this is a great release from the frontman for the old 97’s, a band i have have recently been enamored with. in my opinion rhett’s vocals are one of the more distinctive and authentic voices you will hear from the americana movement. he is backed here by black prairie, which is to a large degree the decemberists without colin meloy. there is also a small dosage of peter buck, of r.e.m. fame. solid songwriting, great arrangements, and heartfelt production. it has been in and out of my rotation for about four months.
most dead fans will agree that 77 was a special year for the band, and this blogger will not contest that. but as archivist dave lemieux argues in the liner notes, there is reason to believe that the strength of the band’s live performances carried over into the following spring. it is his contention that this show marks the end of that period. whether it was jerry’s furthering spiral down the smack hole, or keith’s version of the same, the band seemed to go downhill fom here until the addition of brent mydland. the first set is solid. bertha gets off to a slow start but eventually gets into gear, setting the pace for the rest. candyman and tennessee jed have the crowd cheer tennessee references. the jack straw is a real barnburner. the only real detraction is a version of deal that goes on for about 25 refrains too much at the end. donna is close to her home of alabama, and she is very good here until she tries to compete with bob in the sugar mag/saturday night finale. second set has a great estimated/eyes and one of the best wharf rats you will hear. all of the 2015 releases in this series have been great so far, and this one is no exception. dp 16 is a march 73 show from massachusetts. should be in my box any day. if you are a dead fan, i highly recommend subscribing to this series. i will be signing up for my fourth year.
after a big night, day two started out a little later than we had planned, but we were ready by the time charles bradley took the main stage. i just found out about him recently. after leading a hard luck life, and spending much of the last two decades as a james brown imitator in nyc, he was recently discovered by a small r&b label. they made a young band available to him, and recorded his first cd in his early sixties. here he is about halfway thru his set:
next up was another band from nyc, the lone bellow. i have their most recent release, and it is worth consideration. they definitely have some serious vocal chops:
then we headed over to the second stage to take in my old friend jimmy cliff working his way through a solid set of all of his greatest hits. the dude is 67 and still puts on a hell of a show. colin meloy of the decemberists was on the side stage taking in one of the masters:
a great weekend. this was the inaugural event for this festival, and look forward to seeing what they put together next year. here are a few homemade videos from brad’s camera. the rain seems to have dampened tweedy’s night, but nels cline was definitely on it. unforgettable.
we got on site at 10 am when the gates opened. the vip lounge was underadvertised, as they had an open bar and gratis carolina bbq buffett, plus a titos trailer. it was going to be a big day.
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first group was kingfish. a young blues guitarist who kicked off the day with a buddy guy style onslaught. very talented kid.
it was time to get a good bite to eat, to establish the necessary base for the day, a flank steak and pretzel bun sandwich.
next up was holly williams, daughter of hank jr., and she is worth your attention. most of the songs she played were off her ‘highway’ album.
watched first half of trampled by turtles set, then over to neko case for her set.
back to main stage for iron and wine.
went back to vip lounge for smoked chicken, ribs, low country shrimp boil, cheddar biscuits and some sweet tea (with some tito’s). caught last half of sheryl crow set, mostly just to position ourselves for the next and final act, wilco. managed to get in the front row, on the fence, just in time for the heavens to unload for 30 minutes. but it was worth it. they put on an outstanding show. nels cline was directly in front of us, and he was on fire. more on them later.
this is an interesting release, one that die hard iron and wine fans have been clamoring for recently. It is comprised of sixteen tracks recorded on a four track recorder in his bedroom at the beginning of sam beam’s career. His signature style, namely his half whispered duets with himself, on top of a sparse acoustic blend of guitars, is definitely in play here. it is not hard to envision him writing and playing these songs around the house, as they are full of images of the typical snippets you might see laying around the house all day – birds, weather, trees, and domestic conversations punctuate the lyrics. these tracks are the ones that weren’t used for his debut album, and have been traded by enthusiasts for years. not the first release i would send the inquisitive fan to that is not familiar with his work, but is it a good pickup for someone like me who has been a fan for years. iron and wine is playing at the pilgrimage festival this weekend, and i am sure i will be right up close, as i have never seen him before.
redeyegin 