Neil Young :: Harvest
It just found me at the right place and right time. I always knew Neil was great and prolific and all that, but really I never liked him all that much. And then, all of a sudden, dunno how it happened, he came rushing in all at once and I was paralyzed. It’s not just Harvest either, it’s Tonight’s the Night, Silver and Gold, Comes A Time and Broken Arrow. But Harvest helped me to define my approach to this record. Find good players, a good engineer, the right vibe, and cut it all live. My opening track is pretty a much just a tip of the hat to Neil and his mysterious ways.
Tom Petty :: Wildflowers
He’s the hook master. Flat out. I’ve always loved this record but it really just convinced me to search harder for great hooks. Don’t think I found as many as I was hoping to, but the record still got under my skin. It’s production value too. With Rick Rubin on your team, you’re bound to soar, but Petty knows how to build the ship around the songs he writes on his bed. The studio’s his build shop, and he flies em straight to the moon.
Odawas :: Raven and The White Night
If you haven’t heard Odawas, do it now. Stop reading this and link to their page and buy all their records. And give em a chance too. At first you won’t know what’s going on and then the next day you’ll wake up and feel something warm in your legs. Once the warmth nears your heart, listen again and you’ll be addicted. These guys inspired me when I was walking through an artistic desert of nothingness. I thought I’d heard it all, seen it all, felt it all, and then Odawas. They don’t reinvent the wheel, but their equation works. I think I heard someone say it’s Neil Young’s “Software Slump” (Grandaddy) or something, which is kinda true. But ultimately their world, is their own. Two guys, a really shitty keyboard, a neglected classical guitar that lives in the back of a Subaru, an incredible brotherhood, voice, poet and harmonica.
And, uhm, I stole the idea for this list from them…
Bob Dylan :: Time Out Of Mind
This record will make every top ten list I ever make. If I get sent to an island, this is the one I’ll take.
Elliot Smith :: Either, Or
I think I always look to Elliot in some way. And he’ll probably be on most of my top ten lists too. But this time it was Either, Or. I gravitate to this record when I want to remind myself what consistent vibe and sound feels like. Besides a blow up on “Cupid’s Trick,” this record sits in a certain place that I can come back to time and time again. The arrangements, approach to recording and songwriting all make it possible.
Wilco :: Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
I knew I was going to be playing with the same gear these guys used once I made it to Jay Bennett’s Pieholden Studios and I wanted to explore the possibilities Jay mastered on this great American record. I love these songs, but it’s really Jay Bennett’s work that made this record timeless and important. The color palette is so vast but most importantly, there was a great painter behind the brush.
Bright Eyes :: Cassadaga
I’m not ga ga for Bright Eyes, but I like most of their records, and Conor Oberst is a great writer. Cassadaga had so much control though and it inspired me to imagine a bigger picture and to be steady and exact in it’s creation. These are great songs with incredible layers, performances, energy and production. It’s anchored in a dark place but it rises to bright wide open sky.
Two Gallants :: Two Gallants
It’s rare for me to fall in love with a record on first listen, but it happened with this one. This is a two piece band that is broken down and as simple as they come. When there’s so little to work with though, it’s all got to be right, and they are. The melodies move me, the lyrics are amazing, and it’s straight forward and honest in every way.
Emmylou Harris :: Wrecking Ball
I will always follow Daniel Lanois (producer) wherever he goes. At any point, I always absorb Lanois from some record in different rotation. This time around it was Wrecking Ball and Time Out Of Mind. There are a lot of crazy covers on this record but Emmylou’s simply the best (as always), Willie Green and Brian Blade on drums are just ridiculous, and Lanois creates a world and vibe like no other. Every time I hear a record he makes, I feel spirit in the room and in my heart that always unite.
Tift Merritt :: Another Country
Before I heard Another Country, all I really cared for from Tift was her previous single “Tambourine.” But then I got this record and immediately felt something good. All of it was confirmed in her liner notes where she explained how she felt compelled to disappear from everything here in the states and to relocate for a spell in Paris to focus on the new body of songs we get on Another Country. Songs that come from one place in a small chunk of time always speak to me and move me like they do on this record. Even though they’re super polished and maybe a bit too glossy, they still feel so right.