|
Part four or is it five, if you
count Tim Buchanan’s spoken word disc, of
the Trailerpark story. Last disc ‘Come on Down’ was a
pretty good act to follow but this latest instalment of Tim. B’s
exploration of the lyrical and musical highways and byways of
backwoods Nashville is another gem. Coming out of the alternative
Nashville scene that spawned Stacey Earle, Tom House etc. Buchanan and
his cohorts bring a new meaning to the words ‘down-home’ and folky.
Like Tom House these boys start some way to the left of centre and
draw on a seam of Appalachian folk, coal miner balladry and general
working-class blues white and black that even the Alt-C mainstream
hardly touches. Coupled with Buchanan’s wonderful storytelling –
this man could keep you enthralled with just a roaring fire and his
pipe in best oral tradition stylee –then you have a great little
combo.
First track ‘For a long spell’ begins with church piano before
soaring on bass, mandolin and banjo and Tim’s distinctive voice.
Listen to the lyrics though and they cut straight across the jaunty
tune with ‘..blood dripping from my hand’ as an example. Mystic
lyrics backed by an old-time string-band atmosphere. The production is
crisper than before – the Trailerpark’s first time in a
‘upmarket’ studio. Dylan harmonica brings in ‘April, where’d
you get your sweetness?’ More Nashville Skyline than Blonde on
Blonde feel as a story of incest festers to its conclusion. Tim
Buchanan has worked with the dying and badly treated of Nashville and
his tales are full of an authenticity that Music Row would pick its
way over on the sidewalk. The tone lightens on ‘lovesong’ ‘Up on
my fencepost’ which has real pretty guitar/banjo figures. Leo Kottke
singing with Dock Boggs is the vibe. Being a Trailerpark song the good
times don’t last and of course the girl is lost …’she left my
ring up on my fencepost’. There’s a depth of writing here that
takes a few listens to fully appreciate.
‘Windows
on the Cumberland’ is a snapshot of that other side of Nashville
where Garth Brooks never treads. When the Brooks bonus CD digi-packs
are so much chaff like Victorian parlour song sheets people will come
back to tracks as strong as this to find some kind of truth. The vocal
interplay and accordion is superb.
There are a
further 14 tracks on this disc! The weird ‘Have you a story’ gives
way to the glorious folk-blues of ‘From a wooden floor’ which
draws on a visit to the Crenshaw Slavehouse– this is Guthrie/Dylan
folk music with intent. Throughout there is a melodic liveliness
drawing on the string-band heritage – almost all songs float on
banjo and mandolin. ‘Will you dance with me in a field of
dust…will you dance with me next to an open grave tonight’ there
is a sharp edge to the lyrics. The sadness of ‘Wreckin’ Daisy’
is broken by the barroom piano soul of ‘Perched on scarecrow
blues’. ‘How can you sleep tonight?’ points a finger at the
‘special’ forces that brought the Waco siege to an end. There are
many pitfalls to ‘political’ songwriting and Tim Buchanan skips
over all of them. As good as his influences Bruce Cockburn, Dylan etc.
Not jolly in the least but truthful and necessary. When you think that
US mall culture is gonna flood the planet and drown us all works like
this give us all hope. There’s good apples in the rottenest barrels
and I couldn’t help but think of Jefferson in his garden as the disc
blows to a hymnal conclusion with ‘Something will be over soon’.
Jefferson I think we’re lost…..not yet.
available from TheBuchanan@compuserve.com
or through Redeye in the states, Savage Henry in UK. |
|
‘This is an outfit that’s lasted years….’
Old
dogs, new tricks? Now, now if they’re old then so am I. Let it be
said that this bunch of Oxford, England thirty/forty-somethings
shouldn’t really be doing this sort of thing. No any self-respecting
adults would just stay at home warming a kipper under the grill and
watching the footie. But no out they go with their rickenbackers and
jangle and guess what it’s a rare treat to listen to. Now they may
not be the mid’life flight Byrds but they have a collective memory
of staggering depth that recalls here a touch of that west coast
jollity and there some primal mid-eighties English wimsiness a la
Smiths. Firstly these whippersnappers were all blooded in the same mid
eighties indie scene from whence I crawled, Creation Records being the
linchpin around which our interest in sixties rock/pop whirled. Lead
singer Richard Ramage kept this upstart movement at bay by fighting a
thoroughly English revisionist battle of his own on the home turf. His
home fire burnt brightly for a spell when his band The Anyways held
‘Best band’ title in Oxford. Long before those Supergrasses and
Radioheads had left the apron-strings. A reluctance to tour his ass
off meant that the bright lights of London remained just that and the
Anyways slipped from the radar. A few years on and all doing sensible
day jobs he returns aided and abetted by a former Razorcut or two, a
punk drummer ( The Car Thieves anyone? –best punk band name I’ve
ever heard) and other local luminaries.
