Friday, March 4, 2011
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM
Webcasting!
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell
101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell@ksfr.org
OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens & The Buckaroos
Git it, Beau Jocque! by Beau Jocque & The Zydeco Hi-Rollers
Don't You Think This Outlaw Bit's Done Got Out Of Hand by Waylon Jennings
Stop, Look and Listen by Patsy Cline
Hookie Junk by The Gourds
Chauffeur by Rosie Flores & The Pine Valley Cosmonauts
Low Down Dog by Sleepy LaBeef
Mrs. Cooper's Tea Party by Margaret Lewis
Hornin' Zeese by Al Duvall
Whiskey by Scott H. Biram
Baboon Boogie by Jimmy Murphy
Something Else by Eddie Cochran
Lucky Old Sun by Jerry Lee Lewis
Oh Babe by Big Al Downing
The Weakest Man by Drive-By Truckers
Your Heart Oughta Be Broken by Yuichi & the Hilltone Boys
Five Minutes to Live by Johnny Cash
Pie-Ella by Hipbone Slim & The Knee-Tremblers
Sitting on Top of The World by The Great Recession Orchestra
Struttin' That Thing by Cripple Clarence Lofton
Sugar Babe by Dock Boggs
Her Name Was Hula Lou by The Carolina Tar Heels
Daniel in the Lion's Den by Bessie Jones & Georgia Sea Island Singers
Are You Washed in the Blood by Ernest Stoneman & His Dixie Mountaneers
My Rough and Rowdy Ways by Bill Cox
I'm Gonna Live Anyhow Until I Die by Miles & Bob Pratcher
Dying Crap Shooter Blues by Blind Willie McTell
Bye Bye Policeman by Jim Jackson
To the Work by Alfred G. Karnes
Fucking Sailors in China Town by Peter Stampfel & The Worm All Stars
James Alley by David Johansen & The Harry Smiths
The Seeds Of My Destruction by Cornell Hurd
Lookin' for Someone to Kill by Kell Robertson
Dirty On Yo, Mama by James Luther Dickinson
My Rosemarie by Stan Ridgway
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets
Subscribe to The Big Enchilada Podcast! CLICK HERE
Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots Radio list
Friday, March 04, 2011
TERRELL'S TUNEUP: Good Enough For Me
A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
March 4, 2011
Remember the good old days when the phrase “alternative rock” conjured up crazy visions of Gibby Haynes blasting a shotgun from the stage of a Butthole Surfers show as film clips of gruesome medical procedures played in the background — instead of now, when the term all too often means some wimp whining because his puppy has the sniffles?
There’s still some healthy weirdness out there in the outer fringes of rock’ n’ roll. One such practitioner is a guy called Arrington De Dionyso, whose old band Old Time Relijun sailed stormy musical oceans where few other sailors were brave enough to venture.
Arrington’s still around — he’s supposed to be releasing a new album this month. As for Old Time Relijun, the group’s first album, long out of print, was rereleased last year by the Northern Spy label with all sorts of bonus tracks.
Hearing Songbook, Vol. 1 for the first time might seem like stumbling onto some bizarre group of hopped-up tribesmen from deep within a jungle in a country whose name you can’t even pronounce. Actually, the group was from Olympia, Washington. It had a stand-up bassist and a drummer who sometimes played accordion — and De Dionyso, who sang and played guitar, sax, clarinet, and jew’s-harp.
A few months ago, making a stray reference to this band in this column, I said De Dionyso sounded like “Roy Orbison on angel dust.” I’ll stand by that quip. You’ll also hear echoes of the good Captain Beefheart as well as of avant-garde jazz avatars like Eric Dolphy and John Coltrane. And there’s a definite no-wave influence in Relijun. De Dionyso’s sax takes a (James) Chance. And being that the band was from Washington state, there’s probably a little Twin Peaks mushroom madness in the mix as well.
And don’t forget weirdo-rock pilgrims Pere Ubu. There’s a song here called “Ubu’s Theme” — which features accordion and what sounds like a bass clarinet. Less than a minute long, it seems like a snatch from the soundtrack of a French murder mystery. But even more Ubu-like is the following song, “Baby Dragon,” on which De Dionyso sings in a David Thomas-like warble.
Other times, De Dionyso sounds as if he’s attempting Tuvan throat singing, sounding like a sinister version of Popeye. And sometimes he employs a strange and hilarious falsetto, for example, on the song “Qiyamat,” on which he sounds like a nightmarish cartoon character.
Most tracks here are only two or three minutes, which suit OTR best. But there’s a handful of six-minute (or thereabouts) excursions on which the group gets to stretch out. “Qiyamat” is one of these. And so is “Fig,” though it’s not as interesting as most of the group’s material (hint: There’s a drum solo). By far the best long song here is “Manticore/Lion Tamer.” It’s actually a medley of two songs, early versions of both being among the bonus tracks. The reason the medley works so well is that, except for a few moments in the middle, in which a twangy guitar riff is repeated to the point of frustration, it rocks from start to finish.
I realize that this music is too nuts for most. But Old Time Relijun was good enough for me.
Arrington unleashed: Although Old Time Relijun is no longer an ongoing concern, De Dionyso is still twisting heads off. On his 2009 album, Malaikat dan Singa, he sings in the Indonesian language (the album’s name — which is now the name of De Dionyso’s backing band — means “Angels and Lions”). As strange as the concept seems, this is no intellectual exercise. This music rocks! (After all, he says he recorded the album n Indonesian “to impress a girl.”)
You can listen to (and download) several live versions of Malaikat at WFMU’s Free Music Archives. The first song, “Kedalaman Air,” might remind you of a Bizarro World version of Talking Heads’ “Psycho Killer” with a downright vicious, crunching guitar.
Then there’s “Mani Malaikat,” a couple of minutes shorter than the album version, but just as ominous.
The set ends with a 15-minute radio interview of De Dionyso. (He talks like a regular American guy, not the screaming voodoo shaman of his performances.)
On this site you also can find other radio performances by De Dionyso, including some (mostly) instrumental meditations in which he’s backed by upright-bass player Gene Janas.
