The Wood Brothers - "Postcards From Hell"

I am happy to say that I've been introduced to a great new band this week.  Thanks goes out to the musical wizard of Warren County, Brett Schaffer for handing me Boulder, Colorado's The Wood Brothers on a silver platter this week via our new online musical toy: Spotify.  Been reading a lot about these guys and sampling their entire catalog of music (three, soon to be four studio albums) over the past couple of evenings and I like what I hear...kind of blown away actually.  Definitely have the same sort of folk-rock vibe as The Avett Brothers but are really quite unique in their own right.

As Rubber City Review blogger Tim Quine writes: "About a year ago – in one of my feeble attempts to prove I listen to living, breathing musicians – I waxed poetic about The Wood Brothers. Since then, they’ve gone from being great to scary great. Slap your mammy great. The kind of great that makes you forget all about good.  What do I base this on, you might ask? Well, there’s that unerring factor known as the “chicken skin” test, as Ry Cooder would call it. When I caught them live last week in nearby Kent, Ohio – and was treated to a first listen of their soon-to-be-released album “Smoke Ring Halo” – I had those tell-tale bumps on my arms that told me I was on to something rare in this world of reality-show divas and painfully hip dilettantes. The title song itself is almost a perfect distillation of what this band does best – rootsy, but not reverent… deeply soulful, but all about left-field hooks (like the phrase Smoke Ring Halo, for example) that suck you in right away… and far more musically accomplished than just about any other band playing in that unfortunately named “Americana” sandbox (think Avett Brothers and Mumford & Sons – good bands, but in my mind, just not on the same level as the Woods)."

I'd say he likes this band.  So now do I....and I think you will too.  "Postcards From Hell" is from their second album, the 2008 release 'Loaded.'  ENJOY!

  Listen to "Postcards From Hell"
        From the album 'Loaded'

Click to view The Wood Brothers tour dates.
Click to view The Wood Brothers "Lovin' Arms video.

Xavier Rudd - "No Woman No Cry"

We’re heading down under for this week’s song-of-the-weekend. Today we’re featuring the earthy sounds of Australian native Xavier Rudd.  The thirty-three year old Rudd has recorded six studio albums and has had a good deal of success in his homeland as well as in North America, particularly in Canada.  Many of Rudd’s songs incorporate socially conscious themes, such as environmentalism and the rights of Aboriginal people. In addition to playing the didgeridoo in many of his songs, he has also included both Australian and Canadian Aboriginal vocals in some of his songs.

How would I describe his musical style?  I’ll defer to the Boston Globe:  “Xavier Rudd… offers a strikingly original mix of music. Some of his sound (and idealism) echoes the surf-folk of Jack Johnson, while his Weissenborn guitar-playing evokes Ben Harper. But mostly, Rudd is on a plateau of his own, playing a one-man blend of guitars, didgeridoos, stomp boxes, djembe drums, and even slide banjo.” 

Today’s song is a cover version of the very popular Bob Marley song “No Woman No Cry” and it comes from Rudd’s second album, the 2004 release ‘Solace.’  I always LOVE new and different arrangements of songs and this one fits that bill but…I think it still maintains the essence of the original at the same time.   ENJOY!

Listen to “No Woman No Cry”

 
From the album ‘Solace’

Click here to view Xavier Rudd tour dates.
Click here to view live video of Xavier Rudd “No Woman No Cry.”

Amos Lee - "Flower"

Amos Lee has come a long way from second grade school teacher and part-time bartender .  He is a man in demand these days.  The Philadelphia-bred folk-soul-rock songwriter’s latest album ‘Mission Bell’ was released in January and debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 chart.  I would have to say it’s my favorite of the four studio albums he has released including his debut in 2005….although each is excellent in its own right.  Currently, he is in the middle of an extensive tour in support of this new album and has been selling out shows all over the U.S. and the world. With shows scheduled practically every other day through September, Lee still somehow managed the time to accept a personal invitation from President Barack Obama and play at the White House during the recent Fourth of July celebration…hard to say no when the President calls I suppose.

