Comes To Town

As he's busy in various other art forms as well, Terry Allen's recorded oeuvre is quite small, but it's always consistent in quality. Cue his fine new album Just Like Moby Dick, which sounds a tad less country than we're used to. On the earworm below the Texan even reaches rather unexpectedly for a Tom Waitsian vibe. "The clowns ain't so funny anymore..."

Terry Allen - City Of The Vampires

Treat You Kind

This one just in from a decent but not really remarkable new Townes tribute. Cue fellow Texas legend Terry Allen, still very much alive and kicking, who tries to steal away your mind.

Terry Allen - White Freightliner Blues

Amarillo Highway

A good way to start the new year. I mean, guitar instrumentals ringing like fresh prairie winds, interspersed with krautrocky synth interludes from weirdsville? Cue Greetings From Amarillo, a lovely tribute to the Texas Panhandle by young Hayden Pedigo, a gifted picker who names Robbie Basho as his fave guitarist. Comes with the compliments of the great Terry Allen, too. Hypnotizing little record this.

Hayden Pedigo - Greetings From Amarillo

They Shine

I do realize that christmas is just a kiss away and 2017 just around the corner and yes you just can't wait to see the famous FTSOTS end of year list... But please be patient, folks. Come snow or come shine, let's observe some other faves first.

This years must-reads:

Josh Rosenthal - The Record Store Of The Mind

Bob Mehr - Trouble Boys: The True Story Of The Replacements

This year's blazing (re-) issues:

Bonnie Prince Billy - Pond Scum
Bonnie Prince Billy - When Thy Song Flows Through Me

Tim Buckley - Lady, Give Me Your Key
Tim Buckley - Marigold
Terry Allen - Juarez
Terry Allen - Dogwood

Bunny Wailer - Solomonic Singles 1: Tread Along 1969-1976
The Wailers - Arabs Oil Weapon
Jack Rose - Opium Musick
Jack Rose - Linden Ave Stomp
various artists - Cosmic American Music

Jeff Cowell - Not Down This Low

Hop On In

"You've got nothing to fear if you're sharing a beer with the son of God..." The Lord moves in mysterious ways indeed.

Terry Allen - Gimme A Ride To Heaven Boy

Wild Weekend Vol. 55

Finally found the time to do another edition of Wild Weekend, so brace yourselves. Two grand ole country tracks and a new one this week, plus an instrumental reggae beauty, and we'll go out with a lenghty and pioneering krautrock blowout to soothe your ears.

First up: someone new. Meet Josh T. Pearson, bearded guy from Texas and self-proclaimed 'last of the country gentlemen'. Spent long years in European exile, writing intense songs as a kind of personal therapy. Heavy stuff, no doubt about it. Do give him a chance if you're into the likes of Townes Van Zandt, Leonard Cohen, Nick Cave, and Will Oldham. Remember a band called Peglegasus? I didn't either, until I found their '92 debut cd Bacon, Lettuce & Tornado in a box up in the attic. And hey, they're not at all bad if you like your indie pop all jingly jangly.

Josh T. Pearson - Woman When I´ve Raised Hell MP3

Peglegasus - Moth Man MP3

Pedal steel wizard Ralph Mooney died recently, and that's a damn shame. He played on plenty classic country songs by Wynn Stewart and Buck Owens, and later prominently backed Merle Haggard and Waylon Jennings. For a fitting in memoriam, teleport yourself to the always inspiring Adios Lounge. And enjoy the immortal Under Your Spell Again by Owens here, which features 'Mister Moon' in all his glory. If seventies outlaw country from Texas is more up your alley, do head over to Singing In The Wire for an excellent mixtape featuring top notch songs by Kris Kristofferson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Townes Van Zandt and others. Terry Allen's cool ode to a Lubbock Woman didn't make the cut alas, as the compiler picked the equally fine Amarillo Highway, so I'll simply put it up here.

Buck Owens - Under Your Spell Again MP3

Terry Allen - Lubbock Woman MP3

Let's switch musical styles once more now and enjoy a pretty amazing reggae instrumental by the Crystalites. From 1970, produced by the mighty Derrick Harriott, and with a title to die for. "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust... caramba!" And we've come to the end of yet another Wild Weekend extravaganza with one of the first krautrock groups known to mensch: the obscure Xhol Caravan. From '69, Raise Up High is nearly 18 minutes long and as out there as can be. Haben Sie eine Wilde, or something like that. See ya next week.

The Crystalites - Undertakers Burial MP3

Xhol Caravan - Raise Up High MP3

Where Did The Wolfman Go

As reader Pete from down under recently pointed out to me after I wrote about obscure Texas country artist Terry Allen in these pages, there´s more to the man than just his masterpiece Lubbock (On Everything). His later efforts may be a little more uneven, but the highlights are definitely not to be missed.

Take Flatland Boogie, from Human Remains (´96) for instance. A heavenly tune, featuring exquisite backing vocals by Lucinda Williams, who´s timing it just right. Richard Bowden´s fiddle is to die for, too. "Got Four Roses in a sack, and we ain´t lookin´ back tonight..." Sounds good to me.

Terry Allen - Flatland Boogie MP3

Turning On A Light

While reading the liner notes to Jimmie Dale Gilmore´s After Awhile (see post below) I happened upon the following Gilmore quote, describing his early, pre-Flatlanders days in Lubbock, Texas. "A number of factors and people influenced my writing. To begin with, there´s a guy named Terry Allen whom I met in highschool. He´s a couple of years older than me, and he´s a pianist, a songwriter, and also a very accomplished painter and sculptor. We became very good friends, and meeting someone who actually wrote songs turned on a light for me. I realized that you could just do it, you didn´t have to wait ´til you were forty years old."

Some inspiration. I´ve been digging Allen´s rather obscure ´79 masterpiece Lubbock (On Everything) for a long time now. It´s an album every country music fan worth his salt should own, but for some reason only a happy few know it even exists. So if you´re "all caught-up with the need, to trade in some emptied out spaces for some speeeeed, an that good ol´ American Dream," check out the fine songs below.

Terry Allen - The Wolfman Of Del Rio MP3

Terry Allen - New Delhi Freight Train MP3