This Mornin' I Am Born AgainListen. Get Re-Born

After getting This Mornin’…. added to The Hype Machine a few weeks ago, my hits have been soaring – from about 50 a day to over 200! i’m glad i’m getting some readers, but i’ve still only got about 5 comments total. i wanna hear from you.

~buy EverythingUpsideDown (2004) – Amazing Album

mp3: Guy Clark – Shut Up and Talk To Me
~buy Dublin Blues (1995) – Masterpiece

mp3: Ryan Adams – Words
~buy Elizabethtown Soundtrack, Vol. 2 (2005)

i’ve had a Gospel playlist on my iPod for quite some time now. There’s something really special about music in general, but add some uplifting lyrics inspired by The Man and you get something really moving. There’s one guy ultimately responsible for me becoming interested in this spiritually-rooted music (well, aside from Him of course) – Mike McClure. It most likely started after i got The Great Divide project Dirt and Spirit – a Red Dirt compilation disc of Gospel tunes:

mp3: The Great Divide – Deliver Us

mp3: The Great Divide – Angels Over Me

mp3: Susan Gibson & Mike McClure – Hung Down Head

mp3: Tom Skinner & Mike McClure – Blind Man

pick up Dirt & Spirit here.

Mike McClure, the (then) frontman of The Great Divide, has quite a few religious flavored songs in his repertoire. i’m not gonna delve real deep into all of Mike’s music today – i still plan on a full artist spotlight for him one day.

One of the most powerful and inspiring songs i’ve ever heard (and should have posted last Sunday for Easter) is Between Two Thieves. A simple but amazing re-telling of the resurrection.

mp3: Mike McClure – Between Two Thieves ~ from Twelve Pieces (2002)

Twelve Pieces was Mike’s solo debut album, and is aptly titled as it is simply 12 songs that he probably had floating around waiting to be recorded without the mainstream country touch that The Great Divide had.

BUY THIS ALBUM!!!

Here’s some more of The Gospel According to Mike:

mp3: Mike McClure – Harder To Ignore ~ from Twelve Pieces (2002)

mp3: Mike McClure Band – Sweet Mother Mary ~ from EverythingUpsideDown (2004)

mp3: Mike McClure Band – Via Dolorosa ~ from Burtschi Brothers & Mike McClure Band (2004)

- Via Dolorosa is the road Jesus walked down on his way to the crucifix.

mp3: Mike McClure Band – Traveler ~ from Camelot Falling (2005)

Amen.

Just booked a last minute Spring Break trip to Vegas, Baby! Those spur of the moment trips (i’m leavin’ in the morning) decided on a whim always make for the best time. Gonna be there for 3 days, 2 nights. Probably won’t get any posts made while i’m there – i’ll be busy blowin’ all my savings, instead. Here’s a list of songs i threw together real quick that fit the times:

mp3: Ryan Adams & Elton John – Oooh Las Vegas (live) ~ from Ryan & Elton Live @ The Grand Old Opry (2/4/02)

mp3: Bob Dylan – Rambler, Gambler (early home recording) ~ from No Direction Home: The Soundtrack

mp3: The White Stripes – Black Jack Davey ~ from Seven Nation Army [Single] (2003)

mp3: Mike McClure – Jack of Diamonds/Queen of Hearts ~ unreleased studio cut

mp3: Robert Johnson – Little Queen of Spades ~ from Robert Johnson: The Complete Recordings

mp3: Nickel Creek – Best of Luck ~ from Why Should The Fire Die? (2005)

Alright, so February is almost over, and i’m pumped. Beacause, starting in March, a flood of great albums are coming out. Seeing as i’m pretty new to this music journalism (hardly…) world, i don’t have any cool new friends on the inside to give me any exclusive news or tracks, but i’ve got a couple tricks up my sleeve. For some of these that are coming out a little further in the future, i’ll re-remind you, but here are the forthcoming album releases on my radar:

3.4.08 (Big Day)

The Black Crowes – Warpaint (Silver Arrow)

The first release from the soulful Black Crowes in 7 years is set for early March. 10 of the 11 tracks were written by Chris and Rich, and the album marks the debut for two new band members: guitarist Luther Dickinson and keyboardist Adam MacDougall.

