Golden Shoulders
Encyclopedia
Golden Shoulders is a band from Nevada City, California
. Formed in 2001 by songwriter Adam Kline, the group operates with a rotating lineup and has featured significant contributions from such notables as Joanna Newsom
, who sang and played piano on the first Golden Shoulders album, Let My Burden Be, before going on to international acclaim; Todd Roper and Greg Brown (Cake
, Deathray
), Rich Good
(the Psychedelic Furs, the Pleased
), Dan Elkan (Broken Bells
, Hella
, Them Hills, Pocket for Corduroy), Josh Klinghoffer
(Red Hot Chili Peppers
, John Frusciante
, PJ Harvey
, Beck
), Rusty Miller (Jackpot), Rob Kieswetter (Bobby Birdman
), Hunter Burgan
(AFI
), songwriter Brett Shady, drummer Neal Morgan, and more. A complete list of contributors can be found here.
Golden Shoulders has released three albums, Let My Burden Be (2002), Friendship is Deep (2004), and Get Reasonable (2009), along with the EPs Bee 17 (2005) and Kin (2006).[] Thus far, all officially released Golden Shoulders songs have been written by Kline and arranged by the musicians on the recordings. Live arrangements differ from the recorded versions based on the whims of the performers. Golden Shoulders' first album, Let My Burden Be, peaked at #68 on the CMJ
chart, which measures college radio plays in the United States
. http://www.cmj.com/ The April 2005 issue of MOJO
magazine gave the Golden Shoulders' second album, Friendship is Deep, a review of four out of five stars.http://www.borrowedtunes.com/archives/magazines/ The follow-up album, Get Reasonable, received another four star review from MOJO
in the November 2009 issue.http://cover.mojo4music.com/Item.aspx?pageNo=1805&year=2009 Golden Shoulders have also had several songs featured on the episodic video blog, Lonelygirl15
.http://www.lonelygirl15.com/
The band has toured the United States
several times, including 2004's Speed of Sound Tour, 2006's Annyong Tour, 2009's Flawless Tour, and 2010's Drive Across America Tour. The shows performed on these tours were performed without electricity
, meaning no microphones or amplifiers were used http://sun-shadowpoet.livejournal.com/143556.html, though the band sometimes appears as a four-piece, plugged-in lineup when playing in their home state of California.
Nevada City, California
-2010:The 2010 United States Census reported that Nevada City had a population of 3,068. The population density was 1,399.7 people per square mile . The racial makeup of Nevada City was 2,837 White, 26 African American, 28 Native American, 46 Asian, 0 Pacific Islander, 40 from other races,...
. Formed in 2001 by songwriter Adam Kline, the group operates with a rotating lineup and has featured significant contributions from such notables as Joanna Newsom
Joanna Newsom
Joanna Newsom is an American harpist, pianist and singer-songwriter from Nevada City, California.- Early life :Newsom grew up in the small town of Nevada City, California...
, who sang and played piano on the first Golden Shoulders album, Let My Burden Be, before going on to international acclaim; Todd Roper and Greg Brown (Cake
Cake (band)
Cake is an American alternative rock band from Sacramento, California. Consisting of singer John McCrea, trumpeter Vince DiFiore, guitarist Xan McCurdy, bassist Gabe Nelson and drummer Paulo Baldi, the band has been noted for McCrea's sarcastic lyrics and deadpan voice, DiFiore's trumpet parts, and...
, Deathray
Deathray
Deathray was a band from Sacramento, California formed by former Cake members Greg Brown and Victor Damiani, and Dana Gumbiner, a musician formerly of the Sacramento indie band Little Guilt Shrine....
), Rich Good
Rich Good
Rich Good is a British musician and recording artist currently residing in Nevada City, California...
(the Psychedelic Furs, the Pleased
The Pleased
The Pleased were a band active in San Francisco, California, United States between 2002 and 2006. They featured prominent freak folk performers and producers Joanna Newsom and Noah Georgeson...
), Dan Elkan (Broken Bells
Broken Bells
Broken Bells is an American alternative rock band composed of artist-producer Brian Burton and James Mercer, the lead vocalist and guitarist for the indie rock band The Shins. Broken Bells compose and create as a duo, but are joined by a full band on tour...
, Hella
Hella (band)
Hella is an American band from Sacramento, California. They play a technical blend of math rock, noise rock, and experimental rock. The primary members of the band are Spencer Seim on electric guitar and Zach Hill on drums...
