TERRELL'S TUNEUP: TAKE THAT NIGHT TRAIN TO NASHVILLE

A version of this appeared in The Santa Fe New Mexican
Sept. 23, 2005
Nashville streets like 16th Avenue and “Lower Broad” (Broadway, that is, home of Tootsie‘s Orchid Lounge and just half a block away from the Ryman Auditorium) have been immortalized in song. But there’s another road in Nashville that nurtured a lesser known but amazingly vital world of music: Jefferson Street.

The Jefferson Street district, up to the 1970s, was an thriving business area for Nashville’s Black population. Among those thriving businesses, naturally were nightclubs where jazz, blues, R&B and soul music filled the air.


The musicians and the songs that roared on Jefferson Street in the mid 20th Century make up the core of the project known as Night Train to Nashville, Music City Rhythm & Blues, 1945-1970. The two-disc first volume was released last year -- and won a Grammy for best historical recording. The two-disc Volume Two was released just last week and it’s equally tasty.

While the Nashville R&B artists were undeniably exuberant, judging by the Night Train series, they were more derivative than original. On Volume Two for instance Little Ike’s “She Can Rock” sounds disturbingly similar to Little Richard. Roscoe Shelton’s “Strain in My Heart” is in the early soul style of Solomon Burke and Bobby “Blue Bland.” Johnny Jones & The King Casuals -- which at one point included a young Jimi Hendrix -- do an admirable take on the Stax-Volt sound with their 1967 instrumental “Soul Poppin’” (produced by Stax man William Bell), while you can hear mucho Motown in songs like Jimmy Church’s “Right on Time” or “That’s My Man” by Marion James.

Helen Foster covered the 1952 Jo Stafford hit “You Belong to Me” (“See the pyramids along the Nile/Watch the sunrise on a tropic isle …”) for the R&B market. The song was co-written by country bandleader Pee Wee King.

On the other hand, Volume Two contains songs recorded in Nashville (and some recorded elsewhere by Nashville singers) that later were big hits for others.

There’s a tune that Elvis Presley would later knock out of the park: Bernard Hardison‘s “Too Much.” (Volume One had Arthur Gunter’s pre-Presley “Baby Let’s Play House.”)

Night Train Volume Two includes Christine Kittrell’s gritty “I’m a Woman” (Peggy Lee had the hit); “Little Darlin’” by The Gladiolas, a South Carolina group who recorded this in Nashville before it became the signature tune for Canadian doo-woppers The Diamonds; and Freddy North’s “She’s All I Got” (co written by Gary “U.S.” Bonds and Jerry “Swamp Dogg” Williams), which later became a hit for country star Johnny Paycheck.

And Nashville was the home to a brooding soul man named Arthur Alexander, whose style didn’t seem to copy anyone. His song “Anna” (included on Volume One) became famous when The Beatles covered it. On this volume, Alexander sings a haunting ballad from 1962 called “Soldier of Love,” with the chorus “Lay down your arms and surrender to me …”

There are a couple of tracks here of R&B stars who came to Nashville to record with the famous C&W session musicians -- the boys who made the noise on 16th Avenue. Esther Phillips soulful voice cuts right through the strings and white-bread chorus of “Release Me” (a song previously covered by both Ray Price and Kitty Wells). Even better is Clyde McPhatter’s “Next to Me,” whose tenor soars over the gospel-style piano.

Among the standouts on Volume Two are Johnny Bragg’s “I’m Free (The Prisoner’s Song)” an autobiographical tale in which, following a spoken introduction that sounds straight out of a ’50s news reel, Bragg tells how he was “servin’ 99 in the penitentiary/but the governor came along and set me free.

Indeed, Bragg’s story is similar to that of Leadbelly, who in 1934 charmed Gov. O.K. Allen of Louisiana into releasing him early. (And some say the same scenario played out a few years before with Leadbelly and a Texas governor.)

According to the African American Registry web site, Bragg was serving six (!) 99-year sentences for rape when Tennessee Gov. Frank Clement heard him sing and commuted his sentence in 1959. Can you imagine the political poop storm Bill Richardson -- or any contemporary governor -- would face if he released a convicted rapist because he liked the guy’s music?

