I mean, sure, this record sounds raw, vulnerable, and true, and everybody uses those words to describe art.
It's another thing altogether to do them -- to live them -- in public. This is what blue, in its alternate meaning sounds like, feels like, hurts like.
It takes guts.
There are those who would shun these expressions from a loved one in an effort to be reasonable. Avoid such people. It should hurt when your partner has to leave.
This is Emmylou Harris, complete with cracks and pops, singing "Blue Kentucky Girl".
Thursday, June 9, 2016
I've always loved this song. It was written by John (of Orleans fame) and Johanna Hall, which accounts for the provocative country flavor in an otherwise reggae-fied composition.
As for the lyrics, you couldn't ask for a better message.
Everything about this track says "big romance", but what it's really about is enduring love.
See, you don't have to be in love with somebody to have these feelings. Empathy is something you can have for your biological family, for those friends who are closer than brothers, or for your worst enemy.
Whatever the case, truer words were never spoken, I'll tell you that.
This is Linda Ronstadt and Aaron Neville with a song popularized by Sam and Dave -- "When Something Is Wrong With My Baby".
This track comes from one of the earliest and best albums by premier progressive bluegrass outfit, The Seldom Scene, but what makes it bluegrass? What place has this track on even a progressive bluegrass record?
Maybe none (ymmv). But, here's what I hear:
A disaster song in the tradition of old-time country songs like "The Wreck Of the Old '97", which crossed over into the bluegrass repertoire. A subset of these is songs about the destructive power of nature, like "Muddy Water" or "Dream Of A Miner's Child" -- also a regular feature of bluegrass music.
High-lonesome singing, albeit smoother than the more traditional variety, by John Starling on lead and John Duffey on tenor, joined by Linda Ronstadt on high baritone. If at least one of the ensemble is singing at the top of their range, as Duffey is here, the emotional intensity -- a trademark of traditional bluegrass music -- is markedly increased. For all that, the pain in Starling's voice, squarely in the baritone range, is something you'd never hear, say, on an Eagles record.
More than anything else, it's those musical choices that make this great progressive bluegrass (There, I said it). Lesser bands would treat this same song like slick, modern country or tired country rock. An awful lot of bluegrass -- even the more traditional variety -- has the been-there-done-that sound that lands a disproportionate number of modern recordings in the "Used" bins at record stores (True story. If you're ever in L.A., you should check out the bluegrass section at Amoeba Music some time.)
But, don't believe me; judge for yourself. Listen to The Seldom Scene with "California Earthquake".
Some bluegrass purists scoff at Emmylou Harris’s groundbreaking 1979 album, “Roses In the Snow”, but like The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s “Will the Circle Be Unbroken”, it introduced bluegrass musicians, singing style, instrumentation, songs, and songwriters to an uninitiated audience — through mainstream country radio at that.
“Roses In the Snow” remains one of my favorite albums. I have owned it on vinyl, cassette, and CD. I still remember trying to nail down Ricky Skaggs’s Stanley-style melismatic vocals. I learned how because of this record.
Here are Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, and Ricky Skaggs from a 1979 tribute to Mother Maybelle Carter, with the final track from “Roses In the Snow”. This is “Gold Watch and Chain”.
Thursday, May 5, 2016
Some say the date of this show was 1972; others, 1974. In any
case, it is definitely a bluegrass show – and a loose, fun, and funny
one – from The Country Gazette, with Linda Ronstadt out in front.
The CG lineup for this show included mighty Texas fiddler, Byron
Berline, and Jimmy Martin’s former banjoist, Alan Munde (who can be seen
with Jimmy in the essential documentary “Bluegrass: Country Soul”).
