Artist:Carrie Biell Hometown: Seattle, Washington Song: “California Baby” Album:We Get Along Release Date: February 11, 2022
In Their Words: “This is my pandemic song about feeling cooped up and isolated. I was missing travel and being around loved ones. I wanted to write a song that would feel good to listen to on a road trip in hopes it would give me a sense of traveling. I’m from California and had been feeling a lot of nostalgia for the state and missing my friends and family down there. I’ve always wanted to write a tribute to California and this was a fun one to write during a pandemic.” — Carrie Biell
Artist:The Mother Hips Hometown: Marin County, California Song: “I Don’t Want to Drive You Away” Album:Glowing Lantern Release Date: December 3, 2021 Label: Blue Rose
In Their Words: “We came across an Anne Murray cassette tape in a truck stop some years back. The album cover was so fascinating to us that we decided to buy it. The music and recording blew us away. Her version of this song in particular with its groove, harmonies and far-out production really spoke to us, so we worked up our own version. It’s absurd in a way — a rock band covering an Anne Murray song. She’s mom music. We had no idea her first record was this weird countrypolitan, psychedelic record with Glen Campbell and all these L.A. hot shot musicians on it. We’d later realize it was written by David Wiffen, whose songs have been recorded by artists like Roger McGuinn, The Cowboy Junkies, The Jayhawks and The Black Crowes, so all in all, it turned out to be a fitting choice for the first-ever cover song on a Mother Hips record.” – Greg Loiacono, The Mother Hips
Artist:Ross Hammond Hometown: Sacramento, California Song: “Blue Hoodie” Album:It’s Been Here All Along Release Date: October 23, 2021 Label: Prescott Recordings
In Their Words: “This song is dedicated to the inner circle of friends and family that my wife, daughter, and I have relied on throughout the pandemic. As we maneuver and pivot through this time it’s a blessing to have a crew. This song, like all of the songs on this record, was made with a resonator guitar on a two track reel-to-reel recorder. All of these songs use a Freeport tuning (CGCGCD) and the themes are written to be improvised on. For the video I made a collage using a grocery bag and some Polaroid and Sprocket photos from the past year. I thought using physical photos in a video shoot would give the sense of vagueness to the faces, like anyone who saw this could imagine their own crew in a ghostlike, snapshot form.” — Ross Hammond
Artist:Moot Davis Hometown: Los Angeles, California Song: “Hey Hey” Album:Seven Cities of Gold Release Date: October 22, 2021 Label: Boot Knife Records
In Their Words: “I wrote this song in Nashville in 2002 just before I got signed to Pete Anderson’s Little Dog Records label. It’s a song that I’ve had in my back pocket for a long time, but when I was gathering tunes for this album I took it back out. The song was pretty close to being done, but the chorus needed to be reworked. My girlfriend Katie actually came up with the chorus while she was busy painting one of the large pictures that hangs in our little house.
“The making of the Seven Cities of Gold album was the most fun I’ve ever had in the studio and I think it really comes across on tracks like ‘Hey Hey.’ I was making music with my friends who I’ve known and worked with for years, with no pressure or financial constraints. We recorded it at my drummer Blake Oswald’s home studio and it was very relaxed and heavy on the vodka. I think we were all shocked when it turned out so well, because it was the first time we had ever produced anything on our own. Along with Oswald and myself, we had our past tour manager and studio engineer, Jody Sappington, help us produce and play bass. My longtime guitarist Bill Corvino really gave the album some sharp teeth with his playing while Skip Edwards and Gary Morse added beautiful parts on B3 and pedal steel. Our buddy Al Backstrom (Angela’s husband) did an awesome job mixing the album and laying down some killer harmonies.
“Sometimes projects just come together and it would be really hard to recreate it at any other time. We decided to put the album out now because we are already starting pre-production on the next album, so we felt it was time to get it out of the gate and share it. It’s hard to move forward with a brand new project until the current one is released. Like bullets in a sonic gun, baby!” — Moot Davis
Artist:Single Girl, Married Girl Hometown: Los Angeles, California Song: “Wreck Cut Loose” Album:Three Generations of Leaving Release Date: November 19, 2021 Label: Head Bitch Music
In Their Words: “I’ve always loved torch songs and big weepy ballads, especially country ones. ‘Wreck Cut Loose’ lets me belt and sing like the incomparable voices I grew up listening to and have tried to emulate countless times — Ella Fitzgerald, Judy Garland, Tammy Wynette, and Patsy Cline, but in a contemporary musical setting. We didn’t want to sound like an old country or pop vocal song, but the lineage should be obvious.