, Them Hills, Pocket for Corduroy), Josh Klinghoffer
Josh Klinghoffer
Joshua Adam "Josh" Klinghoffer is an American multi-instrumentalist, who is best known as the current guitarist for the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. Klinghoffer replaced his friend and frequent collaborator John Frusciante, who left the band in 2009.Klinghoffer also fronts Dot Hacker, and was...
(Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...
, John Frusciante
John Frusciante
John Anthony Frusciante is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, record and film producer. He is best known as the former lead guitarist of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, with whom he had been for a number of years and recorded five studio albums...
, PJ Harvey
PJ Harvey
Polly Jean Harvey is an English musician, singer-songwriter, composer and occasional artist. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments including piano, organ, bass, saxophone, and most recently, the autoharp.Harvey began her career in...
, Beck
Beck
Beck Hansen is an American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known by the stage name Beck...
), Rusty Miller (Jackpot), Rob Kieswetter (Bobby Birdman
Bobby Birdman
Bobby Birdman is musician Rob Kieswetter's stage name. Kieswetter is originally from Nevada City, California, and currently lives in Los Angeles, California. He has released albums on Hush Records, Not Not Fun, Fryk Beat, States Rights Records...
), Hunter Burgan
Hunter Burgan
Hunter Lawrence Burgan is an American multi-instrumentalist. He is the third and current bass guitarist of AFI.-Biography:Burgan grew up in Grass Valley, California. He is vegan.-Career:...
(AFI
AFI (band)
AFI is an American alternative rock band from Ukiah, California that formed in 1991. They have consisted of the same lineup since 1998: lead vocalist Davey Havok, drummer and backup vocalist Adam Carson, with bassist Hunter Burgan and guitarist Jade Puget, who both play keyboard and contribute...
), songwriter Brett Shady, drummer Neal Morgan, and more. A complete list of contributors can be found here.
Golden Shoulders has released three albums, Let My Burden Be (2002), Friendship is Deep (2004), and Get Reasonable (2009), along with the EPs Bee 17 (2005) and Kin (2006).[] Thus far, all officially released Golden Shoulders songs have been written by Kline and arranged by the musicians on the recordings. Live arrangements differ from the recorded versions based on the whims of the performers. Golden Shoulders' first album, Let My Burden Be, peaked at #68 on the CMJ
College Music Journal
College Music Journal, commonly known as CMJ, is a music events/publishing company which hosts an annual festival in New York City, the CMJ Music Marathon, as well as a weekly magazine of and for the music industry and college radio stations in the United States and Canada. It publishes top 30...
chart, which measures college radio plays in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. http://www.cmj.com/ The April 2005 issue of MOJO
Mojo (magazine)
MOJO is a popular music magazine published initially by Emap, and since January 2008 by Bauer, monthly in the United Kingdom. Following the success of the magazine Q, publishers Emap were looking for a title which would cater for the burgeoning interest in classic rock music...
magazine gave the Golden Shoulders' second album, Friendship is Deep, a review of four out of five stars.http://www.borrowedtunes.com/archives/magazines/ The follow-up album, Get Reasonable, received another four star review from MOJO
Mojo (magazine)
MOJO is a popular music magazine published initially by Emap, and since January 2008 by Bauer, monthly in the United Kingdom. Following the success of the magazine Q, publishers Emap were looking for a title which would cater for the burgeoning interest in classic rock music...
in the November 2009 issue.http://cover.mojo4music.com/Item.aspx?pageNo=1805&year=2009 Golden Shoulders have also had several songs featured on the episodic video blog, Lonelygirl15
Lonelygirl15
lonelygirl15 was an interactive web-based video series which began in June 2006 and ran through to August 1, 2008. Developed under the working title The Children of Anchor Cove, the show gained worldwide media attention when it was outed as fictional in September 2006.-Overview:lonelygirl15...
.http://www.lonelygirl15.com/
The band has toured the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
several times, including 2004's Speed of Sound Tour, 2006's Annyong Tour, 2009's Flawless Tour, and 2010's Drive Across America Tour. The shows performed on these tours were performed without electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
, meaning no microphones or amplifiers were used http://sun-shadowpoet.livejournal.com/143556.html, though the band sometimes appears as a four-piece, plugged-in lineup when playing in their home state of California.
Discography
- Let My Burden Be CD (Released October 22, 2002)
- Friendship Is Deep CD (Released August 23, 2004)
- Bee 17 EP (Released June 8, 2005)
- KIN EP (Released August 22, 2006)
- Get Reasonable CD (Released May 5, 2009)