In fact, De Dionyso is all over the internet. There are lots of YouTube videos of him, and at the K Records website, there’s a streaming version of him performing “Hot Head” as a tribute to the late Beefheart. Slide over to www.krecs.com/arrington, and you’ll find an 11-minute live video of De Dionyso and the Malaikat dan Singa band. But more important, streaming at the site are four songs from the upcoming Malaikat album, Suara Naga.
“Kerasukan” has De Dionyso angrily chanting over a farting electronic pulse. (Maybe he’s saying, “Turn that thing off!”) Drums and sax later add to the chaos.
“Baru Limunan” is the singer at his most urgent. He pleads, threatens, and warbles as the steady, pounding bass and drums suggest some race against time.
“Aku Di Penjara” reminds me of Polish rocker Kazik Staszewski when he does his version of hip-hop. “Bianglala” features a repeated bass line that sounds like a dub-reggae take of “Anarchy in the U.K.”
I don’t understand a word De Dionyso is singing, but it’s still a Relijous experience.
Here's one of the Malaikat videos.
March 4, 2011
Remember the good old days when the phrase “alternative rock” conjured up crazy visions of Gibby Haynes blasting a shotgun from the stage of a Butthole Surfers show as film clips of gruesome medical procedures played in the background — instead of now, when the term all too often means some wimp whining because his puppy has the sniffles?
There’s still some healthy weirdness out there in the outer fringes of rock’ n’ roll. One such practitioner is a guy called Arrington De Dionyso, whose old band Old Time Relijun sailed stormy musical oceans where few other sailors were brave enough to venture.
Arrington’s still around — he’s supposed to be releasing a new album this month. As for Old Time Relijun, the group’s first album, long out of print, was rereleased last year by the Northern Spy label with all sorts of bonus tracks.
Hearing Songbook, Vol. 1 for the first time might seem like stumbling onto some bizarre group of hopped-up tribesmen from deep within a jungle in a country whose name you can’t even pronounce. Actually, the group was from Olympia, Washington. It had a stand-up bassist and a drummer who sometimes played accordion — and De Dionyso, who sang and played guitar, sax, clarinet, and jew’s-harp.
A few months ago, making a stray reference to this band in this column, I said De Dionyso sounded like “Roy Orbison on angel dust.” I’ll stand by that quip. You’ll also hear echoes of the good Captain Beefheart as well as of avant-garde jazz avatars like Eric Dolphy and John Coltrane. And there’s a definite no-wave influence in Relijun. De Dionyso’s sax takes a (James) Chance. And being that the band was from Washington state, there’s probably a little Twin Peaks mushroom madness in the mix as well.
And don’t forget weirdo-rock pilgrims Pere Ubu. There’s a song here called “Ubu’s Theme” — which features accordion and what sounds like a bass clarinet. Less than a minute long, it seems like a snatch from the soundtrack of a French murder mystery. But even more Ubu-like is the following song, “Baby Dragon,” on which De Dionyso sings in a David Thomas-like warble.
Other times, De Dionyso sounds as if he’s attempting Tuvan throat singing, sounding like a sinister version of Popeye. And sometimes he employs a strange and hilarious falsetto, for example, on the song “Qiyamat,” on which he sounds like a nightmarish cartoon character.
Most tracks here are only two or three minutes, which suit OTR best. But there’s a handful of six-minute (or thereabouts) excursions on which the group gets to stretch out. “Qiyamat” is one of these. And so is “Fig,” though it’s not as interesting as most of the group’s material (hint: There’s a drum solo). By far the best long song here is “Manticore/Lion Tamer.” It’s actually a medley of two songs, early versions of both being among the bonus tracks. The reason the medley works so well is that, except for a few moments in the middle, in which a twangy guitar riff is repeated to the point of frustration, it rocks from start to finish.
I realize that this music is too nuts for most. But Old Time Relijun was good enough for me.
You can listen to (and download) several live versions of Malaikat at WFMU’s Free Music Archives. The first song, “Kedalaman Air,” might remind you of a Bizarro World version of Talking Heads’ “Psycho Killer” with a downright vicious, crunching guitar.
Then there’s “Mani Malaikat,” a couple of minutes shorter than the album version, but just as ominous.
The set ends with a 15-minute radio interview of De Dionyso. (He talks like a regular American guy, not the screaming voodoo shaman of his performances.)
On this site you also can find other radio performances by De Dionyso, including some (mostly) instrumental meditations in which he’s backed by upright-bass player Gene Janas.
In fact, De Dionyso is all over the internet. There are lots of YouTube videos of him, and at the K Records website, there’s a streaming version of him performing “Hot Head” as a tribute to the late Beefheart. Slide over to www.krecs.com/arrington, and you’ll find an 11-minute live video of De Dionyso and the Malaikat dan Singa band. But more important, streaming at the site are four songs from the upcoming Malaikat album, Suara Naga.
“Kerasukan” has De Dionyso angrily chanting over a farting electronic pulse. (Maybe he’s saying, “Turn that thing off!”) Drums and sax later add to the chaos.
“Baru Limunan” is the singer at his most urgent. He pleads, threatens, and warbles as the steady, pounding bass and drums suggest some race against time.
“Aku Di Penjara” reminds me of Polish rocker Kazik Staszewski when he does his version of hip-hop. “Bianglala” features a repeated bass line that sounds like a dub-reggae take of “Anarchy in the U.K.”
I don’t understand a word De Dionyso is singing, but it’s still a Relijous experience.
