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Pop Rock Nation

Tag: Alison Krauss

  • Unlikely collaborations…

    Unlikely collaborations…

    Every day, I run across something that reminds me that unlikely collaborations can lead to amazing creations…

    I was home alone last night. My husband, Bill, was on his way home from New York City, where he attended a job interview. The interview seemed to go well; we should know the outcome within the next week or so. Anyway, as is my habit, I was trying not to drink alcohol while he was gone. I think it’s a good practice not to and a good exercise in self-discipline. I lasted until about 8:00pm, then cracked open a beer. Bill was on his way home, after all. Oftentimes, when I start drinking beer, I get to a point at which I want to listen to music. That’s what happened last night. I realized that my music collection has quite a few unlikely collaborations in it. You know, music that was made by people you wouldn’t expect to get together…

    I kind of touched on this theme last week, when I wrote my post about oddly awesome covers. Maybe, once I listened to it, it wasn’t a huge stretch for Ricky Skaggs to make a record with Bruce Hornsby… though on the surface, it seems like their collaborations would be unlikely. As I was listening last night, I ran across some other unlikely collaborations. Texas legend Willie Nelson is pretty good for this practice. A few years ago, he made an album with Wynton Marsalis, famed jazz trumpeter.


    “My Bucket’s Got A Hole In It” is one of my favorite tracks from the unlikely collaboration of Wynton Marsalis and Willie Nelson. This was on their album, Two Men With The Blues.

    I ran across a very cool song Willie Nelson did with Santana back in the 1980s…


    I found this unlikely collaboration a few years ago, when I decided to download some Santana. It works.

    The great opera star Pavorotti had a very successful album series in the early 90s. He got together with rock stars like Sting, Bryan Adams, and even Barry White…


    Sting and Pavorotti


    Pavorotti and Barry White??? Wow… I wouldn’t have put them together.

    A few days ago, I read a very interesting article about funny country-alt singer and author Todd Snider. I own a few Todd Snider albums, having discovered his hilarious song “Beer Run”. I wouldn’t imagine he’d want to collaborate with a singer like Garth Brooks. But wouldn’t you know it? The “Friends In Low Places” country star sure enough wanted to cover one of Todd Snider’s songs. Garth Brooks was interested in recording Snider’s “Alright Guy” for his 1999 album, In the Life of Chris Gaines and even wanted Snider to play guitar on the project. It turned out Brooks didn’t end up putting the song on his album because his mother objected to the subject matter. But still, it’s a pretty cool story about two seemingly unrelated artists getting together to create something different.


    Todd Snider plays “Alright Guy” live.

    A few years ago, Emmylou Harris got together with Mark Knopfler and they made a fine album.


    Here they sing “Done With Bonaparte”… I love this!

    One might wonder why a country folk singer would hook up with a legendary rock guitarist like Mark Knopfler, who was the front man for Dire Straits for years and brought us songs like “Money For Nothing” and “Walk of Life”. But they blend pretty damn well, I think… kind of like Alison Krauss and Robert Plant.


    Alison Krauss and Robert Plant get together on a cover of “Black Dog”…

    I remember when I first heard about Alison Krauss and Robert Plant teaming up. It seemed like an unlikely collaboration, but their 2007 album Raising Sand was a huge success. I started thinking about other people I’d love to hear Alison Krauss play with… like Mark Knopfler! Why not?

    Music is a universal language and like any art, it can be expanded and shaped into new and unusual directions. I love finding unlikely collaborations among musicians I admire.

  • A review of Nickel Creek’s A Dotted Line…

    A review of Nickel Creek’s A Dotted Line…

    Nickel Creek is back! Here’s a review of their latest album, A Dotted Line!

    I first heard the “new grass” band Nickel Creek about seven years ago, when I bought a greatest hits compilation they put out. At the time, my husband Bill was in Iraq and I was listening to a lot of music because I was sending a lot to him. He needed something to keep up his spirits out there in the desert. Over the years, I’ve come to really enjoy the musical stylings of Nickel Creek, which consists of Chris Thile (mandolin) and sister and brother Sara Watkins (fiddle) and Sean Watkins (guitar). This band, which originated in southern California, has been around since 1989. They had a breakthrough in 2000, when Alison Krauss produced their self-titled album. They continued to put out new music until 2007, when they went on a seven year hiatus. This month, they released their latest effort, A Dotted Line. Naturally, I had to download it immediately!

    A Dotted Line kicks off with strong guitar chords and strong vocals on the opening track, “The Rest of My Life”. As I’m listening to this song, I’m very impressed by how it blends the acoustic sounds of instruments typically reserved for bluegrass songs and fashions them into a song that sounds progressive and innovative. This song gets A Dotted Line off to a great start.

    Sara Watkins sings lead on the next song, the hard driving “Destination”, which seems to flow seamlessly from “The Rest of My Life”. Again, it sounds like the song evolved from bluegrass but turned into something very creative and eclectic. This song puts a smile on my face. Sara Watkins has an ethereal voice that blends beautifully with those of her brother, Sean, and Chris Thile.


    Sara Watkins really gets somewhere with “Destination”.

    A mandolin kicks off the pretty instrumental, “Elsie”, which immediately appeals to me. This was written by Chris Thile and gives the band a chance to show off what really good players they are.

    “Christmas Eve” is the next song. It’s kind of a sad song about a relationship about to break up. What strikes me most about this song is the complex musical arrangement. The melody is simple, but Nickel Creek has arranged an intricate overlay of harmonies and vocals to convey the sadness of breaking up during the holidays. Over the blend of mandolin, fiddle, and guitar are those voices, which somehow magically blend into a musical nirvana.

