Stranger's Almanac
Encyclopedia
Strangers Almanac is an album by the alternative country
band Whiskeytown
, released on July 29, 1997. Stranger's Almanac was reissued as a deluxe edition with bonus tracks and an additional disc of previously unreleased material on March 4, 2008.
and Durham, North Carolina
. Two separate recording sessions - dubbed the "Barn's On Fire" sessions and the "Baseball Park" sessions - produced several songs that were later re-recorded for Strangers Almanac. And while praising everyone involved in making Strangers, principal songwriter Ryan Adams
once remarked in an interview that he preferred these earlier songs to the final album. Tracks from these sessions would later be released on the reissues of Faithless Street
and Strangers Almanac.
The road to making Strangers was a rocky one - in late 1996, bassist Steve Grothman and drummer Skillet Gilmore left the band on the same day, suddenly placing the future of Whiskeytown in doubt. It was then that violinist Caitlin Cary
also considered leaving the band, while Adams toyed with the idea of signing as a solo artist with A&M Records
. But in the end, the remaining band members soldiered on and, in February 1997, Adams, Cary, and guitarist Phil Wandscher
traveled to Woodland Studios in Nashville to record their major label debut. Drummer Steve Terry and bassist Jeff Rice were also added to the lineup. Producer Jim Scott was selected due to his previous work on Tom Petty's Wildflowers album.
The sessions featured plenty of give-and-take between the young, scrappy band and the older, more-polished producer. Said Adams later: "He [Jim Scott] wanted to make something flow. He wanted to make our record work, whereas we wanted our record to get damaged." And for his part, Scott points to a particularly raw-sounding guitar part in the song "Everything I Do" and says, "I listen to that and go, oh my God, we should've redone that guitar because it just is a little rough on such a beautiful song. But that's maybe what they liked about it; they were like, 'No, that's cool'... Maybe that was the bruise on the apple that they were looking for."
The first notes heard on the album - Adams picking out a slow acoustic guitar line at the beginning of "Inn Town" - were played using an Alvarez guitar purchased for $100 at a Nashville pawn shop. Adams had arrived in Nashville without a guitar because of an unfortunate mishap: on the day they were leaving for Nashville, the band met in a parking lot to load their gear into a van for the trip. After loading their gear, everyone hopped in the van and drove off. It was only later that they realized they'd left Adams' guitars behind, still sitting in the parking lot. The title of the album's opening track is a reference to fellow North Carolinian/Superchunk
frontman Mac McCaughan
and his band Wwax, who released a song with the same title.
The song "Excuse Me While I Break My Own Heart Tonight" features Alejandro Escovedo
on vocals. The band had previously covered Escovedo's True Believers song "The Rain Won't Help You When It's Over", which is featured on Disc 2 of the album's 2008 reissue.
The understated piano accents on "Avenues" were played by Adams. Producer Scott believes that this was the first time that the young songwriter had ever played piano on a recording.
About the song "Losering", Adams says: "I love 'Losering' because I think it makes a beautiful statement with only about six words. I coulda put more extremely well-written, musically perfect songs on the record but decided not to because I was proud of the fact that there was finally some experimenting going on in the band. And 'Losering' was one of them -- 'Losering' was originally just about a six or seven-bar little hymn that I was writing, like Sun Ra
or somebody might do -- like A Love Supreme
, you know, where they just mumble that in succession at the end of that Coltrane
record? I kinda wanted to do something like that but maybe with an influence from The Byrds
, you know. And I was really proud of that; I really thought that was amazing, so I love listening to it." http://web.archive.org/web/20011228224913/www-personal.umich.edu/~anderss/Adamsint.html
After a month of recording at Woodland Studios, the band finished recording and mixing at Ocean Way Studios in Los Angeles.
, Adams admitted that the Strangers sessions were a very unhappy time for him personally. Depression, substance abuse, and a general dissatisfaction with the band plagued his time in Nashville. In spite of this, Whiskeytown embarked on a grueling and turbulent tour that stretched out over the next 19 months. The band first appeared as part of the "No Depression Tour" with fellow alt-country
acts Old 97's
, Hazeldine, and The Picketts in the Spring of 1997.
