Tag Archives: Kris-Kristofferson

News Round Up: Jerry Lee Lewis Gets Mean with Kris Kristofferson

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  • Hey Bay Area twang fans! The San Francisco Weekly features a story on Joe Goldmark and the Seducers and their ongoing Sunday night residency at the Outer Sunset bar Riptide which bills itself as “the Bay Area’s best little honky-tonk.”
  • The Salt Lake Tribune sits down with legendary Texas songer/songwriter Robert Earl Keen.
  • Aquarium Drunkard sits down with Athens, Georgia-based alt.folk legend Vic Chesnutt.
  • Legendary rocker, and label mate of Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis has released his first country single since the 1970s, Mean Old Man (you can get it now at Amazon for free.) The song was written by Kris Kristofferson and will be part of a new CD that will be released soon on Shangri-La Music.

Robert Earl Keen

Kris Kristofferson Talks About New Release

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  • Kris Kristofferson and producer discusses Kristofferson’s upcoming Closer to the Bone (Sept. 29 on New West Records) and how they were trying to capture the intimacy that defined his last release This Old Road. Closer to the Bone will contain the song Good Morning John which comes from a letter Kristofferson wrote to Johnny Cash for a sobriety party. Kristofferson will perform on Nov. 1 at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, and on Nov. 10 he’ll receive the BMI Icon Award during the BMI Country Awards in Nashville. (billboard.com.)
  • The New York Press has a great feature on Twang Nation favorite The Builders and The Butchers.
  • Malcolm Holcombe’s will release For the Mission Baby in the U.S. on September 29, 2009, and in the UK/Europe on October 5, 2009. The album was recorded in May ’09, produced, recorded and mixed by Ray Kennedy at Room and Board Studios in Nashville, TN.
  • In my ongoing quest to make San Francisco a hotbed of Americana/roots music I recently came across Rhubarb Whiskey. The band features Cindy Emchy on accordion and vocals and Boylamayka on dog-house bass,  guitar and mandolin and background vocals and are a blend of vaudeville, gypsy jazz and Southern-Gothic. Check ’em out. (Main Site | MySpace)

The New York Times on Those Darlins

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  • The New York Times posts a great review of the riot grrrl-trad country group Those Darlins show at the lower East-Side’s Mercury Lounge.
  • Willie Nelson’s Facebook page is posting hints where this year’s Farm Aid will be held. So far we have:  The city for this year’s concert has a professional sports team named after an animal,  the concert will be in a state that is in the top 12 for number of farms  and it will be in a city & state where Farm Aid where Farm Aid has never been held.
  • Speaking of the Texas Yoda – Head over to Texas Music Matter to listen to Amazing Grace: The Willie Nelson Story – a winner of two National Headliners Awards including this year’s Grand Prize for Radio. Nearly a year in the making, the program features rare music plus interviews with, among others, Kris Kristofferson, Norah Jones, John Mellencamp, Ray Price, biographer Joe Nick Patoski, Willie’s best friend and closest confidante (his sister, Bobbie), and the Yoda  himself.
  • Country music legend (and daughter of country music legend Mel Tillis) Pam Tillis talks to the Vancouver Sun about the state of country music.

Todd Snider in the New York Times

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  • The New York Times features a great feature on Todd Snider. Snider discusses his long career of writing smart roots-folk songs, speaks to some of his fans (like Kris Kristofferson) years of struggling with addiction, and his new Don Was produced release  “The Excitement Plan” on Yep Roc records.
  • Tom Russell’s new upcoming , Blood and Candle Smoke (Sept. 25), was recorded in Tucson’s Wave Lab with features members of Calexico. Head over to his MySpace page to hear Santa Ana Wind and Mississippi River Runnin’ Backwards.
  • Also in  Tom Russell news, the man will be among many contributors to a new Jimmie Rodgers book, Waiting For a Train: Jimmie Rodger’s America, planned to be released in July.
  • Dave Alvin Remembers his friend and Hacienda Brothers founder Chris Gaffney.
  • The fine folks over at HearYa.com review The Builders and The Butchers album  Salvation Is A Deep Dark Well.
  • Jay N. Miller at the The Patriot Ledger talks to Brooklyn based band Americana band Yarn.

RIP Stephen Bruton

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  • The fine folks at the 9513 brought to my attention the sorry news that Kris Kristofferson’s longtime guitarist Stephen Bruton has succumbed to throat cancer.
  • Country music legends Charley Pride and Marty Stuart and bluesman Pinetop Perkins will headline the third annual Mississippi Grammy gala.
  • Recycle your cell phones to support Nuci’s Space and get free merch coupons from the Drive-By Truckers official Store!
  • The New York Times has a piece on Steve Earle and his course in recording his trubute to his mentor Texas singer/songwriter Townes Van Zandt.

