Titel

Life in Music inspired by Joe Henry


zondag 31 augustus 2014

MusiCares

From the LA Times's Pop and Hiss




The idea is that rather than be deluge in near-freezing water, musicians and music fans should take a photo of themselves holding a favorite LP ("one that has made or makes your life better," DeSavia says), donate $5 or more to MusiCares and post the photo to social media using the hashtag #MusiCaresChallenge. Then challenge three friends, or any of the musicians involved in the chosen album, to do the same.

So far, participants include singer-songwriter Sam Phillips, who is photographed with a copy of “The Best of Slim Harpo,” Joe Henry (Thelonious Monk's "Criss-Cross"), Rhett Miller (David Bowie's "ChangesTwo"), Kevin Griffin (Neil Young’s “Harvest”), Richard Edwards of Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s (“The True Story of Abner Jay”) and DeSavia, who kicked off the effort with a copy of X’s “Under the Big Black Sun.”


About musiCares :
MusiCares provides a safety net of critical assistance for music people in times of need. MusiCares' services and resources cover a wide range of financial, medical and personal emergencies, and each case is treated with integrity and confidentiality. MusiCares also focuses the resources and attention of the music industry on human service issues that directly impact the health and welfare of the music community.  

I love music, and musicians. So I also supported.

zaterdag 30 augustus 2014

Australian Tour Promo

Some really great  interviews to promote his Australian tour.

Listen to Joe talk about working with the musicians on Invisible Hour, Poetry and Music, Working on Allen Tousaints album 'The bright Mississippi', producing other artists....

Listen here.


"...As ever, this one is highly unlikely to be overrun by the millions forever stampeding towards the latest pop rush. But even if he never gets a YouTube hit in his life, that nameless, loveless guy from Sign will probably haunt every living soul he meets forever...."

JH Performs on ABC net


Full interview and performance over here

The new Bettye LaVette album

We all know the concept of small teasers to warm us up for bigger news. I must admit for the new Bettye LaVette album it is working really well. I am absolutelt feeling 'teased' this last week. :-)
There have been some small messages about it on social media, but each time I thought : "It's just not enough for me to make a blogentry about it".
But on the other hand. Bettye LaVette is, like they say in French, ' une Grande Dame' and her previous collaboration with Joe gave us the wonderful album 'I've got my own Hell to Raise'....

So I gathered the little info I did see passing around. (but I'll keep you updated)

The album was recorded in the week starting August 18, 2014. It was recorded in Joe's Homestudio, known as 'the Basement'.




A small note in MOJO magazine, posted by Bettye learns us that the title track of the album will be a track written by Beth Nielsen Chapman and Mary Gauthier.
Joe produced Mary Gauthier's album 'between daylight and dark'.



Doyle Bramhall II tweeted the following picture.
Doyle Braham II has also played on Joe and Bettye's previous collaboration, and worked on numerous other albums Joe Produced.

Update october 5th
Bettye Lavette's social media gave news that her album is mixed.
It's going to be called worthy, and will be released in January.


read more here

donderdag 28 augustus 2014

JH @ The grammy museum August 27

Hello everyone,
If you where there to witness this event and have your story to tell about it. Feel free to contact me.

Greetings,
Stefan 

 

Photos


more pictures
www.hughlaurious.com
grammymuseum

1 Year ago today

1 Year ago today, Joe performed for the first time in Ireland. To be more specific it was on August 28, in Dublin. The venue was Whelans. But that's not really the reason for me to do this '1-year-ago' post.

For me, living in Belgium, that was quite a trip. There are not many artists for whom I jump on an airplane.  There are musicians I take some serious journeys for. Yes, by car or by train..... But flying around to see them ? 

But also that is not really the reason to do this post.
The real reason is, it was this concert that made me think to, perhaps, do something more with my love, my curiousity, my respect  for this man's work. And here we are, typing an entry for the blog that came out of it.
                   The seed for this blog was planted in Dublin on August 28, 2013. 