After Strangers Almanac was released on July 29th, another round of touring ensued. This leg of the tour, dubbed the "RV Tour", found the band traveling between gigs in an RV. On the whiskeytownavenues message board, tour manager Tom O'Keefe
called the tour "a 2-month trek in the US that still causes mental illness in those that were there." One particular show at the Iota Club in Arlington, VA, found guitarist Phil Wandscher
sitting above the stage for the entire performance, playing his guitar and occasionally throwing beer bottles down at singer Ryan Adams
. At another show in Lansing, MI, a fan threw tomatoes at the band's crew following an abbreviated set by the band.
On September 10th, the band recorded a live in-studio performance for the KCRW
radio program "Brave New World", which was later released on the 2008 deluxe edition of Strangers.
Following a contentious September 25th show at The Hurricane in Kansas City, the band splintered. Ryan Adams
and Caitlin Cary
played the remaining dates of the tour as an acoustic duo. Wandscher
, an original member of the band, would never play or record with Whiskeytown again.
(Ironically, Wandscher's work on the Strangers Almanac album would later secure a record deal for his next band
- thanks to a recommendation by Death Cab for Cutie's
Chris Walla
, who's a big fan of the album.)
Less than a month later, Whiskeytown had a new touring lineup and hit the road again. Joining Adams and Cary were ex-fIREHOSE
guitarist Ed Crawford
, bassist Jenni Snyder, multi-instrumentalist Mike Daly
, and the band's original drummer Skillet Gilmore. In January 1998, this lineup taped a live performance for Austin City Limits
. They also performed on a number of radio programs, including Mountain Stage
, Acoustic Cafe
, Modern Rock Live, and KMTT's
Music Lounge.
In late April, the band embarked on their very first European tour, but without Crawford or Snyder. The Strangers tour continued in June as the band opened for John Fogerty
, again with a new lineup of sidemen for Adams and Cary, including Brad Rice and Danny Kurtz from The Backsliders
.
Whiskeytown's ever-evolving lineup would prompt the band to poke fun at itself by selling t-shirts at shows that read: "I Played In Whiskeytown And All I Got Was This Lousy Goddamn T-Shirt!"
In September, having now been on the road since March of the previous year, the band played yet another scandalous show - this time at the historic Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco. At the end of the show, after experiencing sound problems, a lukewarm crowd, and being told he couldn't smoke on stage, an upset Adams smashed his mic stand and tossed the monitors off the stage. He then got into an altercation with the venue's security, and was finally dragged away by band member Daly
.
By the final show of the tour in October 1998, the band was playing almost an entire set of brand-new, unreleased music, with barely any songs from Strangers Almanac - the very album which had launched the tour nearly two years before.
It would prove to be Whiskeytown's final tour to date.
, except where noted.
Disc 2:
- acoustic & electric guitars, singing, banjo, piano, percussion
Phil Wandscher
- electric guitar, singing, organ, percussion
Caitlin Cary
- violin, singing
Steven Terry - drums, singing, percussion
Jeff Rice - bass guitar
- singing
John Ginty - piano, wurlitzer electric piano, hammond b3 organ, church keys
Greg Leisz - pedal steel guitar, lap steel guitar, mandolin
Curt Bisquera - percussion
Rick Latina - pedal steel guitar
Dan Navarro
- trumpet
Crecencio Gonzalez - trombone
Jim Goodwin - alto sax
Jim Scott - percussion
Recorded at Woodland studios, Nashville and Ocean Way studios, Hollywood
Mixed at Ocean Way studios, Hollywood
Mastered by Stephen Marcussen at Percision Mastering, Los Angeles.
Alternative country
Alternative country is a loosely defined sub-genre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music...
band Whiskeytown
Whiskeytown
Whiskeytown was an alternative country band formed in Raleigh, North Carolina in 1994. Fronted by Ryan Adams, other members included Caitlin Cary, Phil Wandscher, Eric "Skillet" Gilmore, and Mike Daly. They disbanded in 2000, with Adams leaving to pursue his solo career...
, released on July 29, 1997. Stranger's Almanac was reissued as a deluxe edition with bonus tracks and an additional disc of previously unreleased material on March 4, 2008.
Background and production
Throughout 1996, Whiskeytown recorded new material in Chapel HillChapel Hill
Chapel Hill may refer to:*Chapel Hill, North Carolina, a town in the United States, or**the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a major university within the town*Chapel Hill, Alabama...
and Durham, North Carolina
Durham, North Carolina
Durham is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the county seat of Durham County and also extends into Wake County. It is the fifth-largest city in the state, and the 85th-largest in the United States by population, with 228,330 residents as of the 2010 United States census...