tracklist:
1. Goodbye Daughters of the Revolution
2. Walk Believer Walk
3. Oh Josephine
4. Evergreen
5. Wee Who See The Deep
6. Locust Street
7. Movin’ On Down The Line
8. Wounded Bird
9. God’s Got It ~ this is the same song that OCMS did on Big Iron World, written by The Reverend Charlie Jackson
10. There’s Gold In Them Hills
11. Whoa Mule

pre-order Warpaint here

The Felice Brothers – The Felice Brothers (Team Love)

The band (3 out of 4 are actual brothers), from upstate New York, released Tonight at the Arizona in the UK early last year. Upon returning to the States, they hooked up with Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes for some concert dates, and consequently he signed them to his label. The’ve been called ‘backwoods americana’ and have a perfectly un-polished sound with hints of Dylan, Townes, and Neil Young. Their self-titled American debut is due out March 4th.

here’s one from it:

mp3: The Felice Brothers – Wonderful Life

pre-order The Felice Brothers here

Whiskeytown – Stranger’s Almanac (Deluxe Edition) (Mood Food/Geffen)

i don’t know who decided to put this re-issue together, or why, but who fuckin’ cares. This isn’t just a re-mastered edition with a couple bonus tracks; this thing is like discovering an attic full of old vinyls. Ok, maybe not that cool, but listen: It’s a 2-disc set, the first of which is the original album (13 tracks) plus 5 bonus tracks from unreleased radio performances:

Bonus Tracks:

14. Houses on the Hill (live)

15. Nurse With the Pills (live)

16. I Don’t Care What You Think About Me (live)

17. Somebody Remembers the Rose (live)

18. Turn Around (live)

and disc 2 (19 of the 21 tracks are previously unreleased):

1. Indian Gown

2. 16 Days (acoustic version)

3. Somebody Remembers the Rose (acoustic version)

4. Avenues (acoustic version)

5. Excuse Me While I Break My Own Heart Tonight (acoustic version)

6. Houses on the Hill (early version)

7. mp3: My Heart Is Broken*

8. I Still Miss Someone (Johnny Cash cover) (acoustic version)

9. Kiss & Make-Up

10. Barn’s on Fire

11. Dancing With the Women at the Bar (early version)

12. Dreams (Fleetwood Mac cover)

13. Breathe

14. Wither, I’m a Flower (previously released)

15. mp3: Luxury Liner**(Gram Parsons cover)

16. Theme for a Trucker

17. Streets of Sirens (previously released)

18. Turn Around (alternate version)

19. 10 Seconds

20. Ticket Time

21. The Rain Won’t Help You When It’s Over (True Believers cover)

* The song linked here is from a solo concert of Ryan’s (with help from Caitlin Cary) at The Brewery in Raleigh, NC in ‘99. The quality isn’t great, but here the song is stripped down to its core – Ryan is strumming just enough to keep in time. The vocals are amazing and, compared to the version that showed up on Jacksonville City Nights, much slower, which reveals just how, well…. heartbreaking the song really is.

** i don’t know if this is the same version that’s gonna end up on the re-issue, but it is a studio cut i picked up somewhere along the way.

pre-order the Deluxe Edition here

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3.25.08

Justin Townes Earle – The Good Life (Bloodshot)

The son of Steve Earle and namesake to Townes Van Zandt has a lot to live up to. And from what i’ve heard, he’s doin’ a pretty good job. He’s got just enough of his daddy’s gravelly growl, but with a little more energy. His background consists of performing in bluegrass/ragtime bands to full-out rock bands, and, of course, with his dad. He previously put out an EP, Yuma, from which i already posted a track.

tracklist:

1. mp3: Hard Livin’
2. The Good Life
3. mp3: Who Am I to Say
4. Lone Pine Hill
5. South Georgia Sugar Babe
6. What Do You Do When You’re Lonesome
7. Turn Out My Lights
8. Lonesome and You
9. Ain’t Glad I’m Leavin’
10. Faraway In Another Town

no pre-order found, but some info here

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4.1.08

The Black Keys – Attack and Release (Nonesuch)

i’ve already posted a couple tracks from The Black Keys, but i haven’t really said much about ‘em. They’re an indie rock/blues duo (Dan Auerbach – guitar/vocals – and Patrick Carney – drums) from Akron, Ohio. If you listened to the tracks, you already know that they produce raw, in-your-face, super groovy electric rock music. They’ve got five previous releases – some recorded in Carney’s basement, and some in an abandoned tire facotry. Attack and Release will be their most polished record as of yet. Not only did they record in a real studio, but they enlisted the help of producer Danger Mouse. He’s the guy that famously remixed The Beatles White Album with Jay-Z’s Black Album. If you’re ever in the mood for some really loud, powerful tunes, put on The Black Keys.

