The Stone Hill All-Stars: “Gray Green” (2024) CD Review

I’ve been enjoying music by The Stone Hill All-Stars for more than a decade now, and this year the band gave music-lovers like myself a special treat. They released two albums of original material at the same time. This band has its own vibe, its own sound, and its own perspective, which you can hear in the way they fashion their songs, in the lyrical content, in the choice of instruments they use. One thing you’ll hear in it is a good deal of joy. This is a band whose music never fails to make me feel better about this entire experiment we’re all a part of. And I fear that in the coming four years we are going to need quite a bit of music to lift our spirits, to make us smile, to remind us of our better qualities. The musicians on this album are John Shock on keyboards, accordion and vocals; Paul Margolis on guitar, bass, bajo quinto and vocals; Tim Pruitt on guitar; Dan Naiman on bass and saxophone; Hoppy Hopkins on drums and percussion; Jim Hannah on drums and percussion; Brian Whaley on fiddle; Judith Geller on backing vocals and French horn; and Jared Denhard on trombone and tuba.

The album gets off to a great start with “El Abogado,” which is a lot of fun. Its rhythm will have you smiling in short order. Seriously, this track made me ridiculously happy within moments of my popping in the disc. This one was written by John Shock. “He stands in front of an empty building/Cell phone pressed hard to his ear/Icicles form on the brim of his Stetson/His glasses fog, he strains to hear.” Approximately halfway through, the tone changes for a moment, as he sings, “And as he lies on his back staring up into the sky/He contemplates suing the falling snow itself.” Seriously, this track is a delight, and toward the end we suddenly are treated to a wonderful lead on accordion. The band then revisits “Wilson Comes Home,” which was the title track to the band’s 2017 album. The differences in this new rendition strike us immediately, the song delivered as some sort of twisted urban waltz. Yet there is a touching and moving aspect to this track, perhaps especially felt in the instrumental sections. I love that work on fiddle toward the end. The lyrics are delivered as a kind of spoken word, as was done on the original version. This song was written by Paul Margolis.

“Captain Tomorrow” has a sweeter vibe as it starts, and features some nice work on percussion. “He rides his bike through a puddle/His eyes fixed on a yellow cloud/A Caddy rear-ends a junker at the corner/Ain’t that the way it goes in this town/He asks no one out loud.” The hero of this song is a bicycle courier in the city. “And grant me a super power/To fly above the city/And lift all those who suffer/Up to the thinner, finer air.” That’s followed by “Gray Green Harvey Jackson.” The accordion is a prominent part of this one, giving this song its joyous vibe. I love the rhythm of the vocal line, and the way each lyric contributing a playful new detail. Here the song’s opening lines: “Gray green Harvey Jackson/A man not given to action/A good night’s sleep, his chief satisfaction.” And check out these lines, which soon follow: “He sits low in the saddle/Not inclined to do battle/Very easily rattled.” This track also contains a cool saxophone lead, because this band just wants to make everything fucking right. I also love the way the electric guitar and accordion interact to create an interesting vibe. Have I mentioned how happy this band makes me?

“Someday Soon” is the album’s only song not written by a band member. It was written by Jeff Rymes, who put out his own version of it in November (that version interestingly features The Stone Hill All-Stars backing him). This is an unusual song, and it includes tuba as a prominent element right from the start. “Someday soon/We’re gonna walk on the moon/Raise the flag/In the name of the hag/And the silver spoon.” The work on snare along with the tuba gives the song a certain New Orleans flavor. “Yeah, it’s gonna be great,” the band sings at one point, and I have no doubt of the truth of that statement, at least while this music continues to play. There is a chaotic ending to this one, as we are dropped into the middle of the insanity surrounding a football game, or at least that’s what it sounds like to me. The version by Jeff Rymes concludes with a snippet of a speech by Franklin  D. Roosevelt, not included in this recording. It leads straight into “Have You Seen Smitty?” which begins with these lines: “The grass around the house unmowed/A complaint has been filed with the court.” Lines that make me smile each time I listen to this album. And we are engaged in another waltz. Because life should be a dance, shouldn’t it? Regardless of what’s happening, regardless of what we must face, we should be engaged in such movement, such joy. “It wasn’t always like this/James Smith had plenty of friends/And he worked fitting pipes/He was liked by his union brothers/And everyone found Smitty polite.” As the song continues, I can’t help but begin to wonder if something bad has happened to this guy, perhaps in part because I just finished ready a mystery novel. I turn to the fiddle for confirmation and perhaps consolation. “Ed said he saw something in the upstairs window/But that it’s hard to tell figure from shadow.”

