Kinda Overdid It

 

The illustrious troubadour duo of Bill & Will takes on a Hank Williams Jr. oldie in grand style, featuring an adventurous Matt Sweeney on guitar. Great stuff! Four tracks have appeared so far, which might just mean there's a whole album of covers in the works. Fingers are crossed.

Bill Callahan & Bonnie Prince Billy - OD'd In Denver

And lest we forget, mr. Callahan's recently released one of his own, too. Gold Record sure does glitter here and there, but the irony factor's so high it's like listening to a Dave Eggers novel set to music at times. Don't overdo it, Bill.

Bill Callahan - Let's Move To The Country

Worth The World

Mr. Smog shows his good taste by covering obscure outlaw Lee Clayton. And as his interpretation of the happy Len classic on the flip ain't half bad either, I'm keeping my fingers crossed in hope of a full-length covers album.

Bill Callahan - If You Could Touch Her At All
Lee Clayton - If You Could Touch Her At All

World Of Mystery

After quite a long absence due to marital bliss and parenthood, Mr. Deadpan strikes again. And although not as firmly focused as his 2013 tour de force Dream River, the twenty short and sweet stream of conciousness tracks collected here certainly don't disappoint. The track below has him at his most tender, crooning about the woman of his dreams. But being Bill C, he just can't help himself and has to add a wacky detail concerning Willie Nelson's guitar.

Bill Callahan - What Comes After Certainty

No More Must I Strive

Singer loses faith, puts god away. While we're waiting for a new Bill Callahan album, this stark beauty will do nicely.

Bill Callahan - Faith/Void

Givin' Praise

"Well... the only words I said today are beer and thank you..." A delicious country-style taster of the new Bill Callahan album is what's in store this Saturday. That mr. Smog just keeps getting better and better I tell you. And you? You never had it so good. Beer. Thank you. Cheers.

Bill Callahan - The Sing

Wild Weekend Vol. 60

About time for Wild Weekend, edition 60. Afro, lofi, ancient blues and so much more for your money. Will melt away the clouds in no time. But first: a simple question.

We know by now they can play the blues (a bit), but can white boys play reggae, too? If they're true roots fans and mix it in with a punk rock background, why not? Just ask the Clash. Or the Ruts, whose angry and rootsy Jah War remains a classic in the genre. "Fighting, fighting, too close frightening..." And here's one especially for the missus. She saw Bill Callahan live in concert a couple of days ago and was mighty impressed, but couldn't remember for the life of her that we already saw the man play a couple of times when he still operated under the Smog moniker. To refresh her memory, here's the lofi and funny 37 Pushups: "I feel like Travis Bickle, I'm listening to Highway To Hell..."

The Ruts - Jah War MP3

Smog - 37 Pushups MP3

Promising new stuff up next, in the form of Two Cent Revival. From Brooklyn, where a lot of cool new bands reside at the mo, but sounding like they have a Texas - or maybe even Seattle - background. Their brooding The Devil's In This Whiskey immediately brought Mark Lanegan to mind, which is definitely a good thing. Gonna continue my obscure nineties indie fixation now with another short-lived combo you probably won't remember: Big Trouble House. Hailing from Minneapolis, they were almost inevitably raised on Soul Asylum and the Mats, which is obvious on their recommended second and last album Mouthful Of Violence.

Two Cent Revival - The Devil's In This Whiskey MP3

Big Trouble House - Union Feed Grain Mill MP3

The Library of Congress just launched a cool new website that allows listeners to stream a vast archive of more than 10,000 pre-1925 recordings of music, speeches, poetry and comedy. Much of it hasn't been widely available since World War I, so go there asap if you like old timey stuff I'd say. And since they forgot to include Ma Rainey's 1924 gem Booze & Blues for some reason, I'll put it up here. And I'll bid you farewell with a jazzy Afro scorcher by the one and only Fela Ransome Kuti. Bought a twofer of prime '75 albums I didn't own yet of the Nigerian master last week - Everything Scatter paired with Noise For Vendor Mouth - and I've been groovin' to them ever since. Go wild.

Ma Rainey - Booze & Blues MP3

Fela Kuti - Mattress MP3

Wonder Show

It´s a dirty job, but somebody´s gotta do it... So without further ado, here´s the one and only For The Sake Of The Song end of year list. Accept no substitutes, baby. Ten albums that were in heavy rotation during 2010, and that´s what counts in the end. Check! Buy the whole wonder show why don´t you.