And you have to love the company he keeps.  As Wikipedia says: …an American singer-songwriter and guitarist whose musical style encompasses folk, rock and soul. He has released four albums on Blue Note Records and toured with musical acts such as Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello, Norah Jones, Paul Simon, Merle Haggard, John Prine, Dave Matthews Band and Adele.

Our selection for today is “Flower” and it’s the second single from ‘Mission Bell.’   Check out the silky-smooth vocals and the beautiful melody….Amos rocks.  ENJOY!

Listen to Amos Lee “Flower”

From the album ‘Mission Bell’

Click here to watch a live acoustic Amos Lee “Flower” video.
Click here to view Amos Lee tour dates.

Patty Griffin - "Let Him Fly"

Looking over my posts I realized, for whatever reason, I had hardly featured any women artists. So we're going to fix that, this week at least, with one of my favorites...an oldie but a goodie.
Today we've got the unbelievably soulful sound of Patty Griffin. Originally from Old Town, Maine, Griffin began her musical career in a small way in and around Boston, and then moved to Nashville where things really took off for her. Although she recently moved to another hotbed of American music, Austin TX, she is still generally considered part of the Nashville scene.

One indication as to the quality of her songwriting might be the fact that so many of her songs have been recorded by so many different artists. As Wikipedia states:
Griffin's songs have been recorded by artists such as Irish-born singer Maura O'Connell ("Long Ride Home"), Linda Ronstadt ("Falling Down"), the Dixie Chicks ("Truth No. 2," "Top of the World," "Let Him Fly"), Bette Midler ("Moses"), Beth Nielsen Chapman, Christine Collister, and Dixie Chicks ("Mary"), Mary Chapin Carpenter ("Dear Old Friend"), Jessica Simpson ("Let Him Fly"), Martina McBride ("Goodbye"), Melissa Ferrick and Missy Higgins ("Moses"), Emmylou Harris ("One Big Love", "Moon Song"), Bethany Joy Galeotti ("Blue Sky"), The Wreckers ("One More Girl"), Keri Noble ("When It Don't Come Easy"), Joan Osborne ("What You Are"), Solomon Burke ("Up to the Mountain (MLK Song)"), and Miranda Lambert ("Getting Ready"). Kelly Clarkson performed "Up to the Mountain (MLK Song)" with Jeff Beck on guitar, ...on American Idol, and the live recording was released as a single immediately afterwards, reaching #56 on the Billboard Hot 100 in its first week and giving Griffin her highest charting position as a songwriter.

There are some pretty big names in there for sure but, personally, I like the way she sings her own songs just fine. "Let Him Fly" comes from the very first of her six studio recordings 'Living With Ghosts' and was released all the way back in 1996. There is just something about the tonal quality of her voice that I find absolutely remarkable.  ENJOY!

Patty Griffin - "Let Him Fly"
From the album 'Living With Ghosts'


Listen to "Let Him Fly"







Click here to view Patty Griffin tour dates.
Click here to watch a Patty Griffin video singing "Heavenly Day."

Jesse Harris - "The Secret Sun"

Jesse Harris is a prolific, New York-based, folk rock singer-songwriter who has many tremendous songs but is probably best known for a song he did not record.  He writes and collaborates often with Norah Jones and he wrote many of the songs for her 'Come Away With Me' debut album. One of those songs, "Don't Know Why" won Harris a Grammy.
Our song of the weekend for today is "The Secret Sun" which is the title track from a 2003 release. This song has actually had two other 'lives' as it was prominently featured in the movie Forgetting Sarah Marshall and just last year was picked up by the folks at Corona beer for their advertising campaign.
Kind of a cool, laid back sort of beachy feel to this one and it's a perfect way to ease into our Fourth of July holiday!
Turn up the music, ENJOY have yourself a nice weekend!

Jesse Harris - "The Secret Sun"
Title track from the album with the same name and featured on the "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" soundtrack.


Listen to "The Secret Sun"




Click to view Jesse Harris tour dates.
Click here to view a Jesse Harris video of "Don't Know Why".