. Two separate recording sessions - dubbed the "Barn's On Fire" sessions and the "Baseball Park" sessions - produced several songs that were later re-recorded for Strangers Almanac. And while praising everyone involved in making Strangers, principal songwriter Ryan Adams
Ryan Adams
David Ryan Adams is an American alt-country/rock singer-songwriter, from Jacksonville, North Carolina. Initially part of the group Whiskeytown, Adams left the band and released his first solo album Heartbreaker in 2000...
once remarked in an interview that he preferred these earlier songs to the final album. Tracks from these sessions would later be released on the reissues of Faithless Street
Faithless Street
Faithless Street is the debut studio album by alternative country band Whiskeytown, released in 1995 on Mood Food Records. The album was re-issued by Outpost Recordings in 1998 with several bonus tracks added, and the track "Oklahoma" omitted...
and Strangers Almanac.
The road to making Strangers was a rocky one - in late 1996, bassist Steve Grothman and drummer Skillet Gilmore left the band on the same day, suddenly placing the future of Whiskeytown in doubt. It was then that violinist Caitlin Cary
Caitlin Cary
Caitlin Cary is an alt-country musician.Born to Hall Cary and Carol Campbell Thomas in East Cleveland, Caitlin Cary was raised with her half-brothers, Brian, Craig, and Keith Thomas, in East Cleveland and Cleveland Heights. She began playing the violin at age six. She attended the College of...
also considered leaving the band, while Adams toyed with the idea of signing as a solo artist with A&M Records
A&M Records
A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that operates under the mantle of its Interscope-Geffen-A&M division.-Beginnings:...
. But in the end, the remaining band members soldiered on and, in February 1997, Adams, Cary, and guitarist Phil Wandscher
Phil Wandscher
Phil Wandscher is the former guitarist of the alt-country band Whiskeytown, and is currently a member of Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter.Wandscher appeared on Death Cab For Cutie's album Transatlanticism, singing backing vocals on the album's title track...
traveled to Woodland Studios in Nashville to record their major label debut. Drummer Steve Terry and bassist Jeff Rice were also added to the lineup. Producer Jim Scott was selected due to his previous work on Tom Petty's Wildflowers album.
The sessions featured plenty of give-and-take between the young, scrappy band and the older, more-polished producer. Said Adams later: "He [Jim Scott] wanted to make something flow. He wanted to make our record work, whereas we wanted our record to get damaged." And for his part, Scott points to a particularly raw-sounding guitar part in the song "Everything I Do" and says, "I listen to that and go, oh my God, we should've redone that guitar because it just is a little rough on such a beautiful song. But that's maybe what they liked about it; they were like, 'No, that's cool'... Maybe that was the bruise on the apple that they were looking for."
The first notes heard on the album - Adams picking out a slow acoustic guitar line at the beginning of "Inn Town" - were played using an Alvarez guitar purchased for $100 at a Nashville pawn shop. Adams had arrived in Nashville without a guitar because of an unfortunate mishap: on the day they were leaving for Nashville, the band met in a parking lot to load their gear into a van for the trip. After loading their gear, everyone hopped in the van and drove off. It was only later that they realized they'd left Adams' guitars behind, still sitting in the parking lot. The title of the album's opening track is a reference to fellow North Carolinian/Superchunk
Superchunk
Superchunk is an American indie rock band from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, consisting of singer/guitarist Mac McCaughan, guitarist Jim Wilbur, bassist Laura Ballance, and drummer Jon Wurster. Formed in 1989, they were one of the bands that helped define the Chapel Hill music scene of the 1990s...
frontman Mac McCaughan
Mac McCaughan
Mac McCaughan is a founding member of the rock band Superchunk, and co-founder of Merge Records along with Laura Ballance. He also heads the band Portastatic, which began as a lo-fi side project and has blossomed into his main musical project...
and his band Wwax, who released a song with the same title.
The song "Excuse Me While I Break My Own Heart Tonight" features Alejandro Escovedo
Alejandro Escovedo
Alejandro Escovedo is an American singer-songwriter.-Biography:The son of Mexican immigrants to Texas, Escovedo is from a family that boasts several professional musicians, including brothers Coke Escovedo and Pete Escovedo, and Sheila E...
on vocals. The band had previously covered Escovedo's True Believers song "The Rain Won't Help You When It's Over", which is featured on Disc 2 of the album's 2008 reissue.
