SEASICK STEVE
''I STARTED OUT WITH NOTHIN AND I STILL GOT MOST OF IT LEFT, DISC ONE''
SEPTEMBER 29 2008
85:58
DISC ONE (58:54)
1 Started Out With Nothin 03:37
2 Walkin' Man 02:41
3 St. Louis Slim 03:35
4 Happy Man 03:30
5 Prospect Lane 02:17
6 Thunderbird 04:16
7 Fly By Night 03:05
8 Just Like A King 04:54
9 One True 03:13
10 Chiggers 05:22
11 My Youth 02:23
12 The Letter 03:01
13 Levy Camp Blues 03:35
14 Roll And Tumble Blues 13:19
DISC TWO (27:04)
1 Train 02:05
2 Story 15:35
3 Breakfast 01:33
4 Heart Attack 02:54
5 Lunch 02:00
6 Laughin' To Keep From Cryin 02:56
Seasick Steve - vocals, lead guitar and foot percussion
Dan Magnusson - drums
Ruby Turner - vocals (track 4)
KT Tunstall - rhythm guitar (track 4), backing vocals (tracks 5, 12) & flute (track 12)
Grinderman (track 8):
- Nick Cave - vocals
- Jim Sclavunos - drums, percussion
- Warren Ellis - fiddle
Kim Fleming - backing vocals (tracks 1, 4)
Gale Mayes - backing vocals (trackS 1, 4)
REVIEW/AMG
by Adam Greenberg
After an appearance on British TV, Seasick Steve (aka Steve Wold) found himself thrust into the spotlight after decades spent as a hobo, a busker, and a sound engineer. His earnest brand of classic blues struck a strong chord in the midst of so much overproduced music of the day, and as they had done decades before, Brits lined up for the simple pleasures of American blues, which led Steve to a major-label release which quickly made it into the Top 10. While some fans (and critics) had worried that major-label production would kill the bare-bones aesthetic that really made Steve's music shine, that proved a non-issue for the most part. I Started Out with Nothin' and I Still Got Most of It Left opens with the title track, probably the most produced piece present. It's a simple thumping blues in the vein of John Lee Hooker, with some nice but unnecessary vocals courtesy of Ruby Murray. Steve's voice is smooth, almost sensual compared to the gravelly gutbucket one might have been expecting. The production doesn't get in the way of the music too much, though the overall effect is a bit more grandiose than Steve's sound really would call for. Luckily, the sound gets decidedly less smooth as the album moves along, emphasizing Steve's aesthetic a bit more -- his vocals remain smooth, but the compositions are a little more folksy, a little more Southern. Though the album gets a bit sidetracked by the interspersed bits of BBC documentary (ranging from storytelling to clips of Steve ordering lunch), it's hard to stop him when he gets on a good roll. On tracks like "Thunderbird" (a rocking electric blues devoted to his favorite fortified wine) or "Chiggers" (a start-and-stop bit of acoustic blues in a little bit of a Texas vein), he lets loose on the guitar with a full load of joy -- it's clear that he's just having fun here, and the songs shine in response. He can go more contemplative (as on "My Youth"), but Seasick Steve is really in his element on the lighter side of the blues -- country-blues nostalgia, train-riding stories, Taj Mahal-style rolling, and tumbling blues (including of course, the track "Roll and Tumble Blues"). The album's got flaws, it's got some dead ends, and at least at times he seems to be emulating his heroes (John Lee Hooker, Taj Mahal) more than creating new music. However, the album is also easily one of the better blues releases in the last few years and is excellent at what appears to be its original goal -- evoking simple joy.
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
by Kenyon Hopkin
Like T-Model Ford, Seasick Steve (aka Steve Wold) began recording his own music much later in life than other musicians. A storytelling singer reviving traditional country blues, Wold spent his childhood in California, but left home at 14. As a hobo, he traveled for several years, jumping trains and working odd jobs. After drifting around the U.S. and Europe, he finally ended up in Norway. Aside from his respectable musical background (which includes recording early Modest Mouse, appearing on BBC television, and playing with John Lee Hooker), Wold is also noted for his unusual custom-made stringed instruments. By the time he was in his sixties, he'd finally released some official material. His first solo album, Doghouse Music, out in late 2006, was performed almost entirely by Wold. Another record, Cheap, was recorded with the Swedish rhythm section the Level Devils. An amorous seven-track Valentine’s Day EP called Songs for Elisabeth (six of the cuts were culled from previous releases) arrived in 2010. With a rustic and at time almost punk-blues approach to his material, Wold increasingly merged country blues trance boogie with a street holler voice that makes Tom Waits seem like a mainstream crooner, and the best of his songs carry a hard-earned wisdom that can only come from living on the street one block over from the edge of civility. He released the stark and powerful You Can’t Teach an Old Dog New Tricks in 2011, and returned in 2013 with his sixth offering, Hubcap Music, which featured guest appearances from Jack White and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones.
