Michelle Shocked & Mavis Staples

After decades of recording albums as a member of the Staple Singers, and as a solo artist, veteran soul/gospel singer Mavis Staples finally won her very first Grammy Award earlier this year. Hard to believe, but true. But even stranger was the category for which she won: Best Americana Album. Best what?

 

Indeed, even though the term has been in use for more than a decade in the music industry, 2010 was the first year that the Grammy Awards acknowledged such a category. For most music listeners, however, Americana remains a fuzzily-defined genre. Mavis won for her solo album, You Are Not Alone, which was produced by Jeff Tweedy of Wilco, a band definitely more at home in the realm of Americana. While it might be stretching things to define her fine album as Americana, You Are Not Alone was definitely worthy of recognition and acclaim. Her 2007 album, We’ll Never Turn Back, produced by the industrious Ry Cooder, was also a jewel. In between those two memorable studio albums, she released Live: Hope at the Hideout, which, as the title suggests, is a live recording from a club in Chicago. It’s a hot, steaming recording that shows Mavis still has a set of powerful pipes, even as she was closing in on her 70th year on the planet at the time of recording.

 

As for this thing dubbed “Americana,” here is the definition furnished by the power brokers at Grammy:

Americana music has its roots in the folk-rock and “outlaw country” styles of the 1970s, adding elements or rock, folk, bluegrass, R&B, blues and pop to country music, resulting in a distinctive roots-oriented sound that lives in a world apart from country and the other genres it may draw upon. While some acoustic instruments are often present, especially acoustic guitar, Americana often uses a full electric band. Americana may retain the twang of country, but with a pronounced edge—often musical or political—that would not be mistaken for today’s commercial country music

I once read a review that called Michelle Shocked a recording artist with integrity, and I thought that was a very apt description. Her songs are honest and heartfelt. But nowadays I think that her music would definitely fit properly into this “Americana” category too. If you want to talk roots music, with both acoustic and electric elements, Michelle Shocked is up there with the best of them.

 

Michelle Shocked first came to the world’s attention with the quirky album, The Texas Campfire Tapes in 1986. This was not your conventional debut album, but then again it wasn’t supposed to be. The entire album was recorded on a standard over-the-counter Walkman tape recorder at a folk festival in Texas. Not something that most people would think was worthy of worldwide release. But Michelle’s acoustic guitar performances were so riveting, her vocals so engaging, and the songs so good, that a label decided to put it out … although apparently not with Michelle’s endorsement. But Michelle rectified any misgivings about the original release of that album with a similarly titled reissue called The Texas Campire Takes in 2003. This version is a 2-CD set that includes the complete unedited original session, along with previously unreleased songs and between song “narratives.” There is also a 52-page booklet with oodles of photos too. But once again, be prepared for less than optimum sound quality. There’s only so much you can do with the sound from old Walkman tapes even with all the digital editing programs out there nowadays.

 

Michelle Shocked really took the music world by storm when she scored a huge hit with “Anchorage,” one of the tracks off her excellent 1988 album Short Sharp Shocked, produced by the legendary Pete Anderson. Other songs on the album, such as “When I Grow Up,” “Memories of East Texas,” and “Graffiti Limbo” showcased Michelle’s deft songwriting skills, and the poignant power of her voice. I still love the “bonus” track, a raucous version of “Fogtown” (a song that first appeared as an acoustic version on Texas Campfire Tapes) that closes the album, sung by a member of the punk band MDC, who sounds eerily like David Johansen of the New York Dolls. It definitely doesn’t “fit” with the style of the rest of the songs on the album, but yet it works. I thought it was a great way to end the album, though I’m sure it puzzled many a listener.

 

My favorite Michelle Shocked album, however, is 1992’s Arkansas Traveler, a “roots” record that was her tribute to string bands and the blackface minstrel era. This was a rambunctious and joyful effort that dabbled in country, bluegrass, folk, soul, and blues. Ain’t that Americana? These were absolutely great songs, bursting with life and passion. And look at the supporting cast of musicians; Levon Helm, Garth Hudson, Pops Staples, Taj Mahal, Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, Albert Lee, Tony Levin, Alison Krauss, Doc Watson, Jerry Douglas, Mark O’Connor, Norman Blake, and Bernie Leadon, along with members of the Red Clay Ramblers, Hothouse Flowers, and Uncle Tupelo. Expectations for such a talented group were high, but they more than delivered the goods. And even with so many musicians on hand, this was still very much a Michelle Shocked album. This album was re-released in 2004 with seven bonus tracks of previously unreleased material, including some live performances. A must have.

 

Like many talented artists that once had recording contracts with major labels, Michelle Shocked has parted ways with the corporate companies, but she continues to record new albums and play concerts.

http://www.michelleshocked.com/index.htm

Gordon Lightfoot

Gordon Lightfoot has written an astonishing number of great songs during his long recording career. In the grand tradition of storytelling singer-songwriter guitar-playing folk singers, skirting the fringes of country and pop, Gordon Lightfoot is one of the absolute finest. His songs endure.

 

Despite the quality of his songs, and many best-selling albums, Gordon Lightfoot remains a criminally underrated artist, one that has never catapulted to the upper ranks of fame and acclaim. Maybe the humble “Canadian factor” has something to do with it, or the fact that his songs aren’t political or controversial, thus he’s not considered a “serious” artist in the vein of Bob Dylan or Neil Young. But perhaps it’s just because the native of Ontario is such a normal, unassuming musician, as opposed to a “colorful” character who is constantly in the media spotlight, that he’s not considered a superstar.

 

Whatever the case, Lightfoot has penned and sang hundreds of great songs that have also been covered by dozens (perhaps hundreds?) of other artists. Hidden Treasure? Gordon Lightfoot is all that and more. Surely anyone over the age of forty will remember his songs — “If Could Read My Mind,” “Sundown” and “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” are the most well known. Since his first album, released in 1965, Lightfoot consistently recorded and performed live concerts until the late 1990s. Some ensuing health problems slowed him down and curtailed his concert schedule for several years, but he bounced back with a new album, Harmony, in 2004, and a tour the following year.

 

There are several excellent compilation albums of songs, highlighting both his early work for United Artists, and his later albums for Reprise/Warner Brothers. The first Gordon Lightfoot album I ever owned was a compilation called Gord’s Gold. I’ve owned that treasured collection on various formats over the years; vinyl, CD, cassette, and even 8-Track tape. The one knock some people make against this collection, is that some of the “hits” were re-recorded versions. That aside, the songs still sound great and this collection never gets stale. The Lightfoot purists, however, will argue that his best material is found on The United Artists Collection, a compilation of his early recordings. And it’s hard to find fault with that judgment either; the material on this two-disc set is stellar, including many of his best tunes: Ribbon of Darkness, Early Mornin’ Rain, Steel Rail Blues, Song for a Winter’s Night, Canadian Railroad Trilogy, The Way I Feel, Did She Mention My Name, and Bitter Green. For those with a real hankering for even more vintage Lightfoot, there is the four-disc boxed set, Songbook. This, of course, culls highlights from Lightfoot’s recording career, as well as offering 16 previously unreleased tracks, plus many more making their first appearance on CD.

 

No matter which album or compilation you listen to, you will be treated to well-crafted songs, and Lightfoot’s trademark warm vocals, lovingly caressing each song.