    “Hayloft” takes Nickel Creek’s music into a totally different direction. This song was written by Ryan Guldemond and is a complete departure from the previous songs. It almost sounds like something I’d hear in Europe, with more plugged instruments and sound engineering sleights of hand. This is a song you could dance to. I think it will definitely grow on me, though I tend to prefer the more acoustic stuff Nickel Creek does. I’m just impressed by how innovative “Hayloft” is. It’s almost like bluegrass dance music, if you can conceive of such a thing. The song’s subject matter is pretty cool, too. Young lovers are in the hayloft, giving into their passions, even though the girl’s daddy has a gun… you better run.


    A live version of “Hayloft”.

    “21st of May” is an original by Sean Watkins and is simply glorious, with perfect harmonies and spiritual lyrics that evoke going to meet the Saviour on the 21st of May. Maybe those who don’t like religiously oriented songs may not appreciate this. I love it, though. Edited to add, a fellow Nickel Creek lover tells me this song is satirical and is actually about the late Harold Camping, who predicted the world would end on May 21st, 2011 and before that in 1994. Obviously, he was wrong both times. Now that I know that, I like the song even more!


    The gorgeous “21st of May”.

    Quiet, tinkling mandolin opens the next song, “Love of Mine”, an original song with a gorgeous, moving melody and deep lyrics. I’m not quite sure what this song is about, but I’m so caught up in the hauntingly pretty melody that it doesn’t matter.

    “Elephant In The Corn” is another cool original instrumental, exciting and technically challenging. I love a good acoustic jam and this one delivers.

    “You Don’t Know What’s Going On” is an original song with a quick tempo and a cool modern sound played on acoustic instruments. Once again, I marvel at how Nickel Creek takes such a quaint style and turns into something new and innovative. The lyrics are about a guy who gets caught up with a woman who played him for a fool. Musically, this song delivers on the raw pain and angst that comes from an intense love affair that disintegrates.

    The last song is “Where Is Love Now”, which has sort of an ethereal opening as Sara Watkins’ fiddle leads off. The guitar and mandolin join in as Sara Watkins sings. She has such a pretty, angelic voice on this song by Sam Phillips. This beautiful, introspective song ends A Dotted Line on a pensive note.

    Overall, I think Nickel Creek’s A Dotted Line is a fantastic effort and it was worth the seven year wait. What a joy it is to hear some fresh music by the very talented Nickel Creek. Now I want to go to a concert! If you like acoustic, “new grass” styled music, I highly recommend Nickel Creek’s A Dotted Line. I predict this album will be getting a lot of spins at my house.

  • Oddly awesome covers…

    Oddly awesome covers…

    It’s time for another look at odd covers… Oddly awesome covers, that is…

    I don’t know where I’ve been, but somehow I just found out that Williamsburg, VA native Bruce Hornsby collaborated with bluegrass star, Ricky Skaggs on a couple of albums. I grew up near Williamsburg and I remember the stir Hornsby made in 1986, when his album The Way It Is became huge. I followed his career for awhile, but then lost touch with his distinctive brand of music, a mix of jazz, bluegrass, Americana, folk, and mainstream rock. A Facebook friend reviewed the studio album Bruce Hornsby did with Ricky Skaggs and I decided I had to check it out… and that’s when I discovered their very unusual version of “Super Freak”, a song originally made famous by the late funk star, Rick James.


    I have to admit, this version doesn’t make me recall the original. That’s not really a bad thing, since the original done bluegrass style might be truly ridiculous. But this is a pretty fun odd cover.

    A few years ago, I had a surreal experience while watching a morning news show. I heard the familiar stirrings of a famous Irish band’s 1987 hit, “In God’s Country”. Yes, it was an old U2 song, but who was playing it bluegrass style? Why, it was the Infamous Stringdusters! And I have to admit, I liked what they were doing with “In God’s Country”, but that may be because I really like bluegrass.


    The Infamous Stringdusters playing “In God’s Country”.

    The Infamous Stringdusters are also apparently fans of The Police, too. Here they are covering “Walking On The Moon”.


    I’m not sure I like this more than The Police’s classic take, but it does sort of add a little down home sensuality… and it could be considered an odd cover. Who would have thought a “newgrass” band would cover this?

    Another fan of “Walking On The Moon” is Cas Haley. I first became aware of the Paris, Texas musician in 2007, when he was the runner up on America’s Got Talent. He sang his awesome reggae infused version of “Walking On The Moon” and I immediately downloaded his album.


    I’m not sure the judges were quite ready for this…


    Cas Haley also does a mean version of “Easy”, a song originally made famous by The Commodores.

    Alison Krauss is no stranger to the occasional cover. She and her brother, Viktor Krauss, made a perfectly sensual version of “Big Log”, a song originally made famous by Robert Plant back in 1983.


    I love this version of “Big Log” so much…

    And finally, here’s Tom Jones doing his version of “Ring of Fire”, a song originally made famous by Johnny Cash. I was first alerted to this cover the last time I wrote about covers. The person who introduced me to this said she thought it was “horrible”, but I’m going to go out on a limb and say that I actually think it qualifies as an oddly awesome cover. I do like it, God help me.


    …but I’m not so sure I like the choreography that much…

    I like to do cover songs myself and I did actually do my own version of “Big Log”. You get extra points if you check it out!


    The video has nothing to do with the photos… and the track is done in the style of Robert Plant, only raised a couple of pitches. I had fun with it.

    Now I’m inspired to find more oddly awesome covers!