imagine this kind of overreach contributing to a decline in MP3 blogs — is a tussle with the G-men really worth it?

Have I told you lately how much I hate the RIAA?

And what's with Homeland Security doing their bidding? Is some hip-hop blog really a serious security threat?

This site, in its eight years of existence, has not been primarily an MP3 blog, though I often post both stream and downloadable music. And I'll keep doing it until Homeland Security drags me away.

In fact, here's a cool show from the Live Music Archive by The BellRays.

Free Pussy Riot!

Here's a new single from the recently convicted Russian punk band Pussy Riot. "it's called "Putin Lights Up the Fires."

Three members of the band last week were found guilty of "hooliganism driven by religious hatred" and sentenced to two years in jail for filming a video in Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Savior earlier this year.

 This video was put together by The Guardian.


PUSSY RIOT "Putin Lights Up the Fires" lyrics: 
(translation credit: @Russian_Market)

This state may be stronger than time in jail.

The more arrests, the happier it is.
Every arrest is carried out with love for the sexist

Who botoxed his cheeks and pumped his chest and abs.

But you can't nail us in the coffin.
Throw off the yoke of former KGB!

Putin is lighting the fires of revolution
He's bored and scared of sharing silence with the people
With every execution: the stench of rotten ash
With every long sentence: a wet dream

The country is going, the country is going into the streets boldly
The country is going, the country is going to bid farewell to the regime
The country is going, the country is going, like a feminist wedge
And Putin is going, Putin is going to say goodbye like a sheep

Arrest the whole city for May 6th
Seven years isn't enough, give us 18!
Forbid us to scream, walk and curse!
Go and marry Father Lukashenko