Category: Music

Jesse James Born Today in the County of Clay

Jesse James

“He was born one day in the County of Clay
And he came from a solitary race.”

On today’s date in 1847, Jesse James was born in Clay County Missouri. Within two years, his father, the Rev. Robert James, ran off and left his family behind to go to look for gold in California, never to return. Their mother Zerelda soon remarried a stepfather who was abusive to Jesse and his brother Frank, and she would later marry another stepfather.

As a teenager in the border state of Missouri, Jesse learned to kill for the South during the Civil War, as did his brother Frank. Then the brothers went on to a life of crime. By most accounts, Jesse was not the Robin Hood hero as portrayed in the traditional “Ballad of Jesse James,” made famous by Woody Guthrie and others. But sometimes we need outlaw heroes to inspire us to fight authority. Below is a version of the song by Bruce Springsteen and the Seeger Sessions Band, starting with a long banjo introduction.

Springsteen’s version of the ballad appears on We Shall Overcome The Seeger Sessions. Other songs that reference James include Cher’s “Just Like Jesse James” from 1988. If you wish to celebrate Jesse James’s birthday with a film, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is one of the most beautiful movies of recent years. While slow-paced at times, the movie, which stars Brad Pitt and Casey Affleck, is elegiac and poetic.

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    Cash Brothers Website Gone?: Long Live The Cash Brothers!

    Brand New Night Chimesfreedom tries to provide helpful links in posts, but sometimes after some time passes, we are notified that a link to an article or website disappears. When we get the notification, we see if there is a way to fix the link or find another article. About two weeks ago, we were notified that a link to The Cash Brothers website (www.cashbrothers.com) was no longer up. While one great thing about the Internet is that it is ever-changing, the nostalgic heart inside of me misses some of the changes, such as this one.

    A previous post about book stores going out of business discussed the wonderful music created by the Cash Brothers, which consists of Andrew and Peter Cash. The two brothers, often categorized as roots rock, have voices that blend in harmony in a great pop sound reminiscent of other brother groups like the Beach Boys and the Everly Brothers.

    Although at the time of the Chimesfreedom post it appeared that the two brothers were recording separately and had been doing some work with the Skydiggers, there was still the website for The Cash Brothers. So it was sad to see in the last few weeks that the band website is gone.

    I hope it is a temporary problem, but maybe it has something to do with Canadians electing Andrew Cash to Parliament in May. I for one will not rest until Canadians rise up and demand that their representative reunite with his brother for more music. [Update 2017: Andrew Cash served in Parliament from 2011 to 2015, and then he went on to co-found a really cool organization, the Urban Worker Project.]

    For now, we will have to settle for one of the few videos of their music on the web. Here are The Cash Brothers singing “Shadow of Doubt” from their 2003 album A Brand New Night.

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    Willie Nelson, Coldplay, and . . . Chipotle?

    Willie Nelson The Scientist As far as fast food commercials go, you probably cannot do better than Willie Nelson singing a Coldplay song with an important message about the source for much of our food. That is the combination put together, along with cool animation by Johnny Kelly, for a short promotional film by Chipolte.

    The short film raises questions about how the nation’s meat is raised and treated, but in a soft-sell sort of way without images of real suffering animals that people try to avoid seeing, lest it spoil our dinners. Chipotle is not trying to turn us all into vegetarians. But the short film, which Chipotle plans to show in theaters around the country, is part of Chipotle’s “Food With Integrity” program where it supports using naturally raised meat and local produce. If you buy the recording of “The Scientist” off of iTunes, 60 cents from each sale goes to Chipotle Cultivate Foundation.

    Taking a cynical view, one may see Chipotle’s incentive in putting together the short film because it allows them to distinguish their practices from other restaurants, thereby getting more customers. But still, it is a commendable way for a restaurant to distinguish itself. And it is a cool song and a great cover by Nelson, combined with interesting animation. Three chords and the truth. What more can you ask for from a song commissioned by a fast food company?

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    New Ryan Adams Song: “Lucky Now”

    Ryan Adams Ashes & FireSome of my favorite recordings are by Ryan Adams. I like some of his CDs more than others, which may not be surprising considering how productive and diverse Adams is. I find some of his songs are fire, and others are ashes. But overall, he is one of the most talented artists now making music. And on October 11, he is releasing a new solo effort, Ashes & Fire. He just released one of the songs, “Lucky Now.”

    Reports indicate the CD will have a country-rock sound, featuring guests Norah Jones and Benmont Tench of Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers (piano). From the sound of “Lucky Now” (as well as some clips of live performances of other new songs), the CD looks promising. I can’t wait.

    What are your favorite Ryan Adams CDs or songs? Leave a comment.

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    Goodnight Irene

    Lead Belly Goodnight Irene As Chimesfreedom prepares for Hurricane Irene in New York, we wish others in the hurricane’s path to be safe in weathering the storm. Hopefully, we soon will be wishing Irene goodnight, as in the great song. Unlike the hurricane, “Goodnight Irene” is timeless, so that nobody knows where the song originated. Huddie Ledbetter, i.e., Lead Belly, made the first recording of the song while he was in the Louisiana State Penitentiary. His recording is a beautiful, haunting version of the song about the deep sadness of lost love, as the singer tries to warn others to avoid his fate (“Stay home with your wife and family / And stay by the fireside bright”).

    Goodnight Irene, Lead Belly

    Pete Seeger’s The Weavers helped make the song a national hit in 1950.  And there have been numerous covers through the years, including interesting upbeat versions by Fats Domino and by Brian Wilson (the latter is on the tribute CD, Folkways: A Vision Shared (1988)).

    In the version below, Pete Seeger sings with the great Mississippi John Hurt, who tells a story about getting his first guitar. Then, the group, which includes folk-singer Hedy West (“500 Miles“) and banjo player Paul Cadwell, breaks into playing “Goodnight Irene.”

    The above performance appeared on Rainbow Quest, a show Pete Seeger started on a local UHF New York television station in the 1960s. At the time, many television stations feared featuring Seeger, who had been blacklisted because he asserted his First Amendment rights before the House Un-American Activities Committee. Fortunately, through YouTube, many more people get the opportunity to see some great performances hidden away at the time. Seeger, who now is a respected sage from a different time, has always been a bit of a hurricane himself.

    What is your favorite version of “Goodnight Irene”? Leave a comment. In times of natural disasters, it is always a good reminder to help others by donating to organizations like the Red Cross.

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