Chris Hillman

By Rickey Lamb

A critique

It was like spending the evening with old friends. I’m talking about the Chris Hillman and Herb Pederson show at Voodoo Lounge in Maryland Heights Mo., on Aug. 2. The histories these two men have with renowned musicians are not on par with anyone else in the music world. Some of that history will be dispensed below just as it was throughout the show. Sitting in with Chris and Herb was Larry Parks who has a history with both guys. This was the band for the night and this was music as genuine as it gets.

The trio opened the show with a Desert Rose Band song, “Story of Love”. This was the first of a few Desert Rose songs they covered. For the first bit of history, Chris and Herb played alongside guitar wizard John Jorgenson, steel guitarist Jay Dee Maness, bassist Bill Bryson, and drummer Steve Duncan in that phenomenal band from 1985 thru the mid 1990s. Some of the other Desert Rose songs worked in throughout the set were, “Love Reunited” and “Hard Times”.

The second song of the night was an old Louvin Brothers’ song that Emmy Lou Harris had a hit with in 1975. Emmy Lou’s success with, “If I Could Only Win Your Love”, was due in large part to the incredible harmony of Herb Pedersen. Chris and Herb did a wonderful version of this classic.

In 1964, Chris Hillman put down the mandolin and joined with Gene Clark, Roger McGuinn, David Crosby and Michael Clarke to form the much revered Byrds. The next song saluted that era, a superb version of “Turn, Turn, Turn”. Chris and Herb lacked for nothing on the harmonies on this classic song.

Herb Pedersen & Rickey Lamb

As the show proceeded, they did some of the songs off the newest Chris Hillman CD, “The Other Side”. If you don’t own this CD, rush out and get it! “Heaven is My Home” sounded striking, as well as the title track. They also did “True He’s Gone” from the CD.

Chris and Herb did a very nice version of the old Danny O’Keefe song, “Good Time Charlie’s got the Blues”. They also did a careful tribute to one of their heroes, Buck Owens. You can tell they were almost reverential as they sang, “Together Again”, as they said they were doing it for Buck up in Heaven. Another cover was a tribute to Ray Price, “You Done Me Wrong”, which was dedicated to the many record labels that Chris and Herb have been on.

Primarily throughout the night, Chris Hillman handled the lead vocals with Herb Pedersen’s soaring harmonies. When Herb sang lead on a couple songs from his first album in 1976, “Southwest”, it was something very special. Both songs he did from that album were written by him and have become classics. The first was “Our Baby’s Gone,” written about his daughter who was then 3 years old and is now well into her 30s and a mother of four. This is a real touching song that the Desert Rose Band later covered. The other song from that album was “Wait a Minute”, written while Herb was on tour with John Denver. Many people have covered this song about life on the road, from Johnny Rivers to Alan Jackson on his newest CD. I’ve never heard it sung so sweet as it was that night.

Finally, Larry Parks stepped up to the microphone to sing, after handling more than adequate lead guitar duties. It’s not easy to sing after you hear Chris and Herb, but he did fine versions of “That’s What I Like About the South” and a song his Rockabilly dad Ray Parks covered, “Your Gonna Have to Ball, That’s All”. Ironically, Herb Pedersen had played years before with Larry’s dad, Ray.

This trio revisited many times, throughout the show, the Byrds. They did a wonderful version of the Bob Dylan song, the Byrds covered, “Mr. Tambourine Man”. It was interesting to note that their version strayed away from the Byrds and was instead more faithful to Dylan, with a straight folk sound. This, was quite different from the soaring folk rock sound made famous by this Sixties quartet, and was a beautiful version. They also paid tribute to fellow Byrd-mate and Missouri-boy, Gene Clark, with a dead on version of “Tried so Hard”.

Traditional bluegrass was given a nod when they did the Bill and Charlie Monroe song, “The Old Cross Road”. This song from the 1930s still sounded fresh today.

Finally late in the set, they gave tribute to two great bands, Hillman was a big part of. The first was a stirring version of “Wheels”. This was a song that Chris Hillman wrote with Gram Parsons and did on the landmark “Gilded Palace of Sin” album in 1969, while the two were in the Flying Burrito Brothers together. The other song that Hillman wrote with Stephen Stills while in Manassas was, “It Doesn’t Matter”. This song was later covered by Firefall and also appears on the new Chris Hillman CD. “It Doesn’t Matter” was as stunning a version as I’ve heard.

After leaving the stage and coming back for an encore, they finished this incredible show with an unbelievable version of the Byrds classic, “Eight Miles High”. This song once again appears on the new Hillman CD. The soaring vocal harmonies of Chris and Herb were well suited to this song as a grand finale.

There were pleasant surprises and songs that were missed, but all in all this was as good as it gets. This was as real and honest as it gets. There was no gimmicks, no wizardry, just a great acoustic sound and pure harmonies. Get with a great friend, sit in your favorite chair, with your favorite drink and put on an old album or CD that Chris Hillman or Herb Pedersen was a big part of. Revisit the past, but make note that these two guys are making as fundamental music today as they ever have. Better yet, take that friend and get out of that chair and go catch these guys. You will not be sorry!