Bragg later went on to lead a group called The Prisonaires, who recorded for Sun Records. “I’m Free” is a home recording that sounds like a spiritual in which Bragg is accompanied only by an acoustic guitar. By the last he’s singing in a striking falsetto.

But I think my favorite song here is two minutes and 22 seconds of pure pleasure from 1963 called “You Better Change” by a duo called Hal & Jean. The song, sung by Hal Gilbert, is a basic take-off on Ray Charles’ “What I Say.”

What makes the song is the over-miked Jean Gilbert, who provides humorous asides (“you talkin’ through your head …”) and has one fo the sexiest giggles ever recorded in human history.

Basically this whole collection, like last year’s first volume, is one big sexy giggle.

Night Train on the radio: I’ll be playing songs from the Night Train to Nashville collections Sunday on Terrell’s Sound World, 10 p.m. to midnight Sunday on KSFR 90.7 FM (and streaming live on www.ksfr.org) (The Night Train segment will start at 11 p.m.)

Speaking of KSFR, the annual fall fundraiser starts in October. Get your checkbooks ready, because Santa Fe’s public radio station won’t last without the support of the Santa Fe public. And who else is going to play the crazy stuff I review in this column?

WHEN BILL MET AMY

Democracy Now broadcast live from the New Mexico state Capitol this morning (from the t.v. studio next door to my office) and Amy Goodman's guest was Gov. Bill Richardson, who answered questions for more than 30 minutes.

The interview was far less confrontational than Goodman and Richardson's encounter last summer in Boston. He didn't tell her to get her microphone out of his face this time. But Goodman and co-host Juan Gonzalez (who was in a studio in New York) got in some good questions.

Richardson had to defend himself about the Wen Ho Lee case. Despite the statements of a federal judge, Richardson on Thursday strongly denied that he was the anonymous source who originally revealed Lee's name to reporters months before Lee was charged. (In a deposition for Lee's civil lawsuit, Richardson said he didn't remember making some statements about the Lee firing attributed to him in various newspapers.)

The governor mistakenly told Goodman that Lee was convicted of "several charges." In fact, Lee pled guilty to a single charge of mishandling sensitive materials.

Goodman also asked Richardson about Iraq. He said he does not support an immediate withdrawal or setting a deadline for withdrawal from Iraq. Richardson also stood behind President Clinton's policy of sanctions against Iraq -- even when Goodman pointed out that thousands of children died under that policy.

Richardson told Goodman and Gonzalez that he probably wouldn't vote for U.S. Supreme Court nominee John Roberts due to concerns about Roberts' views on civil rights. (Fellow Democrat, U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman has announced that he will vote for Roberts.)

And notably, Richardson refrained from using the phrase "illegal aliens" when talking about his position on immigration. This is much different than his defense of the term on aappearancece on the radio show Latino USA a few weeks ago.


UPDATE: Here's a link to a partial transcript of the interview. The Wen Ho Lee segment can be found here. (And look for more links on the right side of the page.)

FURTHER UPDATE: In my haste to get this on my blog before running down to Albuquerque Thursday morning, I mistakenly wrote that Richardson said he'd "probably wouldn't vote against" John Roberts. I just corrected it say he probably wouldn't vote for Roberts.

ROUNDHOUSE ROUND-UP: IT TAKES TWO TO MAKE A TWO-PARTY SYSTEM

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
September 22, 2005

According to state Republican leaders, the charges of extortion and racketeering against state Treasurer Robert Vigil and his predecessor Michael Montoya was a clear illustration of what happens when you don’t have a healthy two-party system in the state.

"This is a wake up call for voters to insure they elect some Republicans to offices Democrats have held for years, and to throw any politician out of office when there is any hint of impropriety," said GOP state Chairman Allen Weh about the arrests of the Democratic politicians.

“The voters of New Mexico have the responsibility to ensure that we have a healthy two-party system,” said Marta Kramer, executive director of the state Republican Party.

Maybe they’re right. Perhaps we all should have taken a more serious look at the Republican who challenged Vigil in 2002.

Let’s see, what was his name?

Her name?

Actually there was no opponent in this race. Vigil had a tough primary battle, but the GOP let him slide in the general election.

