Safe and secure from all alarms ... even Robert Mitchum . "Leaning On The Everlasting Arms" is a hymn written in the late 19th century, not markedly different in structure or tone from a thousand other hymns and spirituals of the era. Composed by Anthony Showalter and Elisha Hoffman, "Leaning" was inspired by Deuteronomy 33:27, "The eternal God is thy refuge and underneath are the everlasting arms." If you're gonna write a hymn, that's probably a good place to start. However, the [...]
The Grim Reaper wreaked havoc in May. Robin Gibb, Donna Summer and Adam Yauch were the headliners, but there were also members of The Dillards and Crowded House who left us. Two blues and soul guitarists died: Charles Pitts, who played on so many of Isaac Hayes’ records (his guitar helped make The Theme of Shaft such an iconic track) and Pete Cosey, who played on many Chess records. In April we lost Andrew Love, who was involved in creating the iconic intro for Otis Redding’s Try A Little Tenderness. In May we lost another co-creator of a [...]
Los Angeles Times (MCT) -- LOS ANGELES - Bluegrass banjo pioneer Earl Scruggs answered a knock at the door of his Nashville home in 1953 to find an eager-looking banjo enthusiast on the porch asking Scruggs to put a set of his special tuner keys on the young man's instrument. "He was so gracious," Rodney Dillard said of the reception his older brother, banjo player Doug Dillard, received that day from the father of the bluegrass banjo. "He sold him...
By Davis McGraw I suck at keeping up with new releases, but I’m a sucker for show & tell. Here are five records that I heard in 2011 and deserve a good listen. 5. Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes: Havin’ A Party With Southside Johnny (1979) [Goodwill in Laconia, August] Johnny found his way into my collection near the end of a brief serendipitous streak, and for that I thank him. Much like the Boss, these boardwalk boys know their escapism back & forth. 4. Ry Cooder: Paris, Texas (1985) [Burlington Records, September] I remember watching Paris, Texas for [...]
In the slipstream of Johnny Cash came what would become known as the Outlaw Movement, an informal response to Nashville’s easy listening, corporate and safe style, often recorded in Texas, reviving the honky tonk sounds of Hank Williams with strong lyrical content. Starting in the mid-’60s with singers like Bobby Bare, Tompall Glaser and Johnny Darrell, the sub-genre’s standard bearers would include Waylon Jennings and his wife Jessi Colter, Willie Nelson (after he grew his hair), Kris Kristofferson, Leon Russell, Billy Joe Shaver, Hank Williams Jr, Jerry Jeff Walker and Gram Parsons. More traditionally-minded country stars, many mentored [...]
The short-lived, yet excellent, Dillard & Clark covering the Beatles "Don't Let Me Down." I originally had planned to run this the same week in December that I shared Charlotte Dada's Ghanese cover of the track as a bit of a compare and contrast but (obviously) forgot. The holidays came and went and I just [...]
The last ever photo of the Beatles together, as far as I know. Ringo and Paul wave goodbye, George looks exceedingly pleased, and John looks for Yoko (or perhaps Allen Klein). Tomorrow, 10 April, marks the 40th anniversary of Paul McCartney announcing the offcial disbandment of The Beatles. Of course, the Beatles were finished long before that. The final session for the Abbey Road album was, as the song had it, The End. And the guys knew it. Still, nothing was announced until 10 April 1970, when Paul unilaterally declared the Beatles kaputt. There [...]
We saw this sad day coming, but we have heard from multiple sources, including John Timmons, Mayor Abramson, Ron Whitehead, each member of My Morning Jacket and Pitchfork Media, that ear x-tacy will be moving from its Bardstown Road location to further down Bardstown Road at the Bashford Manor Mall in the old Dillards. Ear x-tacy's lease ended yesterday, March 31, 2010, and they did not renew the lease. They will have one month to vacate the premises. Jonas P. Ruthlidge III, owner/CEO of the Ruthlidge Management Group, [...]
The Dillards - Reason To Believe ( buy ) Following up on the previous post, here's another wistful Tim Hardin composition. It's The Dillards performing Hardin's second most famous song. It comes from their 1968 LP Wheatstraw Suite , one of the notable progressive bluegrass albums of the 1960s.