(Editor’s notes: Hillman and Pedersen are on the schedule for Uncle Pen Days in mid-September at the Bill Monroe Memorial Bluegrass Park in Bean Blossom, Ind. A full tour schedule can be found on their Web sites, herbpedersen.com or chrishillman.com.

Rickey Lamb, the author, lives in central Illinois and is a self-described music junkie.

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Alison Krauss

Robert Plant

Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, two of the most distinctive vocalists in modern music, recently put the finishing touches on Raising Sand - their astonishing new collaborative album. Set for release October 23 on Rounder Records, the album was produced by T Bone Burnett and recorded in Nashville and Los Angeles with a stellar cast of supporting musicians, including guitarists Marc Ribot and Norman Blake, multi-instrumentalist Mike Seeger, drummer Jay Bellerose, and bassist Dennis Crouch.

Plant is quick to define Raising Sand as more a band record than a duet record, as it puts the two great singers in a variety of vocal and instrumental combinations - from songs featuring two-part brother-style harmony throughout to solo features for each. Though they come from entirely different traditions, Alison Krauss and Robert Plant create an amazing, unexpected, and entirely new sound when they sing together.

The material, ingeniously chosen by Burnett with input from Plant and Krauss, is the crucial thread that guides Raising Sand and gives the two unique singers a forum to interact and equally express themselves. The songs range from modern to classic, consisting mostly of lesser-known material from a wide spectrum of great blues, R&B, country, and folk songwriters - Tom Waits, Gene Clark, Little Milton Campbell, Mel Tillis, Townes Van Zandt, Doc Watson, Phil and Don Everly among them. They also recorded the Robert Plant/Jimmy Page song “Please Read the Letter,” from the 1998 album Walking Into Clarksdale. “You’ve got two singers that can handle a wide range of material - storytellers,” explains Burnett. “So you look for the stories….”

Krauss explained that the genesis of Raising Sand came about seven years ago, when Plant called to say hello and that he’d love to work with her someday. A few years later, Plant made good on his word and called Krauss about participating in a Leadbelly tribute at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, where they sang together for the first time. The collaboration revealed instant potential to the pair, and several years later they enlisted Burnett to help them realize a more full-scale collaboration.

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Burlington, MA – Fresh off a string of high-profile festival appearances including Bonnaroo, Grey Fox, Chicago Folk and Roots and Winnipeg, Uncle Earl will perform their infectious “old time for our times” (as they like to call it) in cities across the east and west coasts (and everywhere in between) this August and September. In June, the all ‘g’earl’ string band received a nomination for New and Emerging Artist from the Americana Music Association and shot their first-ever music video with famed director Tom Krueger (U2, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan). The video is currently in post-production, with more details to be announced soon.

Uncle Earl

Uncle Earl’s new album Waterloo, Tennessee reigned over the Americana music chart for 16 weeks (including 14 weeks in the Top 25). The “red hot twangers” (HARP) were also recently featured in MOJO, Relix, No Depression, Pollstar (cover story) and will soon be featured in Bluegrass Unlimited (August issue). Producer John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) performed with Uncle Earl at Bonnaroo and caused quite a stir, resulting in Waterloo, Tennessee being a top-seller at the festival through retail vendor Newbury Comics. Upcoming tour dates are listed below. Additional dates are also available at www.rounder.com and www.uncleearl.net.

Uncle Earl is: Kristin Andreassen (Guitar, Harmonica, Clogging, Vocals), Rayna Gellert (Fiddle, Vocals), KC Groves (Mandolin, Guitar, Vocals) and Abigail Washburn (Banjo, Vocals).

August

10 - Iron Horse Music Hall Northampton, MA
11 - Irish Connections Festival Canton, MA
23 - Kenmore Summer Concert Series Kenmore, WA (6:30pm)
23 - Tractor Tavern Seattle, WA
25 - Horning’s Hideout North Plains, OR
26 - Les Schwab Amphitheater Bend, OR
29 - Minnesota State Fair St. Paul, MN

September

2 - Moe Down Festival Turin, NY
7 - Wheatland Music Festival Remus, MI
11 - 930 Listening Room Louisville, KY
14 - Rhythm and Roots Reunion Bristol, VA
16 - The Birchmere Alexandra, VA (with Rounder label mates King Wilkie)
17 - Gravity Lounge Charlottesville, VA

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Grasstowne - The Road Headin’ Home

The long awaited Debut album from Grasstowne “The Road Headin’ Home” on Pinecastle Records, will be available in stores Tuesday August 7^th. The new CD contains 13 tracks.

“There are so many different things on this CD. There will be something for everyone. We even have a tune on there that Steve wrote that sounds like a 60’s country tune. I’m so proud of this CD. Steve and Alan just glowed with approval when we listened to it. We can’t wait to get it out and share it with all of you”Phil Ledbetter

Musicians on the record include Steve Gulley: Guitar/Vocals, Phil Leadbetter: Resonator Guitar/Vocals, Alan Bibey: Mandolin/Vocals, Jason Davis: Banjo, Lee Sawyer: bass, Stuart Duncan: fiddle, Tim Crouch: fiddle, Dale Ann Bradley: vocals, Byron House: bowed bass, and Chris Brown: percussion.

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