Merle Haggard & Kris Kristofferson – April 1 ’09 – Wells Fargo Center for the Arts in Santa Rosa

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While living in New York City I was lucky enough to see George Jones play Carnegie Hall in a venue the Possum last played 44 years prior on a bill that included Johnny Cash and Mother Maybelle Carter. On that crisp Halloween evening Jones headlined and the opener was a solo acoustic performance by the relative youngster Kris Kristofferson. Kristofferson said of the opening spot “I can’t believe I get to open for George Jones.” That same wide-eyed, reverential innocence was also there as member of the country music “supergroup” The Highwaymen (Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson and Kristofferson), he said of  being included in the lineup that he felt like a kid won the lottery.

That same, now 72 year-old, wide-eyed kid was again struck by awe as Wednesday night as he shared that stage with a man only one year his elder – the Bakersfield Sound legend Merle Haggard. This opening performance of a three-night tour was held at ,the Wells Fargo Center in the sleepy bedroom community of Santa Rosa, CA. 50 or so miles due North on US 101. Loaded up into my favoriteZipcar Toyota truck I hit the rolling hills specked with grazing cows on a beautiful sunny day. First stop was Russian River brewery in Santa Rosa to partake of my favorite kick-you-in-the-head IPA -Pliney the Elder. The -night started off well.

The Wells Fargo Center is a nice subdued type of seated theatre where the tony locals come to relive their glory with classic rock bands or catch some culture from the local symphony. I was surprised by the age of the crowd which skewed into the 60’s , but the lack of body searches was a nice change from the big city shows I’ve become accustomed to.

Later as I was standing near the touring bus hoping to catch a glimpse of Merle or Kris and shooting the shot with a mother and daughter that each brought their guitars to be signed I saw what surely signaled this as a great event. I saw Cher. The Gypsy herself  had come to catch the show and was sneaking in the stage door after a brief visit on the bus. My dream to utter the words “So, Cher and I were at this event, and…” can finally be fulfilled.

Clad in black with worn boots,  Kristofferson had just finished Shipwrecked in the Eighties and was introducing Hag when the man his-self walked out on stage. No need for formality here son -  and broke into the small-town living lament Big City, Hag’s voice was strong but still that of a 72 year old man that had recently undergone surgery to have part of his lung removed. There was still too much onryness and pride in the grizzled elder statesmen to allow any trace of frailty, though the adoring audience would have forgiven any if shown.

As a pioneer of the electric Bakersfield sound Hag has worked with a band his whole career and the publicized “acrostic set” between these musicians was not quite what it seemed to be. “I feel like an old stripper without a G-string,” said Merle Haggard before kicking off the intro to “Back to Earth.” Merle was not quite naked as he had brought along a stripped down version of his Strangers touring band which included his 16 year-old son Ben who played as proficiently as someone ten years his elder.

The pattern ran one song Kristofferson, two songs Haggard. Which sat just fine with the sold-out crowd and covered a lot of ground in the nearly two-hour long performance. Big City, Silver Wings, Me & Bobby McGee – each artist graciously relegating the floor to the other for a wealth of music. Collaborations were more democratic when other performers songs were performed – Johnny Cash’s Folsom Prison Blues and Jimmie Roger’s T.B. Blues, which givenHaggard’s health was colored with even more poignancy.

Like two old friends that had seen over 100 years of country music history between them they traded witty good-natured jibs, winged a play-list of dozens of classics, screwed up, brushed it off and performed like the seasoned professionals they were. The Okie From Muskogee and the Liberal ex-U.S. Army captain and helicopter pilot . He became a helicopter pilot, like a country music détente for the sake of the song and in honor of the contributions each have made.

Sing Me Back Home, Mama Tried, The Bottle Let Me Down, Today I Started Loving You Again, Jody and the Kid, The Silver-Tongued Devil and I,SundayMornin’ Comin’ Down…it’s daunting as they keep coming at you like a crash course in country music history. Kristofferson has had the acoustic lone man show on the road for a couple of years now and performed like he was at ease and for all Hag’s pretense at being out of his element, he warmed up and eventually was just as home just doing what they both do best. Making great, timeless music. When they leave this Earth, we are likely not to see their kind again.

As is Haggard’s tradition there was no encore to the slight disappointment of the crowd. To gripe after such a banquet was served  would be to risk gluttony. Like the rest of the evening Kristofferson was more than happy to follow his lead backstage.

Setlist:
Shipwrecked in the Eighties
Big City
Silver Wings
Me & Bobby McGee
I Think I’ll Just Stay Here and Drink
Folsom Prison Blues
Best of All Possible Worlds
If I Could Only Fly
Mama Tried
Here Comes That Rainbow Again
I Wish I Could Be 30 Again
Rainbow Stew
Help Me Make It Through The Night
If We Make It Through December
Nobody Wins
T.B. Blues
Okie From Muskogee
Tonight The Bottle Let Me Down
Back to Earth
Jody and the Kid
The Silver-Tongued Devil and I
Sing Me Back Home
The Pilgrim, Chapter 33
Twinkle, Twinkle Lucky Star
For the Good Times
Are the Good Times Really Over
Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down
Today I Started Loving You Again
Why Me Lord

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6wRfWXDlpQ[/youtube]

Eat the Rich

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I read the ridiculous article in the New York Times about John Rich and believe Rich, and the Republicans he stumped for in the last election, are about as concerned about the plight of the common man as a vegetarian is about the finer points of aged beef.