“Lyrically, it’s about something most people have gone through in their lives — a breakup, but Dan Morosi, our friend and former drummer, who wrote the song, manages to portray the emotional intensity we feel in the aftermath of being dumped through simple, direct language. It sort of fixates on mundane elements that belie the complex feelings being expressed and examined, all the while building to this heartbreaking crescendo.
“For the music video, we wanted a concept that was not gimmicky but a little tongue-in-cheek. It’s literally one shot once the music starts; I’m walking home from being dumped and encounter multiple friends along the way who try to cheer me up, when all I want to do is go home, be alone, and have a really good cry. It’s all to say that we need a little support in our lives during hard times, that we are stronger together. We hope the video feels like a big group hug.” — Chelsey Coy, Single Girl, Married Girl
Artist:Abby Posner featuring Constellation Quartet Hometown: Los Angeles, California Song: “Low Low Low” Album:Kisbee Ring Release Date: November 12, 2021
In Their Words: “Whenever I have an opportunity to collaborate with a string quartet, the experience is transformative. Strings take you to a zen-like space where everything feels just right, perfect for the song, and what I wanted to convey. ‘Low Low Low’ is about depression, anxiety, and learning how to be kinder to the darkness within, so working with Constellation Quartet was the sonic hug this song so desperately needed to feel complete. Constellation Quartet are currently making a name for themselves as both performers and collaborators, working with the best of the Los Angeles musician scene through their residency at the Garden Concert Series in Redondo Beach. The video was shot live during sunset deep in the Malibu hills with a battery-powered setup, hikers passing by, and a reverence for the creative process.” — Abby Posner
String arrangements: Max Mueller (cello). Cinematography: Ian McIntire. Photo credit: Rollence Patugan
Artist:AJ Lee & Blue Summit Hometown: The Bay Area Song: “Monongah Mine” Album:I’ll Come Back Release Date: August 20, 2021
In Their Words: “In my teen years, I went through a phase where I would Google historic events and I came across the Monongah mining accident from 1907 in [West] Virginia. There’s a line in the first verse, ‘where darkness down below is lit by wicks,’ that I wrote because an open flame or spark is what most likely caused an explosion, trapping the immigrant miners inside. The second verse starts with ‘wives and daughters and mothers gathered around, to sing to all the souls trapped underground’ — all true, according to the story. The workers’ loved ones tried to offer whatever comfort they could in such a hopeless time. Eventually ‘came the U.S. Bureau of Mines in 1910’ to provide thorough investigations in areas including the mining process and safety regulations. I’m no history buff by any means, but this story is so powerful I had to write about it.” — AJ Lee
Artist:Jenner Fox Hometown: Sisters, Oregon Song: “Buffalo” Album:Planet I’m From Release Date: September 18, 2021
In Their Words: “‘Buffalo’ is the story of Rio. He and I worked together for years as river guides in Patagonia, Chile. Rio is a seasonal worker earning just enough each summer to come back and work another season, with each passing year his body showing more wear and tear. ‘Buffalo’ voices Rio’s dream to someday retire to a buffalo ranch at the foot of the ocean. It’s a song about growing old with dignity. The animated music video is a collaboration with acclaimed filmmaker Benjamin Boult and is a take on what creativity was able to look like during the pandemic. We asked several visual artists to each draw a scene on digital art programs. Their art is transformed into a series of time-lapse images — from sketches to full color — all drawn as the artists listened to the words and music of ‘Buffalo.'” — Jenner Fox
Artist:Alexa Rose Hometown: Black Mountain, North Carolina Song: “Big Sky” Album:Headwaters Release Date: September 17, 2021 Label: Big Legal Mess Records
In Their Words: “‘Big Sky’ was filmed in Joshua Tree, California, with a crew led by three incredible women. I was in LA with my manager and a camcorder, planning to make a home video for the song when we crossed paths with videographer Sydney Taylor and stylist Emma Sauer. We only had one day in LA, and we shot the video just an hour after meeting them. These women showed up with such empowering energy to help me create something adventurous and lighthearted. The whole experience felt reflective of the serendipity of traveling and the spirit of the song.” — Alexa Rose
Artist:Colin Hay Hometown: Topanga Canyon, California Song: “Wichita Lineman” Album:I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself Release Date: August 6, 2021 Label: Compass Records
In Their Words: “‘Wichita Lineman’ was the first song where I realized the importance of the written song, in and of itself. Before that, I had always put artists and songs together, like Bob Dylan, The Beatles, The Who, The Kinks, and many others, who all primarily wrote and performed their own songs. ‘Wichita Lineman’ spoke of things I could only wonder at. The geographical vastness of the land, the hopes and dreams of the man working the line, and indeed of all people who inhabit this country. And, a love story contained within achingly beautiful music and melody. I can’t think of a better song.” — Colin Hay
Photo credit: Paul Mobley
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