In a recent review of the “lost” CD from Marty Brown, American Son, I mentioned that other new music was available from Brown. During the past several weeks, I have had these new CDs in constant play so that I am finally able to write about these three outstanding CDs that are available directly from the singer-songwriter.
Marty Brown was an up-and-coming country music writer and performer in the 1990s but his fourth and most recent major record label CD, Here’s to the Honky Tonks, was released way back in 1996. Since then, many have wondered if Brown was still making music. American Son, which was recorded in 2002 and recently made available by Brown, gave some hint of his continuing work. But three new CDs that Brown is selling at his Kentucky performances reveal something surprising: Despite Music Row’s rejection, not only is he continuing to write and record a large amount of high-quality classic county songs, he is continuing to develop as an outstanding artist.
The three recent CDs are: Marty Brown: Exclusive, Marty Brown: All-American Cowboy, and Marty Brown Christmas. Like American Son, they are packaged and sold by Brown and his wife, Shellie, so they are not in any fancy packaging, but the recording is generally of high quality.
Marty Brown: Exclusive (2012) features twelve songs written and recorded by Marty Brown. The album opens with “Good Times,” an upbeat song that could open a set when he plays at local establishments. I am not sure another artist could work the phrase “chips and salsa” into a song so well. “Borderline Fool,” with its Mexican music flair, reminds me a little of George Strait’s “Seashores of Old Mexico,” and one could imagine Strait singing this song too. The CD includes upbeat songs and ballads, as well as the waltz “Horseshoes and Halos.” Highlights on the CD include the love song, “Absolute Love of My Life” and an anthem about being alive called “That’s My Kind of Sky.” Brown wrote several of the songs on this CD with the idea that another country artist would record those songs. But as of now, this CD is the only place to get the twelve songs, and I cannot imagine anyone else singing them better anyway.
All-American Cowboy (2012) features nine original songs recorded by Marty Brown in Nashville. Although I recommend all three of these albums as well as American Son, if you were to only buy only one of these new CDs, this one might be the place to start. Every single song is fantastic, and while it contains two songs that also appear on American Son (“The Devil Was an Angel Too” and “Leavin’ Side of Me”), those are two of my favorites from that CD so they fit nicely with the other strong songs on All-American Cowboy. Every song is a highlight on this CD with songs like “Live Every Day Like Sunday,” “Love Can’t Live in a Honky Tonk” and the others having some of the best melodies in the Marty Brown catalog. If you were wondering what Marty Brown has done since the 1990s, buy this one now.
Marty Brown Christmas (2012), with nine additional originals, is the hidden rough gem among the new CDs. While labeled as a “Christmas” CD that was given to friends and family, three or four of the songs might be classified as “Christmas songs,” while the rest might more generally be labeled “Christian” songs. But something about writing outside his traditional secular country songs freed Brown to do some of his most innovative work on this album. The CD’s rough take on Brown singing “There’s No Room for the Holidays in My Heart” is in the tradition of sad holiday songs that deserves a place with other holiday classics. Although the recording quality of that beautiful song is not as polished as songs on the other CDs, Brown’s quiet singing with just his guitar reveals another side of his singing skills.
The freedom of writing a for a new category of music on Marty Brown Christmas also allows Brown to go in other directions besides quiet singer-songwriter. A song about Jesus’ crucifixion, “I Know the One Who Carried It,” shows that Marty Brown can be a rocker, and it makes me want to hear Brown sing more rock and roll songs. Meanwhile, Brown’s moving “Last Supper,” about a man on death row awaiting his last meal (“I couldn’t come to his Last Supper / But Jesus and momma are going to come to mine”) and “Washed My Hands in Muddy Waters” show that Brown can sing the blues too. Brown shines on these songs, and “Last Supper” features one of Brown’s most moving and powerful vocal performances ever. Despite the rough edges on this CD, or maybe because of them, on Marty Brown Christmas Brown approaches something wonderful that transcends musical boundaries, making me excited to hear what he does next.
Conclusion? These three new CDs from Marty Brown are worth tracking down. If you do not live in Kentucky where you can make it to one of his shows, you may do like I did and order these CDs by emailing Shellie Brown at ilikeitthatwaymusic@yahoo.com for more details about the price and mailing address. (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. In the most recent news, Brown will be performing tonight at Wah Bah! Steakhouse in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
What is your favorite Marty Brown CD? Leave your two cents in the comments.
(Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)
, Peter Guralnick described the Harlem Square Club as “a big barn of a building.” He noted that the show was early in the tour when Cooke performed at the Harlem Square Club. That night, the show included a late performance that went from 1 a.m. to 4 a.m. (p. 453.)
