In Praise of Tom Paxton, Part 3

Folk Roots/Folk Branches with Mike Regenstreif is now a 30-minute feature heard occasionally on CKUT, 90.3 FM in Montreal.

Thursday April 23, 2009

Guest- Tom Paxton

In Praise of Tom Paxton, Part 3

This was the third of three Folk Roots/Folk Branches features in praise of Tom Paxton.

Tom performs Sunday April 26 at the Oscar Peterson Concert Hall, his first Montreal concert since his regular sold-out concerts at the Golem in the 1980s. Call Hello Darlin’ Productions at 514-524-9225 for tickets or information. Tom is one of the all-time greatest folk-based singer-songwriters, and one of my all-time favourite performers. Definitely a don’t miss concert.

MIKE REGENSTREIF- commentary 1

A song written for the first Earth Day, April 22, 1969.

TOM PAXTON- Whose Garden Was This
Tom Paxton 6 (Collectables)

MIKE REGENSTREIF- commentary 2

TOM PAXTON & MIKE REGENSTREIF- conversation

That conversation with Tom Paxton was recorded on April 15th.

MIKE REGENSTREIF- commentary 3

TOM PAXTON- How Beautiful Upon the Mountain
Comedians & Angels (Appleseed)
TOM PAXTON- The Honor of Your Company
Live for the Record (Sugar Hill)

MIKE REGENSTREIF- commentary 4

For more on Tom Paxton, visit http://tompaxton.com/.

Folk Roots/Folk Branches is now a blog featuring Mike Regenstreif’s playlists, CD and DVD reviews, news and commentaries.

http://frfb.blogspot.com/

Sing Out! Magazine

The March/April/May issue of Sing Out! Magazine landed in my mailbox today. The cover story is on legendary songwriter Billy Edd Wheeler.

As usual, this issue of Sing Out! includes a bunch of my CD reviews. Among them:

Stephen Barry & Andrew Cowan- Duo
Jonatha Brooke- The Works
Kasey Chambers & Shane Nicholson- Rattlin' Bones
Rodney Crowell- Sex & Gasoline
Bob Dylan- The Bootleg Series, Vol. 8: Tell Tale Signs
Arlo Guthrie w/The Dillards- 32 Cents/Postage Due
Klez Dispensers- Say You'll Understand
Jez Lowe & the Bad Pennies- Northern Echoes: Live on the Tyne
Old Crow Medicine Show- Tennessee Pusher
Paul Reddick- SugarBird
Roaring Girl Cabaret- In Last Night's Party Clothes
Pete Seeger- At 89
Various Artists- Dancing Alone: Songs of Williams Hawkins
Various Artists- Songs of Social Justice
Various Artists- The Rough Guide to Klezmer Revolution
April Verch- Steal the Blue
Robin & Linda Williams- Buena Vista

Montreal Gazette's Album of the Week

Although my weekly CD reviews are gone from the Montreal Gazette (I promise to start posting reviews here soon), I still occasionally write the Gazette's Album of the Week feature. This week's is my review of Jesse Winchester's new album, Love Filling Station (Appleseed).

Jesse Winchester

Love Filling Station

Appleseed

****1/2 out of five

MIKE REGENSTREIF

SPECIAL TO THE GAZETTE

For a little over a decade, beginning with his self-titled debut classic in 1970, longtime Montrealer Jesse Winchester released albums of new material at a relatively prolific rate; seven albums in 11 years, each chock filled with great songs. In the ‘80s, though, the pace slowed to a trickle. There was a new album in 1989, then a decade’s wait until 1999.

Another decade has passed. In the years since, Winchester has remarried and left Quebec – where he lived for almost four decades since arriving at Dorval Airport as a Vietnam War-era draft resistor – for small town Virginia. And, at last, we have a new Jesse Winchester studio album; nine finely-crafted original gems and three excellent covers.

