Hotel, Motel ... 3

 

We are booking in to Room 3 this week. I'll leave it to you to decide whether your preference is a hotel or a motel.

If it is a hotel you may consider booking in to the Hotel Yorba. It is the second song on White Blood Cells the third album by The White Stripes from 2001. They were everywhere then but while I have all their albums I can't remember the last time I played any of them.

From the ubiquitous to the obscure and Findlay's Motel a track on the Gold Luck Morning CD single by the Walkabouts on Sub Pop from 1994. The song was recorded live on June 13th 1993 at The Paradiso in Amsterdam. It was this one that found its way onto the CD player as I wrote this suggesting that I am opting for a Motel this week.

The White Stripes - Hotel Yorba

The Walkabouts - Findlay's Motel

Loose Selections

 

Welcome to the third in the series of Americana compilations. This one will run and run so if you are not an Americana fan make plans for something better to do of a Sunday.

Loose Music is a label based in London and is probably the UK's best and best known label for Americana. I have a few of their compilations which will grace this series in the months ahead.

From 2003  Loose Selections is a compilation celebrating 5 years of Loose Music from Twang to Bang according to the sticker on the front of my jewel case.

As it is a UK label I have decided to feature 3 UK Americana acts (if that makes sense).

We start with the husband and wife team of Steve and Stephanie Pulford who record as The Arlenes. From their album Stuck on Love with the gorgeous Lonely Won't Leave Me Alone.

Although he was born in Wellington, New Zealand Peter Bruntnell is very much a British artist.  His father just happened to be working at the British Commission there at the time. His many albums include Normal for Bridgwater and King of Madrid with Here Come The Swells  being taken from 2002's Ends of the Earth. He is an artist I have seen on a few occasions and he always puts on a good show.

Although they were fronted by Paul Smith a Canadian ex-pat Vera Cruise were very much a Glasgow band. For proof I refer you to the song The Last Time Partick Thistle Won. Again a band I unsurprisingly have seen on a few occasions. Ship Sinking is a previously unavailable demo which does not feature on their album Come Alone and Fall Apart.

Stay tuned for another Comp next Sunday

The Arlenes - Lonely Wont Leave Me Alone

Peter Bruntnell - Here Come The Swells

Vera Cruise - Ship Sinking

Saturday Shuffle 113

 

Another Saturday, Another Shuffle 

Three today which are guaranteed to blow away your cobwebs.

We start with the late great Poly Styrene and her band X-Ray Spex and the brilliant Germ Free Adolescents. If you don't have anything by X-Ray Spex  a) catch yourself on and b) get yourself a copy of The Anthology Your life will be better for it - guaranteed.

Some Rockabilly to follow I think, Once hailed as Rockabilly's Gen X Queen here is  Kim Lenz with her Jaguars with Cool Love taken from the Bloodshot compilation Hard Headed Woman: A Celebration of Wanda Jackson

Last but by no means least we conclude with the mighty Green on Red who are partaking of the Hair of the Dog

For those of you with hangovers play it loud

X-Ray Spex -Germ Free Adolescents

Kim Lenz & her Jaguars - Cool Love

Green on Red - Hair of the Dog

This Earthly Spell

 

2025 Charity Shop Purchases #36 - Karine Polwart - This Earthly Spell.

I think that I am on record on these pages in saying that I would take any opportunity to pick up any album by Karine Polwart that I haven't got

By my reckoning I now have 8 of her 9 albums although my copy of Fairest Floo'er is a burn so technically doesn't count.

I have picked up three so far this year all from the same charity shop on Glasgow's Battlefield Road. I wonder if they were all handed in by the same person.

The latest acquisition as you can see above is This Early Spell from 2008 released on her own label Hegri Music which is a subsiduary of Proper Music. It was released only thee months after Fairest Floo'er and contains original compositions with the exception of the first  track The Good Years which has words by Edwin Morgan and music by Karine and which appeared on Ballads of the Book project a collaboration between Scottish musicians and writers.

As you would expect from Karine the music and songs are of the finest order as demonstrated below.

Only an upgrade of Fairest Floo'er and 2021's Still As Your Sleeping with Dave Mulligan to get.

Karine Polwart - The Good Years

Karine Polwart - Rivers Run

A Ass Pocket of Whiskey

 

2025 Charity Shop Purchases #35 - R.L.Burnside - A Ass Pocket of Whiskey

I was pretty surprised to find out that this was the first album by Mississippi Bluesman R.L.Burnside that I had. I  previously had a few of his songs here and there primarily on samplers and compilations from the mighty Fat Possum label.

A Ass Pocket of Whiskey is his 7th album and it was released on June 18th 1986. The songs themselves were recorded at Lunati Farm in Holly Springs, Mississippi on 6th February of that year.

It's like the Curate's Egg - good in parts. Goin' Down South is absolutely blinding but it goes steeply down hill in places with R.L rediced to muttering and cursing. Perhaps that is why The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings (which may be well worth tracking down) indicating divided critical opinion. The album was recorded in conjunction with the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. 

This review in Pitchfork is worth a read

I think I'll stick with the Fat Possum samplers and would recommend that you do to.

R.L.Burnside - Goin' Down South

R.L.Burnside - Snake Drive

Little Bird

 

2025 Charity Shop Purchases #34 - Kasey Chambers - Little Bird

Around the turn of the century when I was totally immersed in Americana I saw the Australian artist Kasey Chambers play on a couple of occasions and picked up her debut album The Captain (1999) and Barricades & Brickwalls (1991) 

I subsequently picked up her third Wayward Angel in a local charity shop in 2014. I am now following that up with Little Bird her 7th studio album from 2010, and on the Essence label, which again was a charity acquisition.

Similarities can, or have, been made with Kacey Musgraves in that they both started out more leftfield but have become more mainstream over the years. That is particularly true of Ms Musgraves.

In the case of Little Bird music critic Alex Eremenko writes in Allmusic -Little Bird is more old school, as it peppers the pop hits with honest to God country numbers, complete with banjo and fiddle... With Chambers, the music and the words sometimes tether on the brink of cliché, not archetype. But for the most part, she is still able to deliver her tunes with honesty that makes you think about feelings she's conveying, not her recording budgets, as is the case with many over-processed country stars out there.

I agree with that and it helps to cement her place on the Americana shelves (Blue) as opposed to the mainstream Country ones (white)

Kasey Chambers - Someone Like Me

Kasey Chambers - Train Wreck

Hotel , Motel ..... 2

 

Pedants may argue that this is the third post in this series but they would be wrong there.

Now that Holiday Inn has been rejected it is hotels and motels all the way.

We start with the legend that is Edwyn Collins with a song from his latest album Nation Shall Speak Unto Nation extolling the virtues of his local hotel in Helmsdale.

Not to be outdone Tarnation give us the low down from the Big O Motel. They are a band who have the honour of being the only band that I have never seen twice here and here

Check in for more hotels and motels next Monday.

Edwyn Collins -The Bridge Hotel

Tarnation - Big O Motel