Here's one of the Malaikat videos.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAYLIST
Sunday, February 27, 2011
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@ksfr.org
OPENING THEME: Let it Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Don't Let Me Down by The Pornostuntman
Miniskirt Blues by Simon Stokes & The Heathen Angels
Trick Bag by The Gories
Danger Zone by Groovy Uncle
At The Fight by by Gotham City Mashers
Hey Luciani by The Fall
Lee, Bob & Lula by LoveStruck
40 Miles of Bad Road by Dead Moon
I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter by Dean Martin
Boomerang by The Black Lips
Grieving Man Blues by The Blue Giant Zeta Puppies
Blood, Sweat and Murder by Scott H. Birham
Do the Romp by Richard Johnston
Pass The Biscuits Please by Andre Williams With The Gino Parks Quartet
Help Me by Junior Wells
Cool, Cool Blues by Sonny Boy Williamson
Howlin' for You by The Black Keys
Nervous by Willie Dixon & Memphis Slim
Rhapsody in Pink by Pere Ubu
Lick My Decals Off , Baby by Captain Beefheart
Qiyamat by Old Time Relijun
The O Men by The Butthole Surfers
Hit the Road, Jack by The Residents
Sports Car by Thinking Fellers Union Local 282
Plen Yuk Owakard by The Viking Combo Band
Fever in My Mind by Joecephus and The George Jonestown Massacre featuring Jim Dandy
Cornbread by The Blackbyrds
Scavenger Hunt by Stan Ridgway
Mannish Boy by Electric Mudkats, Chuck D & Common
England by PJ Harvey
No Woman's Flesh But Her's by Johnny Dowd
CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis
Subscribe to The Big Enchilada Podcast! CLICK HERE
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@ksfr.org
OPENING THEME: Let it Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Don't Let Me Down by The Pornostuntman
Miniskirt Blues by Simon Stokes & The Heathen Angels
Trick Bag by The Gories
Danger Zone by Groovy Uncle
At The Fight by by Gotham City Mashers
Hey Luciani by The Fall
Lee, Bob & Lula by LoveStruck
40 Miles of Bad Road by Dead Moon
I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter by Dean Martin
Boomerang by The Black Lips
Grieving Man Blues by The Blue Giant Zeta Puppies
Blood, Sweat and Murder by Scott H. Birham
Do the Romp by Richard Johnston
Pass The Biscuits Please by Andre Williams With The Gino Parks Quartet
Help Me by Junior Wells
Cool, Cool Blues by Sonny Boy Williamson
Howlin' for You by The Black Keys
Nervous by Willie Dixon & Memphis Slim
Rhapsody in Pink by Pere Ubu
Lick My Decals Off , Baby by Captain Beefheart
Qiyamat by Old Time Relijun
The O Men by The Butthole Surfers
Hit the Road, Jack by The Residents
Sports Car by Thinking Fellers Union Local 282
Plen Yuk Owakard by The Viking Combo Band
Fever in My Mind by Joecephus and The George Jonestown Massacre featuring Jim Dandy
Cornbread by The Blackbyrds
Scavenger Hunt by Stan Ridgway
Mannish Boy by Electric Mudkats, Chuck D & Common
England by PJ Harvey
No Woman's Flesh But Her's by Johnny Dowd
CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis
Subscribe to The Big Enchilada Podcast! CLICK HERE
Friday, February 25, 2011
THE SANTA FE OPRY PLAYLIST
Friday, February 25, 2011
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM
Webcasting!
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell
101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell@ksfr.org
OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens & The Buckaroos
Plenty Tuff, Union Made by The Waco Brothers
Ray's Automatic Weapon by Drive-By Truckers
Louisiana Blues by Wayne Hancock
We're Still Here by Peter Stampfel & The Worm All-Stars
I Feel So Good by Scott H. Biram
Huntsville by Merle Haggard
Dreamin' My Dreams by Waylon Jennings
I Ain't a Bit Drunk by George "Shortbuckle" Roark
One Night With You by Wanda Jackson
Just Blow in His Ear by David Wilkens
Polk Salad Annie by Tony Joe White
What I Used to Do All Night by Rev. Billy C. Wirtz
How Come You Do Me by Junior Thompson
You're Humbuggin' Me by Lefty Frizzell
Love's Made a Fool of You by Bobby Fuller Four
Didn't Mean To Be Mean by Ray Campi
Corn Dog by Roy D. Mercer
Minnie the Mermaid by Bernie Cummins & The Hotel New York Orchestra
Thunderball by Johnny Cash
Thunderball by Tom Jones
Six White Horses by Tommy Cash
Hello, I'm Johnny Credit by Johnny Credit
Restless Kid/ The Frozen Logger by Johnny Cash
Gonna Romp & Stomp by Slim Rhodes
No Goodwill Store in Waikiki by Gurf Morlix
Henry Lee by Dick Justice
Jimmy Brown the Newsboy by Flatt & Scruggs
Last Train from Poor Valley by Norman Blake
Bootlegger's Blues by South Memphis String Band
When Jesus Comes by Uncle Sinner
Old Gospel Ship by Ruby Vass
Sweet Desert Rose by Bil Hearne Trio
Tiny Island by Leo Kottke
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets
Subscribe to The Big Enchilada Podcast! CLICK HERE
Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots Radio list
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM
Webcasting!
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell
101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell@ksfr.org
OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens & The Buckaroos
Plenty Tuff, Union Made by The Waco Brothers
Ray's Automatic Weapon by Drive-By Truckers
Louisiana Blues by Wayne Hancock
We're Still Here by Peter Stampfel & The Worm All-Stars
I Feel So Good by Scott H. Biram
Huntsville by Merle Haggard
Dreamin' My Dreams by Waylon Jennings
I Ain't a Bit Drunk by George "Shortbuckle" Roark
One Night With You by Wanda Jackson
Just Blow in His Ear by David Wilkens
Polk Salad Annie by Tony Joe White
What I Used to Do All Night by Rev. Billy C. Wirtz
How Come You Do Me by Junior Thompson
You're Humbuggin' Me by Lefty Frizzell
Love's Made a Fool of You by Bobby Fuller Four
Didn't Mean To Be Mean by Ray Campi
Corn Dog by Roy D. Mercer
Minnie the Mermaid by Bernie Cummins & The Hotel New York Orchestra
Thunderball by Johnny Cash
Thunderball by Tom Jones
Six White Horses by Tommy Cash
Hello, I'm Johnny Credit by Johnny Credit
Restless Kid/ The Frozen Logger by Johnny Cash
Gonna Romp & Stomp by Slim Rhodes
No Goodwill Store in Waikiki by Gurf Morlix
Henry Lee by Dick Justice
Jimmy Brown the Newsboy by Flatt & Scruggs
Last Train from Poor Valley by Norman Blake
Bootlegger's Blues by South Memphis String Band
When Jesus Comes by Uncle Sinner
Old Gospel Ship by Ruby Vass
Sweet Desert Rose by Bil Hearne Trio
Tiny Island by Leo Kottke
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets
Subscribe to The Big Enchilada Podcast! CLICK HERE
Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots Radio list
TERRELL'S TUNEUP:Johnny Cash Saves the World From Nuclear Blackmail
A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
February 25, 2011
Johnny Cash was no stranger to gunfighter ballads, but I only recently learned that at one point, fairly early in his career, he also took a stab at the spy-music genre.