As “Our Bows And Arrows” begins, we are immersed in some military action. The music takes us in a somewhat different direction, a western vibe mixed with some other elements, including a Latin rhythm and some interesting work on guitar, to create its own distinctive sound. “We won’t put down our bows and arrows.” That is a strong opening line. “We won’t give up our sacred mission/We hear them sing their altered version.” As I much as I appreciate this song’s lyrics, it is that extended instrumental section that really makes this track something special. The jam has a cool sound, and takes us down some interesting alleys. The track ends as it began, with the sounds of military personnel coordinating some action. “We won’t put down our bows and arrows.” The fiddle then invites us to a dance at the beginning of “Wandering Over An Open Field,” one last waltz before the album is over, a bit of magic moving through the coarse and concrete world, leaving a sparkling sheen even on cardboard boxes and the line at the unemployment office. “Multiple issues with diction and memory and diction.” Ha! I love it. “I drank a jug of it/To see what would come of it” are other lines that have me laughing. If you’re looking for something outside the norm, check out this album and fall in love with this band.

CD Track List

1. El Abogado
2. Wilson Comes Home
3. Captain Tomorrow
4. Gray Green Harvey Jackson
5. Someday Soon
6. Have You Seen Smitty?
7. Our Bows And Arrows
8. Wandering Over An Open Field

Gray Green was released on July 1, 2024.

Margaret Slovak & Chris Maresh: “A Star’s Light Does Fall” (2024) CD Review

Each year, fourteen million new Christmas albums are unleashed upon the world, and while most of them are tired and unimaginative, there are a few excellent discs that make their way to us. Often it is the albums of instrumental renditions that really shine, for the obvious reason that many Christmas songs have terrible lyrics (looking at you, “Rudolph” and “Frosty” and “Jingle Bells” and “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town”). Guitarist Margaret Slovak and bass player Chris Maresh deliver a beautiful album of classic holiday numbers, some lesser known holiday tunes, a non-Christmas jazz tune, and one decidedly non-Christmas song with a seemingly spiritual title, all as instrumentals. The album’s title is a slight variation of a line from “I Wonder As I Wander,” one of the songs the duo performs here.

They open the album with a rendition of “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” that is pretty and soothing. This is exactly the vibe that many of us associate with the holiday, with what the holiday could, or should, be. That image of the world at peace on Christmas Eve, loved ones together on a quiet night, cuddling near the tree, glasses of wine on a nearby table, a fire in the fireplace. I’m not sure how many of us actually experience that anymore, but this music conjures that very image, and has that feel. It’s what we yearn for. “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” is followed by “I Wonder As I Wander,” a meditative piece written by John Jacob Niles. A couple of minutes in, I get the image of walking along a snowy path in the woods, alone, no one else in sight, feeling relaxed, even joyful. The guitar helps guide the way, picking the spots where the sun shines brightest through the trees, and the bass then feels like the forest itself, responding to our presence. And we become engaged in a conversation of sorts with nature. The line in this song that gives the album its title is “But high from God’s heaven a star’s light did fall.” “What Child Is This?” follows, though an instrumental rendition of “What Child Is This?” is actually “Greensleeves,” so not a holiday song, but still a perfect choice for this sort of approach. And Margaret Slovak and Chris Maresh deliver a beautiful rendition that soothes us while also giving us a place for our minds to journey to, a place and time apart from the madness of the world, before returning to that familiar theme.

