People Take Warning

If there's a more mournful and sad sound than the violin introduction to the song "Crash Of Akron" I'd like to hear it. Bob Miller's "Crash Of Akron" is taken from People Take Warning on Tompkins Square. This 3 disc set of "Murder Ballads & Disaster Songs" contains a 48 page booklet with an introduction by Tom Waits. Here's an excerpt:

"In the late 1920's and early 1930's, the Depression gripped the Nation. It was a time when songs were tools for living. A whole community would turn out to mourn the loss of a member and to sow their songs like seeds. This collection is a wild garden grown from those seeds."

The Akron was a rigid helium filled airship like the Hindenburg. It crashed in 1933 killing 73 people on board. This historical song is of a kind that has vanished along with that ship. I commend Tompkins Square for compiling this impressive set. You can buy it here.

Crash Of Akron

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Belated Elvis Tribute: The Presley Sessions by Reid Jamieson & The Bluegrass Elvises Vol. 1

Don't forget to make the change to the new url in your bookmarks:

Songs:Illinois (http://songsillinois.net/)

and a new RSS feed:

Feedburner (http://www.feeds.feedburner.com/songsillinois/iueu)

This may be YOUR LAST CHANCE!

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My Elvis post. Never thought it would happen ttytt. But here's a couple oddball Elvis related projects that have that Songs:Illinois sound. I guess I'm a day late and a dollar short on the Elvis tributes, which sounds just about right for Songs:Illinois.

Reid Jamieson is a Canadian singer-songwriter whose acclaimed solo releases and heartbreakingly (for some) good looks reminds one of Charlie Sexton and/or Chris Isaak. Here's two from his August release - The Presley Sessions.



[mp3] Reid Jamieson - "Is It So Strange"
[mp3] Reid Jamieson "Trying To Get To You"

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Plus and I know this sounds weird but there's an Elvis inspired Bluegrass group with a record just out called Bluegrass Elvises Vol. 1 (buy it here). The group is a duo consisting of Shawn Camp and Billy Burnette. While they may not be bluegrass legends yet, both are accomplished players. They also have an Elvis connection, as it seems Billy's father and uncle used to kick a teenage Elvis out of their band rehersels. Billy Burnett's claim to fame is a decade on the road with Fleetwood Mac and recent gigs with John Fogerty. I could go on and on about the sound of the record but it is what it is - bluegrass and Elvis mixed up in a leaky cauldren. Here's the one slow song on the record:



[mp3] Bluegrass Elvises - "Are You Lonesome Tonight?"

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Rcahel Ries Returns with "Without A Bird" (plus an important announcement from Songs:Illinois)

Editor's note: Songs:Illinois hosted through blogger has been beset with problems. So, as of today, Song:Illnois is moving to it's own domain. Please change all your bookmarks and feeds to:

Songs:Illinois (http://songsillinois.net/)

Feedburner (http://www.feeds.feedburner.com/songsillinois/iueu)

Soon this blogger location will stop being updated. Please make the change now, I'd hate to lose anybody. Now back to the music!

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I'd like to be the first to let you know that Chicago's best-kept, not-so-secret, utterly amazing Rachel Ries' (MySpace) has new record out now. I wrote so much about Rachel's debut, For You Only, over the last year or so that I'm sure that that record became Songs:Illinois' most written about release. Expect the same from Without A Bird for the rest of 2007 and the beginning of 2008.

I've been listening to it for weeks and continue to hear new things in Rachel's classically trained voice, in the beautiful analog recording, and in the sparse yet perfectly aligned backing band. It's hard to sum up any great songwriter in just one or two sentences, but for me Rachel's songs are such a marvel of simplicity and restraint. Each lyrical phrase is usually just right, and when it is so carefully and fully enunciated in her vocals it's a joy to behold. The songs on Without a Bird are not radically different than from those on her debut. They mostly deal with the pain and yearning that's usually the result of some interaction with a man ("When Will You Be Mine"), or portraits of her adopted hometown of Chicago through the ideas of a girl from the prairie ("Chicago"), or some combination of both ("Fine, I'm Fine").

Those of you reading this blog are probably the first to hear about this release, and the first to be given the opportunity to buy it. If, as my stats imply, there are a whole bunch of you checking in daily to sample these songs I post, then I hope a large percentage of you will visit Rachel's Myspace page and buy the new record.

"Fine, I'm Fine" only uses a couple of instruments (cello, drums, and a Stella guitar) but the emotional impact from those instruments and Rachel's voice, at times whispered, and at times soaring, is spine-tingling music at it's best.

Fine, I'm Fine

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YouTube Saturday - The Jayhawks (Mark Olson, Gary Louris)

If you're even just a casual reader of this blog you know that I hold The Jayhawks in the highest regard. Their debut record (although not officially their first) Hollywood Town Hall is regarded as a classic in style ("Folk music played loud") and substance (lyrical content). Each subsequent record, even after one of the key members left the group, had elements that made it a must have record. Here's an assortment of videos from the band and it's main singers/songwriters (Mark Olson and Gary Louris).