1. Gil Scott-Heron - I´m New Here

Unexpected comeback of the year, by one of HipHop´s true forefathers.

Gil Scott-Heron - I´ll Take Care Of You MP3

2. Bonnie Prince Billy & The Cairo Gang - The Wonder Show Of The World

Will Oldham met guitarist Emmett Kelly, which lifted the fog on many a dreary day.

3. Charlie Parr - When The Devil Goes Blind

Intense and authentic pre-war blues, anno 2010. No, I´m not kidding.

Charlie Parr- 1890 MP3

4. Neil Young - Le Noise

Teaming up with producer Daniel Lanois was an excellent idea, sonically speaking.

5. First Aid Kit - The Big Black And The Blue

A lovely Swedish girl duo provided no-frills acoustic bliss. Jag älskar dig.

First Aid Kit - Sailor Song MP3

6. Phosphorescent - Here´s To Taking It Easy

Matthew Houck´s take on Americana compared to slipping into a warm bath.

7. Wounded Lion - Wounded Lion

Growling barb wire pop from smoggy LA. Debut of the year I´m sure.

Wounded Lion - Pony People MP3

8. Tunng - ...And Then We Saw Land

Not as adventurous as previous outings, but still the finest freakfolkers around.

9. Isobell Campbell & Mark Lanegan - Hawk

That marriage between a Belle and a Screaming Tree surely was made in heaven.

Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan - You Won´t Let Me Down Again MP3

10. Bill Callahan - Rough Travel For A Rare Thing

The former Smog foreman impressed once more, this time in an intimate live setting.

Bubbling under: Sun Kil Moon, Grinderman, Joanna Newsom, Drive-By Truckers, Pearly Gate Music, Off!, the Black Keys, Alasdair Roberts, Roky Erickson with Okkervil River, and the Graham Nash tribute Be Yourself.

Some old stuff released this year that I really enjoyed: Johnny Cash´s epitaph American VI: Ain´t No Grave, Dylan´s Witmark Demos and Live At Brandeis University, Complete Mythology by Syl Johnson, Satan´s A Waitin´ by Sonny Burns, and the Legacy Edition of Raw Power by Iggy & the Stooges. Music books of the year: Bob Dylan In America by Sean Wilentz, and We Never Learn - The Gunk Punk Undergut 1988-2001 by Eric Davidson.

Wishing you a bopping new year, dear readers. I´m off on a short break, see ya sometime early 2011.

Wild Weekend Vol. 44

Welcome to Wild Weekend #44, the all-women edition. Why, I dunno. Just is. Just enjoy. On this week´s menu: soul, lofi, more soul, country, folk, and flamenco. Have a wild one.

First we´ll visit The Scene Of The Crime, soul veteran Bettye LaVette´s red hot ´07 collaboration with the Drive-By Truckers. Exhibit A: the Lavette/Patterson Hood composition Before The Money Came, a fingerlickin´ good autobiographical barroom stomper. "I was singing R&B back in ’62, before you were born and your mama too..." And to ring in the festive season in style, let´s pass the mic to the lovely Cynthia Dall, once prominently on stage in a vintage wedding dress with Smog. Quite a sight, I remember well. You can hear Smog mastermind Bill Callahan, her then-boyfriend, on guitar here btw.

Bettye LaVette - Before The Money Came (The Battle Of Bettye LaVette) MP3

Cynthia Dall - Christmas (California) MP3

More soul: everybody knows Piece Of My Heart as one of Janis Joplin´s signature tunes with Big Brother & The Holding Company, but Aretha´s older sister Erma sang it first. Written by Jerry Ragovoy and Bert Berns, it wasn´t that big a hit when first released back in ´67. Strange, as that pumpin´ piano alone is worth the price of admission. But Erma found justice a decade or three later, when her Piece Of My Heart finally topped the charts on the back of a jeans commercial. Next we´re moving firmly into country territory with the incomparable Tammy Wynette, who´s on a journey to the wilder side of life here. Seeing her live in concert once, mainly singing from a barstool, and with a dress change between almost every other song, is something I still remember fondly. "If you like ´em painted up, powdered up, then you ought to be glad, because your good girl´s gonna go bad..."

Erma Franklin - Piece Of My Heart MP3

Tammy Wynette - Your Good Girl´s Gonna Go Bad MP3

"Hurting like a woman and crying like a baby..." Or: another original of a song interpreted so well by Bonnie Prince Billy and Tortoise on their The Brave And The Bold covers collection. Don´t think Melanie Safka is all Lay Down and Candles In The Rain and stuff, she could carry intense teenage pregnancy psychodramas like Some Say (I Got Devil) to perfection as well. Heavy stuff. And it´s bye bye and adios for now with some hotblooded flamenco puro from one of the Mujerez. Presenting Dolores Agujeta, a hell of a singer from a famous Jerez De La Frontera flamenco dynasty. ¡Agua!

