American West
American West
The Radio Boise Radiothon continues, and again today I did a special show at a time when there is normally no live DJ. I focused on music from the American West. The full playlist is posted; here are the songs that got the most listener comments:
- Ian Tyson: “Fiddler Must Be Paid”
- Juni Fisher: “Bonnie McCarroll”
- Mike Beck: “Don’t Tell Me”
- Sourdough Slim & Robert Armstrong: “Take My Boots Off When I Die”
Big Band Jazz
Big Band Jazz
The popularity of the big band has certainly faded since the days of Glenn Miller in the 1940s, but over the years many composers and arrangers have found that the big band is a wonderful canvas to work with. The standard instrumentation – four trumpets, four trombones, five saxophones, and a rhythm section of piano, bass, and drums – has stayed about the same over the decades, but the musical styles and variations have changed dramatically.
For the Radio Boise Radiothon I did an extra show at a time when there is normally no live DJ. I used the opportunity to play a bunch of big band music focusing on recordings that have come out in the past few years. The full playlist is posted. Here are a few highlights:
- Captain Black Big Band: “Captain Black”
- Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society: “Transit”
- Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra: “Fables Of Faubus”
- Helge Sunde Ensemble Denada: “When In Rome”
- Geir Lysne: “Glossi Vangse”
- Omar Sosa & NDR Bigband: “Cha Con Marimba”
Bert Jansch
Bert Jansch
Today’s Ramblers’ Retreat focused on the Radio Boise Radiothon, our very first fund drive. Thank you very much to all of you who contributed to support this show and community radio in the Treasure Valley.
I did have time for a short set to honor the great Scottish singer, guitarist, and banjo player Bert Jansch who passed away a few weeks ago. The Jansch set is listed below, and the full playlist is posted.
- Bert Jansch & John Renbourn: “The Wagoner’s Lad”
- Pentangle: “House Carpenter”
- Bert Jansch: “Cluck Old Hen”
Here’s a video of Pentangle performing “House Carpenter” with Jansch on banjo and Renbourn on sitar:
Day of the Basque Country
Day of the Basque Country
This week on Ramblers’ Retreat we celebrated The Day of the Basque Country, a national holiday in Spain. Here in Idaho we have a large population of Basques, and that culture has impacted us all with the food, the music, the dancing, and did I mention the food? Below is a list of the Basque music played on the show. The full playlist is also posted.
- Amuma Says No: “Galdurikan Nago”
- Tapia Eta Leturia: “Astotxo Bat Baneuko”
- Juan Mari Beltran: “Gogoaren Bidezidorretatik”
- Oreka Tx: “Martxa Baten Lehen Notak”
- Maddi Oihenart: “Irrifarrak”
- Kepa Junkera: “Berhueta”
- Ibon Koteron: “Airea”
- Rosalie Sorrels: “Basque Christmas Song”
Here’s a video of Ibon Koteron.
Rosalie Sorrels
Rosalie Sorrels
Many of you know how much I love the music of Rosalie Sorrels. I received a letter from her family through the Folk Alliance Region West mailing list, and I wanted to share excerpts with you. It includes an update on her health and request for assistance in repairing her cabin.
Rosalie Sorrels Retires This Time For Real
Old Devil Time, you’d like to bring me down, but when I’m low, my friends all gather round to help me rise, rise and sing it one more time. – Rosalie Sorrels.
Bruce Utah Phillips admired her ability to “get into the guts of a song.” The Chicago Reader wrote, “Sorrels has decried the music industry’s attempt to homogenize women and ethnicity into something blander. She’s living proof that there are some things the biz just can’t whitewash.” Deeply moved by her performance, the late John Wasserman, entertainment critic at the San Francisco Chronicle commented, “She did something that only the best can ever do; she brought back memories that we never had. She’s one of the geniuses, Rosalie Sorrels is.”