"Salvation Blues"



"Blue"



"Baltimore Sun" from the debut Blue Earth



Gary Louris "Save It For A Rainy Day"




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Honky-Tonk Friday - Rebecca Pronsky (plus new music from The Whiles and Mark Berube)

Rebecca Pronsky new record, Arrivals And Departures, comes out in October on Nine Mile Records. On the two songs below she shifts from the honky-tonk of "Million Days" to the ethereal womyny track "Birds". I've got place in my heart for each, have you?

You can pre-order it here.

Million Days

Birds

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There are a couple post that have slipped through the cracks over the last month or two. They'll never see the light of day on their own so I'm going to tag them on to today's post.


The Whiles are from Columbus. I've never done a Columbus feature on Songs:Illinois. I guess that's becasue Donewaiting and WOXY already have that town covered. The band is releasing it's new record, Sleepers Wake, soon on local imprint Anyway Records. They've put one track up on their homepage for a preview. I'm no expert about the band. I've read they lost their lead singer, but from the sound of this song the replacement (lead songwriter Joe Peppercorn) has the vocal chops necessary.

Songs We Used To Know

Still Haunting Me (Demo)

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Mark Berube is one of the founding members of The Fugitives and he just so happens to have a brand new record out of his own. What The River Gave The Boat has got that old world Tom Waits meets Beirut type of sound that is a core element of Songs:Illinois. Both "Pretty Little Bird" with it's syncopated rhythms, cabaret piano and rollicking accordion and "Cloudy Day" with it's muted trumpet are great instrumental tracks. Add to that Mark's rich literary tales of woe and you've got quite a potent combination. Buy it here.



Pretty Little Bird (The Saint Of Vancouver)
Cloudy Day

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Caroline Herring - "Lantana" (Signature Sounds, Feb. `08)

Caroline Herring is an acclaimed singer-songwriter from Austin whose music is informed by the great Southern literary tradition, combined with the early gothic country sounds of the Carter Family, Loretta Lynn and contemporary artists like Gillian Welch and Iris Dement.

Her upcoming record, Lantana, is one of the first we'll mention that's to be released in `08. And I only do this because the label has released the first song from the record. "Paper Gown" is a song that details the inner demons of a woman who killed her children. It's a song that is set at least a century ago (and sounds it with echo-y banjo) but that is all the more relevant and powerful with the recent spate of infanticide. More info here.

Paper Gown

Bonus tracks from 2003's Wellspring

Trace
Jewels (w/Kelly Willis)

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Rod Picot's "Summerbirds"

I could have sworn I had done a post on Rod Picot sometime in the past, but a quick search of the S:I archives turned up nothing. Maybe I wrote something up and then passed on it. Who knows?! I'm actually torn on writing up these songs from his new release, Summerbirds, although they are well crafted, they are a bit obvious and Mellencampy for me.

But I figure that some posts I do for myself, and some I do for the readers that have slightly different tastes than my own. Rod's new record, Summerbirds, is out in September and has already garnered a 5 star review in the UK publication Maverick Magazine.



Jealous Stars
When Your Bird Won't Fly

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Oh My Gawd!!!...The Flaming Lips (Restless Records, 1987)

And now for something completely different.

I along with many others have given up on The Flaming Lips. This is partly due to overexposure (live dvd, books, televised concert appearences and endless hype by the internerds), but the bouncing beach balls and psych-lite muzak of recent releases doesn't help. For a kick I pulled out my clear vinyl copy of Oh My Gawd - The Flaming Lips and cued up track 1.

"Everything's Exploding" is good example of the catchy psychedelic rock the band had perfected by the time of the release in 1987 of their sophomore record Oh My Gawd. This record is a document of the time when they had more in common with early Nirvana, Husker Du and The Replacements rather than the fuzzy, happy pop of The Beach Boys or Sgt. Peppers era Beatles.

Usually I'd have a link to buy, but in this case the records out of print. Some are going for $100 on EBay, not sure how much my mint clear vinyl edition would fetch. Maybe in 50 years you'll see me on Antiques Road Show. Here's "Everything's Explodin'":

Everything's Explodin'

"One Million, Billionth of a Millisecond On a Sunday Morning" live




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Kasey Anderson - "Reckoning" (Terra Soul Records, Sept. 11)

Kasey Anderson (Terra Soul Records) has just turned up on my radar despite having released a critically acclaimed debut in 2004, touring with the likes of Steve Earle, Tift Merritt, and Peter Case, and being produced by one of my favorites Eric "Roscoe" Ambel (the Del Lords, Joan Jett).

His new record, Reckoning, sounds a bit like you'd suspect based on the producer and the names mentioned above. But of course even something that sounds derivative, lives and dies on it's own merit according to the quality of the execution and the depth of the lyrics. In this case this record does the rough alt-country sound proud with songs like "Long Way Home" and "Buddy Bolden's Blues".

Buy it here.

Long Way Home
Buddy Bolden's Blues

From 2004's Dead Roses (And Blood Red Wine)

Dead Roses (And Blood Red Wine)
Weary Heart

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Cindy Lee Berryhill's record, Beloved Stranger, comes out tomorrow. She's got a new video for the song "When Did Jesus Become A Republican". You can buy the new record now at the excellent record store Village Records here (I haven't linked to this store before but they've got a great mix of new and old on their site).



