If any reader is interested in hearing some good country-blues, he should get himself a copy of either Midnight at the Movies or Harlem River Blues, by Justin Townes Earle. Memorable albums, both of them; charming in sound and texture, ably composed and executed, alive with all the rich variety of American country-blues. Good stuff. Nashville and New York City (whereto the singer decamped for the latter album) should be proud.
Songs like “Christchurch Woman,” “Working for the MTA,” “Can’t Hardly Wait,” “Halfway to Jackson,” and the title tracks of both albums: I say, if you like country-blues you can’t help but enjoy these numbers.
I am well aware, of course, that few readers here are much interested in country-blues, least of all by some drink- and drug-addled Tennessee punk with less than half clue.
Nevertheless it is, in my judgment, very hard to understand America without understanding country-blues. Shall we amputate New Orleans? Has Nashville produced no music which merits praise and memorial? Is Blind Willie McTell not worthy of remembrance? How do you tell the great story of oppression and liberty for American blacks bereft of their songs, both spiritual and secular?
To back up a moment, there is an argument to the effect what’s popular and superficial today may one day appear rich and venerable. In its most vulgar form, the argument is on the lips of the cut-rate cynic or prostitute prognosticator who utters flippantly that this year’s pop star is a distant century’s Shakespeare.
That last is surely nonsense of a very feeble order. Nevertheless, it is true that not a few artists, in their own time, died wanting a just estimate of their skill and achievement.
Broadening my field of analogy, it seems clear to me that the names of the great literary men of the postwar American Right will dramatically rise with the demise of their petty partisan detractors. Current estimate denigrates them unfairly; but history’s estimate will not.
I would nominate Willmoore Kendall (for giving forth with his lively pen a truly splendid amalgam of careful theoretical precision, in the Straussian vein, and a wonderful humor splashed with American country slang) and Whittaker Chambers (for uniting such bleak yet instructive pessimism to such an extraordinary story of redemption, and living in the American country). I’m sure good cases could be made for others: Buckley, Burnham, Kirk, even Walker Percy or Harry Jaffa. The writing on the Right since the Second World War has ever labored under the snobbery of American liberals, whose own product of a comparable vintage was no great shakes anyway.
So I do think it is possible for a tradition of creative activity to be unjustly treated in its own time; and then, in the fullness of critical and scholarly examination, rebound rapidly to proper stature. This possibility I suggest to current-day Conservatives regarding the folk tradition of country-blues.
Readers know, of course, by abiding admiration for Bob Dylan. His full body of work, which is neither wholly lyrical nor wholly musical, will hold and defend its place — precisely for its embodiment and innovations in the country-blues style of American music.
But one last thing about this kid Earle: he sings well. He may not be Johnny Cash, but he aint no Bob Dylan. His voice is versatile (Dylan’s never was); it is not truly excellent but it is rich and rhythmic where Dylan’s is so often thin and stilted.
Justin Townes Earle is highly recommended.
Comments (16)
Country/blues isn't my niche, but I can respect it. In exchange, I'd like to offer an album that isn't country/blues, but does have a somewhat related flavor to it---a bit less gritty, but still folksy and raw. Bebo Norman's debut _Ten Thousand Days_. Later he moved on to a more polished poppy CCM sound, but this, I think, was Bebo at his best. Honest, poetic lyrics and delightfully down-to-earth music. It's still my favorite album of his. Have a listen:
http://www.amazon.com/Ten-Thousand-Days-Bebo-Norman/dp/B00001OH98
The Elephant
Posted by The Masked Elephant | September 17, 2011 11:48 AM
My slightly puzzled reaction to these sentences is that it's my impression that Nashville produces a lot of music--distinctively Nashvillian, American, and Southern music--that isn't country-blues per se but just country-country, if I can put it that way. Not to mention Christian music of many stripes, including Southern gospel and black gospel. Some of these are likely to be popular with a conservative audience (and indeed _are_ popular with a conservative audience), especially when their stars have (or at least try to affect) a wholesome personal image.
Posted by Lydia | September 17, 2011 12:01 PM
Thanks for that recommendation, ME.
A fair point about Nashville, Lydia. More country than blues in that town for sure.
