▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
████████▀ ▄███████████▀ ▄▄▄██████████▀▀▀ ▄▄███████████████████████████
██████▀ ▄██████████▀▀ ▄██████████▀▀▀ ▄▄████████████████████████▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
█████▌ ▄██████████▀ ▄▄█████████▀ ▄▄███████████████████▀▀▀
████▌ ██████████▀ ▄█████████▀ ▄████████████████▀▀▀▀ ▄▄▄▄███████████
████ ██████████▌ █████████▀ ▄██████████████▀▀▀ ▄▄▄███████████████████
███▌ ██████████▌ ▓████████ ▄████████████▀▀ ▄▄█████████████████████████
███▌ ▐█████████▓ ▓████████ ███████████▀▀ ▄▄████████████▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀████
███ ▓█████████▌ ▐████████ ██████████▀ ▄▄█████████▀▀
███ ██████████ ▓███████ █████████▀ ▄███████▀▀ ▄▄▄██████████████▄▄▄▄
███░ ██████████ ███████ █████████ ▄██████▀ ▄▄████████████████████████
███▌ ██████████ ██████▌ ▐███████▀ ▄████▀ ▄█████████████████████████████
███▌ ▐█████████ ██████▌ ▓██████▀ ████▀ ▄████████████████████████████████
████ ▐█████████▌ ▓█████▌ ██████▌ ███▀ ▄██████████████████████████████████
████░ █████████▌ ▐██████ ██████ ███ ▄███████████████▓▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▓█
█████ █████████ ██████ ▐████▌ ▐██ ██████████▓▀▀▀
██████ █████████ ░▓████▌ ▐████▌ ██▌ ████████▀▀ ▄▄▄▄▄█████▄▄▄▄▄
███████ █████████ ░█████ ████ ▐█▌ ██████▀ ▄▄▄█████████████████████▓▓▄
████████ ▀████████ ▀█████ ███▌▐█ ▐████▀ ▄▓▓████████████████████████████
█████████▄ ████████▄ ▀████ ███ █ ███▌ ▄█████████▓▓▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▓▓█████████████
▓▓█████████▄ ▀████████▄ ▀▀██ ███ ███▌ ▄██████▀▀ ▀▀▀▀██████
░███████████▄ ▀▓████████▄▄ ▀▀█ ▀████▓ ▄████▀▀ ▄▄▄███████████▓▓▄▄▄▄ ▀██
▌ ░████████████▄▄ ▀▀██████████▄▄▄▄█▀█▓███▀ ▄▄▄▄███████████████████████▓▄▄▄
█ ▀██████████████▄▄ ▀▀▀▓▓███████▀████████████████████████████████████████▓▄
██▄ ▀▀▓██████████████▄▄▄ ▀▄▄▄█▓███▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▀▀▀▀▓▓██████████████████████
████░ ▀▓██████████████████████ ▄▓███▀█▀█▀██████▄▄▄ ▀▀██████████████████
██████▓▄ ▀▀▀▓███████████▓▀▀ ▄▓███▌█▌████ █▀▀███████▄▄▄ ▀▀▓█████████████
█████████▓▄▄ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▄▄▓███▀█▌█▌█▌███▄ ▀█▄▀▀████████▄▄ ▀░██████████
▀▓███████████▓▄▄▄ ▄ ▀▀▐█ ████ ▓██▓▄ ▀█▄ ▀▀████████▄ ▀▓███████
▀▓████████████████████▀ ▄█████▄ ▐▌▐██ █▌ ▓▀▀▀ ▀█▄ ▀████████▄▄ ▀▓█████
▄ ▀▀▓██████████████▓▓▌ ███▀▀▀▀▀█ ██▀▀ ▄▄▄███▄▄▄ ▀█████████▄ ▀▓███
█▓▄ ▀▀▓███████▓▓▓▒▒ ███ ▐█ ▄▄▄▀██████ █▀█▀ █▄ ▀▓███████▓▄ ▀██
████▓▄▄ ▀▀▀▀▀░░░ ▄ ██▄ ▄▄█▀▀▀ ███▀ ██▌▐████▀ ▄███▓ ▓████████▄ ▓
████████▓▄▄▄ ▄ ████ ▄▄█▀█▄ ▀██▄▄█▄▀▀▀ ▄░ ▐██████ ▓█████████
██████████████▓▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▀███ ▄▄ ▀██▄█▀▄██▄ ▀▀▀ ▄▄▄███▓▌ ▓█████▓ ▓█████████
████████████████████▓▀ ▄▄████▄ ▀▄▀▀▀▄▄▀▀ █▄ ▀ ▐▓██████ ▐███████ ▓█████████
▀▀▓██████████████▓▀▀ ▄ ▀████████▄ █▐▀ ▄▄█████▄ ▀▓████▌ ▓██████▓ ▐██████████
▄ ▀▀▀▓███████▀ ▄▄████▄████▀▀███▄▄███▀▀▄▄█████ ▀▓██▌ ▐███████ ██████████▌
██▓▄▄▄ ▀ ▀▀███████▄▀▀ ▄█▄ ███▀▀▄███▀▀█▄▄▄█▄ ▀█▓ ▐███████▌ ▓██████████
█████████▓▄▄ ████ ▀███▀▀ ▄ ▀██▄▀▀███▀▄▄█████████▄ ▀ ▐███████▌ ▐██████████
████████████ ████▀█ ▀▀ ░▄███▄ ██▄▀██ ██▀█▄███████▀▌▄▄ ▀██████▓ ▐██████████