The understated piano accents on "Avenues" were played by Adams. Producer Scott believes that this was the first time that the young songwriter had ever played piano on a recording.
About the song "Losering", Adams says: "I love 'Losering' because I think it makes a beautiful statement with only about six words. I coulda put more extremely well-written, musically perfect songs on the record but decided not to because I was proud of the fact that there was finally some experimenting going on in the band. And 'Losering' was one of them -- 'Losering' was originally just about a six or seven-bar little hymn that I was writing, like Sun Ra
Sun Ra
Sun Ra was a prolific jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, poet and philosopher known for his "cosmic philosophy," musical compositions and performances. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama...
or somebody might do -- like A Love Supreme
A Love Supreme
A Love Supreme is a studio album recorded by John Coltrane's quartet in December 1964 and released by Impulse! Records in February 1965...
, you know, where they just mumble that in succession at the end of that Coltrane
Coltrane
John Coltrane was a jazz saxophonist.Coltrane may also refer to:* Coltrane , an album by John Coltrane from Prestige* Coltrane , an album by John Coltrane from Impulse!...
record? I kinda wanted to do something like that but maybe with an influence from The Byrds
The Byrds
The Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973...
, you know. And I was really proud of that; I really thought that was amazing, so I love listening to it." http://web.archive.org/web/20011228224913/www-personal.umich.edu/~anderss/Adamsint.html
After a month of recording at Woodland Studios, the band finished recording and mixing at Ocean Way Studios in Los Angeles.
Strangers Almanac Tour (1997-98)
In a 2008 interview with Independent WeeklyIndependent Weekly
The Independent Weekly is a tabloid-format alternative weekly newspaper published in Durham, North Carolina, United States and distributed throughout the Research Triangle area and counties .The Independent is a member of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies and has a...
, Adams admitted that the Strangers sessions were a very unhappy time for him personally. Depression, substance abuse, and a general dissatisfaction with the band plagued his time in Nashville. In spite of this, Whiskeytown embarked on a grueling and turbulent tour that stretched out over the next 19 months. The band first appeared as part of the "No Depression Tour" with fellow alt-country
Alternative country
Alternative country is a loosely defined sub-genre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music...
acts Old 97's
Old 97's
The Old 97's are an alternative country band from Dallas, Texas. Formed in 1993, they have since released nine studio albums, two full extended plays, shared split duty on another, and have one live album. Their most recent release is The Grand Theatre, Volume Two...
, Hazeldine, and The Picketts in the Spring of 1997.
After Strangers Almanac was released on July 29th, another round of touring ensued. This leg of the tour, dubbed the "RV Tour", found the band traveling between gigs in an RV. On the whiskeytownavenues message board, tour manager Tom O'Keefe
Thomas O'Keefe
Thomas O'Keefe born January 22, 1964 in New Haven, CT is a North Carolina musician best known for his work with Antiseen and Train.-Early years:O'Keefe lived in Connecticut until the age of 14....
called the tour "a 2-month trek in the US that still causes mental illness in those that were there." One particular show at the Iota Club in Arlington, VA, found guitarist Phil Wandscher
Phil Wandscher
Phil Wandscher is the former guitarist of the alt-country band Whiskeytown, and is currently a member of Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter.Wandscher appeared on Death Cab For Cutie's album Transatlanticism, singing backing vocals on the album's title track...
sitting above the stage for the entire performance, playing his guitar and occasionally throwing beer bottles down at singer Ryan Adams
Ryan Adams
David Ryan Adams is an American alt-country/rock singer-songwriter, from Jacksonville, North Carolina. Initially part of the group Whiskeytown, Adams left the band and released his first solo album Heartbreaker in 2000...
. At another show in Lansing, MI, a fan threw tomatoes at the band's crew following an abbreviated set by the band.
On September 10th, the band recorded a live in-studio performance for the KCRW
KCRW
KCRW is a public radio station broadcasting from the campus of Santa Monica College in Santa Monica, California, carrying a mix of National Public Radio news, talk radio and freeform music format. The general manager of KCRW is Jennifer Ferro...
radio program "Brave New World", which was later released on the 2008 deluxe edition of Strangers.