Unfortunately, decadence has clearly crept into country-country songs nowadays. For every patriotic and godly song you hear on country radio, there is beside it another celebration of debauchery.
Posted by Paul J Cella | September 17, 2011 4:50 PM
For every patriotic and godly song you hear on country radio, there is beside it another celebration of debauchery.
Corn won't grow at all on Rocky Top
Dirt's too rocky by far
That's why all the folks on Rocky Top
Get their corn from a jar
I will admit I enjoyed the samples I heard from Justin Earle. His dad Steve Earl and stepmom Allison Moore are no slouches in musical talent either.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5JZzWz9nt0
Still, when it comes to country-blues I have to go with Lucinda Williams, even though she often adds a rock edge to her songs. She has some of the most haunting lyrics and a raw, distinctive voice.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tE2uEl_aB9E
Posted by Step2 | September 17, 2011 6:03 PM
You're welcome Paul. Hopefully you'll find it a little more wholesome but still good music. Meanwhile, just call me Pandora. ;)
Posted by The Masked Elephant | September 18, 2011 12:07 AM
Don't amputate New Orleans - I live here. o_O
BTW, I love this blog. :)
Posted by Seedy McGruff | September 19, 2011 2:52 PM
Don't amputate New Orleans - I live here.
One of the most memorable lines I've read about The Big Easy is that it is the place where the Bible Belt gets unbuckled. Pure quotable gold.
P.S. I somehow managed to misspell the names of Steve Earle and Allison Moorer. Sorry.
Posted by Step2 | September 19, 2011 5:44 PM
Need to go down I-40 to Memphis to find the Blues. They don't get a lot of play around here in Nashville.
But both country and the blues are forms of folk music, and folk music is a worthwhile art form. A society benefits from the Clancy Brothers or the Dubliners just as it does from Strauss or Mozart (perhaps not in the same ways, but both are goods).
Posted by Titus | September 19, 2011 5:58 PM
Musn't forget Aunt Stacey (Steve's little sister):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPY0FcM78Eo
And might as well mention my current favorite acoustic record:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1F1yGzbelRU
The harmonies are stunning.
Posted by Nice Marmot | September 19, 2011 7:15 PM
The harmonies are stunning.
Unbelievable. That must be the sound of heaven.
Posted by Step2 | September 19, 2011 7:52 PM
The really crazy thing is that Joy Williams started out singing fluffy Christian AC stuff. My local CCM station played her constantly. Gritty folk/blues is the LAST style I would have seen her winding up with. But at least it's got some intelligence and class to it---I sure am glad she didn't go the Katy Perry route anyway [barf].
The Elephant
Posted by The Masked Elephant | September 19, 2011 8:15 PM
Yes, I heard that, Elephant. Well, in this case CCM's loss appears to be acoustic music's gain.
Posted by Nice Marmot | September 20, 2011 8:35 AM
What I find interesting, sociologically, is the mass appeal of diverse genres of music created, by and large, by miserable people who live perpetually hellish lives. Earle's nightmarish background is Exhibit A. We might listen to the music, but if we are healthy and sane, we will flee from the culture that produces it. Which opens the question of whether, and how much, indulgence in this kind of music is good for the soul.
Posted by Jeff Culbreath | September 22, 2011 3:19 AM
But while we're indulging, here's my favorite version of "Copperhead Road", written by Justin Towne Earle's equally without-a-clue father, Steve Earle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_cdlqN-Dgs
Posted by Jeff Culbreath | September 22, 2011 3:36 AM
"if we are healthy and sane, we will flee from the culture that produces it. Which opens the question of whether, and how much, indulgence in this kind of music is good for the soul."
I look at it the same way I look at junk food: okay occasionally and in limited amounts, but not something you want a steady diet of, since it's not really good for you.
Posted by Nice Marmot | September 22, 2011 11:26 AM
We know little about the creative process. It does appear that there can be a connection between suffering and the creative process as well as social maladjustment. It is too complicated to get into the neurodynamics and we don't know a whole lot, anyways. For every tortured-soul musician, there is the level-headed Bach to contrast them with. Some people may use suffering to activate their creativity. Some do not need it.
The Chicken
Posted by The Masked Chicken | September 23, 2011 12:47 PM