This is a mostly successful sampler of works by a loose-knit community of musicians in the Philadelphia area. Despite the title, it ranges from acoustic singer-songwriter fare to flat-out rockers, with a generous helping of alterna-folk and funky roots rock thrown into the mix.
The 15 tracks comprise three songs each from five artists in straight rotation. I’m most familiar with Dave Bielanko, frontman of Philly roots-rockers Marah and Rich Kaufmann, who fronted The Rolling Hayseeds along with Kevin Karg. Others featured are Frank Brown of Buzz Zeemer, Mike Brenner of The Low Road and John Train, and Gerry McGoldrick of Napalm Sunday and Emily Valentine. Nearly all the groups mentioned are or were on Record Cellar. Some of the five back each other up on some tracks, and some share sidemen as well.
The collection is a showcase for each artist’s stylistic range and influences, as each performs two originals and one cover song. Mike Brenner’s tracks cover the broadest territory, from the intense Dobro-driven blues of “One True Love” through the Chuck Prophet-like folk-hop vibe of “Behind Me Now” to the tropical instrumental take on the Beach Boys’ “Pet Sounds,” that wouldn’t be out of place on a Flecktones record.
McGoldrick’s offerings have a little less depth, ranging from the Rolling Stones’ country-period sound of “Take My Place” through a Tom Petty-esque anthem (“That’s What Dreams”) to “In the Morning,” a country shuffle.
Frank Brown’s “Out of Sorts” also has a very country sound except for his Yankee accent and the chugging bass harmonica that gives it a Paul Simon meets the Eagles vibe: think “Me and Julio’s Peaceful Easy Feelin’ Groovy.” Brown also does Gene Clark’s “Full Circle” as a country shuffle, but gives a Brazilian 6/8 groove to the wry love song “I Didn’t Know.”
David Bielanko’s tracks feel like outtakes from a Marah session, which is not a bad thing. Both “Long Hot Summer” and “Where the Dark Horses Go” have the kind of smoldering intensity of that band’s most recent release, Kids in Philly on Artemis, and the band’s atmospheric production and signature instrumental mix that includes banjo, harmonica and even xylophone. The great mystery of this disc for me is why Bielanko chose to interpret Bruce Springsteen’s “Streets of Philadelphia” as a bluegrass romp.
The most surprising and most powerful track is Kaufmann’s third, “Untitled (1107).” The disc opens with his “More Like You,” which would be right at home on any early Glen Campbell record, but both it and the tear-in-your-beer ballad “San Francisco is a Lonely Town” fit easily with Kaufmann’s Rolling Hayseeds fare. “Untitled,” however, seems more 16 Horsepower than Jimmy Webb, more old-time hell-fire mountain music than smooth countrypolitan. This instant classic is a brooding gothic piece, with lines like “I got sweat and shakes and fear/Who needs inner light?” I hadn’t suspected this molasses-voiced balladeer had this kind of stuff in him.
Which is what this kind of collection is all about, when you think about it. So while the juxtapositions are sometimes jarring, as a whole this is a rewarding disc, with some great little treasures for the listener willing to dig deep.
(Record Cellar, 1999)