Following a contentious September 25th show at The Hurricane in Kansas City, the band splintered. Ryan Adams
Ryan Adams
David Ryan Adams is an American alt-country/rock singer-songwriter, from Jacksonville, North Carolina. Initially part of the group Whiskeytown, Adams left the band and released his first solo album Heartbreaker in 2000...
and Caitlin Cary
Caitlin Cary
Caitlin Cary is an alt-country musician.Born to Hall Cary and Carol Campbell Thomas in East Cleveland, Caitlin Cary was raised with her half-brothers, Brian, Craig, and Keith Thomas, in East Cleveland and Cleveland Heights. She began playing the violin at age six. She attended the College of...
played the remaining dates of the tour as an acoustic duo. Wandscher
Phil Wandscher
Phil Wandscher is the former guitarist of the alt-country band Whiskeytown, and is currently a member of Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter.Wandscher appeared on Death Cab For Cutie's album Transatlanticism, singing backing vocals on the album's title track...
, an original member of the band, would never play or record with Whiskeytown again.
(Ironically, Wandscher's work on the Strangers Almanac album would later secure a record deal for his next band
Jesse Sykes
Christened Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter in 2002 , singer-songwriter Jesse Sykes and guitarist Phil Wandscher , began what has become their long lived musical partnership....
- thanks to a recommendation by Death Cab for Cutie's
Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie is an American alternative rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. The band consists of Ben Gibbard , Chris Walla , Nick Harmer and Jason McGerr ....
Chris Walla
Chris Walla
Christopher Walla is an American musician and music producer, most notable for being the guitarist for the band Death Cab for Cutie. He is also a former DJ of KCWU, 88.1 The Burg...
, who's a big fan of the album.)
Less than a month later, Whiskeytown had a new touring lineup and hit the road again. Joining Adams and Cary were ex-fIREHOSE
FIREHOSE
Firehose was an alternative rock band consisting of Mike Watt , Ed Crawford , and George Hurley .-History:...
guitarist Ed Crawford
Ed Crawford
Charles Edward Crawford, aka ed fROMOHIO, is an American best known as the lead singer and guitarist for fIREHOSE, an alternative rock band he formed in 1986 with former Minutemen members Mike Watt and George Hurley .-Biography:In 1985, Minutemen vocalist and guitarist D. Boon was killed in a van...
, bassist Jenni Snyder, multi-instrumentalist Mike Daly
Mike Daly
Mike Daly is an American producer / songwriter / multi-instrumentalist who grew up in Roselle Park, New Jersey, United States. Daly attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston, graduating in 1994. Soon after, he joined the band Swales and recorded one album, What's His Name? for Bar/None Records...
, and the band's original drummer Skillet Gilmore. In January 1998, this lineup taped a live performance for Austin City Limits
Austin City Limits
Austin City Limits is an American public television music program recorded live in Austin, Texas by Public Broadcasting Service Public television member station KLRU, and broadcast on many PBS stations around the United States...
. They also performed on a number of radio programs, including Mountain Stage
Mountain Stage
Mountain Stage is a two-hour music radio show, first aired in 1983, produced by WV Public Broadcasting and distributed worldwide by National Public Radio and the Voice of America's satellite radio service. Hosted by Larry Groce, the program showcases diverse music, from the traditional to modern...
, Acoustic Cafe
Acoustic cafe
Acoustic Café is an independent, syndicated radio program, produced in Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S.A. Started in 1995, Acoustic Café presents singer-songwriters in various genres, playing songs in the Acoustic Café studio and chatting with host Rob Reinhart...
, Modern Rock Live, and KMTT's
KMTT
KMTT , marketed as "103-7 The Mountain", is an adult album alternative FM radio station in the Seattle, Washington market.The station broadcasts at 103.7 MHz and is owned and operated by Entercom Communications. The station's transmitting antenna is on Reichert's Hill on Cougar Mountain...
Music Lounge.
In late April, the band embarked on their very first European tour, but without Crawford or Snyder. The Strangers tour continued in June as the band opened for John Fogerty
John Fogerty
John Cameron Fogerty is an American rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist, best known for his time with the swamp rock/roots rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival and as a #1 solo recording artist. Fogerty has a rare distinction of being named on Rolling Stone magazine's list of 100 Greatest...
, again with a new lineup of sidemen for Adams and Cary, including Brad Rice and Danny Kurtz from The Backsliders
The Backsliders
The Backsliders was an alternative-traditional country-rock band composed of Chip Robinson, Steve Howell, Danny Kurtz, Jeff Dennis, and Brad Rice. Chip Robinson teamed up with Steve Howell to form The Backsliders, which began as a duo in 1991 in Athens, GA...
