Someone's been very kind to me today:  I received a package in the mail chock full of Bonnie Prince Billy bootlegs and singles!  Very exciting day, and how perfect is it that it's drizzling and grey out?  It's ideal for BPB listening, at least to me for whatever reason.

That's not to say his music is depressing though.  It can be dark, but for the most part for me it's actually uplifting and really almost unbeatable.  It's got a loose feel to it, a risky feeling.  Feels like everything's on the brink of falling apart, but it never does.  Fantastic.

In case you are unaware, Bonnie Prince Billy goes under many names, so his albums can be difficult to find and collect.  Some of these names/projects include: Palace, Palace Brothers, Palace Songs, Bonnie Billy, and Will Oldham (his real name).  He also collaborates often with others, like Amalgamated Sons of Rest, Matt Sweeney (that's Matt in the pics on the left and below), David Pajo and, more recently, Tortoise.  Oh yeah and he just contributed vocals to a record by Scout Niblett as well!  You can see how it's tough to keep up with the guy.  Oh yeah, and some of his best songs can be found on out of print 45s.

These bootlegs I just got are from the I See A Darkness and Ease Down The Road period.  I LOVE I See A Darkness, and Ease Down the Road is a solid record for him.  He's put out so many, you see!  His output can be fairly staggering to the uninitiated.  I'll try to break down a few of my favorites at the end of the post.

Tonight some of my nearest and dearest will be rocking the Cafe Du Nord!  Check it out:


The show starts at 9.  And yes, that flyer does say "Formal Attire Preferred."  Check out the myspace page for Sexx.  Hope to see all of you there!

I feel like everybody should know about Sister Rosetta Tharpe.  Isn't it sad how unexpected it seems to see a woman playing a guitar in old black and white footage?  It seems almost bizarre.  Sister Rosetta Tharpe doesn't just play the guitar, she brings so much energy and passion to it-- it's joyful, or at least, it always perks me up to see her play and sing.  She has a huge sense of spirit.

Sister Rosetta Tharpe was definitely a pioneer in the world of gospel and rock n roll too.  I don't really think there's anyone else like her.  She was popular in the 30s and 40s.  She wasn't afraid to blend the sacred with the secular, which was kind of revolutionary at the time.  Apparently she was quite shocking in her day, which makes sense because watching her even today she was so far ahead of the game and so fearless, it's shocking and also affirming to know she existed.

Watching a woman perform in gospel robes clutching and coaxing an electric guitar, the newly invented  symbol of sin to so many at the time, it's refreshing!  It's exciting!  It's inspiring!  She's a consummate performer and entertainer,  she's killer.  Check out a performance:


Now that's a solo!

This is one of my favorite videos to watch of all time:

Smog's Red Apple Falls is so simple and so beautiful.  I put it on today after not having heard it in years. The songs have a transportative effect on me.  There's something about the combination of Bill Callahan's deep voice and the pared down-ness of the music behind it that makes me perk up and listen so intensely that I can get totally lost in all of it.  I love that.  It's almost like a blanket, since I have been listening to Smog for so long.  Red Apple Falls has songs that are fable-like and also songs that are so real I cringe when I listen to some of the lyrics.  Callahan has a certain bold power; he is able to admit things that others would be too afraid of, and he sings about it all without even slightly cringing.  When I imagine him in my mind, singing these intimate songs with a straight face and a voice devoid of much emotion, he's a staid soldier at attention with his gloved hand tucked into the breast of his brass buttoned uniform.  It's lovely and brave.

I saw Bill Callahan play this Sunday night.  His voice has grown so much deeper even than before.  It's more confident and he seems even more comfortable with himself and his songs, which would make sense since, after all, he's an artist and artists develop and grow with time.  Callahan's first album came out in 1990!  He's been at this a very long time, and only gets better.  He mostly played tracks from his newest album Woke On A Whaleheart, but for me the showstopper (as it has been for the last couple of years since he's been playing it) was "Rock Bottom Riser", from his 2004 album A River Ain't Too Much To Love.  It's another almost painfully real song, exceptionally and austerely delivered.  It was a great show.

My favorite Smog record is Knock Knock from 1999.  Whenever I hear the song called "Let's Move To the Country", I just wanna drop everything, grab a blanket and run outside so I can lay in the sun and contemplate leaving everything behind and making a fresh start somewhere far from everything else.  Again, the tune is really transporting for me.  Callahan's songs bring up images and stories and ideas that are timeless but he writes about them in ways that seem different than how anyone else has ever done it before, and sometimes they are even a bit shocking, like in the song "Dress Sexy At My Funeral" from Dongs of Sevotion, another of my favorites.   Here is a performance of that song:

Since I have to work this weekend, I am not sure whether or not I am going to make it to the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival here in Golden Gate Park, which is sad. 

There are always a myriad of performers that I am excited about, but the one act I like to see consistently every year at the festival is Gillian Welch.  Gillian Welch consists of (duh) Gillian Welch (vocals, banjo, guitar)  and David Rawlings (vocals and guitar).  Rawlings is a phenomenal guitar player, with quick runs and showman's style.  Still, he fairly rarely speaks onstage.  Maybe that's why the "group" is called Gillian Welch and his name is not included except in liner notes, despite that he has cowritten almost every song on their records.  Once I saw them play at The Fillmore and David took lead vocals at one point as they played a fantastic, slow and sad version of "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun".  I loved how unexpected it was, not just that David was singing, but his song of choice.   Check out a similar performance of the song in Nashville:



Did I mention that Gillian Welch's music is fairly pure, old school country?  The songs are meant to sound as though they were written ages ago in the old time-y South, when they were actually written within the last 10 years or so by a California girl and a New England guy who have now planted themselves in Nashville.  Their style is super Americana-y and my favorite aspect of their songs are the tight harmonies they include in almost every track.  When I hear Gillian and David's songs I am also reminded of how important melodies and hooks are to songwriting, and how much most music these days is lacking either of those elements.