The last time she attempted to retire, she went on to record 2 Grammy nominated CD s and her travels continued, some referred to this as semi-retired , some might call it necessary, but mostly we are all happy that she didn’t stop singing then. At 78 years of age, Rosalie has come to a time in life where she just wants to be at home . The home that many have come to know through her stories and songs and was built by her fathers and brothers hands. The cabin located 28 miles north of Boise was referred to as Querencia named by Rosalie’s mother Nancy Stringfellow. In Spanish, querencia describes a place where one feels safe, a place from which one’s strength of character is drawn, a place where one feels at home.
Because the cabin is a handmade work of art and feels as if it simply grew right out of the ground, mother nature has taken a toll on the integrity of the structure. There are some issues that make it complicated to stay there. As a family, we have all tried to hold it together and as a family we would also like to make life more comfortable for Rosalie. There are necessary changes that need to be made in order to make that happen though. We as a family are making a formal request to raise the necessary funds to make renovations to the homestead so that it is possible for Rosalie to stay where she is most happy and more comfortable.
If you would like to make a donation, please send it to:
Rosalie Sorrels
PO Box 1204
Boise ID 83701
Jack Brown
Jack Brown
Today’s Ramblers’ Retreat featured a live interview and performance with local singer-songwriter Jack Brown. It was also a pretty good day for Nordic music. The full playlist is posted.
The Nordic music that I played today included:
- Väsen: “Väsen Street” (Sweden)
- Downtown Ramblers: “After We’re Gone” (Sweden)
- Fiolministeriet: “Rewentlow Set” (Denmark)
- Frigg: “Maple Cake Farm” (Finland)
Looking Back: 2008
Looking Back: 2008
A long time ago I started this Looking Back series, but for whatever reason I didn’t keep it going. To call it a series right now is a bit of misnomer. But I’m ready to get started again, and I’ll kick off the new effort by looking back at a few of my favorite recordings that came out in 2008.
Rosalie Sorrels: Strangers In Another Country. Subtitled “The Songs of Bruce ‘Utah’ Phillips,” this is a beautiful tribute to The Golden Voice Of The Great Southwest. It contains many of my favorite Utah Phillips songs including “Scofield Mine Disaster,” “Jesse’s Corrido,” and “Ashes On The Sea.” Sorrels has put out many great records, but this one for her long-time friend is hard to top.
Annbjørg Lien: Waltz With Me. This is music written for a string quartet with a definite Nordic spin. Lien herself plays violin and hardingfele. Bruce Molsky is the second fiddler often switching to guitar. Mikael Marin of Väsen plays viola, and Christine Hanson is the cellist. Molsky does some singing too, usually as a duet with Kirsten Bråten Berg. Over the years, Lien’s records have covered traditional Norwegian music and veered from there into more ambient and electronic sounds. This CD is quite different from anything else she’s done, and it’s my favorite of everything I’ve heard her do so far. I wrote a larger review and interview with Annbjørg Lien for RootsWorld magazine last year.
Kasey Chambers & Shane Nicholson: Rattlin’ Bones. This duo from Australia put together my favorite Americana record of that year. Go figure. I especially like their song about Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Beyond that one, “Sweetest Waste Of Time” is a beautiful love song, and sometimes days go by when I can’t get “Monkey On A Wire” out of my head, which is not necessarily a bad thing.
Trygve Seim & Frode Haltli: Yeraz. This saxophone and accordion duet from Norway played one of the best concerts I have ever attended – truly one of the great musical moments of my life. This record is very good, and includes a wonderful cover of Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song.” I wrote a review of their performance at the Portland Jazz Festival for RootsWorld.
Fleet Foxes: Fleet Foxes. This band from Seattle is probably best classified as an indie rock band, but their harmonies and their mostly acoustic string playing allow them to fall easily into the folk camp too. I’ve played their songs on Ramblers’ Retreat and they fit right into my broad swath of folk music. I about fell out of my chair the first time I heard “White Winter Hymnal” and I go back to this record often for the pure enjoyment of it.
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