[Falling Down]

Si (and other fogies who might be interested)

As promised.... sorry for the delay.

New'ish stuff:

Iron and Wine - acoustic 'n slide guitar from the south.  The best one is 'The Creek drank the Cradle' all available on Sub Pop.

Adem: Homesongs - UK based, member of Fridge (brilliant post-rock/electronica); lovely quirky folk stuff on Domino.

James Yorkston and the Athletes: Moving up country - Tender, melancholy stuff from a Scot playing folk/country stuff - again on Domino.  They have a new one out that I haven't yet heard.

Jack Rose: Red Horse/White Mule & Opium Music - another ex punk-rocker getting serious with the fingerpicking 6/12 string guitar.  He's also in Pelt which are well worth checking out (along with the No-neck Blues Band and Sunburned Man of the Hand - all wierd post-hardcore groups)

Papa M - Whatever Mortal/Papa M sings - Dave Pajo's (ex Squirrel Bait and Slint) country stuff, he also performs with Will Oldham; as good an endorsement as any.  I also have a very moving acoustic cover of The Misfits 'last caress'.

Devendra Banhardt: Rejoicing in the hands - On Michael Gira (the Swans guy) Young God label.  Brilliant, joyful folk/country.

Steffen Basho Junghans - Rivers and Bridges: Hypnotic swirling country blues raga guitar.

Elliot Smith: Either Or - Low fi country, folkie songs.

From the 60's and 70's:

The Byrds: Sweetheart of the Rodeo - when Gram Parsons joined the Byrds and they went fully country rock.

John Fahey: The Dance of Death/America/Death Chants - the daddy of heavy finger-style 'American Primitive' guitar.  Jim O'Rourke and Thurston Moore encouraged me (not personally) to check it out and my god it's as serious as your life. The guy (along with Sun Ra and Harry Smith) was the first artist to establish his own label and distribution

Leo Kottke: 6- and 12- string guitar - more fingerpicking, but in a bluegrass/more lighthearted style.

From the real old-skool:

Harry Smiths Anthology of American Folk Music: 3CD box set inc. booklet by Greil Marcus.  This is the Rosetta Stone of modern music, first put out in the 1950's by Harry Smith - a rather strange guy.  I'm going to buy one for each of my nephews for their 18th birthdays.  Pricey (80 quid or so), but it's worth every penny.

Goodbye Babylon: 6cd box set of early gospel groups, hillbilly crooners and mad deep south baptist evangelists

Not country, but really worth checking out is anything by Shirley Collins, particularly The Power of the True Love Knot.

Hope that helps for now

B

[webbo]

i might be a fogie but i could'nt listen to any that stuff without wanting to kill myself. :cry:

[dontfollowme]

If you like this sort of music its definitely worth checking out "it still moves" by my morning jacket. The lead singer has a voice a bit like Neil Young. I'm sharing the album on ExoSee if anyone wants it.

[Pantontino]

Can't wait to get stuck into that lot. I've actually got some of it already (Elliot Smith, My Morning Jacket, Gram Parsons), and am aware of others, but plenty to add to the 'I must aquire soon' list.

This week I 'ave mostly been listening to Wilco, Richmond Fontaine and Paul Westerberg.

If anybody has got further recs, then post them up.

[Tim Heaton]

Have you tried Smog? I saw them last week in Oxford (with some fairly esoteric harpist support). In the Will Oldham mould but perhaps not quite as good songwriting. When I saw them it was only the lead singer Bill Callaghan but Jim O'Rourke has contributed in the past too.