.
Whiskeytown's ever-evolving lineup would prompt the band to poke fun at itself by selling t-shirts at shows that read: "I Played In Whiskeytown And All I Got Was This Lousy Goddamn T-Shirt!"
In September, having now been on the road since March of the previous year, the band played yet another scandalous show - this time at the historic Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco. At the end of the show, after experiencing sound problems, a lukewarm crowd, and being told he couldn't smoke on stage, an upset Adams smashed his mic stand and tossed the monitors off the stage. He then got into an altercation with the venue's security, and was finally dragged away by band member Daly
Mike Daly
Mike Daly is an American producer / songwriter / multi-instrumentalist who grew up in Roselle Park, New Jersey, United States. Daly attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston, graduating in 1994. Soon after, he joined the band Swales and recorded one album, What's His Name? for Bar/None Records...
.
By the final show of the tour in October 1998, the band was playing almost an entire set of brand-new, unreleased music, with barely any songs from Strangers Almanac - the very album which had launched the tour nearly two years before.
It would prove to be Whiskeytown's final tour to date.
Track listing
All songs written by Ryan AdamsRyan Adams
David Ryan Adams is an American alt-country/rock singer-songwriter, from Jacksonville, North Carolina. Initially part of the group Whiskeytown, Adams left the band and released his first solo album Heartbreaker in 2000...
, except where noted.
- "Inn Town" - 5:51 (Adams/Wandscher)
- "Excuse Me While I Break My Own Heart Tonight" - 3:14
- "Yesterday's News" - 2:49 (Adams/Wandscher)
- "16 Days16 Days (Whiskeytown song)"16 Days" is a song by alternative country band Whiskeytown and written by Ryan Adams. It first appeared on Whiskeytown's Strangers Almanac album in 1997, and was released that same year as a CD single. An earlier version of the song - recorded during the band's "Baseball Park" sessions - was...
" - 3:54 - "Everything I Do" - 4:31 (Adams/Wandscher)
- "Houses on the Hill" - 2:38 (Adams/Cary)
- "Turn Around" - 5:16 (Adams/Cary)
- "Dancing with the Women at the Bar" - 4:38
- "Waiting to Derail" - 3:54
- "Avenues" - 2:31
- "Losering" - 4:00
- "Somebody Remembers the Rose" - 2:30 (Adams/Wandscher)
- "Not Home Anymore" - 5:54
Deluxe edition track listing
Disc 1:- "Inn Town" - 5:51
- "Excuse Me While I Break My Own Heart Tonight" - 3:14
- "Yesterday's News" - 2:49
- "16 Days16 Days (Whiskeytown song)"16 Days" is a song by alternative country band Whiskeytown and written by Ryan Adams. It first appeared on Whiskeytown's Strangers Almanac album in 1997, and was released that same year as a CD single. An earlier version of the song - recorded during the band's "Baseball Park" sessions - was...
" - 3:54 - "Everything I Do" - 4:31
- "Houses on the Hill" - 2:38
- "Turn Around" - 5:16
- "Dancing with the Women at the Bar" - 4:38
- "Waiting to Derail" - 3:54
- "Avenues" - 2:31
- "Losering" - 4:00
- "Somebody Remembers the Rose" - 2:30
- "Not Home Anymore" - 5:54
- "Houses on the Hill" (Live) (bonus track) - 3:42
- "Nurse with the Pills" (Live) (bonus track) - 4:40
- "I Don't Care What You Think About Me" (Live) (bonus track) - 3:18
- "Somebody Remembers the Rose" (Live) (bonus track) - 2:33
- "Turn Around" (Live) (bonus track) - 4:26
- Tracks 14-18 are previously unreleased live in the studio recordings. They were originally broadcast 9/10/97 on "Brave New World", KCRW-FM RadioKCRWKCRW is a public radio station broadcasting from the campus of Santa Monica College in Santa Monica, California, carrying a mix of National Public Radio news, talk radio and freeform music format. The general manager of KCRW is Jennifer Ferro...
, Santa Monica, CA - Tracks 15 & 16 written by Ryan AdamsRyan AdamsDavid Ryan Adams is an American alt-country/rock singer-songwriter, from Jacksonville, North Carolina. Initially part of the group Whiskeytown, Adams left the band and released his first solo album Heartbreaker in 2000...
