The Flatlanders travel Hills and Valleys and the U.S.
Monday, January 12, 2009 – The Flatlanders return with "Hills And Valleys" on March 31 from New West Records with a tour to follow starting in April.
Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Joe Ely and Butch Hancock co-wrote 8 of the 13 tracks on the disc, their first in 5 years and only fourth studio album in 30 years. Lloyd Maines (Dixie Chicks "Home"), who also appears on the album playing acoustic guitar, Dobro, pedal and steel, produced.
The Flatlanders, lifelong friends, began making music together over 30 years ago, releasing their first work in 1972 as an 8-track tape only and then on vinyl that was only available in Europe. The band gained a cult following but, with the recordings rare and hard to find, went their separate ways, each becoming successful musicians on their own. They reunited in 1998 when asked to write a song for "The Horse Whisperer" soundtrack - which they wrote together (for the 1972 recording, they wrote individually recording each other's songs). The collaborative effort paid off, leading to "Now Again" (2002) and "Wheels Of Fortune" (2004).
Songs on the CD are:
1. Homeland Refugee (Joe Ely/Butch Hancock/Jimmie Dale Gilmore)
2. Borderless Love (Joe Ely/Butch Hancock/Jimmie Dale Gilmore)
3. After the Storm (Joe Ely/Butch Hancock/Jimmie Dale Gilmore)
4. Wishing for a Rainbow (Joe Ely/Butch Hancock/Jimmie Dale Gilmore)
5. No Way I'll Never Need You (Joe Ely/ Butch Hancock/ Jimmie Dale Gilmore)
6. Just About Time (Joe Ely/ Butch Hancock/ Jimmie Dale Gilmore)
7. Love's Own Chains (Joe Ely)
8. Cry For Freedom (Joe Ely/ Butch Hancock/ Jimmie Dale Gilmore)
9. The Way We Are (Colin Gilmore)
10. Thank God for the Road (Butch Hancock)
11. Free the Wind (Joe Ely/ Butch Hancock/ Jimmie Dale Gilmore)
12. Sowing on the Mountain (Adaptation and arrangement by Jimmie Dale Gilmore - Woody Guthrie)
13. There's Never Been (Joe Ely)
Tour dates are:
Friday April 3 / Ithaca, NY / State Theatre
Saturday April 4 / Albany, NY / Sawyer Theatre at The Egg
Sunday April 5 / Londonderry, NH / Tupelo Music Hall
Tuesday April 7 / Ridgefield, CT / Ridgefield Playhouse
Thursday April 9 / New York, NY / B. B. Kings Blues Club
Friday April 10 / Fall River, MA / Narrows Center For The Arts
Saturday April 11-12 / Brownfield, ME / Stone Mountain Arts Center
Wednesday April 15 / Harrisburg, PA / Whitaker Center
Thursday April 16-17 / Alexandria, VA / Birchmere
Saturday April 18 / Philadelphia, PA / World Cafe Live
Monday April 20 / Lexington, KY / Woodsongs Old Time Radio Hour
Wednesday April 22 / Ann Arbor, MI / The Ark
Saturday April 25 / Chicago, IL / Old Town School of Folk Music
Sunday April 26 / Minneapolis, MN / Fitzgerald Theater
Tuesday May 19 / Seattle, WA / Triple Door
Wednesday May 20 / Portland, OR / Aladdin Theater
Friday May 22 / Eugene, OR / Shedd Institute For Arts
Saturday May 23 / San Francisco, CA / Slim's
Sunday May 24 / Yosemite, CA / Strawberry Music Festival
Monday May 25 / Nicasio, CA / Rancho Nicasio
Wednesday May 27 / Chico, CA / Sierra Nevada
Thursday May 28 / Santa Cruz, CA / Rio Theater
Friday May 29 / Paso Robles, CA / Martin Weyrick Winery
Saturday May 30 / Los Angeles, CA / Troubadour
Monday June 1 / Santa Fe, NM / Lensic PAC
Wednesday June 3 / Lubbock, TX / Cactus Theater Courtyard
Thursday June 4 / Austin, TX / Texas Union Ballroom
Friday June 5 / Dallas, TX / House of Blues
Saturday June 6 / Conroe, TX / Creighton Theatre
More news for The Flatlanders
CD reviews for The Flatlanders
Hills And Valleys
When The Flatlanders sing, "We're all just migrants on this Earth" during Homeland Refugee, it's a great equalizing statement. Yes, Joe Ely, Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore, three iconic singer/songwriters that moonlight as The Flatlanders, once again honestly reflect the collective mood of the nation. Homeland Refugee and After the Storm allude to the way such factors as weather events and economic upheaval severely alter the way we live.
There are also straight out »»» |
Live '72
The magic of The Flatlanders surfaced early - at least that's what listeners will hear on this 16-song long hidden gig from June 1972 at the One Knite in Austin where Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Joe Ely and Butch Hancock were based.
Austin producer Jim Yanaway told Joe Ely about the tape in spring 2003, a rarity such an old recording existed considering the band initially lasted less than one year and only played about 15 gigs. And they have club owner Gary Oliver to thank for the tape. »»» |
Wheels of Fortune
The Flatlanders - Joe Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, and Butch Hancock - recently reunited and released the highly successful album, "Now Again." Now they're back with another new album, recorded last March after their tour ended.