I believe Rich’s populism is nothing more then window dressing and crass opportunism. My Grandparent’s generation used to call the Republicans the cocktail party because they were the party of the wealthy, for the wealthy. They still are, they just have better PR. Which brings me to Shuttin’ Detroit Down, the new song by the shorter, darker half of the country music comedy duo Big and Rich.

It’s hard for me to buy a song about the common man coming from a guy that wears $1000. fur coats on his realty television show. Shuttin’ Detroit Down oversimplifies the bad guys that led to the economic crisis as cardboard villain Wall Street Fat Cats with nary a lyric spent on the politicians (from both sides) that wrote the legislation that allowed them to do get away with it. For all his righteous bluster Rich forgets thise key words from wayetgatre. Follow the money. Who did Madoff make contributions to? What about the main guys as AIG? I’m thinking thier right in line with Rich’s own financial support.

I think if  I want quality songs about crony capitalism I’ll go to musicians that have been doing it longer, better and with more credibility – Steve Earle,  Kris Kristofferson (who is broadening his market by appearing in the video for Shuttin’ Detroit Down), hell even the Okie from Muskogee has eased up and taken a wider view of the world. Or maybe I’d go with one of the new artists like William Elliot Whitmore or the Drive By Truckers.

Rich is like Ann Coultier in drag, a different mouthpiece to appeal to a different demographic spouting the same old fake populist bullshit while stumping for the very same fat cats he names in his song.

This Just In – CMAs Still Suck Ass

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  • The Tomorrow The Green Grass lineup of the Jayhawks have confirmed a pair of summer shows, with plans to play together more next year. The band is headlining the Basilica Block Party in Minneapolis on July 10, marking the first time the Jayhawks will play with both principals Gary Louris and Mark Olson in the United States in over a decade.  The band is also booked for the Primavira Sound ’09 Festival in Barcelona, Spain on May 30.
  • Ethen Hawke has more then just great taste in ex-wives, he is a big fan of Kris Kristofferson. The current issue of Rolling Stone features what amount to a 1000 word fan-boy love letter. There are also some juicy details that Kristofferson and Toby Keith got into a backstage ruckus at Willie Nelson’s 2003 birthday concert at Madison Square Garden. The gist is it was over  Kristofferson’s liberal beliefs and Keith has a big mouth. Keith has since claimed the altercation is untrue.
  • So, I watched the 44th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards in Las Vegas. I could have been watching the 43rd, 42nd or the 41st CMA since the winners and performances were generally identical. The few surprises there were was the shcok of an actually heartfelt country music song – Jamey Johnson’s best song winner for In Color and the dull – Miley Cyrus cribbing from pal Taylor Swift’s diary for The Climb. Hell, even Sugarland’s Kristian Bush stopped wearing a cowboy hat acknowledging their music and the event didn’t warrant one. The glitter-glutted informercial that is the CMAs (or Country My Ass for those that know better.)

San Francisco Chronicle Talks to Merle Haggard

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  • In anticipation of the upcoming Santa Rosa Merle Haggard/Kris Kristofferson show this Wednesday (see you there!) the San Francisco Chronicle’s Joel Selvin has posted a fine interview with The Hag conducted on his 200 acre ranch outside Mount Lassen, California.
  • In response to the tough economy and the fees attached to her, and many others, concert tickets, the queen of alt.country Lucinda Williams will offer each fan who attends a Lucinda Williams show in 2009 standing credit on merchandise sold at the concerts. Williams adds, “I understand that this may only be a small gesture and in no way solves the problem long term, but I feel that it is important to try and do something to make it a little easier during this time.” For more information visit Lucinda’s official site.
  • John Prine is slated to play a show with Steve Earle on at Wolf Trap’s Filene Center in Vienna, VA on FridayJune 5th, 2009.

Here’s a little gem from the YouTubes:

Neil Young & Waylon Jennings- Are You Ready For the Country? -  Sept 20 1984 -  ‘Nashville Now’ TV show

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9H0VaY1EdrI[/youtube]

Paste Magazine Reviews The Flatlanders Newest

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  • Remember when Paste Magazine was more Americana and roots music focused, in other words, good? They harken back to those  halcion days by reviewing the Lloyd Maines produced release by Americana super group The Flatlanders (Joe Ely, Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore.)
  • Over at the 9513 Juli Thaki reviews what sounds like a spectacular show by country music legend Kris Kristofferson in Washington, DC.
  • CMT. COM is holding a Dolly Parton contest that offers a grand prize is which is a trip for two to NYC, air and hotel included, with tickets to Dolly’s 9 to 5: The Musical.
  • Comedy Central will be roasting Larry the Cable Guy  (aka Daniel Whitney) on Sunday March 15th. I hope they feature this early version of this douche on the program.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIWO5LgUZ28[/youtube]