Pete’s Top Albums of 2011
2011 was another year of musical discovery for me. Clocking in highest on the discovery meter were San Francisco’s Girls; but right up there with Girls were two bands that can’t technically qualify for my best of 2011 album list: Delta Spirit and Titus Andronicus. Their latest albums – History from Below and The Monitor (respectively) – were both released in 2010, but I didn’t hear them until this year. Overall, when I think of 2011, these three groups reigned supreme in my corner of the world.
When it comes to 2011 live shows, it was also Titus Andronicus that blew my mind (back on April 18th at The Rhythm Room in Phoenix). All punk and passion, courtesy of front man Patrick Stickles. My jaw hit the floor.
But on to the albums. Looking back at my iTunes and Last.fm listening history, it was clear to me that I wouldn’t be able to muster up a Top Ten list. Sure, I could B.S. and include something like the Beasties’ Hot Sauce Committee Part Two – which I enjoyed on some level, but never listened to straight through more than twice. Thinking about albums, ’tis all about honesty, and what’s truly important to me as a full body of work. So in that spirit, here are my Top 8 albums of 2011…
1. Girls – Father, Son, Holy Ghost ($5 on Amazon)
I had heard – and loved – “Laura,” a single off Girls first album a couple years back. But it wasn’t until this year that I fell completely head over heels for the San Francisco band led by Christopher Owens. The quirky “Honey Bunny” video drew me in – and when I tracked down the new album, Father, Son, Holy Ghost, it was over – I was hooked. It’s rich with emotion, it rocks, it’s delicate… I can’t wait to follow Christopher around from here on out and hear what he has to say. Both Girls full lengths and the EP are excellent – discovering them has been the music highlight of my year.
Highlight: “Alex” – Hypnotic. Beautiful. Sublime.
2. Greg Brown – Freak Flag ($4.99 on Amazon)
Here’s one that surprised me. Though I loved “The Poet Game” single many years back, no full album of Greg Brown’s had really come along that knocked my socks off. Freak Flag did just that. Full of beauty, wisdom and Greg’s wry sense of humor, it’s the folk masterpiece of 2011.
Highlight: “Where Are You Going When You’re Gone.” All groove and growl. Toe tappin’ funky folk (there is such a thing).
3. Middle Brother – Middle Brother ($5 on Amazon)
I love Delta Spirit. I love Deer Tick. I love Dawes. So it’s no surprise that Middle Brother was up among the tops this year, since the group is made up of the front men of all 3 groups. I had the pleasure of seeing Middle Brother live this summer at the Newport Folk Festival, which may very well have been their last performance… but something tells me Taylor Goldsmith, John McCauley and Matt Vasquez will be making more music together somewhere down the road.
Highlight: “Million Dollar Bill” – This is a Goldsmith-penned song that also shows up on Dawes’ new record, Nothing Is Wrong. On the MidBro version, the three guys each get a verse, and the result is profound, in my ever so humble opinion. I prefer it to the Nothing is Wrong version.
4. Dawes – Nothing Is Wrong ($4.99 on Amazon)
It’s hard not to be endeared to this L.A. band that channels the SoCal / Lauren Canyon 70’s vibe. Taylor Goldsmith is a brilliant lyricist, and they’re just getting started. That’s scary (in a very good way). And their live show? Forget about it. Passionate and fiery stuff…
Highlight: “Fire Away” – This tune features Jackson Browne on background vocals, Taylor’s brother Griffin taking lead vocals on the bridge, and the Heartbreakers’ Benmont Tench on the organ. Great sing along chorus – a tune that really takes off into the stratosphere by song’s end – especially live.
5. My Morning Jacket – Circuital ($4.99 on Amazon)
Jim James (er – Yim Yames) and the boys of MMJ always put me in a good place. Another solid studio album featuring tunes that ignite in a live setting. I must have watched MMJ on at least 3-4 festival webcasts this summer. Another mind-blowing live band that can also deliver in the studio. Confession though: I just don’t like “Holdin On To Black Metal.”
Highlight: “Wonderful (The Way I Feel)” – I’m a sucker for some mellow MMJ. A great moment when the drums come in at “I-I-I-I’m going where there ain’t no fear…”
6. Deer Tick – Divine Providence ($5 on Amazon)
Snarly wild man John McCauley is back with another Deer Tick record. This time he shares the spotlight with drummer Dennis Ryan and guitarist Ian O’Neill, who write and sing on a few tunes. Divine Providence has a little bit of everything – honky-tonk rock, punk, pop. Oh, do I need to mention they’re also a killer live band? I saw them three times this year – twice in their home state of Rhode Island as they took over the Newport Blues Cafe during Folk Festival time.
Highlight: “The Bump” – The Deer Tick theme song. “We’re full grown men! But we act like kids!” The drunken devil strikes again.
7. Lenny Kravitz – Black & White in America ($10.49 on Amazon)
I was frankly surprised by Lenny’s latest. Rock, funk, soul, pop – yep, pretty much the Lenny Kravitz blueprint throughout his career. But the hooks and melodies caught on quick with me, and had me coming back for more helpings. The last time I enjoyed a Lenny album this much, I was 21 (1991’s Mama Said)!
Highlight: “Liquid Jesus” – A sexy 70’s soul vibe as Lenny channels his inner Curtis Mayfield.
