Tag: premiere

LISTEN: Eilen Jewell, “Green River”

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Artist: Eilen Jewell
Hometown: Boise, Idaho
Song: “Green River”
Album: “Green River”/ “Summertime” 7-inch single
Release Date: July 8, 2020
Label: Signature Sounds

In Their Words: “Every summer for the past twelve years or so, as the Green River Festival in Greenfield, Massachusetts, rolls around, I’ve had Creedence’s song ‘Green River’ stuck in my head. For about as many years I’d wanted to surprise the audience with a rendition of that perfectly summery tune as my homage to the beloved festival, which is presented by Signature Sounds, the label I’ve been happily working with since the beginning of my career. I have so many great memories of that festival over the years: meeting Lucinda Williams for the first time, getting my guitar autographed by Emmylou Harris, being moved to tears by Mavis Staples singing about the Freedom Highway, loving the music in the rain, or in the sun, or the crazy wind, every year having a distinctly amazing experience.

“Last summer the planets aligned just so and my band and I were able to present our version of ‘Green River’ to the Green River Festival on the main stage, and my daughter, part of the next generation of festival goers, was there to witness it. I’m not sure which Green River John Fogerty had in mind when he wrote the tune. I know he did so long before the Green River Festival began, but just as the song is synonymous to me with all things summer, so is that festival. When we recorded the song in August of last year, we would never have believed that the future of that festival, and nearly all festivals, and our own future as touring musicians, would be so imperiled. It’s my hope that the spirit of those free-flowing summer festival days and nights can live on brightly in our hearts and minds, that we can keep that spirit alive until rosier days, and pass the torch to the next generation to keep it lit.” — Eilen Jewell

Photo credit: Joanna Chattman

WATCH: Chance Emerson, “Annabelle”

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Artist: Chance Emerson
Hometown: Hong Kong, China / Providence, Rhode Island
Song: “Annabelle”
Album: The Raspberry Men

In Their Words: “My songs tend to take on the energy of the place they were written. I wrote this up in rural Maine so it was particularly fitting that the video ended up being shot there. This song has grown closer to me, especially recently with the shuttering of schools in this period of social distancing. I wrote ‘Annabelle’ as a goodbye to my friends in high school but it’s become significant to me yet again in these times. I’m certainly a bit of a worrier about this entire situation and when I’m firing off probabilities and news headlines at breakfast, my mother likes to quote this song: ‘Everything will be alright in time.’ A lot of friendships won’t last through your life. A lot of friendships fizzle out. Many good things must come to an end — hence the last line. There’s a little bit of the whole idea that ‘you don’t know how good you have it until it’s gone,’ too. Maybe you can’t truly treasure a relationship until it’s over.” — Chance Emerson

“We had been working on a cut of a short when a friend showed us Chance’s music. Immediately ‘Annabelle’ spoke to us and we couldn’t help but feel that the pieces shared common themes. Both are concerned with youthful relationships, anxiety surrounding their future, and the hopeful acts undertaken to preserve that future. Right away we began recutting the short to fit the song and luckily Chance felt the same way we did.” — Rob H. Campbell and Davíd Antonio Martín of Vacationland Collective (Directors)

Photo credit: Chance Emerson as photographed in Hong Kong by Manisha Shah

WATCH: Chris Knight, “I’m William Callahan”

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Artist: Chris Knight
Hometown: Slaughters, Kentucky
Song: “I’m William Callahan” (Niangua Coffee Sessions)
Album: Almost Daylight
Label: Thirty Tigers

In Their Words: “I wrote ‘William Callahan’ with a friend of mine, Tim Krekel. We both were staff writers for Bluewater Music then. We wrote it and went on to the next song. I pulled the song back out before Almost Daylight and rewrote some lines and completely changed the melody. It’s probably my favorite song on the album now.” — Chris Knight