A Charlie Brown Christmas is far and away the best holiday television program that ever aired, and a great part of its appeal is Vince Guaraldi’s music. As children, we didn’t know we had become jazz fans, but of course that’s precisely what happened because of that program. Margaret Slovak and Chris Maresh deliver a sweet rendition of “Christmas Time Is Here,” one of that special’s main songs. I like how the bass has the opportunity to lead fairly early on. These guys add their own personal touch, as they do on each of the songs chosen here. They then turn to a composition by Wayne Shorter, “Infant Eyes,” which is not a Christmas number. This one too has a soothing effect, at least for the body, while letting the mind be free to move forward as well as into memory, looking at things with curiosity, but not fear. Inquisitive, but not anxious. There is a calm center. That is followed by one of the classic Christmas songs, “Away In A Manger.” There is something wonderfully light about this rendition, like we could walk, even dance, upon the snow without sinking in, without breaking the surface, and without feeling the cold. This track feels a bit like a dream. It has a fairy tale vibe, which works perfectly.

“Christmas Dinner” was written by Noel Stooky, the Paul of Peter, Paul & Mary. It was included on the Peter, Paul And Mommy album, released in 1969. This instrumental rendition by Margaret Slovak and Chris Maresh feels welcoming. There is also something about it that feels like a memory that we are experiencing again, some of the rough edges worn away by fondness and time. There is a strong bass lead. Margaret Slovak and Chris Maresh then deliver two pieces written by Alfred Burt and Wihla Hutson. These are songs I don’t hear as often as some of the others. The first is “Some Children See Him,” which Amber Weekes covered on her 2020 album The Gathering. There is an element of play here, as well as something loving in its delivery, like it is watching over us. We can feel safe within this song. The second is “The Star Carol,” a tender and pretty piece. There are moments when it feels like a lullaby, as we drift into sleep and stardust.

“Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” begins almost delicately, then soon gathers a warmth. Though there is of course a beautiful sadness to this piece, as certain lines might be recalled: “Someday soon we all will be together/If the fates allow/Until then, we’ll have to muddle through somehow.” We must hope for the best. And this music will help us get there. This rendition features some excellent guitar work. That playing carries with it a warm optimism. This album concludes with Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” a song that I love, but which of course has nothing whatsoever to do with Christmas. It comes from Various Positions, one of my two favorite albums (the other is American Beauty, if you’re curious). It’s interesting to do an instrumental rendition of a Leonard Cohen song because he was such a skilled creator of lyrics. But this rendition provides a chance to appreciate the beauty of the song apart from the lyrics. It’s a pretty short rendition, approximately three and a half minutes, but of course an instrumental version doesn’t have to pick and choose among the many verses that Leonard Cohen sang over the years. It fades out at the end, leaving the impression that the song continues beyond what we can hear.

CD Track List

1. O Come, O Come Emmanuel
2. I Wonder As I Wander
3. What Child Is This?
4. Christmas Time Is Here
5. Infant Eyes
6. Away In A Manger
7. Christmas Dinner
8. Some Children See Him
9. The Star Carol
10. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
11. Hallelujah

A Star’s Light Does Fall was released on November 1, 2024.

John McCutcheon: “Field Of Stars” (2025) CD Review

Is John McCutcheon somehow busier now than ever before in his career? Or has he always been such a prolific songwriter? During the pandemic he put out Cabin Fever: Songs From The Quarantine (2020), Bucket List (2021), and Leap! (2022), all of them containing original material. Last year he and Tom Paxton released Together, which also featured songs written during the pandemic. And he has several tour dates coming up in January and February (word is that Tom Paxton will not be joining him on those January dates due to health concerns). And he has another new album coming out in January, this one titled Field Of Stars, and it too contains all original material. There is more than an hour of music on this disc, all of it written or co-written by John McCutcheon. Joining him on this album are Jon Carroll on piano, organ and backing vocals; JT Brown on bass and backing vocals; Robert Jospé on drums; Pete Kennedy on electric guitar and lap steel; Stuart Duncan on fiddle; Tim O’Brien on mandolin and backing vocals; Cory Walker on banjo; and Mark Schatz on upright bass. There are also guests on a few tracks.

