|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
LP
|
|
BEWITH 053LP
|
Be With Records presents a reissue of Larry Jon Wilson's Let Me Sing My Song To You, originally issued in 1976.
"Larry Jon Wilson? He can break your heart with a voice like a cannonball." --Kris Kristofferson
Larry Jon Wilson came to the party late. When he arrived in Nashville, he had already spent ten years in corporate America. He did not start playing guitar until the age of 30, but five years later he released his debut, New Beginnings (BEWITH 052LP, 2018) and followed it a year later with Let Me Sing My Song To You. A revelation among the hipsters and critics of Nashville, they ensured Larry Jon was immediately embraced as part of the mid-'70s "outlaw country movement" that eschewed slick production in favor of a raw, gritty approach. When a film crew came to document this burgeoning sound, they made straight for Larry Jon's door. He was a singer and writer of intensely private, painfully moving tales of southern life. With his deep, papa-bear voice, funky southern groove, and richly evocative narratives of rural Georgia, Larry Jon was a unique stylist but his gutsy, greasy sound did not translate into sales. Too funky for the country crowd, too heartfelt for pop radio, he fell between the cracks. New Beginnings and Let Me Sing My Song to You play like two halves of a double album, showcasing his unique mix of country, folk, soul and swampy blues. New Beginnings had failed to propel Larry Jon to even the modest cult acclaim enjoyed by his contemporaries; the frustration this conjured can be heard on Let Me Sing My Song To You. Both the title track and the self-deprecating "Drowning In The Mainstream" speak of Wilson's hope to inch a few steps towards the big time without making too many compromises. Any album containing the likes of the heartfelt, deeply beautiful tribute of "Ballad of Handy Mackey" and the superlative country-gothic funk opus "Sheldon Churchyard" -- the lead track from the lauded Country Got Soul (2003) compilation -- must rank as essential listening. The audio comes from the original analog tape transfers and has been remastered for vinyl by Be With regular Simon Francis. The same care has been taken with the striking cover art and Larry's close friend Jeb Loy Nichols contributed wonderfully unique liner notes, presented beautifully on the printed inner sleeve opposite a gorgeous black and white shot of Larry, mid-performance. Edition of 500. Carefully reproduced original art. Remastered from original tape transfers.
|
|
|
Artist |
Title |
Format |
Label |
Catalog # |
|
|
LP
|
|
BEWITH 052LP
|
Be With Records presents a reissue of Larry Jon Wilson's New Beginnings, originally released in 1975.
"Larry Jon Wilson? He can break your heart with a voice like a cannonball." --Kris Kristofferson
Larry Jon Wilson came to the party late. When he arrived in Nashville, he had already spent ten years in corporate America. He did not start playing guitar until the age of 30, but five years later he released his debut, New Beginnings, following it with Let Me Sing My Song To You (BEWITH 053LP, 2018). A revelation among the hipsters and critics of Nashville, Larry Jon was immediately embraced as part of the mid-'70s "outlaw country movement" that eschewed slick production in favor of a raw, gritty approach. When a film crew came to document this burgeoning sound, they made straight for Larry Jon's door. He was a singer and writer of intensely private, painfully moving tales of southern life. With his deep, papa-bear voice, funky southern groove, and richly evocative narratives of rural Georgia, Larry Jon was a unique stylist but his gutsy, greasy sound did not translate into sales. Too funky for the country crowd, too heartfelt for pop radio, he fell between the cracks. New Beginnings and Let Me Sing My Song To You are so similar they play like two halves of a double album, showcasing his unique mix of country, folk, soul and swampy blues. Driven by a crack rhythm section that included Elvis guitarist Reggie Young, New Beginnings is a rich, literate record. Anyone with even a passing interest in the union between soul and country music will be able to tell they've located solid gold as soon as Larry Jon's deep baritone utters the first appreciative "mm-hmm" a few bars into the opening "Ohoopee River Bottomland", a fat-bottomed swamp-funk account of hard times in the city and country alike. Funny, nostalgic, sad, wistful, righteously pissed-off: New Beginnings is country-influenced American songwriting at its finest, from the feverish country-got-soul groove pulsating behind the weary sigh of "Through The Eyes of Children" to the elemental lament "Things Ain't What It Used to Be (and Probably Never Was)", a country standard that somehow got away. The audio comes from the original analog tape transfers and has been remastered for vinyl by Be With regular Simon Francis. The same care has been taken with the striking cover art; Larry's close friend Jeb Loy Nichols contributed liner notes. Edition of 500. Carefully reproduced original art. Remastered from original tape transfers.
|
|
|
Artist |
Title |
Format |
Label |
Catalog # |
|
|
CD
|
|
DC 399CD
|
"In from the cold is Larry Jon Wilson, with his first album since 1980, an intense masterpiece of his casual performing style. Once upon a time in the 1970's, Larry Jon Wilson released four acclaimed albums and garnered a reputation as one of the best new 'outlaw country' songwriters around alongside such hallowed names as Mickey Newbury, Townes Van Zandt and Guy Clark. Starting his career late (learning guitar in 1970, at the age of 30) and leaving it early (ten years later), he walked away from the business, not the music. Signed to Monument Records by Fred Foster on the strength of a letter and a demo cassette, his legacy has been the four albums of deep country soul released between 1975 and 1979, but none of them came as close to the bone as this new, appropriately self-titled album. Larry Jon Wilson has been quietly playing shows on and off in the southern states over the last two decades - but it wasn't until some new friends twisted his arm with recording gear in tow on the 15th floor of a Perdido Key condominium that a new album became a reality. This album stands apart from his '70s recordings. On Larry Jon Wilson, he stands mostly alone, occasionally accompanied by a single fiddle. With the release of Larry Jon Wilson, the world is privy to the Larry Jon Wilson sound, clear and worn, deep and resonant."
|
|
|
Artist |
Title |
Format |
Label |
Catalog # |
|
|
LP
|
|
DC 399LP
|
|
|
|
|
|