That’s right. And a James Bond movie theme to boot. “Thunderball,” by Johnny Cash, is one of the many delights to be found on the brand new rarities collection Bootleg, Volume II: From Memphis to Hollywood.
Cash’s “Thunderball,” never before released in these United States, was rejected by the producers of the Bond movie by the same name. Instead, they chose another song with the same name by Tom Jones, which, to be blunt, is superior to Cash’s tune. Jones’ “Thunderball” is my favorite Bond theme of all time, right up there with Shirley Bassey’s “Goldfinger” and Nancy Sinatra’s “You Only Live Twice.”
Even though Cash’s trademark chunka-chunka beat isn’t really suited for the debonair 007, the Man in Black’s “Thunderball” is an interesting little tune. And at least it doesn’t have the weird grammatical gymnastics of Paul McCartney’s “Live and Let Die” (”... in this ever-changing world in which we live in ...”) Cash sings, “Thunderball your fiery breath can burn the coldest man/ And who is going to suffer from the power in your hands?
Cash seems far more at home with a song like “Restless Kid.” It’s an outlaw tune that should have been a classic — also recorded by Ricky Nelson (an underrated singer of cowboy songs) and Waylon Jennings. The version here is a demo by Cash, featuring only his voice and acoustic guitar. Cash seems natural as he takes the persona of a desperado: “None of your business where I’ve been, don’t ask me what I’ve done/Run your ranch and punch your cows and stay behind my gun. ... They got a man locked in a cell that’s a freer man than I/He’s gonna laugh right in their face when they lead him out to die and/He’s gonna leave this bad land and ride off in the sky.”
From Memphis to Hollywood is a worthy successor to Personal File, the excellent first Sony Legacy Cash "bootleg" in 2006. There are 57 tracks, including a radio performance, demos of Cash songs — both famous and obscure — a smattering of old Sun records, and tunes that, for whatever reason, never saw the light of day.
Although the sound quality isn’t great, the radio show — on station KWEM in West Memphis, Arkansas — is a real kick. I especially like the commercials in which Cash plugs aluminum screens and awnings.
Here are some more highlights from From Memphis to Hollywood:
* “I Walk the Line.” This is a demo of one of Cash’s best-known songs. It’s not as good as the hit version. It’s interesting that the song started out as a slower, almost mournful tune — not the punchy masterpiece we know and love.
* “New Mexico.” It’s a tale of a young cowpoke who signs on to work on a cattle drive one summer in the Land of Enchantment. He faces terrible weather, thorns and thistles, and a boss who rips him off. “Go back to your friends and loved ones/Tell others not to go/To the God-forsaken country they call New Mexico.” I don’t know why the state Tourism Department has never picked up on this one.
* “On the Line.” This war song reminds me of John McCutcheon’s “Christmas in the Trenches.” Backed by a sweet mandolin, Cash sings of a battle in some unnamed war. An officer on one side calls for a ceasefire. “You can go ahead and kill me, enemy, but I’m taking my wounded from the creek.” His counterpart on the other side agrees and follows suit. And just like the World War I “Christmas truce” McCutcheon sings of, the two sides come together when the gunfire stops and somehow can’t see fit to start shooting one another when their task is finished.
* “Six White Horses.” This was a hit for Johnny’s brother Tommy Cash in the late ’60s. It’s basically a country version of “Abraham, Martin & John,” but I’ve always liked it better than Dion’s more popular song. In the verse about Martin Luther King, Johnny sings, “Some preach black and some preach white/Which is wrong and which is right?/Takes every kind to make the world go round/Only takes one to gun you down.” Such thoughts might not seem that daring today. But back when it was written, there were undoubtedly millions of segregationist country radio fans who took personal offense.
* “Come Along and Ride This Train.” Here is a demo of what became the theme song of a popular segment on Johnny Cash’s ABC variety show in the late ’60s and early ’70s. It’s amazing that the song does not appear on Cash’s 1960 concept album Ride This Train.
* “One Too Many Mornings.” Unlike most Nashville stars of his day, Cash palled around with New York folkies, most famously Bob Dylan. Cash covered Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice.” I like this one even better, though it’s not as much fun as the Dylan-Cash collaboration “Wanted Man.”
* “Hardin Wouldn’t Run.” Speaking of Dylan songs and outlaw songs, here’s a tune about the infamous Old West gunfighter (1853-1895). I don’t know about you, but I like this one better than Dylan’s “John Wesley Harding.” (Dylan misspelled the man’s name.) In Cash’s tune, Hardin is killed by Sheriff John Selman because Hardin’s girlfriend pistol-whipped Selman’s deputy. Not sure how historically accurate that is, but it makes a great murder ballad.
Here's a song from the collection I probably should have mentioned:
February 25, 2011
Johnny Cash was no stranger to gunfighter ballads, but I only recently learned that at one point, fairly early in his career, he also took a stab at the spy-music genre.
That’s right. And a James Bond movie theme to boot. “Thunderball,” by Johnny Cash, is one of the many delights to be found on the brand new rarities collection Bootleg, Volume II: From Memphis to Hollywood. Cash’s “Thunderball,” never before released in these United States, was rejected by the producers of the Bond movie by the same name. Instead, they chose another song with the same name by Tom Jones, which, to be blunt, is superior to Cash’s tune. Jones’ “Thunderball” is my favorite Bond theme of all time, right up there with Shirley Bassey’s “Goldfinger” and Nancy Sinatra’s “You Only Live Twice.”
Even though Cash’s trademark chunka-chunka beat isn’t really suited for the debonair 007, the Man in Black’s “Thunderball” is an interesting little tune. And at least it doesn’t have the weird grammatical gymnastics of Paul McCartney’s “Live and Let Die” (”... in this ever-changing world in which we live in ...”) Cash sings, “Thunderball your fiery breath can burn the coldest man/ And who is going to suffer from the power in your hands?
