Description
Like a cadre of musical brothers finally coalescing after years on the road apart, Jay Farrar (Son Volt, Gob Iron, Uncle Tupelo), Will Johnson (Centro-matic, South San Gabriel), Anders Parker (Varnaline, Gob Iron) and Yim Yames (My Morning Jacket, Monsters of Folk) gratefully deliver New Multitudes, an intimate interpretation of American icon and musical legend Woody Guthries previously unrecorded lyrics.
Set to coincide with the centennial celebration of Woody Guthries birth year, New Multitudes will be released February 28 on Rounder Records as a 12 track release and a 23 track deluxe, limited edition. The limited edition features original Guthrie lyric sheets, the 12 track release, and 11 additional compositions recorded by Farrar and Parker. The album will also be available on vinyl.
Under the invitation of Nora Guthrie, Woodys daughter, to tour the Guthrie archives, each of the four songwriters were offered the chance to plumb and mine the plethora of notebooks, scratch pads, napkins, etc. for anything that might inspire them to lend their voices and give the words new life.
These guys worked on an amazing group of lyrics says Nora. Much of it was culled from Woodys times in L.A. Lyric wise, its a part of the story that is still mostly unknown. From Woodys experiences on LAs skid row to his later years in Topanga Canyon, they are uniquely intimate, and relate two distinctly emotional periods in his life.
The spirit of Guthrie may have been involved in more ways than one, as all four songwriters mentioned the immediate connection to the songs they chose, or as they would suggest, chose them. The writing came together quickly, as if the mischief muse who originally penned them latched himself to each writers grey matter upon first contact.
Musically, it is this sense of collaboration that makes New Multitudes not just another trite and traditional acoustic regurgitation of back porch blues. From the ragged jangle of its opening track, Hoping Machine, the loping lilt of Fly High, the floorboard stomp of No Fear, to the lush warmth and sudden sonic gut punch of My Revolutionary Mind the cohorts deliver a lesson in discovering a songs sweet spot. Its the function and preparedness of each artists dogged work ethic gleaned the old-fashion way; veracious songs, road weary odometers, and sweat stained live shows, all attributes of the man they are honoring.
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