This despite the fact that a scathing audit report of Vigil’s tenure as state auditor made public that year showed “strong patterns of public corruption,” according to the state police chief.

The Elephant party has to be kicking itself for giving that race away. In another 2002 statewide contest in which the Democrats nominated a candidate with ethics that were questioned — former Santa Fe Mayor Art Trujillo — Republican Pat Lyons won.

There wasn’t much evidence of a two-party system in the last election’s legislative races either. Republicans didn’t field candidates in 25 races out of the 70 House of Representatives seats. (Democrats still hold 42 out of 70 House seats.)

And 12 of the 24 Senate Democrats won without an opponent in 2004.

In fairness, the Democrats didn’t even try in a huge number of races — 13 seats in Senate and 18 in the House.

It’s true that the last legislative redistricting basically cemented the status quo.
But as Albuquerque pollster Brian Sanderoff said a few years ago, “The bottom line is that all the numbers don’t mean a damn thing. A great candidate from either party who works hard can beat a mediocre candidate.”

The Year of the Child: If it were legal to consume alcohol in the Roundhouse, observers could get drunk fast just by taking a chug any time a politician earnestly declared that it’s important to pass or defeat a bill “for the sake of the children.”

But —- if you can believe an FBI affidavit —- the state treasurer has taken the art of pandering for the sake of the wee ones several notches up. In fact this scandal just might be the first instance of racketeering “for the children.”

According to the FBI, Vigil was captured on tape with a “cooperating witness” talking about helping his wife’s favorite charity, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, by shaking down private investment advisers who contract with the state for contributions.

At one point, Vigil tells the informant, “Where is there a law that doesn’t allow you to help kids, you know. Bunch of bullshit ...”

FBI Special Agent Drew McCandles apparently wasn’t moved by the idea of kickbacks for the kiddies. He wrote in his affidavit, “Although altruistic in appearance, the charitable contributions had the same effect as cash; they were quid pro quo for business with the New Mexico State Treasurer’s Office.”

Protect us from the gas guzzlers: Thanks to my colleague Ben Neary for this one.

Gov. Bill Richardson held a press conference at a Santa Fe gas station Tuesday to announce he’s calling a special legislative session. He wants a rebate program for taxpayers to cover higher oil and gas prices.

“The nation is in a continuing energy emergency because we’re over dependent on oil and gas,” the governor told reporters. “It’s a reflection of weak, shortsighted national energy policy.”

Richardson drove to the press conference in a Lincoln Navigator, his preferred ride since he stopped tooling around in a Cadillac Escalade. According to the Web site www.fueleconomy.gov, Lincoln’s behemoth SUV gets about 13 mpg in the city while the Caddy was good for a whopping 14 mpg.

WHAT DO THESE GUYS HAVE IN COMMON?

GOV. ASKS VIGIL TO "STEP ASIDE"

I normally don't publish government press releases in their entirety (unless I'm making fun of them), but since I didn't see this on The New Mexican's Web site, here goes:

SANTA FE- Governor Bill Richardson, who returned to New Mexico this weekend after attending the Democratic Governor's fall policy conference in Nashville, Tennessee, today called State Treasurer Robert Vigil and urged him to step aside until criminal charges against him are resolved. Mr. Vigil and former State Treasurer Michael Montoya were arrested by federal authorities Friday and charged with extortion.

After being fully briefed on the status of the case and reviewing all available information, the Governor strongly recommended to Mr. Vigil that he take administrative leave until the investigation and criminal prosecution are complete.

"The seriousness of the pending charges makes it virtually impossible for Mr. Vigil to fully perform his duties and maintain the confidence of the public and investment community," said Governor Richardson. "Mr. Vigil has a right to due process and may ultimately be exonerated, but his presence in the office while the investigation and prosecution proceed will be a distraction that could impact the state's investment activities." Mr. Vigil told the Governor he would consider his recommendation that he step aside.

The Governor noted the state treasurer is responsible for administering state investments totaling more than $4 billion.

"Hard work and sound fiscal management have kept our credit and bond ratings high and we must protect the integrity of our entire investment system from even the appearance of impropriety," said the Governor. "My administration takes charges such as these very seriously and will assist investigators in any way possible."