The prolific Sufjan Stevens has taken a break from making albums devoted to each of the fifty states to release a five-CD collection of original, covers, and classic holiday tunes. The set, entitled Silver & Gold: Songs for Christmas Vols. 6-10 is a sequel to 2006’s Songs for Christmas, Vols. 1-5. So, if you have not been hearing enough holiday music to get you in the mood for the season, check out the three-hours on the collection of 52 songs.
On his website, Stevens ponders “what is it about Christmas music that continues to agitate our aging heartstrings?” And he answers:
“Christmas music does justice to a criminal world, marrying sacred and profane, bellowing obtuse prophecies of a Messiah in the very same blustery breath as a candy-coated TV-jingle advertising a string of lights and a slice of fruitcake. Gloria!
“Who can save us from the infidels of Christmas commodity? Look no further, tired shopper, for your hero arrives as the diligent songwriter Sufjan Stevens: army of one, banjo in one hand, drum machine in the other, holed up in his room, surrounded by hymnals, oratorios, music charts, sacred harp books, photo-copied Readers Digest Christmas catalogs—all the weaponry of Yuletide incantations—singing his barbaric yawp above the snow-capped rooftops.”
What is your favorite song on Sufjan Stevens’s new collection? Leave your two cents in the comments.
Last April in “The Great Lost Career of Marty Brown,” I bemoaned the fact that country singer Marty Brown had not had a major label CD release since 1998, and I imagined how one day Brown would be rediscovered with a pile of songs he had been writing and recording for more than a decade. While I still wait for Brown to recapture the fame he deserves, the many responses to that post revealed that many people still love his music. Fortunately, Brown continues to perform at local venues and continues to write new songs at a healthy rate. He recently even put out a new homemade music video. And back in 2002, Brown put together a collection of songs on an album called American Son as a comeback of sorts, but it was never released. I recently discovered that Marty Brown and his wife Shellie Brown were making that CD available for the first time, so I ordered one immediately. I was not disappointed.
American Son is a collection of the type of songs fans might expect from Brown, as he sings about love (i.e., “Love Happens,” “Make My Heart Your Home,” “Where’d You Come From?”), country fun (“Work Hard Havin’ Fun,” “Crackerjack”), and perhaps influenced by the time the album was recorded not long after 9/11, a couple of patriotic songs, including the title song and the still relevant “P.O.W.’s at the V.F.W.”
Many of my favorite Marty Brown originals are his heartbreak songs, and that is true for American Son too. Brown always has had a great talent for turning a clever phrase and when he combines that writing skill with his great classic country twang, he cannot be matched by anyone recording today. His heartbreak songs on this album include “Friends,” where the singer tells a love that he cannot “just” be friends, and “The Devil Was an Angel Too.” The latter song has a refrain from the apologizing man that seems so clever I wonder why nobody else has thought of it. I also wonder why nobody else has covered the outstanding song.
I have had the CD on repeat play for the last two weeks, and today my favorite song on the CD is “Leavin’ Side of Me.” The title tells you what it is about, but when you hear Brown’s voice say, “And I think it’s time you saw/ The leavin’ side of me,” the vulnerability and pain breaks your heart like what you hear in the great songs of Waylon Jennings, Hank Williams, and Otis Redding.
Because the album was not an official release, there is no fancy CD packaging, but Brown will autograph the CD for you for free. More importantly, it is the music you want, and they did not skimp on the recording. The quality of the sound, the musicians, and Brown’s voice, are all top notch.
Conclusion? If you are not familiar with Marty Brown’s work, you may want to check out some of his other music first, but if you are a fan, American Son is another excellent CD to add to your collection (or a great holiday gift for someone who likes genuine country music). You may order American Son by emailing Shellie Brown at ilikeitthatwaymusic@yahoo.com for more details. They also have other new music from Marty Brown, including Marty Brown: All American Cowboy, Marty Brown Exclusive, and a Christmas CD. (FYI, I have no affiliation with the sales of the new CDs and am providing the ordering information as a service to other fans like me.) You may find updates on upcoming shows on Marty Brown’s Facebook page and in the comments to our previous post on Marty Brown’s career.
What is your favorite Marty Brown CD? Leave your two cents in the comments.
As regular readers know, Chimesfreedom has been rooting for a successful comeback from authentic country singer Marty Brown whose last major label release was in 1998. One of the recent good signs is that he has put together a homemade video for a catchy new song, “Put Your Love Right Here.” “Put Your Love Right Here” was written by Marty Brown and Even Stevens. [Update: Unfortunately, the video is no longer available online.]
Chimesfreedom will have a review of some “new” Marty Brown music later this week.
What do you think of “Put Your Love Right Here”? Leave your two cents in the comments.
A biography of Bruce Springsteen reports that Janis Joplin once unsuccessfully pursued a romance with Springsteen. One can only dream about the talented children they would have had. Although Springsteen and Joplin never performed together, Joplin was known for her performance of the show-stopper “Raise Your Hand” and Springsteen often highlights the song too.
We never got a Springsteen-Joplin pairing on “Raise Your Hand,” but in 1969, Joplin sang the song with an interesting choice. That year, Tom Jones and Janis Joplin sang “Raise Your Hand” together on the This is Tom Jones TV show. I must say, it is pretty awesome. Not Springsteen-Joplin-baby awesome, but awesome nonetheless.
This is Tom Jones ran on TV from 1969 to 1971. Jones featured a lot of big stars from the day, including Dusty Springfield and Stevie Wonder.
Can you think of an odder pairing than Tom Jones and Janis Joplin? Leave your two cents in the comments.
Jimi Hendrix was born on November 27, 1942 in Seattle, Washington. Various articles linked below commemorate the 70th anniversary of his birth.
Unlike some artists who died young, it is not too hard to imagine Hendrix around today still playing relevant music even though he died more than forty years ago on September 18, 1970. His music like “Hey Joe” was timeless in that he could be both cutting edge while being steeped in the history of the blues too.
Some features about Jimi Hendrix’s birthday provide interesting quotes. San Francisco Weekly Blog has a collection of 13 quotes from Hendrix, including a quote from his final interview (“I don’t feel the need to dress up so much now I see others doing it”). ABC News has quotes from other rock stars remembering Hendrix.
Some other articles feature cool photos. ABC News Blog has a collection of photos from Hendrix’s life and career (make sure to check out Hendrix in a tie with Curtis Knight and the Squires in 1965). Huffington Post has a slide show of items from a new Jimi Hendrix exhibit at Seattle’s EMP Museum. The Albany Sun Times Blog remembers Hendrix’s one year in the military with photos of excerpts from a deposition by Hendrix’s not-too-happy sergeant.
But it is not just about the past. Rolling Stone magazine discusses a new album from Hendrix — People, Hell & Angels (released March 5, 2013). Antimusic has a track-by-track description of the twelve previously unreleased studio recordings on the album. The Future Heart also has a track-by-track description, along with other stories about Hendrix including a video of The Experience’s May 3, 1969 concert in Toronto.
Happy birthday Jimi.
What is your favorite Jimi Hendrix performance or song? Leave your two cents in the comments.
(released March 5, 2013). 
