RIP George Jones

Lately, we've been losing a lot of fantastic musical talent. Stompin' Tom Connors, Magic Slim, Richie Havens, Christina Amphlette, Rita MacNeil. And on Friday, George Jones.

Simply put, George Jones was one of the finest singers ever to record music, in whatever genre. His ability to convey emotion in a very simple way was his hallmark, and lead to some devastatingly sad country songs. His accomplishments in music were huge. Over 150 hit songs, 14 of them #1s. He's in the Country Music Hall of Fame and in the Grammy Hall of Fame. He's the recipient of the US National Medal of Arts. Many, many awards for vocalist of the year, both for the CMA and Billboard. He's one of the best selling country artists of all time.

Jones' work has always been with me. My mother was a huge fan of classic country and George Jones seemed to always been on the turntable. Mind you, when I was growing up, I really disliked classic country, but, as it wont to happen, one's sensibilities change and mature as one ages. I grew to appreciate and even love some of George Jones' songs. His songs “He Stopped Loving Her Today” and “She Thinks I Still Care” can reduce me to a sobbing, blubbery mess on a good day.



After I discovered Elvis Costello, I found out about his affection for George Jones and my respect for his work grew even larger. Costello recorded an album called Almost Blue in 1981, a straight up country album which his label, Columbia, called “career suicide” and initally refused to release it. It was released anyway, and it didn't sell well. It's still a striking example of Costello's range as a performer, going from the “angry young man”, swaggering roots-punk of his first three albums to Almost Blue's tender and steel-guitar drenched country covers. Costello recorded Jones' “Good Year for the Roses” for this album, then wrote “Stranger in the House” for Jones.


One of my favourite stories was from the liner notes of one of Costello's Ryko re-releases. Back when Jones was young, he was famous for his drunken binges and missing concerts, so much that he was known as “No Show Jones” at one point. He's also famous for his ride into town on a riding lawn mower to buy more booze, since his wife had taken away his truck keys. Costello said he was playing a concert in Nashville, and Jones, a long time friend, couldn't make it, so Jones sent a basket with sparkling apple juice in it. A far cry from the boozing of his early years.

Another one of my favourite George Jones' tunes is “White Lightning”, an upbeat track about moonshining. One of my favourite strange cover is of The Fall doing this song:


George Jones was 81 years old at his time of passing. We won't soon see another singer of his calibre. RIP George Jones.

Earshot Reviews April 2013

My latest reviews for Earshot Online

Citadel - Aquarian

PVT - Homosapien

Post Junos post 2013

I much prefer the Junos to the Grammys, mostly because of the all Canadian focus (I'm a total sucker for Canadian music and culture), plus the Junos tend to be a lot more adventurous than the Grammys.

The major awards were pretty predictable, but they usually are. Carly Rae Jepsen runs away with it for her breakout single, Leonard Cohen tops a ho-hum group of solo artists, Rush takes group of the year. All pretty standard. It's in the less prestigious categories that fun happens.

I was surprised to see The Weeknd take Breakout Artist over Grimes, and even more surprised to see him take R&B album of the year over Shawn Desman and Jully Black. The Weeknd already has a good following in alt-rap circles in the US and his start is definitely rising here in Canada too!

Some interesting picks in the jazz categories too, Joel Miller for contemporary jazz album of the year, and Pugs and Crows for instrumental album. I like Joel Miller's work, tasteful and understated. Pugs and Crows I felt had a weak year with Fantastic Pictures, but the group is wildly talented and has a penchant for experimentation.

Grimes won electronic album of the year over a very strong crowd of nominees, including Crystal Castles, Daphni, Purity Ring and Trust. I loved all five of those albums this year. It speaks to the amazing talent we have in Canada for electronic music.

There are few Canadian musicians more deserving than k.d. lang for the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, Her career has been wildly eclectic, from her early years as a oddball country singer, to her modern career as a torchy pop song crooner. Plus, she's an amazing spokesperson for Canada in general. We're lucky to have her representing Canadian music!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqaKhKJHQRc

Best of 2012 Honourable Mentions

Touching on three releases I really liked but didn't make my Top 10 for 2012:

Dirty Ghosts - Metal Moon (Last Gang)

Allyson Barker is Canadian born and bred, but has been based out of San Francisco lately. Their music is noisy rock, with some new wave and psychedelic influences. I liked this album a lot, I was impressed by the loose, noisy rock side of it paired with a more melodic, catchy end. It's a nice mix of offbeat and accessible.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZQXmmHb920


Men Without Hats - Love in the Age of War (Independent)

Montreal's Men Without Hats will always have a special place in my heart. During high school,  Folk of the 80s (Part III) got my through some rough times, and it still stands up as one of the best synth-pop albums ever recorded. This is the band's first album since 2003's poorly received No Hats Beyond This Point, and it's a solid synth-pop album with a classic sound. Granted, this style of music hasn't aged well, but this is a fine effort. The title track was very evocative for me; when I first heard it, I was struggling through a confusing relationship break up. It resonated well for me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7zYQQA1Cwk


Grimes - Visions (Arbutus)

I'd be very remiss to not mention Grimes' meteoric rise this past year. Grimes, the Montreal-based Claire Boucher, has a breakout year on the hot, hot, hot record label Arbutus this year. Her voice is babyish and naive, the music is creepy, deep and gothy. Montreal has been the centre of artsy and strange music in Canada, and Grimes fits into that scene well. She should explode internationally in the coming years.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FH-q0I1fJY

Best of 2012: #1 - Eight and a Half - S/T (Arts and Crafts)

Yes, I suck at numbering these things.. I should go back and renumber the last one, I will... eventually.

My favourite album of 2012 was a super-group of sorts. Eight and a Half's debut album was actually an album by three veterans of the Canadian indy rock scene: Justin Peroff of Broken Social Scene, and Dave Hamelin gna Liam O'Neil of The Stills. You'd expect the band to do some accessible indy rock, but they go off in a different direction here. Eight and a Half are deeply rooted in oddball synth-pop. While there's an indy rock style to what they're doing, most of the album is loopy, playful synths. This album was a very pleasant surprise when I first heard it, and it continued to get better with repeated listens.

Next up, a couple of honourable mentions...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsywCBZ7myI