Cash seems far more at home with a song like “Restless Kid.” It’s an outlaw tune that should have been a classic — also recorded by Ricky Nelson (an underrated singer of cowboy songs) and Waylon Jennings. The version here is a demo by Cash, featuring only his voice and acoustic guitar. Cash seems natural as he takes the persona of a desperado: “None of your business where I’ve been, don’t ask me what I’ve done/Run your ranch and punch your cows and stay behind my gun. ... They got a man locked in a cell that’s a freer man than I/He’s gonna laugh right in their face when they lead him out to die and/He’s gonna leave this bad land and ride off in the sky.”From Memphis to Hollywood is a worthy successor to Personal File, the excellent first Sony Legacy Cash "bootleg" in 2006. There are 57 tracks, including a radio performance, demos of Cash songs — both famous and obscure — a smattering of old Sun records, and tunes that, for whatever reason, never saw the light of day.
Although the sound quality isn’t great, the radio show — on station KWEM in West Memphis, Arkansas — is a real kick. I especially like the commercials in which Cash plugs aluminum screens and awnings.
Here are some more highlights from From Memphis to Hollywood:
* “I Walk the Line.” This is a demo of one of Cash’s best-known songs. It’s not as good as the hit version. It’s interesting that the song started out as a slower, almost mournful tune — not the punchy masterpiece we know and love.
* “New Mexico.” It’s a tale of a young cowpoke who signs on to work on a cattle drive one summer in the Land of Enchantment. He faces terrible weather, thorns and thistles, and a boss who rips him off. “Go back to your friends and loved ones/Tell others not to go/To the God-forsaken country they call New Mexico.” I don’t know why the state Tourism Department has never picked up on this one.
* “On the Line.” This war song reminds me of John McCutcheon’s “Christmas in the Trenches.” Backed by a sweet mandolin, Cash sings of a battle in some unnamed war. An officer on one side calls for a ceasefire. “You can go ahead and kill me, enemy, but I’m taking my wounded from the creek.” His counterpart on the other side agrees and follows suit. And just like the World War I “Christmas truce” McCutcheon sings of, the two sides come together when the gunfire stops and somehow can’t see fit to start shooting one another when their task is finished.
* “Six White Horses.” This was a hit for Johnny’s brother Tommy Cash in the late ’60s. It’s basically a country version of “Abraham, Martin & John,” but I’ve always liked it better than Dion’s more popular song. In the verse about Martin Luther King, Johnny sings, “Some preach black and some preach white/Which is wrong and which is right?/Takes every kind to make the world go round/Only takes one to gun you down.” Such thoughts might not seem that daring today. But back when it was written, there were undoubtedly millions of segregationist country radio fans who took personal offense.
* “Come Along and Ride This Train.” Here is a demo of what became the theme song of a popular segment on Johnny Cash’s ABC variety show in the late ’60s and early ’70s. It’s amazing that the song does not appear on Cash’s 1960 concept album Ride This Train.
* “One Too Many Mornings.” Unlike most Nashville stars of his day, Cash palled around with New York folkies, most famously Bob Dylan. Cash covered Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice.” I like this one even better, though it’s not as much fun as the Dylan-Cash collaboration “Wanted Man.”
* “Hardin Wouldn’t Run.” Speaking of Dylan songs and outlaw songs, here’s a tune about the infamous Old West gunfighter (1853-1895). I don’t know about you, but I like this one better than Dylan’s “John Wesley Harding.” (Dylan misspelled the man’s name.) In Cash’s tune, Hardin is killed by Sheriff John Selman because Hardin’s girlfriend pistol-whipped Selman’s deputy. Not sure how historically accurate that is, but it makes a great murder ballad.
Here's a song from the collection I probably should have mentioned:
Sunday, February 20, 2011
TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAYLIST
Sunday, February 20 , 2011
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@ksfr.org
OPENING THEME: Let it Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Rats in My Kitchen by The Fleshtones
On a Monday by Detroit Cobras
Alleys of Your Mind by The Dirtbombs
Wild About You by The Offhooks
The Egyptian Thing by The Syndicate
Little Miss Tee-N-Tee by The Mummies
I'm a Mummy by The Fall
Mummy by Kilimanjaro Yak Attack
Big Man with a Gun by Gotham City Mashers
Got Any Mantras by Groovy Uncle
Eegah by The Stomachmouths
Raunch City by Texas Terri Bomb
Monkey Trick by The Jesus Lizard
Ashes Over Idaho by The Necronauts
Motorhead with Me by Nobunny
Scotch and Water and You by Monkeyshines
Pack Your Pistols by The Dirty Novels
Sylvia Plath by The Rockin' Guys
Ding Ding Dong by Waipod Phetsuphan
SIMON STOKES SET
All songs by Simon except where noted
Honky
100 Naked Kangaroos in Blue Canoes by Timothy Leary & Simon Stokes
Apocalypse Girl
The Black Whip Thrill Band by Simon Stokes & The Black Whip Thrill Band
Hey You
Miniskirt Blues by The Cramps with Iggy Pop
Infected
Hard Travelin'
So Much in Love by The Thymes
Run Run Run by The Velvet Underground
Georgia Slop by Barrence Whitfield & The Savages
Convict Man by Deadbolt
Walk Along by Sky Saxon
Nudist Camp by Ross Johnson
Out of the Bushes by The Treniers
Hang On Sloopy by The Remains
Closing Theme: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis
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@ksfr.org
OPENING THEME: Let it Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Rats in My Kitchen by The Fleshtones
On a Monday by Detroit Cobras
Alleys of Your Mind by The Dirtbombs
Wild About You by The Offhooks
The Egyptian Thing by The Syndicate
Little Miss Tee-N-Tee by The Mummies
I'm a Mummy by The Fall
Mummy by Kilimanjaro Yak Attack
Big Man with a Gun by Gotham City Mashers
Got Any Mantras by Groovy Uncle
Eegah by The Stomachmouths
Raunch City by Texas Terri Bomb
Monkey Trick by The Jesus Lizard
Ashes Over Idaho by The Necronauts
Motorhead with Me by Nobunny
Scotch and Water and You by Monkeyshines
Pack Your Pistols by The Dirty Novels
Sylvia Plath by The Rockin' Guys
Ding Ding Dong by Waipod Phetsuphan
SIMON STOKES SET
All songs by Simon except where noted
Honky100 Naked Kangaroos in Blue Canoes by Timothy Leary & Simon Stokes
Apocalypse Girl
The Black Whip Thrill Band by Simon Stokes & The Black Whip Thrill Band
Hey You
Miniskirt Blues by The Cramps with Iggy Pop
Infected
Hard Travelin'
So Much in Love by The Thymes
Run Run Run by The Velvet Underground
Georgia Slop by Barrence Whitfield & The Savages
Convict Man by Deadbolt
Walk Along by Sky Saxon
Nudist Camp by Ross Johnson
Out of the Bushes by The Treniers
Hang On Sloopy by The Remains
Closing Theme: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis
The Big Enchilada Podcast: Kitchen Grease
Steve Terrell cooks up some hot and greasy sounds this month in his bitchen Kitchen of Doom. Too many cooks won't ruin this musical stew. Contributing their magic ingredients are Simon Stokes, Nobunny, Dan Melchior, Don Covay, The Mekons, The Legendary Stardust Cowboy, Sleepy John Estes, The Persian Claws, The Purple Merkins, Key Frances and so many more. If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. But don't slip on the grease.