Melanie - Some Say (I Got Devil) MP3

Dolores Agujeta - Llévame Contigo MP3

A Flame That Moves

High time we aired some new sounds here again. All tracks below were either recently released or will be very soon. Featuring some new kids on the block, some relatively old hands and even one living legend-ah. Here goes.

If you like moving around in Will Oldham and Joanna Newsom territory, better check out Uncles. This fresh duo from Queens, New York will release their Replacing Words With Other Words sometime next month, and taster Settler´s Song really soars. Promising is definitely the word here.

Uncles - Settler´s Song MP3

Update alert: you can now download the whole Uncles album for free here.

And speaking of Joanna Newsom, you probably know by now that the harp-playing nymph recently released a new triple album. Kudos to her wonderful label Drag City, if only for simply daring to do such a thing. Three discs is a little too much for a fairly recent convert like me, but highlighs like Jackrabbits are not to be missed. "And Matthew spoke to me, said there's a flame that moves like a low-down pest, that says: you will be free..."

Joanna Newsom - Jackrabbits MP3

More Drag City up now, as Smog foreman Bill Callahan´s got a new live album in the works. Rough Travel For A Rare Thing just might be a stunner, if the moving Bowery is anything to go by. "I´m new here and I got a pit in my gut..." Is Bill Callahan the new Lou Reed?

Bill Callahan - Bowery MP3

Wonderful to see that the legendary Mark E. Smith is still at it-ah. The Fall has been musically subversive for more than thirty years now - see a recent post of mine on their two glorious ´79 albums here - but refuses to knuckle under. Your Future Our Clutter will be on the market in late April. Here´s a tasty amuse.

The Fall - Y.F.O.C. / Slippy Floor MP3

Time for some Americana now, with The Fox Hunt and their new longplayer Long Way To Go. These West Virginians have a fine singer in John R. Miller and use mandolin, banjo and fiddle to pepper their rootsy rock sound. If these guys aren´t real hot live I´ll eat Bono´s stupid hat.

The Fox Hunt - Screw Me Up MP3

Apart from playing in Chicago band Dolly Varden, Steve Dawson teaches songwriting at the Old Town School Of Folk Music in the Windy City. His second solo effort I Will Miss The Trumpets And The Drums shows he knows his trade well. Got a fine voice, too. Soulful rock with crossover potential.

Steve Dawson - Today She Found The Way To Break My Heart MP3

Leatherbag hails from Austin and will release their latest offering Hey Day in mid April. Frontman Randy Reynolds has a serious Reed/Dylan/Feelies fixation, and that´s a big plus in my book of course. Definitely one more band to watch.

Leatherbag - Start All Over Again MP3

Stop press: talking about living legends... I just got the sad news that Memphis maestro Alex Chilton has died. The singer and guitarist of the Box Tops and Big Star, invisible man who could sing in a visible voice, was one of the true greats.

Alex Chilton - Every Time I Close My Eyes MP3

Walking Side By Side

Soul survivor and godfather of hiphop Gil Scott-Heron is back after a long absence, and that´s good news. I saw the man, who came to fame with the immortal The Revolution Will Not Be Televised in the early seventies, perform live one time in a small club in the late eighties and that made quite an impression. Although attendance was poor to say the least, Gil gave it his all and simply sang his heart out for two hours.

On his new album, the ironically titled I´m New Here, he deliciously modernizes blues legend Robert Johnson´s Me And The Devil Blues. Heavy stuff, inna surprising triphop stylee. Do yourself a favor and compare the two below, and in chronological order if you please. "Hello Satan, I believe it´s time to go..."

Robert Johnson - Me And The Devil Blues MP3

Gil Scott-Heron - Me And The Devil MP3

The title track of I´m New Here brings another surprise. Who could ever have thought Scott-Heron would one day cover a song by Bill Callahan of lofi heroes Smog? Cool choice, and Gil obviously has fun with it.

"Met a woman in a bar, I told her I was hard to get to know, and near impossible to forget...

She said I had an ego on me the size of Texas...

Well I´m new here, and I forget, does that mean big or small?"

Gil Scott-Heron - I´m New Here MP3

Smog - I´m New Here MP3