“While we were in Kentucky filming Chris’ recent music videos, we decided to take some time one afternoon and film a few live performances behind Chris’ barn. The acoustic performances turned out to be some of the most intimate, raw songs we’ve ever captured.” — Nathaniel Maddux, Slate & Glass, director

Photo credit: Ray Kennedy

LISTEN: The Sons of the Soul Revivers, “It Isn’t Safe”

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Artist: The Sons of the Soul Revivers
Hometown: Vallejo, California
Song: “It Isn’t Safe”
Album: Songs We’ll Always Sing: A Tribute to the Pilgrim Jubilees
Release Date: July 12, 2020
Label: Little Village Foundation

In Their Words: “Ever since I heard the album the Pilgrim Jubilees put out in 1973, the title is Don’t Let Him Down, I think I’ve gravitated especially to this song, ‘It Isn’t Safe.’ It was the last song on the ‘B’ side. And Cleve Graham, the leader of the Jubilees, shared with us the premise of that song. They were in Chicago, and Cleve said his brother Clay, who’s no longer with us, may he rest in peace, walked in and had a disgusted look on his face. Walking back from church, he’d seen two men attacking a lady. And Clay said, ‘You know what? It isn’t safe anywhere anymore.’ And he wrote the song.

“The message in it, from 1973 and here we are in 2020, and the message is still on point. The distrust of law enforcement, and law enforcement distrusts the public… we have yet to come to a common ground on how we can get along. I’m hoping and praying that this song will resonate with people in general. The lyric goes, ‘We should treat sin just like dirt, and with the broom of faith we should sweep it aside.’ I love that. It’s the only way we’re going to survive. ‘Do unto others as you would have them do to you, I declare that this is all you have to do. It isn’t safe….'” — James Morgan, The Sons of the Soul Revivers

Photo courtesy of the Sons of the Soul Revivers

WATCH: Aaron Burdett, “Dirt Poor”

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Artist: Aaron Burdett
Hometown: Saluda, North Carolina
Song: “Dirt Poor”
Label: Organic Records

In Their Words: “This new video for ‘Dirt Poor’ is shot at my childhood home, where my folks still live. It includes old scrapbook photos of my family and their friends, interspersed with shots of my daughter playing in the same places and in the same way my brothers and I did back in the ’80s. To me, this song at depth is about nostalgia and aging and time. Things are totally different now, but also the same as they were way back when. As hard as it is to remember to do, we should all try to cherish the moment we’re in now, today. It may well be what we’re looking back on years down the road as the ‘good old days.’ Hope you enjoy it!” — Aaron Burdett

Photo credit: Sandlin Gaither

LISTEN: Bowregard, “High on a Mountain”

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Artist: Bowregard
Hometown: Boulder, Colorado
Song: “High on a Mountain”
Album: Arrows
Release Date: July 1, 2020

In Their Words: “Bowregard are all big fans of Colorado’s seminal bluegrass band Hot Rize, and love their rendition of Ola Belle Reed’s classic ‘High on a Mountain.’ When Max Kabat (guitar) got inspired to reharmonize a classic bluegrass song, this one seemed like a natural. Max and James Armington (banjo) created a new chord structure that emphasized the lonesomeness and desperation contained in the words of the original song, and put a soaring minor harmony in the chorus that played to the band’s fondness for tight three-part vocals. When it came time to record the track in the studio, things came full circle as producer Nick Forster — bassist and vocalist in Hot Rize — helped the band realize an inspired performance of the arrangement. The result is a haunting new perspective on a beloved standard of the bluegrass repertoire.” — Justin Konrad, Bowregard (resophonic guitar)

Photo credit: Chantelle Hegreness

LISTEN: Bluegrass 2020, “Vanleer” (Feat. Scott Vestal, Patrick McAvinue, Cody Kilby, Dominick Leslie & Curtis Vestal)

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Artist: Bluegrass 2020, featuring Scott Vestal, Patrick McAvinue, Cody Kilby, Dominick Leslie, and Curtis Vestal
Hometown: Greenbrier, Tennessee
Song: “Vanleer”
Album: Bluegrass 2020
Release Date: June 26, 2020
Label: Pinecastle Records