tracklist:

1. All You Ever Wanted

2. I Got Mine

3. Strange Times – you can buy this single from iTunes now

4. Psychotic Girl

5. Lies

6. Remember When (Side A)

7. Remember When (Side B)

8. Same Old Thing

9. So He Won’t Break

10. Oceans & Streams

11. Things Ain’t Like They Used to Be

pre-order Attack and Release here and get a free tote bag with it???

Mike McClure Band – Streamline (Boohatch)

Streamline is tentatively scheduled for release on April 1st. This is simply info straight from Mike himself via his MySpace blog. Unless you’re into the Texas Music/Red Dirst music scene, you probably haven’t heard of Mike. He previoulsy fronted the somewhat successful country band The Great Divide. He split with them to go solo in ‘02 and since has put out five albums – one of which was a collaboration with fellow Okies The Burtschi Brothers. i plan on doing an artist spotlight on Mike soon, so i’ll stop there. The only confirmed tracks for Streamline are The Eagle and the Crow, and Supposed To Be. The following track was up on his MySpace a while ago, and could show up on the album as well:

mp3: Mike McClure – Another Place To Run

here’s another MySpace track that was posted at some time. A cover of a ZZ Top song that kinda sounds like some late night goofin’ off in his home studio:

mp3: Mike McClure – Legs

ordering information will be posted when i find it

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4.8.08

Hayes Carll – Trouble in Mind (Lost Highway)

i’ve already posted some info, as well as one song, from this release here. You can also hear a few of the tracks on Hayes’ MySpace.

tracklist:

1. Drunken Poet’s Dream
2. It’s A Shame
3. Girl Downtown
4. Bad Liver And A Broken Heart
5. Beaumont
6. mp3: I Got A Gig
7. Faulkner Street
8. Wild As A Turkey
9. Don’t Let Me Fall
10. A Lover Like You
11. I Don’t Wanna Grow Up
12. Knockin’ Over Whiskeys
13. Willing To Love Again
14. She Left Me For Jesus

pre-order Trouble In Mind here

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4.22.08

Flight of the Conchords – Flight of the Conchords (Sub Pop)

Unless you were living under a rock last summer, you heard about Flight of the Conchords. Brett and Jermaine are “New Zealand’s fourth most popular digi-folk paradists” (self-proclaimed). They created an HBO comedy show that aired on Sunday nights after Entourage after becoming popular as comedians that performed hilarious, satirical songs on Comedy Central and various late-night talk shows. On their show, they play a very unsuccessful band with no social skills – and spontaneously break into stupid songs. Ok, so that doesn’t sound very funny, but i promise it is. Anyway, their debut album, that includes re-worked songs from the show, is due out at the end of April. Check ‘em out:

mp3: Flight of the Conchords – Business Time

mp3: Flight of the Conchords – If You’re Into It

both from The Distant Future [EP] - Grammy nomination for the Best Comedy Album

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The Dedringers – Sweetheart of the Neighborhood

- scheduled for Spring ‘08 release

The first time i saw the Dedringers, i hadn’t heard of them, but they were opening a show for Mike McClure. i was blown away. These guys – younger than i was – stole the show as much as an opener can. Really original songs, all with some sort of errie, haunting quality. Then, they were just a duo – Sean Faires and Jonny Burke. Since, they have added drums and bass and, more importantly, grown much more popular. By befriending fellow musician and producer McClure, as well as many others in the Texas Music realm, they starting getting bigger gigs and continued to impress people with their ‘wise-beyond-their-years’ songwriting talent. They self-released an EP titled Definately, Purposely Infinite (produced by McClure) as well as a Live At The Continental Club in Austin album that were both sold at their shows. Their debut album, Sweetheart, was produced by R.S. Field, who has done work for Billy Joe Shaver and Hayes Carll. Here’s the previoulsy released (i think i bought it from their MySpace page) title track from the album – most likely this is not the version that will be on Sweetheart, though:

mp3: The Dedringers – Sweetheart of the Neighborhood

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happy shopping….