Play it here:
DOWNLOAD | SUBSCRIBE| SUBSCRIBE TO ALL GARAGEPUNK NETWORK PODCASTS
Here's the playlist:
(Background Music: Greeazzy by The Greasers)
Switchin' in the Kitchen by Don "Pretty Boy" Covay
Hey You by Simon Stokes & The Heathen Angels
We Want the Lot by The Movements
Shuffling Spector by Dan Melchior und Das Menace
Bubba's Truck by Key Frances
Never Been Kissed by Nobunny *
(Background Music: Kitchen Sink Boogie by Hound Doug Taylor)
Grease Monkey Go by The X-Rays
Clever Way to Crawl by Persian Claws
Melvin by The Belles
Polaroid (I Don't Own, I Only Dote) by The Mekons
Two Girls and One Cup by Zhod/ Zentralheizung of Death
R'n'R Rocket by The Micragirls
Chop Top Bop by The Legendary Hucklebucks
(Background Music:Out in the Kitchen by Thinking Fellers Union Local 282)
Rats in My Kirchen by Sleepy John Estes
Bite of My Soul by The Fleshtones
Higgle-Di Piggle-Di by The Purple Merkins
'31 Coup by Angie & The Car Wrecks
Meet Me By The Garbage Can by Waylon Thornton & The Heavy Hands
Standing in a Trashcan (Thinking of You) by The Legendary Stardust Cowboy
(Background Music: Hot Skillet Mama by Sun Ra with Yochanan)
Join The Big Enchilada Podcast Facebook Page
* Nobunny is playing
Nobunny Hops to Santa Fe
The Amazing Nobunny is scheduled to play Corazon tomorrow night. (Monday Feb. 21.)
Also on the bill are Monkeyshines and a New Mexico Cramps tribute outfit called Teenage Werewolf. I love this description of them. " ... action-packed, sexy-freak-out show unfolds with bikini show-girls, go-go dancing, voodoo beats, Lucha-Libre moves, costume changes, mistakes, attitude may be more than you bargained for...."
There's a Nobunny tune on the upcoming Big Enchilada episode (to be posted tonight.) And I'll play a song or two tonight on Terrell's Sound World (starts 10 p.m. Mountain Time on KSFR.)
Until then, check this Youtube by Sam Atakra of Nobunny's previous show at Corazon last year:
Friday, February 18, 2011
THE SANTA FE OPRY PLAYLIST
Friday, February 18, 2011
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM
Webcasting!
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell
101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell@ksfr.org
OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens & The Buckaroos
Help Me From My Brain by Legendary Shack Shakers
Honey You Had Me Fooled by The Defibulators
Rockin' Bandit by Ray Smith
You Might Get Hurt by Suzette & The Neon Angels
Switch Blade Sam by Jeff Daniels
New Delhi Freight Train by Terry Allen
Fraulein by Bobby Helms
How Mountain Girls Can Love by Peter Stampfel & The Worm All-Stars
Whispering Shifting Sands by Johnny Cash & Lorne Green
You Asked Me To by Waylon Jennings
Hair of the Dog by Shooter Jennings
Dancin' Ricky by Drive-By Truckers
Goodbye Booze by Loudon Wainwright III
Caffeine, Nicotine and Gasoline by Bill Royal
Slide Off Of Your Satin Sheets by DM Bob And The Deficits
The Ballad of Lightnin' Bill Jasper by The Imperial Rooster
99 Chicks by Ron Haydock & The Boppers
Journey to the Old Weird America
The Devil's Dream by Sid Hemphill & Lucius Smith
I Got Drunk for Jesus/Train Is Moving On by The Rev. Johnny L. Jones
Queen of the South Sea Isles by Hawaiian Beach Combers
It's a Shame to Beat Your Wife on a Sunday by Fiddlin' John Carson & His Virginia Reelers
Black Woman (Wild Ox) by Vera Ward Hall
Pussy by Harry Roy & His Bat Club Boys
Did You Ever See the Devil, Uncle Joe, by Wade Ward & Charlie Higgins
Don't Leave Me Here by Henry "Texas Ragtime" Thomas
Where The Soul of a Man Never Dies by Luther Dickinson & The Sons of Mudboy
Someday We'll Look Back by Merle Haggard
The Vigilante by Judee Sill
Ruby Ridge by Peter Rowan
Hidin' In The Hills by Butch Hancock
Federal Pen by Jaime Michaels
Blow The Man Down by Roger McGuinn
Pie In The Sky by Utah Philips & Ani DiFranco
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM
Webcasting!