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YouTube Saturday - The Violent Femmes

In honor of Aquarium Drunkard's recent post on The Violent Femmes album Hallowed Ground here is my YouTube Saturday feature on the boys. The only points I'd like to make might seem obvious but I'll say them anyway.

The knocks against the band's (primarily Gordon Gano's) religious or spiritual material were just plain wrong. The bulk of serious music over the last several millennium has been religious music. There's no greater or deeper topic to write about. And the songs Gano penned are a lasting testament to both his faith and his questions about his faith.

For a time this was the most accomplished group of musicians playing rock music in America. Brian Ritchie is a monster on the bass and just about any other instrument he picks up. Victor played a mean stripped down drum kit and for god's sake John Zorn was often in the horn section!

Finally like AD said Hallowed Ground was an overlooked masterpiece but I'd also argue that 3 and Why Do Birds Sing? have been under appreciated, 3 in particular.


Country Death Song



I Hear The Rain



Jesus Walking On Water



Gone Daddy Gone




Breaking Up



American Music



Used To Be




Behind the scenes video





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Rachel Ries' Folk Cover Of Outkast's 1996 Hit "Elevator"

I was trying to be patient and not write about the upcoming Rachel Ries record Without A Bird. Right now I'm just waiting for a link to CDBaby or maybe Rachel's own store so I can wax poetic about what a great record it is.

But since I couldn't wait any longer and had to post something new from her, I've got her new cover of OutKast's 1996 song "Elevators". To the best of my knowledge this is one of the few folk covers of a hardcore rap song. Now, we can debate the hardcore nature of OutKast and this song all day long, but nonetheless it's a little odd to hear such a beautiful voice sing about "the hood", "not making no g's", "pimps" and "crunk and junk". Anyway listen to this a couple of times, and tell me you aren't impressed and that this cover version of "Elevators" shouldn't be an internet sensation

Elevators

"Leaning Into The Wind" at Abundance Eco Village




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S:I House Concert Series Presents - Eilen Jewell and ?

The ongoing and surprisingly successful Songs:Illinois House Concert Series is back this Sunday, September 16. We've got a great lineup and you're not invited. Well not exactly but if you do live within an hours drive of Chicago, and you just have to come out, email me at cbonnell@gmail.com and we'll see what we can do. To help the artists we raise as much money as possible by passing the proverbial hat and I also promise to spread a little more ink about the groups we feature. Of course the groups we feature are Songs:Illinois favorites so writing a bit more about them is easy.

This week we welcome the Eilen Jewell Band from Boston (by way of Idaho) and ? from Austin (I can't say who due to contractual reasons with a nearby club). So mostly I'll talk about Eilen which is no way minimizing our other act. Eilen's been in the news a bit lately with rave 4 Star reviews in the Philadelphia Inquirer, The Washington Post and The Irish Times, as well as being the featured artist last week on NPR's World Cafe syndicated show.

It's safe to say I'm in love with her new record, Sinners and Saints. It hits all the right Americana notes by mixing western swing, texan alt-country with northern jazz and folk. It's the real deal. I've already linked a plenty to Sinners and Saints, so here's the title track from her debut cd, "Boundary County". Order it here.

Boundary County


"Rich Man's World" from Sinners and Saints



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"Hill Country Girl" from the new ep by Will Kimbrough (Will and the Bushmen, the bis-quits)

Even if you think you don't know Will Kimbrough, you do. You may have heard his 80's college rock band Will and The Bushman, or his next roots rock band the bis-quits (recorded one recod for John Prine's Oh Boy) or his critically acclaimed solo work. If not, you might have heard his pay-the-rent guitar playing with Jimmy Buffet, Rodney Crowell, Josh Rouse or Kim Richey. If you're involved in the production racket you would know his work for Adrienne Young, Todd Snider or Kate Campbell. If you're still drawing a blank you've clearly got to get out a bit more.

Will's got a new ep out called ep. Its 8 songs are mostly acoustic and highlight his more mellow, folkier side. "Hill Country Girl" is a beautiful love ballad that's beauty seems only matched by the female protagonist (the "hill country girl"). You can buy ep here for $10.

Hill Country Girl

"Everyone's In Love" via Corporate Country Sucks.



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Tall Tales - :Short Songs By Tall Tales And The Silver Lining (Beehouse Records)

I wish I had somehow written about the Tall Tales ep Short Songs By Tall Tales And The Silver Lining (Beehouse Records) back in March when it was released. Although I don't see myself as having much pull, perhaps a few sympathetic bloggers could have piled on and gotten behind this understated ep and it could have seen a wider release/more praise. As it is now, in Internet time, this release is has-been.

"The Glow" is northern California freak-folk (lite on the freak) complete with lyrical references to nature, the sea and the wind. Musically it's all over the place with plenty of finger-picked acoustic guitar, a bongo solo and even some feedback laced electric guitar (for the Neil Young fan inside each and every one of us). You can buy this 9 song ep here from Beehouse.



The Glow

Tall Tales video courtesy of Songs From A Window podcast/YouTube video channel



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