████████████ ▀███ ▄▄▄██████▓▀ ▀█▀ ▀██▀██████ ▀█▄█████▄ ▀███▌ ▐██████████
█████████████▄ ▓██████▓▀▀ ▄ ▄ ▀█▐███████▄ ▀▀██▀▄▄███▄ ██▌ ███████████
▀▀▀▓▓████████████▓▀▀▀▀ ▄▄▓█████░ ▀ ███▀▄████▀ ▀███████▌ ▓ ███████████
░▄▄▄▓██▀ █████▓▄ ▀▐████▀ ▄███▄▀██████ ░ ▓███████████
▄▀ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▓▓███████▀▀ ███████▀ ▀▓██ ███████ ████▀ ███████████▌
▐█▓▄ ███████████████████▓▀ ▄▄ ████▓█ ▓▄ ▓████████▓ ▀▀ ▄ ▓███████████
▀█▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▄███ ████░ ▄███▄ ▀▓█████▓ ▄▄▄█▓ ▓███████████▌
▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄██▀ █ ▓██▀ ▄█████▓▄ ▀▀▀ ▓████ ▓████████████ ▐
█░█ █▓█▄ ▄▄▄ █▓█ ▄▄ ███▀█ ░█ ░▀ ▄▓████████▓▀ ▄▄▄▓████▓ ▄▓████████████ █
█ █ █░█▀██ █ █▒█ █▒█ ▀▄ █ ░█ ▀▀▀ ██
█ █ █ █ █░█ █░█ █░█ █ ▓█ ░░█ ██████ ▄██▀███████▐████████████████▄▄▄ ▀██
█░█ █░█ █▓█ █▒█ █▒█ █░▄ █░░░█ █ █ █▀ █▀ █ █ █ █ ▀▀▄ ▀█ ▐█
▀█▓█ █▓█ ▀▀▀ █▓█ █▓█ █▓█ █░░░█ █ ░█ ▐▌ ▐▌ █ ░█ █ ░█ ██▄▄▄ ▐█ ░░█
▀█ █▀▀ ▄█ ███ ▀▀▀▀▀ █░░▒█ █ ░░█ █ ░█ █ ░░█ █ ░░█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█▌▐█
█▄ ▄▄███ ▄▄██▀▀▀▀ █░░▒█ █░░░█ █ ░░█ █░░▒█ █ ░░█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█▌
█ ▄▄▄▄▄█▄▓█ ███▄▄▄▄▄▄▄█▌ █░▒▒█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█ █░░░█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█▌
█ ▌ █▓█ █▒█ █▒█ █▓█ █░█ █░▒▒█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █▒▒▓█▌
█▄▄▄ █░█ █░█ █░█ █░█ ▀▀ █▒▒▓█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▓▓█▌
████ █ █ █ █▀█ █ █ █▀▀ ▄▄ █▒▒▓█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▓▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▓▓▓█▌
████ █ █ █░█ █░█ █░█ ███▌ █▒▓▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▓▓▓█ █▒▓▓█ █████▌▄▄
██▀▀ █░█ █▓█ █▒█ █▒█ █▓█ █▓▓▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▓▓█ █▓▓██ █▓▓▓█ █████
▀█▓█ ██ █▓█ █▓█ █░█ █▓▓▓█ █▒▓▓█ █▒▓▓█ █▓▓▓▀ ▄█████ █▓▓▓██████▀▀
███▄ ▀█▄ ███▀▀▀▀▀█▄█ █▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓█▄▄▄██▀ ██▀▀▀▀▀
▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀ ▀▀▀ █████ █▓▓▓█ ███▀▀▀▀▀ ▀ DRIFT INTO THE VOID
▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █████▄▄████▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
██████▀▀
┌────────┐ ██▀▀
────┤ Info ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘
Artist | Bill Callahan
Title | Gold Record
Genre | Indie Format | Album
Source | CD Time | 40:13
Label | Drag City Store | 2020
Catalog | DC760CD Rip | 2020
Bitrate | 699 kbps Size | 212.25 MB
Freq | 44.1 kHz Encoder | FLAC 1.3.1
┌────────┐
────┤ Tracks ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘
01. Pigeons 5:25
02. Another Song 3:15
03. 35 4:03
04. Protest Song 3:58
05. The Mackenzies 5:03
06. Let's Move To The Country 3:19
07. Breakfast 2:48
08. Cowboy 4:35
09. Ry Cooder 3:51
10. As I Wander 3:56
┌────────┐
────┤ Notes ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘
After releasing a string of critically acclaimed albums as Smog,
singer/songwriter Bill Callahan began making music under his own name in
2007. The switch reflected how much richer and deeper his music had become