In Their Words: “I wrote this tune around 2004 and had totally forgotten about it until a few weeks before the Bluegrass 2020 session. The name is from the beautiful countryside of Vanleer, TN about an hour and a half west of Nashville where my wife, Alice, grew up. We were married there in the middle of Bear Creek on a gigantic rock. There are caves, creeks, plains, hills, and valleys. The tune has 5 parts with the various instruments weaving in and out of the melodies, much like the landscape of Vanleer.” — Scott Vestal, Bluegrass 2020

LISTEN: Tara Dente, “Hill So Steep”

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Artist: Tara Dente
Hometown: Asbury Park, New Jersey
Song: “Hill So Steep”
Album: Truth in the Mud
Release Date: July 17, 2020
Label: Travianna Records

In Their Words: “‘Hill So Steep’ is about a dream I had. In the dream, I was driving up a hill so steep, I felt like I was climbing the steepest roller coaster with no belt on or bar to hold me in and would just fall out. The dream certainly reflected difficult circumstances happening in my life at the time. I was a server at a popular restaurant in my town and did pretty well in tips that day. As soon as I turned the corner walking to my car after work, I noticed it, as well as a slew of other cars, had been towed. The dollar amount it took to get my car back from the auto shop was the exact amount I had made that day in tips. That night, I had the dream. Sometimes you take a step forward, and then take a step right back. But then another day, you’ll take three steps forward. You just have to hang in there the best you can, and look for the next right thing.” — Tara Dente

Photo credit: Jesse Andrew Photography

LISTEN: Evan Ogden, “These Songs and a Guitar”

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Artist: Evan Ogden
Hometown: Round Rock, Texas
Song: “These Songs and a Guitar”
Album: Undone
Release Date: July 31, 2020

In Their Words: “‘These Songs and a Guitar’ is one of the most personal songs on the album for me. It came at a point where pretty much everything in my life was falling apart. I was having to own up to the fact that the man I wanted to be and the man I was had more differences than similarities.

“There’s a passage in the Bible that weighed heavily on me for about three or four months where Jesus is addressing anxiety and worrying about tomorrow. He tells His disciples to consider the ravens and flowers of the field; He describes God taking care of their needs and claims how much more He will take care of theirs. Faith has always been a central part of my life and this passage set off a season-long struggle to find out how to come to terms with a passion I seldom understand. This song, in a lot of ways, culminates a prayer, or argument I took up with God. I was trying to work through the blessing and curse of having a passion for such an unstable gift. Admittedly, I still struggle a lot with it but this song was very cathartic in a very real sense. I hope this song gives the listener a space to be honest about the struggle we all feel when our blessings are more like anchors than feathers.” — Evan Ogden

Photo credit: Jessica Summerford

WATCH: Jill Andrews, “The Kids Are Growing Up”

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Artist: Jill Andrews
Hometown: Johnson City, Tennessee; currently Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “The Kids Are Growing Up”
Album: Thirties
Label: Vulture, Vulture / Tone Tree

In Their Words: “I snuck away one day during my daughter’s nap to write ‘The Kids Are Growing Up.’ My son and daughter are seven years apart and everyday in both of them, I saw this theme personified. She was tiny in my arms just like he used to be. I wrote it as a reminder to myself to slow down and try to be present for the important moments, the ones that really matter. The video comes from ten found film reels donated to the Prelinger Archives in San Francisco. Nobody knows who the family is but based on the footage they lived in the St. Louis area. In the video, you see a family go through marriage, birth of their first child, raising children, holidays, marrying off their first child, and then their first grandchild being born. It so perfectly fits the theme of the song. I truly cannot believe that the filmmaker, Nathaniel Maddux, found the footage and that this family kept such amazing archives of their lives. He said he really hopes that someone sees the video and lets us know who they are!” — Jill Andrews

Photo credit: Fairlight Hubbard