The album’s opening track, “Here,” eases in with some pretty work on piano. And then it suddenly comes alive with a bright force like the sun breaking through the clouds. There is a sweet vibe to this tune. “Your whole life, here is what you waited for/Your whole life, you’ve always wondered what’s in store/It’s always just out of reach/You believe that each one satisfied your need for more/Your whole life, here is what you waited for.” In this song, he sings of family, and the track has the feeling of home. It features some nice work on fiddle. There is something soothing about this song, about its message and its delivery, and I appreciate that, particularly in these turbulent and unsettling times. It is followed by the album’s title track, which was co-written by Carrie Newcomer, who joins John McCutcheon on vocals. This is a beautiful song about walking the Camino de Santiago. John indicates in the liner notes that he plans to walk the route in May of next year. Holy moly! It is five hundred miles, and supposedly it takes between thirty and thirty-five days to walk it. Anyway, this track features some nice work on both piano and fiddle, and, as you’d expect, some touching harmonies. Check out these heartbreaking opening lines: “I promised my brother we’d do it one day/But we waited six months too long/Though this isn’t the way we imagined it’d be/I couldn’t bear to admit I was wrong/So I carry this small box of ashes/Just like I told him I’d do/This last journey we will take together/I walk the Camino for two.”

Baseball is far and away my favorite sport, the only one I truly care about, and I love songs about the sport (so The Baseball Project pleases and delights me no end). “The Hammer” is a song about Hank Aaron, written the day he died in January of 2021, The Hammer being his nickname. The lyrics mention the song “If I Had A Hammer.” They also, of course, mention Hank Aaron’s home run feat, breaking Babe Ruth’s record: “For the 715th time he’d trot the bases round/Skinny kid from Alabama/All the way to Cooperstown.” I like how this song plays on multiple meanings of the word “home.” By the way, this song mentions several other baseball players, including Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, Cy Young, Ted Williams and Roberto Clemente. That’s followed by “Hell & High Water,” which was co-written by Trent Wagler. This one has a darker tone, feeling like it comes to us from the storm clouds, or up from the mines. It is about the flooding in eastern Kentucky in 2022. Stuart Duncan’s work on fiddle is especially effective in creating the song’s tone, and John McCutcheon delivers a powerful and passionate vocal performance. Listen to the way he delivers the line, “When the waters come for you, you won’t be kneeling down.” Wow. This is one of my personal favorites.

“MS St. Louis” tells the true story of the ship that in 1939 carried Jewish refugees to Cuba, then to Canada and the United States. The refugees were turned away, and had to return to Europe, where many of them died in the Holocaust. “And the lady of the harbor lifts her lamp for all to see/Your poor and huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” This country has often failed to act according to the principles it claims to have. Is it a lesson we’ve learned? Absolutely not. Our country is about to enter a dark and cold time, with a convicted felon and sociopath at the helm. “I remember the St. Louis/As I read the news today/Another tale of refugees/Turned back and turned away/What does our history tell us/Must we live it all again?” John McCutcheon follows that with a song about his uncle, “Stubby,” the second song he’s written about him, the first being “One Strong Arm.” He was a pitcher for a softball team, and John sings here, “They say he once threw a no-hitter/Was the best thing they ever had seen/And I sat and I cheered in the bleachers/As he worked in the hot August sun/He made every batter look foolish that day.” Did I mention how I love songs about baseball? Softball is close enough. And this song provides some wonderful detail, making the game easy to follow, to imagine.

“Only Ones Dancing” has a sweet, enchanting sound, inviting us to move to a waltz. Claire Lynch joins John McCutcheon on vocals, their voices sounding wonderful together. “We didn’t care we were the only ones dancing/Dancing just suddenly seemed like the right thing to do/Our new favorite melody, simple and sweet/Put your arms around me and sway to the beat/And everyone else can stay glued to their seats/I just want to dance with you.” I love this song. It speaks to me strongly. So lovely, so magical, with beautiful work on fiddle. And if you find you’re the only ones dancing, that is just fine. Life is too short to worry what others are doing, or what they might think. Dance on! This song was co-written by Zoe Mulford. Then “At The End Of The Day” is a gentle, warm, pretty song as it begins. “At the end of the day/All my troubles put to rest.” It builds in power then as he sings, “We will rise up,” which is perfect, the backing vocalists joining him. Then in “Tikkun Olam,” John McCutcheon sings, “No matter that you feel so small/Or the task looms ever large/And we know the darkest hour of night is just before the dawn/You are the one, you are enough.” It is an empowering song, with an important message.