WEBSITE
TO THE TOP
''I STARTED OUT WITH NOTHIN AND I STILL GOT MOST OF IT LEFT, DISC ONE''
SEPTEMBER 29 2008
85:58
DISC ONE (58:54)
1 Started Out With Nothin 03:37
2 Walkin' Man 02:41
3 St. Louis Slim 03:35
4 Happy Man 03:30
5 Prospect Lane 02:17
6 Thunderbird 04:16
7 Fly By Night 03:05
8 Just Like A King 04:54
9 One True 03:13
10 Chiggers 05:22
11 My Youth 02:23
12 The Letter 03:01
13 Levy Camp Blues 03:35
14 Roll And Tumble Blues 13:19
DISC TWO (27:04)
1 Train 02:05
2 Story 15:35
3 Breakfast 01:33
4 Heart Attack 02:54
5 Lunch 02:00
6 Laughin' To Keep From Cryin 02:56
Seasick Steve - vocals, lead guitar and foot percussion
Dan Magnusson - drums
Ruby Turner - vocals (track 4)
KT Tunstall - rhythm guitar (track 4), backing vocals (tracks 5, 12) & flute (track 12)
Grinderman (track 8):
- Nick Cave - vocals
- Jim Sclavunos - drums, percussion
- Warren Ellis - fiddle
Kim Fleming - backing vocals (tracks 1, 4)
Gale Mayes - backing vocals (trackS 1, 4)
REVIEW/AMG
by Adam Greenberg
After an appearance on British TV, Seasick Steve (aka Steve Wold) found himself thrust into the spotlight after decades spent as a hobo, a busker, and a sound engineer. His earnest brand of classic blues struck a strong chord in the midst of so much overproduced music of the day, and as they had done decades before, Brits lined up for the simple pleasures of American blues, which led Steve to a major-label release which quickly made it into the Top 10. While some fans (and critics) had worried that major-label production would kill the bare-bones aesthetic that really made Steve's music shine, that proved a non-issue for the most part. I Started Out with Nothin' and I Still Got Most of It Left opens with the title track, probably the most produced piece present. It's a simple thumping blues in the vein of John Lee Hooker, with some nice but unnecessary vocals courtesy of Ruby Murray. Steve's voice is smooth, almost sensual compared to the gravelly gutbucket one might have been expecting. The production doesn't get in the way of the music too much, though the overall effect is a bit more grandiose than Steve's sound really would call for. Luckily, the sound gets decidedly less smooth as the album moves along, emphasizing Steve's aesthetic a bit more -- his vocals remain smooth, but the compositions are a little more folksy, a little more Southern. Though the album gets a bit sidetracked by the interspersed bits of BBC documentary (ranging from storytelling to clips of Steve ordering lunch), it's hard to stop him when he gets on a good roll. On tracks like "Thunderbird" (a rocking electric blues devoted to his favorite fortified wine) or "Chiggers" (a start-and-stop bit of acoustic blues in a little bit of a Texas vein), he lets loose on the guitar with a full load of joy -- it's clear that he's just having fun here, and the songs shine in response. He can go more contemplative (as on "My Youth"), but Seasick Steve is really in his element on the lighter side of the blues -- country-blues nostalgia, train-riding stories, Taj Mahal-style rolling, and tumbling blues (including of course, the track "Roll and Tumble Blues"). The album's got flaws, it's got some dead ends, and at least at times he seems to be emulating his heroes (John Lee Hooker, Taj Mahal) more than creating new music. However, the album is also easily one of the better blues releases in the last few years and is excellent at what appears to be its original goal -- evoking simple joy.
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
by Kenyon Hopkin
Like T-Model Ford, Seasick Steve (aka Steve Wold) began recording his own music much later in life than other musicians. A storytelling singer reviving traditional country blues, Wold spent his childhood in California, but left home at 14. As a hobo, he traveled for several years, jumping trains and working odd jobs. After drifting around the U.S. and Europe, he finally ended up in Norway. Aside from his respectable musical background (which includes recording early Modest Mouse, appearing on BBC television, and playing with John Lee Hooker), Wold is also noted for his unusual custom-made stringed instruments. By the time he was in his sixties, he'd finally released some official material. His first solo album, Doghouse Music, out in late 2006, was performed almost entirely by Wold. Another record, Cheap, was recorded with the Swedish rhythm section the Level Devils. An amorous seven-track Valentine’s Day EP called Songs for Elisabeth (six of the cuts were culled from previous releases) arrived in 2010. With a rustic and at time almost punk-blues approach to his material, Wold increasingly merged country blues trance boogie with a street holler voice that makes Tom Waits seem like a mainstream crooner, and the best of his songs carry a hard-earned wisdom that can only come from living on the street one block over from the edge of civility. He released the stark and powerful You Can’t Teach an Old Dog New Tricks in 2011, and returned in 2013 with his sixth offering, Hubcap Music, which featured guest appearances from Jack White and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones.
WEBSITE
TO THE TOP
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