over the years, both literally and figuratively: His songwriting, which
used the imagery of the American West in thoughtful yet rugged ways that
spoke to the present as well as the past, had become increasingly
contemplative, while the drawl he used to deliver them had grown lower and
slower over the years.
Callahan fans had to wait six years for "Shepherd In A Sheepskin Vest", an
album filled with revealing, gorgeously written songs that more than
rewarded listeners' patience. Just over a year later, he returned with
"Gold Record", a set of songs whose title reflects their quality, if
perhaps not their commercial prospects. While on tour for Shepherd,
Callahan continued that album's creative momentum, finishing up some old
songs and writing some new ones along the way. Recorded within a week and
with several songs wrapped in one take, "Gold Record" could almost pass for
a live album in its relaxed spontaneity.
Callahan gives his audience plenty of space and time to appreciate his
songcraft and conversational flow, and while these songs are character
sketches instead of Shepherd's deeply personal, intertwining meditations,
the lightness and intimacy of that album lingers. As on that record, the
brilliant observational skills he's had since the Smog days are turned
towards people instead of away from them. On "Pigeons," a chauffeur tells a
couple en route to their honeymoon, 'When you are dating, you only see each
other/And the rest of us can go to hell/But when you are married, you are
married to the whole wide world/The rich, the poor, the sick and the well'.
He also lets his sense of humor come to the surface more than he has in
some time, whether he's name-dropping Johnny Cash and Leonard Cohen as a
wink to the critics who invariably compare him to those legends or
delivering a lighthearted tribute to "Ry Cooder". However, his wit never
detracts from more poignant moments like "The Mackenzies", which finds a
man standing in for the dead son of his neighbors. "Gold Record" is also a
graceful extension of Callahan's larger body of work under his own name.
Joined by Shepherd guitarist Matt Kinsey and bassist Jaime Zuverza, he
continues to evoke the history of country and folk in ways that suit his
own style perfectly. While the focus is always rightfully on his voice and
guitar, the pedal steel, strings, brass, and woodwinds that wind through
the album embellish his songcraft in ways that feel more timeless than
self-consciously nostalgic. When he revisits "Let's Move To The Country",
the opening track from Smog's 1999 album "Knock Knock", it's burnished by
layers of wisdom and experience that accept the past as a part of the
present and future, or as Callahan puts it at one point, "It's All One
River".
Equally rich and effortless, "Gold Record" is especially satisfying for
longtime fans as part of a bounty of great work from Callahan since his
return, but there's plenty here to delight anyone who loves brilliant
songwriting and down-to-earth performances.
┌────────┐
────┤░░░░░░░░├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