Back to the concert. 
Joe was accompanied on stage by Ross Turner, John Smith, Lisa Hannigan and Gavin Glass. 
I got the impression most people came to see Lisa Hannigan, and didn't know Joe's work really. But he sure did win some hearts over there.

At the time I wrote a review of my trip. (Wonderful pictures by Aisling Finn)

Courtesy of Aisling Finn
I had to wake up in the middle of the night to get my flight. Meaning I also arrived verry early in Dublin, too tired to do some serious sightseeing. So I kept it to a few shops, and sitting in a bar to read a little. When I finally could check in my hotel in the afternoon, I first went to sleep for a couple of hours. I was a complete zombie.
After that I had 3 things to do: Grab my first guinness, eat something, and go to the concert.
The Guinness I got in a dark pub, where 5 or 6 locals where at the bar, but for the rest it was empty. No tourists around, (except for myself). I liked that. After that I went to a restaurant where they said they only worked with fresh biological products. And after the dinner, I believe them. I got the most beautiful piece of porc bacon, you can’t belief. Wow! Crispy on the top, soft inside. Beautiful color, great taste. Excellent sauce, and a great white wine to go with it. (I already start drewling after typing this.)
Off to the Venue then. The concert was at a club/bar called whelans. It’s not so big, and in front of the stage they've put 5 rows of chairs. I think maximum 150 people could go and see this concert. So it was really small scale. I chose to sit on 1 of the chairs. Excellent view, and excellent acoustics, (but I didn’t know that then yet). Joe Henry: 3m in front of me.

Awaiting for the show to begin, I talked with my neighbor.
-“You’re not from around here?”
-“No, I’m from Belgium.”
-“On Holiday in Dublin?”
-“No, I’m just here for the concert, I arrived this morning, and fly back tomorrow morning. “
-“WOW, and they think I’m crazy, driving 1 hour to see this show”
-“hehe, now you can tell them, I was sitting next to a guy……..”
He didn’t know JH really well, he was more there for Lisa Hannigan. 


Joe Henry started with the song “Sold”. And halfway through it, it was exactly what I felt …..I’m already sold…… And I think that was the case for everyone in the audience. When this 1th song was over, somebody in the back said, in that juicy Irish accent: “That was mighty beautiful Joe!”
You should have seen the smile on Joe’s face. Whenever he needed to take in the applause, he seemed genuinly shy, saying thank you in a verry soft voice. At the very end it even seemed he wanted to look everyone in the eyes to say thank you.
The concert was announced as Joe and very special guests. 1 we knew: Lisa Hannigan, she was the entire concert on stage. She and Joe go very well together, not only their voices, but also in playing music. There was a 2nd guest, who came on stage for a couple of songs, and that was Gavin Glass. Gavin has worked together with Lisa and Joe in the past. 


It was a very warm atmosphere, it felt more like an evening amongst friends, and a few of them started making music. It was really nice. We heard songs from over his entire career, although I think he played nothing from ‘blood from the stars”. They also played some new songs. It wouldn’t surprise me if a new album is on the way.
Joe sang most of his songs, but a few of them where sung by the guests. Also Lisa sang a few of her songs. Then With Joe's “You can’t fail me know” they all took a chorus. This song was the highlight for me. Shivers down my spine.
Joe announced it: “The next song was done by Loudon wainwright III and last year by Bonny Riatt, It’s strange for me to sing it myself again”
It was really beautiful. 


The concert was one that didn’t need to stop for us (the audience), they could have played for hours and hours and do Joe’s entire song catalog. But unfortunately it doesn’t work that way. At the last encore, everyone screamed out song titles, and the majority was for ‘God only knows’.
-“If there was a piano, I would play it”
-“THERE IS A PIANO ON STAGE!!”
Joe turns “Oh, .euhm, if I knew you would ask this one, I would have studied it. I’m sorry”.
During the concert someone asked if he wouldn’t come more often to Ireland. Jokingly he answered “Well, there is a little problem, my booking agent is English”. And then, I kid you not, he said: “But we are going to Belgium”.
???!!!!??? “When?” I yelled. But he didn’t went into it, and started another song.
We’ll see if it really happens. It would be absolutely great, but I don’t think it‘ll be the same as what I witnessed yesterday. 