Totally Inappropriate: MP3: The Dillards - Lemon Chimes
It's official, famed rodent Punxsutawney Phil has seen his shadow (again) meaning 6 more weeks of winter. Yay! According to the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, since 1887 Phil has seen his shadow 97 times, hasn’t seen it 15 times (there are no records for nine of the years). Nevertheless, enjoy this eclectic Groundhog's Day Mix. [Right-Click links to Save As] MP3: Ramblin' Thomas - Groundhog Blues MP3: Jay Weston - Groundhog MP3: The Dillards - Ground Hog MP3: Primus - Groundhog's Day MP3: [...]
Tired of the same old country and rock? Looking for something new? Why not give bluegrass a shot? It's folky without being maudlin. It features great technical playing without sacrificing its downhome soulfulness. It's got those wonderful close harmonies. And it's a truly independent music scene. (There's not much money in bluegrass.) Today's bluegrass sales pitch is promted by a great bluegrass mix over at Stranger Dance . Check it out! It's just about the right size for CD and makes for some nice autumnal listening. My little girl and I [...]
City folk have long enjoyed poking fun at their rural cousins, and yet it seems many in the cities and sprawling suburbs envy what they believe to be the simpler, more natural life of the folks they call hillbillies and country bumpkins. The media has, for decades, helped to foster the stereotypical view the inhabitants of rural areas, especially mountain folk. Since the 1930s, Al Capp’s comic strip exploits of Li'l Abner, Daisy Mae, and all the folks of Dogpatch were a regular feature in newspapers across North America. In 1960, CBS Television aired the [...]
This post is inspired by an e-mail from reader Tom who took issue with my off-the-cuff comment in an earlier post that Gram Parsons “wrote the book” on country rock . I had been referring to Parsons' work with The Byrds, The Flying Burrito Brothers, & as a solo act, and wrongly implied that Parsons invented country rock. Tom, who knows his stuff, rightly pointed out that several country rock songs were released before The Byrds put country-rock on the map in the Summer of 1968 with Sweetheart of the Rodeo . [...]
No musical style is more often associated with close harmony than bluegrass. “You can’t get more authentic than bluegrass music” is a refrain I hear often. After all, bluegrass is deeply rooted in the music of Appalachia and the Anglo-Celtic heritage that was its foundation. Bluegrass is played on traditional acoustic instruments. The vocals, that “high lonesome” falsetto and close harmony, are a signature sound of the Appalachians. Even the song lyrics are reminders of home, family, and a simpler life. Many people feel that bluegrass music is one of the only authentic traditional American musical styles [...]
Today we have a special guest appearance from Brendan of The Rising Storm , one of my favorite music blogs. The Rising Storm is a great place to discover lost gems in the genres of garage, country rock, psych folk, and psychedelic rock. If you haven't checked it out yet, be sure to get over there soon. Like me, Brendan is also a big fan of bluegrass music, and he's got a great record collection. So, without further ado, take it away Brendan... The discography of bluegrass music is chock [...]
The Dillards are a pioneering bluegrass group that got started releasing tight as hell traditional records and performing as the hillbilly band on The Andy Griffith Show during the early 60s. Their legacy has been influence to the best in bluegrass, newgrass, country and folk rock and their most significant contribution is thought of as the Sweetheart Of The Rodeo of bluegrass , Wheatstraw Suite. It may not be as revered or rugged as Sweetheart, having a cleaner sound akin to that of the Beau Brummel's country rock work , but it oughta' be every bit [...]
8 ans avant de quasiment inventer le country-rock en compagnie de Gene Clark, Doug Dillard signait avec son frère et quelques collistiers le 1er album des Dillards. C'est sûr, Back Porch Bluegrass offre un autre type de voyage que The Fantastic Expedition of Dillard & Clark. C'est strictement de bluegrass dont il s'agit ici et rien ne laisse deviner que le groupe passera à l'électricité quelques
The Adios Lounge
Any Major Dude With Half A Heart
PopMatters
T-Sides
An Aquarium Drunkard
Backseat Sandbar
Groover's Paradise
Cold Splinters
Subservient Experiment
Setting The Woods On Fire
Old Blue Bus
The Rising Storm
There's Always Someone Cooler Than You
Kanye West - [Album]
Blondie returning with a new album and a show at the Keswick in October
Stream: Little Daylight – “Glitter & Gold”