The album has a feel of having been thrown together - there's no cohesive sound. For example, we get Gilmore sweetly singing the acoustic title track, immediately followed by loud electric bass and guitar on Ely's blues-rock romp "Midnight Train." Until the last track, "See »»» |
Editorial: American Idol's Carrie Underwood can sing –
If anyone saw the Super Bowl – what a great great game that was – they would have heard American Idol winner and country superstar Carrie Underwood sing the National Anthem. Underwood did with her voice what Kelly Clarkson did last week with her written words – give it to Scott Borchetta, the head of Big Machine Records,, who tried defending Taylor Swift by knocking American Idol performers. »»»
Concert Review: McBride, Adkins shine sometimes –
As Martina McBride pointed out, the pairing of the country singer with Trace Adkins on their current jaunt was surprising. After all, she's of diva-quality voice, petite, non-controversial unless you call singing songs that empower women controversial. Adkins, on the other hand, has not been afraid to speak his mind with a kick butt attitude.... »»»
Concert Review: Eilen Jewell wears her musical hats well –
Eilen Jewell wears a lot of musical hats. The Idaho native, who now lives in Boston, fronts the Eilen (ee-lin) Jewell Band, a pretty much traditional country band. She's a member the Sacred Shakers, an octet doing gospel country with a country beat. And she has yet another project, Butcher Holler, covering Loretta Lynn songs.... »»»
|
|
Country News Digest
 CST
 CST
Elsewhere in the news
Currently at the CST blogs
Blue Highway's banjo player Jason Burleson acknowledges that their 1995 debut album "It's A Long, Long Road" turned out to be prophetic. It has been quite a journey for the Tennessee-based band that has become one of the "gold standards" of bluegrass, with 8 more "signpost" albums along the way, the latest being their newly-released 15th Anniversary collection on Rounder, "Some Day."... »»»
Elvis Aron Presley, had he not collapsed face first into a shag carpet in his Graceland bathroom on Aug. 16, 1977, would have been 75-years-old Friday. Yet, somehow, his birthday seems all the more important because he is not actually here while others feast at his table. Graceland - a greater cultural icon and more milkable cash cow than even the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame - is being remodeled for future generations to come, gawk and breathe in a few scant molecules of the King's essence. Do the new overseers really care about Elvis?... »»»
Here it is the top 30 for 2009. This isn't authoritative in case you thought otherwise. It's just one man's opinion about his favorite CDs of the year, which seemed a cut above everything else. It was incredibly hard figuring out a number one CD for the year between the Avett Brothers, Brad Paisley and George Strait. All three were great albums from different perspectives of country and roots music, and at any one time over the past few days, each was my favorite. Come back in a few days, and who knows? Maybe the order will change.... »»»
To say that Lyle Lovett has a great new album in "Natural Forces" is a newsflash akin to announcing that oxygen is now available for mass consumption at no charge. Lovett's musical quality is as automatic as a politician's promise and infinitely more trustworthy, which might lead one to believe that, at a certain level, the Texas singer/songwriter has become slightly jaded by the consistent accolades thrown his way. One would be very mistaken.... »»»
Haywire
There are two versions of Josh Turner's fourth CD - standard and deluxe. The deluxe has the same 11 tracks as the standard, plus (among other goodies) live versions of previously released songs Long Black Train and Your Man . But don't spend more money than you have to; if it's redundancy you're looking for, there's plenty to be had on the standard version. »»» |
Somewhere in Time
If Rascal Flatts is country music's clean cut, commercially palatable Beatles, then Reckless Kelly is the genre's Rolling Stones; grittier, more authentically influenced, rawer at the core even when their output is every bit as polished. The brainchild of Idaho brothers Willy and Cody Braun, Reckless Kelly was crowned Austin's Best Country Band in the city's 2008 music awards, an incredible honor. »»» |
As He Wanders
Fans of country - and we're using a definition starting just west of real country and stopping a bit south of alt.-country - who aren't sold on Austin's Texas Sapphires four songs in can be suspected of unnecessary stubbornness. Just look what that first third offers. You get both male and female voices: Billy Brent Malkus' is handsome yet tough and wiry enough for a bar fight, and Rebecca Lucille Cannon's is lovely yet, well, tough and wiry enough for a bar fight. »»» |
Dailey & Vincent Sing The Statler Brothers
In the 60's through '80's, the Statler Brothers, Don and Harold Reid, Phil Balsley, Jimmy Fortune and the late Lew Dewitt, were the hottest thing going. They set the standard for modern country vocal groups. Bluegrassers Jamie Dailey and Darrin Vincent do a great job of honoring their idols, covering classics like "Flowers On The Wall," "Bed of Roses," "Thank You World" and "Class of '57." »»» |
Need You Now
Despite their commercial success and numerous awards, some critics felt that Lady Antebellum's self-titled debut, released in 2007, wasn't country enough. And those critics won't be happy with its follow-up. A pleasant selection of pop-infused songs, this sophomore offering from the photogenic trio stays in a fairly safe middle range. »»» |
Shoulda Been Gold
The premise of the title track of this compilation from I See Hawks In L.A. is that they have been denied the commercial success they deserve, but their unconventional band name, song topics and lyrics suggest they are comfortable residing outside the mainstream. »»» |
|