8. Frank Turner – England Keep My Bones ($9.99 on Amazon)
I was looking forward to a full length album from the UK’s Frank Turner since stumbling across his set at the ACL Festival a couple years back. It was worth the wait. Frank’s working class, populist folk/punk is alive and well in England Keep My Bones.
Highlight: “If Ever I Stray” – Certain songs give me goosebumps and make my eyes well up with their sheer power. This is one of those songs.
Ick’s Pick: Greg Brown’s ‘Freak Flag’
I’ve been completely floored – I mean profoundly impacted – by Greg Brown’s Freak Flag.From the first notes of “Someday House” to the last delicate notes of “Tenderhearted Child”, the album flows with beauty and wisdom and grace, all delivered in Greg’s low-low-lowdown baritone. He’s always been one of a kind, this folk singing troubadour from southeast Iowa. Now in his early 60’s, he’s managed to take a look at the world around him and write some of the most heartfelt and genuine songs around. Whether it’s singing of love for a woman (“Lovinest One”), love for a child (in the deeply moving album closer, “Tenderhearted Child”), trepidation about where our country is headed (“I Don’t Know Anybody In This Town”, “Mercy Mercy Mercy”), or looking at religion and man’s thirst for something more on the other side (the gorgeous “Let the Mystery Be”) – he does so with the utmost humor and humility.
There are memorable moments – both musically and lyrically – all over this album; really well written words, shuffles, chord changes, etc. that make me smile, nod my head, and in the case of “Tenderhearted Child”, even tear up. If you’re a dad, and you can listen to these lyrics without misting up, then something’s wrong…
I wish that we could leave you
A world that knows no war
where of all God’s children
would never suffer any harmMay you not give in to bitterness
May your heart stay undefiled
May your love never fail you
Tenderhearted childTenderhearted child
I will always be your dad
even when you leave home
call me when you’re sadOkay, maybe it’s not difficult to tap into the strong emotions a father feels for a child, but this song really digs in deep.
Those deep family bonds are evident in “Freak Flag”, the title track, as well…
Well my dad preached a message of love
I heard him say on the day he passed on above
He said “Use what you got son
to raise a hopeful cry”.Dad I heard what you had to say
I try to hold to it every day
I’m your boy
I’m gonna let my freak flag flyThe song also touches on coming of age during Vietnam, and love of country (“I’m an American, I’m gonna let my freak flag fly”), and goes on to raise the flag “for every soul gettin beat down” and “for every child who sees the light and turns around”.
All this may seem like some deep, serious stuff. But Greg delivers it all in such a fresh, inspiring roots and folk sound; great hooks, wonderful melodies, and a sense of humor that brings a smile to your face.
I’m only scratching the surface here. I haven’t even touched on the opening songs, “Someday House” and “Where Are You Going When You’re Gone”, the latter which features one of the catchiest grooves and cadences I’ve heard in sometime. The guitar work is fun, twangy, and funky – right along with the lyrics.
This album is an adventure. I feel like these great songs are coming from someone who’s been around the block – someone who knows; who makes you pause, take notice, and appreciate what’s around you. Greg Brown is some kind of Shaman of the Corn Fields.
Simply put, the songs on Freak Flag make me Happy. I can’t recommend it enough.
Visit Greg Brown’s Official Site.
Blue Car
Everything about this song is just.. right. The cadence of Greg’s delivery. The lyrics. The electric guitar. The way the drums and the first line of the song introduce themselves together.
I think I need to buy all of Greg Brown’s albums, hop in the car, and drive around for a few weeks.
Greg Brown’s Eugene
Boy, does this song hit me juust in the right place on so many levels. Greg’s low-down baritone narrative, and the purely American imagery his lyrics evoke, make me close my eyes, sit back, and just listen. The detailed vignettes he weaves together in this song are wildly entertaining, funny, thought provoking, and not without a hint of bittersweet sadness.
This song is about traveling this great country, and the freedom and independence a person can find in the outdoors. A song about fly fishing. A song about overcoming “the blandification of our whole situation.” A song about how “sometime you gottta go not look for nothin’.”
It’s a song that’s about going away from civilization and rediscovering this world, reminding yourself that when all the ugliness of mankind is stripped away, it’s a staggeringly beautiful world we live in.
It’s a song that makes me want to go back to the mountains of southwest Colorado and go fly fishing with my dad.
Greg Brown – Eugene (mp3)
Buy
The Poet Game
It’s tough enough keeping up with all of the new music out there when you’re still discovering great music from years past. It’s a perpetual cycle, but that’s what is so great about music: you’ll never hear it all, and there’s always something hiding waiting to be unearthed. Like this song here? I don’t know much about Greg Brown, but every time I hear his songs, I like them. Especially this one I heard recently. Soft, heartfelt, and simple.
Greg Brown: The Poet Game (mp3) – from The Poet Game, 1994.
The Poet Game
Down by the river junior year
walking with my girl,
and we came upon a place
there in the tall grass where a couple
had been making love
and left the mark of their embrace.
I said to her, “Looks like they had some fun.”
She said to me, “Let’s do the same.”
and still I taste her kisses
and her freckles in the sun
when I play the poet game. Read the rest of the lyrics.