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell
101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell@ksfr.org
OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens & The Buckaroos
Help Me From My Brain by Legendary Shack Shakers
Honey You Had Me Fooled by The Defibulators
Rockin' Bandit by Ray Smith
You Might Get Hurt by Suzette & The Neon Angels
Switch Blade Sam by Jeff Daniels
New Delhi Freight Train by Terry Allen
Fraulein by Bobby Helms
How Mountain Girls Can Love by Peter Stampfel & The Worm All-Stars
Whispering Shifting Sands by Johnny Cash & Lorne Green
You Asked Me To by Waylon Jennings
Hair of the Dog by Shooter Jennings
Movin' In by Morty Shann & The Morticians
I Need A Man by Barbara PittmanDancin' Ricky by Drive-By Truckers
Goodbye Booze by Loudon Wainwright III
Caffeine, Nicotine and Gasoline by Bill Royal
Slide Off Of Your Satin Sheets by DM Bob And The Deficits
The Ballad of Lightnin' Bill Jasper by The Imperial Rooster
99 Chicks by Ron Haydock & The Boppers
Journey to the Old Weird America
The Devil's Dream by Sid Hemphill & Lucius Smith
I Got Drunk for Jesus/Train Is Moving On by The Rev. Johnny L. Jones
Queen of the South Sea Isles by Hawaiian Beach Combers
It's a Shame to Beat Your Wife on a Sunday by Fiddlin' John Carson & His Virginia Reelers
Black Woman (Wild Ox) by Vera Ward Hall
Pussy by Harry Roy & His Bat Club Boys
Did You Ever See the Devil, Uncle Joe, by Wade Ward & Charlie Higgins
Don't Leave Me Here by Henry "Texas Ragtime" Thomas
Where The Soul of a Man Never Dies by Luther Dickinson & The Sons of Mudboy
Someday We'll Look Back by Merle Haggard
The Vigilante by Judee Sill
Ruby Ridge by Peter Rowan
Hidin' In The Hills by Butch Hancock
Federal Pen by Jaime Michaels
Blow The Man Down by Roger McGuinn
Pie In The Sky by Utah Philips & Ani DiFranco
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets
Subscribe to The Big Enchilada Podcast! CLICK HERE
TERRELL'S TUNEUP:The Ragged Old Flag of The Old Weird America
A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
February 18, 2011
The ragged old flag of Old Weird America has been waving high in recent months. There have been a rash of new compilations of old recordings of tobacco-spitting hillbillies, roughneck bluesmen, gospel shouters, jug bands, and chain-gang chanters.
You might even say that the past is so bright, you gotta wear shades.
I’m referring to recent releases from two fine companies — the Georgia-based Dust-to-Digital, founded by music collector Lance Ledbetter, and the Global Jukebox, a new label of the Alan Lomax Archive.
Here’s a look at some of this music.
* The Hurricane That Hit Atlanta by Rev. Johnny L. Jones. This double-disc Dust-to-Digital compilation is one of the most intense, most powerful, and most satisfying gospel collections I’ve ever heard. It’s a collection of church and radio performances, going back to 1957, by Jones, a 70-something preacher/singer who’s still preaching and singing every second Sunday at Second Mount Olive Baptist Church in Atlanta. It’s mostly music, though it also has a little preaching, some conversation with a radio caller, and even a couple of radio ads.
Thankfully someone, perhaps Jones himself, thought of taping his services. The sound quality isn’t exactly professional. But it doesn’t take long to forget that — the spirit comes through loud and clear. Jones sings most of the material, although a few others — Lula Pearl Jones and Valerie Mathis, among them — are featured on some tracks.
Many of the songs aren’t the typical verse-chorus-verse structures. Some sound improvised, as if Jones is moaning when the spirit says “moan,” shouting when the spirit says “shout.” The track “Devil Don’t Understand Moaning,” for instance, is part of a sermon — a traditional black sermon in which you don’t realize when the music subtly takes over from the preaching. At one point, Jones’ guttural shouts sound as if he’s in the midst of a struggle deep inside his soul.
The screams of a female parishioner whose soul is obviously on fire give a real edge to “Sometimes I Feel Like I’m Almost Gone.” Obviously, the word “almost” wasn’t necessary for some of those who felt the spirit while this was being recorded.
* Baby, How Can It Be? Songs of Love, Lust, and Contempt From the 1920s and 1930s. While the other discs I’m reviewing this week are field recordings (with some tracks recorded in actual fields), this three-disc set from Dust-to-Digital consists of commercial 78-rpm records.
The themes of love, lust, and contempt each get their own disc. The 66 songs are taken from the collection of old-timey musician John Heneghan (he has a band in New York called Eden & John’s East River String Band). The songs include hillbilly, blues, jazz, jug band, string band, and even a few Hawaiian tunes. The collection spills over with sex and humor.
There are some famous people in this compilation — Cab Calloway, Mississippi John Hurt, and Blind Lemon Jefferson. But some of the obscure artists steal the show, like screechy-voiced Mississippi Matilda, George “Shortbuckle” Roark (who is “I Ain’t a Bit Drunk”), and Laura Smith, who kicks off the Contempt disc with a funny ditty called “I’m Gonna Kill Myself.”
Grateful Deadheads will recognize “Don’t Leave Me Here” by Henry Thomas. The Dead turned it into “Don’t Ease Me In” — coffee, tea, and jailhouse key included. R. Crumb’s Cheap Suit Serenaders covered “Pussy,” a song about a special feline by Harry Roy and His Bat Club Boys on the Lust disc.
Meanwhile, Tiny Tim fans will be happy to find the original “Tiptoe Through the Tulips With Me” by Eddie Peabody.
* Wave The Ocean, Wave The Sea;
* Worried Now, Won’t Be Worried Long;
*I’ll Meet You On That Other Shore;
* I’ll Be So Glad When the Sun Goes Down
* I’m Gonna Live Anyhow Until I Die. These five albums feature selections from Alan Lomax’s Southern Journey, which he recorded on trips in 1959 and 1960 to the rural South.
Lomax captured performances on front porches and in living rooms, town squares, churches, and prisons. Some of the locales were those he visited on similar trips with his father, John Lomax, decades before, and some of the musicians were those he met on those previous trips. The original Southern Journey, albums released in the early ’60s, were the first field recordings of American roots material presented in stereo. Periodically, these recordings reemerge in various configurations. In the late 1990s, for instance, Rounder rereleased 13 CDs worth of Southern Journey recordings.
I’m not really an audiophile, but I have to comment on how crisp and clear these newly remastered tracks sound. I’m ignorant of what kind of electronic voodoo went into this process, but the results are remarkable.
Many of Lomax’s usual suspects are scattered about the albums — Mississippi Fred McDowell, Bessie Jones, Hobart Smith, the Georgia Sea Island Singers, Vera Ward Hall, Sid Hemphill, and Almeda Riddle, among others.