Joe Henry was already way up there for me, with this concert, he even climbed a few steps higher.
Greetings,
Stefan.

Courtesy of Aisling Finn
Well, today, 1 year later. We did get a new album, and he did come to Belgium. And yes, the Dublin experience is still special.

Read a more 'professional' review at lonesome highway

Regards,
Stefan.








Joe Henry's favorite records




Belgian radioshow 'Exit' on Radio 1 invited Joe Henry as a guest to talk about some of his favorite records. It was a wonderful show.

Sit down and relax for an hour and listen to the show over here. Don't worry if you don't speak Dutch, In between songs there is only a small introduction, but for the rest they offer the microphone to Joe. It's truly wonderful to hear him speak about these records, and these artists. Also some anecdotes, f.e. on meeting Bob Dylan and Levon Helm.

These are the records Joe talks about.


  • Bob Dylan : Highway 61 revisited                       
  • Van Morrison : Astral Weeks                                 
  • Woody Guthrie :  Library of congress recordings    
  • Robert Johnson : King of the delta blues singers     
  • Charles Mingus : Blues’n roots                            
  • Ray Charles : The Genius sings the blues                
  • Sly and the family stone : There is a riot going on   
  • Randy Newman : Good old boys                           
  • The band : Music from big Pink.                           

In the hour before the JH Special we already had a little fragment of Joe talking about Leadbelly. Listen to that story over here at approx. 1:12:20 H  


Here is a list of the featured songs.
  • Bob Dylan : Highway 61 revisited
  • Van Morrison : Madame George
  • Woody Guthrie : Pretty boy Floyd
  • Robert Johnson : 32-20 Blues
  • Charles Mingus : Wednesday night prayer meeting
  • Ray Charles : Night time is the right time
  • Sly and the family stone : Thank you (Falettinme be Mice elf again
  • Randy Newman : Wedding in Cherokee county
  • The band : This Wheel's on Fire

  • Leadbelly : Where Did You Sleep Last Night

woensdag 27 augustus 2014

JH to present an Americana Award

In september, the Americana Music association will have it's annual Honors and Awards show. According to The Tennessean, Joe Henry will be 1 of the presenters of an award.

Well-known music makers will also take the stage to present awards: Amy Ray, Carlene Carter, Elizabeth Cook, Emmylou Harris, JD Souther, Joe Henry, John Paul White, Josh Ritter, Keb' Mo', Rhett Miller, Shovels & Rope, Todd Snider and Vince Gill are all part of this year's presenter roster. 

Info also to be found on : http://www.nashville.com/music/

Edit : 18 september 2014

Together with Emmylou Harris, Joe presented the Milk carton kids for best Duo/Group of the year.


Edit : 26 september 2014
Read a review of the evening.


 

maandag 18 augustus 2014

Americana Fest details

As previously posted Joe will perform on september 18th, during Americana fest in Nashville.

The festival has released the timetable for the concerts.

Joe Henry is scheduled between 11:00pm and 11:45pm at City Winerey.

Other artists to perform at City Winerey on that day are : Rodney Crowell, Laura Cantrell, Grant-Lee Phillips & Robyn Hitchcock.

Screenshot festival website

woensdag 6 augustus 2014

Pre listen a track from 'Bitter tears revisited'

You can now pre-listen to a track from the JH produced album bitter tears revisited.



It's the track 'As long as the Grass Shall Grow' By Gillian Welch and David Rawlings.

Listen here.

Joe Henry about this track on Facebook : "listen, then, to gillian and dave telling the whole rugged story that inspired the original concept album by cash. working with them was a milestone for me."

maandag 4 augustus 2014