John McCutcheon turns to a bluegrass sound for “Redneck,” with Tim O’Brien on mandolin, and Cory Walker on banjo. It’s a song about a labor struggle, the “redneck” of this song being one of the miners who wore red bandanas around their necks. Toward the end it is made clear that the labor struggles continue. “Still we fight for decent wages/For dignity, respect.” That’s followed by “Too Old To Die Young,” a delightful and humorous number about turning seventy. It feels like a dance. So go ahead and dance. “It’s a punch in the gut/My youth passed before me/I guess I just missed the cut/It seemed only yesterday/That my life had begun/Though my body’s intact/I must face the fact/I’m too old to die young.” Pete Kennedy delivers some nice work on lap steel on this track, and Stuart Duncan again delivers wonderful stuff on fiddle. The line “What did you expect” caused me to burst out laughing.  I’m guessing it might have the same effect on a lot of folks. Enjoy, and “Be the best damn old fart that there ever has been.”

A more somber tone is established at the beginning of “I’m Tired.” And there is a wonderfully deep, intimate sound to his delivery of the first lines, “I’m tired/I don’t know how I got this way/I’m just so tired.” I think a lot of folks are going to relate to this song, particularly the lines about working. “I am weary to my bones/Dead tired/And I just collapse when I get home.” Life is short, and though we need money, it is a shame to give the best of our lives to our jobs. But it is something other than work that has this person worn out. The song’s final lines had me in tears: “This night’s too long, this bed’s too wide/Is it really any wonder/That I’m tired/And I’m so lost without you/I’m so lost.” This track features some moving work on lap steel. That’s followed by “Peter Norman.” This song was inspired by the photo of Tommie Smith and John Carlos at the 1968 Olympics, focusing on the third person in the photo, Peter Norman. I like how the song uses running as a metaphor: “Some will run in circles just to end up where they start/To some it is a relay where each must do their part/And to others, it’s a marathon, a long and lonely race/But in the battle between right and wrong, there is no second place.”

“Waiting For The Moon” features some nice work on both keys and fiddle. Its lyrics refer to a famous moment in It’s A Wonderful Life, “How I longed to tame her when I was a kid/Could I lasso the moon like George Bailey did/Could I tie it up tight for the one that I love.” I’ve been thinking about mortality a lot lately, and a line like “Don’t know just how many I might see again” just takes the wind from me. Then the vocalists of Windborne join John McCutcheon on the album’s final song, “Blessing.” “So raise your voice/Raise your song/And leave your thanks/Your whole life long/We all are saints/We all are jerks/Bless this food/And bless this work.” The vocalists echo each of those lines. But there is a moment toward the end when they just say the word “Jerk” instead of echoing the full line, catching me by surprise and totally delighting me.

CD Track List

1. Here
2. Field Of Stars
3. The Hammer
4. Hell & High Water
5. MS St. Louis
6. Stubby
7. Only Ones Dancing
8. At The End Of The Day
9. Tikkun Olam
10. Redneck
11. Too Old To Die Young
12. Tired
13. Peter Norman
14. Waiting For The Moon
15. Blessing

Field Of Stars is scheduled to be released on January 10, 2025.

Stephen Clair: “Transmissions” (2024) CD Review

A couple of years ago, singer and songwriter Stephen Clair released To The Trees, an excellent album on which he was backed by the band The Restless Age (a group that had also backed both Donald Fagen and Kate Pierson). Will Bryant of that band joins Stephen Clair again on keyboards and backing vocals on his new album, Transmissions, and co-produced the album with Stephen Clair. And Brandon Morrison, The Restless Age’s bass player, mixed and mastered the album. Stephen Clair is also joined by Daria Grace on bass and backing vocals, and Aaron Latos on drums. The album features all original material, all of it seriously good, songs worth paying attention to.