What emerges is as finely crafted a pop record as
I’ve heard lately but one which has its feet cemented more firmly in
the eighties than a gangland grass. Richard Ramage can pour more
genuine ‘english-ness’ into a lyric than most and on ‘My
Divorcee’ has in my opinion penned his greatest song. At times the
sheer brilliance of his writing can be missed as the melodies pass by
but classic lines like‘
I discussed Tarantino with her postal worker son’
suddenly leap out.
Self-effacing to the point of lace curtains they
may not be the biggest download of the week but thay deserve
recognition for this disc. ‘Old fashioned’ is an English
Go-betweens or Triffids
‘Work
in a bookshop in a jacket chosen by my wife,
General
non-fiction seems to be the story of my life’.
There’s an underlying sadness in his songs that
seeps out from under the stiff upper lip. Imagine Philip Larkin
fronting The Feelies. This is Oxford calling ( quietly) and the more
people get to hear this little gem the better.
|
|
‘A classic set must surely follow once his magpie tendencies settle
down’ – so I wrote in issue number one of Flyin Shoes. Well did
they and has he? Well um, no. As a valued contributor to this review
it makes it harder to criticise but I really don’t think this disc
is good enough to push Mr. Lillie to the recognition his talent
deserves. I hate judging a CD by its cover but the rather disjointed
cover shots of a local Firecrew and a field is reflected in the mix
inside. Again Brian seems to be listening to all manner of wonderous
musics – I think he is one of the genuinely most enthusiastic music
lovers I have ever corresponded with. The musicianship throughout is
once again fantastic as the cream of the Ann Arbor scene pull out all
the stops. First track ‘My Voice’ perhaps reveals this discs fatal
flaw – self consciousness. Brian Lillie has a fine, individual voice
and if he could focus on his immense autobiographical and narrative
strengths I think that we’d be talking ‘new’ Loudon Wainwright
which should amuse Loudon who was always touted as a new Dylan. The
track is charming but a bit of a starter rather than a main course.
Apologies out of the way the ‘Orchestra’ strike out. ‘Careful
Lovers’ should have been first track. Lillie loves Van the Man and
this has the strum-along joy of Van at his best. Good track and with
really nice strings and flute. ‘Used to believe in heaven’ is what
Lillie does best. Intimate, precise lyrics and a genuinely affecting
tone when talking of family matters. ‘Vitamins and money’ lopes
along on a Hammond backing and sweet viola. Kind of ‘Desire’ era
Dylan in feel. ‘Inside the sleeve’ is fantastic. Dulcimer,
cowbell, recorder…eclectic and interesting. Not sure what he’s on
about but it works brilliantly. Should stretch out like this more.
Then in typical BL confuse ‘em tactic we’re pitched into
‘..pretense dropping’ a pure alt-c rocker – with Jim Roll
guesting on guitar…..um…not bad but his voice ain’t suited to
this kind of material and is strained. Too many influences, Brian
Lillie needs a dam good editor. Each disc has had too many tracks
–this one is no exception…runs to 17. There’s no need to put so
much in and it spoils the flow of the disc for the listener. Perhaps
that’s the danger of self-release titles ( Thursday Records is
Lillie’s imprint) and it’s a genuine generosity that lets him
down. Next track ‘Rain on your roof’ is my disc highlight. Cheryl
Stryker’s vocal is superb and the backing is fabulous. Brian sings
in range and showcases the strength of his writing. Maybe he has a
future on Music Row – someone should sign him up. I hardly have to
say that next track is different again. ‘Temporary heartbroken
Lover’s World’ is like the Jam doing Motown……..I’m getting
confused.
The roller coaster ride continues with ‘Gone’ – a tribute to a
fellow musician who passed away in 1996 –Geoff Streadwick. Heartfelt
and adventurous arrangement. The title track ‘Good Luck Fire
Chief’ is a strummed joy..narrative folk with a gorgeous melody.
This is his strength. Typically we slip from here into a punk
stringband workout which is simply ok, a song (Wild Lovers) split into
two parts, an almost classical backing to ‘Once you’ve landed’,
an almost pointless retreading of Dylan’s ‘Changing of the
Guard’ which should have been saved for an out-takes disc and even a
track that mixes it with jazz ‘Sky’ but survives and has a faintly
Beth Orton groove to it. ‘Wild Lovers’ Part two is a chance for
all the numerous orchestra members to shine and is a good song. Final
track ‘Grateful’ ends on an intimate note and again a certain
self-consciousness is shown. If you’ve stuck with it through the
styles and changes of tempo you’ll have heard some brilliant and
some badly flawed tracks. Can’t stress it enough that a bit of
discipline overall would have made Fire Chief a much better disc.
Brian Lillie has done a lot for Ann Arbor music scene and his
sense of community spills out of this disc. Sadly a bit more attention
to his songwriting strengths and a little less over-orchestration
would have made it so much better. He seems to be aiming high when
maybe one man and his guitar approach may have said some things a lot
more clearly. There’s a good album of eleven tracks in here –
it’s pulled down by the sheer variety. The magpie’s been at it
again….
|