Winchester grew up in Memphis and his music has often blended Memphis R ‘n’ B traditions with country and folk influences. This album also has a very strong influence of early rock ‘n’ roll, particularly the ballad tradition of singers like Roy Orbison, a bit of jazz, and, perhaps in a nod to the sounds that waft through the Virginia countryside where he now lives, a hefty dose of bluegrass. Several of the core backup musicians, including guitarist Russ Barenberg, steel guitarist Jerry Douglas, fiddler Andy Leftwich and singer Claire Lynch have deep roots in bluegrass.

A couple of the songs, Bless Your Foolish Heart and Eulalie, both in country veins, first surfaced on Live from Mountain Stage, a live album put together from Winchester’s appearances on that American public radio program. Both seem fresh and new in these arrangements fleshed out by the fine studio band.

Another previously-heard tune is O What A Thrill, a ‘90s Winchester tune covered by the Mavericks. Winchester reclaims the song for himself with a gently rocking arrangement that highlights his haunting, liquid-like tenor voice. Others in that vein include Sham-A-Ling-Dong-Ding and a version of Stand By Me, the old Ben E. King hit that Winchester convincingly makes his own with his so-very-soulful singing and an arrangement highlighting Leftwich’s fiddling.

Other standouts include It’s A Shame About Him, an infectious country-swing tune that would have done Roger Miller proud, and the simply gorgeous I Turn To My Guitar which captures the feelings that have led to the creation of so much music by so many people over so many years.

The album ends with a terrific honky tonk duet that has Winchester trading lines with Lynch on Loose Talk, Carl Smith’s huge country hit from 1955.

In Priase of Tom Paxton, Part 2

Folk Roots/Folk Branches with Mike Regenstreif is now a 30-minute feature heard occasionally on CKUT, 90.3 FM in Montreal.

Thursday April 2, 2009

In Praise of Tom Paxton, Part 2

This was the second of three Folk Roots/Folk Branches features in praise of Tom Paxton.

Tom performs Sunday April 26 at the Oscar Peterson Concert Hall, his first Montreal concert since his regular sold-out concerts at the Golem in the 1980s. Call Hello Darlin’ Productions at 514-524-9225 for tickets or information. Tom is one of the all-time greatest folk-based singer-songwriters, and one of my all-time favourite performers. Definitely a don’t miss concert.

One of the things Tom is known for is his topical songs. Many comment on the news of the day and he often refers to those as his “short shelf life songs.” Many others, like the next four songs, are timeless.

MIKE REGENSTREIF- commentary 1

TOM PAXTON- Dogs at Midnight
Tom Paxton 6 (Collectables)
TOM PAXTON- Peace Will Come
Politics Live (Flying Fish)

MIKE REGENSTREIF- commentary 2

SALLY ROGERS- Mother
Generations (Flying Fish)
TOM PAXTON, ANNE HILLS, BOB GIBSON- She Sits on the Table
Best of Friends (Appleseed)

Tom was playing many of the same coffee houses, clubs and folk festivals as Mississippi John Hurt in the early-to-mid-1960s. Tom’s classic song, Bottle of Wine, was inspired by John Hurt’s style. So was his tribute song, Did You Hear John Hurt.

MIKE REGENSTREIF- commentary 3

DAVE VAN RONK- Did You Hear John Hurt
Somebody Else, Not Me (Philo)
TOM PAXTON, ANNE HILLS, BOB GIBSON- Bottle of Wine
Best of Friends (Appleseed)

Tom Paxton is also well known for his great love songs.

MIKE REGENSTREIF- commentary 4

TOM PAXTON- Me and a Couple of Angels
Looking for the Moon (Appleseed)

MIKE REGENSTREIF- commentary 5

For more on Tom Paxton, visit http://tompaxton.com/.

Folk Roots/Folk Branches is now a blog featuring Mike Regenstreif’s playlists, CD and DVD reviews, news and commentaries.

http://frfb.blogspot.com/