“Everybody here is waiting for something,” Stephen Clair sings at the beginning of the album’s opening track, “Waiting Around,” which quickly takes on a delicious rock sound. A bit later in the song he sings “Waiting around is a terrible business/When you don’t know what you’re waiting for.” Oh yes. Just after that line, the song takes a cool turn, a bit toward punk, the rhythm then driving the song, including the rhythm of the vocal line. I especially love that bass line. He sings, “T-t-t-t-t tired of waiting around,” that playful stutter reminding me of Bowie’s “Changes.” There is ultimately a kind of joy to this song’s sound, which is what we grab onto. Then “Vegas Sunrise” begins with a beat, with a raw, low-fi sound that feels like someone practicing drums. It soon kicks in, and that low-fi sound disappears. This song has plenty of attitude, with great lines like “I sure didn’t come here for the elegance or atmosphere/All I ever wanted was to disappear/Never look back, and get the hell out of here.” I love this song. “I think I know what I need to do/‘Cause only a fool would try to prove something to you.” The keyboard part reminds me a bit of The Cars.

There is a more cheerful vibe to the rhythm of “Blue And Red Lines” at the beginning, and a sweet aspect to the vocal delivery. “Out here on the beach/The setting sun plays tricks on me/On me.” That repetition of “On me” is interesting, because that additional emphasis gives the impression that the sunset has that effect only on him, that only he is experiencing it that way. This song’s lyrics mention Patti Smith and “Coney Island Baby.” That insistent, consistent rhythm gives the tune a catchy aspect. Then “Cigarette! Cigarette!” has more of a rockabilly vibe. This is playful and fun, and it had me smiling pretty quickly, even laughing for the joy of it, in both the vocal delivery and the music. I especially love the work on keys. “We never even thought we would live this long/To sing this song,” Stephen sings here, with the backing vocals urging, “Smoke that cigarette, smoke that cigarette.” Terrible advice, of course, but everything about this song is wonderful.

“It’s So Strange” has a peculiar and delightful opening section, and there is a hint of mystery. It’s great that this section is allowed to go on for forty seconds or so before the vocals come in. Here there is a bit of a Kinks vibe to Stephen Clair’s vocal approach, which I can’t help but love. This is one of my personal favorites on this album. Each element is interesting on its own, and they all work together to create something special and compelling. Stephen Clair goes in a different, but equally enjoyable direction on “Fritz,” with something of a western vibe, particularly in that rhythm. “It’s not working, man/Your little experiment/Point your finger all you want/But, captain, you’re not alone.” This track also features some playful backing vocal work in the second half, and is another of the disc’s highlights.

“Naomi’s Phone Is Dead” contains a delicious punk bass line, and the lyrics are delivered sort of as spoken word. Oh man, the energy is great, like it is ready to strike at any moment. There is a Lou Reed quality to this one, with a touch of Jim Carroll. The song kicks in for its chorus, which is a repetition of the song’s title. A song of the city, of a night in the city. And it’s fucking great. “It’s a big city/And they find themselves wishing the night was big enough to embrace even them.” I love how it pokes at our ridiculous habit of taking photographs of every damn moment of our lives: “Brand new friends/They only just met/But they’re immortalized/Hugging on Instagram.” I fucking love this song. Somehow this album just gets better and better. “Did I love you too much/Set myself up/Show me one good thing/That simply goes on,” Stephen Clair sings in “Swept Away,” a really good rock song, somewhere between The Kinks and Elvis Costello, but its own thing, with some delightful touches. I am particularly fond of the drumming in the second half (pay attention to that work even as the song is fading out).

The album concludes with “Take This Walk With Me.” Its opening lines made me laugh out loud the first time I listened to this track: “A broken tooth/What can you do?/A lazy eye/Love handles too.” Those lines describe someone’s lesser attributes, but are delivered with some affection. And soon we begin to identify with this person being described. We are all collections of physical imperfections, aren’t we? And we have to laugh at that, at ourselves. And more importantly, we should take that walk, which feels like a dance, like we’re being invited to a dance. And isn’t that what this ridiculous life is all about? This track features some really nice work on guitar. “Yellow teeth/Chronic fatigue/Ringing ears.”

CD Track List

1. Waiting Around
2. Vegas Sunrise
3. Blue And Red Lines
4. Cigarette! Cigarette!
5. It’s So Strange
6. Fritz
7. Naomi’s Phone Is Dead
8. Swept Away
9. Take This Walk With Me

Transmissions was released on October 11, 2024.