Various styles of traditional Southern music can be found on each of the five albums including sacred harp, Cajun, gospel quartet, some proto-bluegrass, and the sound of the men working on the chain gang. The title song of I’ll Be So Glad When the Sun Goes Down is by Ed Lewis and other prisoners at the infamous Parchman Farm prison in Mississippi. It’s an a cappella call-and-response accompanied only by the clanging of the men’s axes and hoes.
Probably the most surreal, Captain Beefheartean recording here is “Devil’s Dream” by Hemphill and Lucias Smith (on I’m Gonna Live). It’s a fife-and-drum tune with incomprehensible lyrics.
“Dark Day,” a spiritual by the Silver Leaf Quartet (on Wave the Ocean), is apocalyptic and spooky. And speaking of songs of contempt, “Levee Camp Holler” by Johnny Lee Moore (on Worried Now) is an a cappella put-down of a “downtown money-waster” whom Moore threatens with physical violence.
Who said folk music had to be pretty?
Blog Bonus:
Enjoy some videos:
February 18, 2011
The ragged old flag of Old Weird America has been waving high in recent months. There have been a rash of new compilations of old recordings of tobacco-spitting hillbillies, roughneck bluesmen, gospel shouters, jug bands, and chain-gang chanters.
You might even say that the past is so bright, you gotta wear shades.
I’m referring to recent releases from two fine companies — the Georgia-based Dust-to-Digital, founded by music collector Lance Ledbetter, and the Global Jukebox, a new label of the Alan Lomax Archive.
Here’s a look at some of this music.
* The Hurricane That Hit Atlanta by Rev. Johnny L. Jones. This double-disc Dust-to-Digital compilation is one of the most intense, most powerful, and most satisfying gospel collections I’ve ever heard. It’s a collection of church and radio performances, going back to 1957, by Jones, a 70-something preacher/singer who’s still preaching and singing every second Sunday at Second Mount Olive Baptist Church in Atlanta. It’s mostly music, though it also has a little preaching, some conversation with a radio caller, and even a couple of radio ads.Thankfully someone, perhaps Jones himself, thought of taping his services. The sound quality isn’t exactly professional. But it doesn’t take long to forget that — the spirit comes through loud and clear. Jones sings most of the material, although a few others — Lula Pearl Jones and Valerie Mathis, among them — are featured on some tracks.
Many of the songs aren’t the typical verse-chorus-verse structures. Some sound improvised, as if Jones is moaning when the spirit says “moan,” shouting when the spirit says “shout.” The track “Devil Don’t Understand Moaning,” for instance, is part of a sermon — a traditional black sermon in which you don’t realize when the music subtly takes over from the preaching. At one point, Jones’ guttural shouts sound as if he’s in the midst of a struggle deep inside his soul.
The screams of a female parishioner whose soul is obviously on fire give a real edge to “Sometimes I Feel Like I’m Almost Gone.” Obviously, the word “almost” wasn’t necessary for some of those who felt the spirit while this was being recorded.
* Baby, How Can It Be? Songs of Love, Lust, and Contempt From the 1920s and 1930s. While the other discs I’m reviewing this week are field recordings (with some tracks recorded in actual fields), this three-disc set from Dust-to-Digital consists of commercial 78-rpm records.The themes of love, lust, and contempt each get their own disc. The 66 songs are taken from the collection of old-timey musician John Heneghan (he has a band in New York called Eden & John’s East River String Band). The songs include hillbilly, blues, jazz, jug band, string band, and even a few Hawaiian tunes. The collection spills over with sex and humor.
There are some famous people in this compilation — Cab Calloway, Mississippi John Hurt, and Blind Lemon Jefferson. But some of the obscure artists steal the show, like screechy-voiced Mississippi Matilda, George “Shortbuckle” Roark (who is “I Ain’t a Bit Drunk”), and Laura Smith, who kicks off the Contempt disc with a funny ditty called “I’m Gonna Kill Myself.”
Grateful Deadheads will recognize “Don’t Leave Me Here” by Henry Thomas. The Dead turned it into “Don’t Ease Me In” — coffee, tea, and jailhouse key included. R. Crumb’s Cheap Suit Serenaders covered “Pussy,” a song about a special feline by Harry Roy and His Bat Club Boys on the Lust disc.
Meanwhile, Tiny Tim fans will be happy to find the original “Tiptoe Through the Tulips With Me” by Eddie Peabody.
* Wave The Ocean, Wave The Sea; * Worried Now, Won’t Be Worried Long;
*I’ll Meet You On That Other Shore;
* I’ll Be So Glad When the Sun Goes Down
* I’m Gonna Live Anyhow Until I Die. These five albums feature selections from Alan Lomax’s Southern Journey, which he recorded on trips in 1959 and 1960 to the rural South.
Lomax captured performances on front porches and in living rooms, town squares, churches, and prisons. Some of the locales were those he visited on similar trips with his father, John Lomax, decades before, and some of the musicians were those he met on those previous trips. The original Southern Journey, albums released in the early ’60s, were the first field recordings of American roots material presented in stereo. Periodically, these recordings reemerge in various configurations. In the late 1990s, for instance, Rounder rereleased 13 CDs worth of Southern Journey recordings.
I’m not really an audiophile, but I have to comment on how crisp and clear these newly remastered tracks sound. I’m ignorant of what kind of electronic voodoo went into this process, but the results are remarkable.
Many of Lomax’s usual suspects are scattered about the albums — Mississippi Fred McDowell, Bessie Jones, Hobart Smith, the Georgia Sea Island Singers, Vera Ward Hall, Sid Hemphill, and Almeda Riddle, among others.
Probably the most surreal, Captain Beefheartean recording here is “Devil’s Dream” by Hemphill and Lucias Smith (on I’m Gonna Live). It’s a fife-and-drum tune with incomprehensible lyrics.
“Dark Day,” a spiritual by the Silver Leaf Quartet (on Wave the Ocean), is apocalyptic and spooky. And speaking of songs of contempt, “Levee Camp Holler” by Johnny Lee Moore (on Worried Now) is an a cappella put-down of a “downtown money-waster” whom Moore threatens with physical violence.
Who said folk music had to be pretty?
Blog Bonus:
Enjoy some videos:
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TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAYLIST
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