Disc 2:
- All songs written by Ryan AdamsRyan AdamsDavid Ryan Adams is an American alt-country/rock singer-songwriter, from Jacksonville, North Carolina. Initially part of the group Whiskeytown, Adams left the band and released his first solo album Heartbreaker in 2000...
, except where noted.
- "Indian Gown" - 4:46 (Adams/Wandscher)
- "16 Days16 Days (Whiskeytown song)"16 Days" is a song by alternative country band Whiskeytown and written by Ryan Adams. It first appeared on Whiskeytown's Strangers Almanac album in 1997, and was released that same year as a CD single. An earlier version of the song - recorded during the band's "Baseball Park" sessions - was...
" (Demo) - 3:13 - "Somebody Remembers the Rose" (Demo) - 2:45 (Adams/Wandscher)
- "Avenues" (Demo) - 3:34
- "Excuse Me While I Break My Own Heart Tonight" (Demo) - 2:43
- "Houses on the Hill" (Early Version) - 2:25 (Adams/Cary)
- "My Heart Is Broken" - 3:04 (Adams/Cary)
- "I Still Miss SomeoneI Still Miss Someone"I Still Miss Someone" is the title of a song written and originally recorded by American country music singer Johnny Cash. He first recorded it in 1958 as the b-side to "Don't Take Your Guns to Town".-History:...
" (Demo) - 2:24 (Johnny CashJohnny CashJohn R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
/Roy Cash Jr.) - "Kiss and Make-Up" - 3:31
- "Barn's on Fire" - 1:43
- "Dancing with the Women at the Bar" (Early Version) - 4:28
- "Dreams"Dreams (Fleetwood Mac song)"Dreams" is a song written by singer Stevie Nicks, for the group Fleetwood Mac's 1977 album, Rumours. The song was the only U.S. number one hit for the group, and remains one of their best known songs.-Background and writing:...
- 5:49 (Stevie NicksStevie NicksStephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Fleetwood Mac and an extensive solo career, which collectively have produced over forty Top 50 hits and sold over 140 million albums...
) - "Breathe" - 4:07
- "Wither, I'm a Flower" (from the Hope FloatsHope FloatsHope Floats is a 1998 American romantic drama film directed by Forest Whitaker, and starring Sandra Bullock, Harry Connick, Jr. and Gena Rowlands....
soundtrack) - 4:53 - "Luxury Liner"Safe at HomeSafe at Home was the 1968 album by The International Submarine Band, led by the 21-year-old Gram Parsons. Featuring four of Parsons' originals surrounded by six covers of classic country and rock and roll music, it helped to forge the country rock movement of the late 1960s and early...
- 2:40 (Gram ParsonsGram ParsonsGram Parsons was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and pianist. Parsons is best known for his work within the country genre; he also mixed blues, folk, and rock to create what he called "Cosmic American Music"...
) - "Theme for a TruckerTheme For A TruckerTheme for a Trucker is a limited edition double 7" vinyl EP by alternative country band Whiskeytown, released by Bloodshot Records in 1997. According to the Bloodshot Records website, only 2000 copies were pressed.-Music and lyrics:...
" (from The End of ViolenceThe End of ViolenceThe End of Violence is a 1997 film by the German director Wim Wenders. The film's cast includes Bill Pullman, Gabriel Byrne, Traci Lind, Rosalind Chao, Andie MacDowell, and Loren Dean, among others. It also features a soundtrack marked with the signature sounds of Wenders regulars Jon Hassell, Ry...
soundtrack) - 4:29 - "Streets of Sirens" - 3:44
- "Turn Around" (Early Version) - 4:02 (Adams/Cary)
- "10 Seconds Till the End of the World" - 4:15 (Adams/Wandscher)
- "Ticket Time" - 3:54 (Adams/Wandscher)
- "The Rain Won't Help You When It's Over" - 4:34 (Alejandro EscovedoAlejandro EscovedoAlejandro Escovedo is an American singer-songwriter.-Biography:The son of Mexican immigrants to Texas, Escovedo is from a family that boasts several professional musicians, including brothers Coke Escovedo and Pete Escovedo, and Sheila E...
)
- Tracks 1, 6, 7, 10-13, 15, 17, and 19-21: the "Barn's on Fire" sessions.
- Tracks 2, 3, and 5: the "Baseball Park" sessions.
- All songs are previously unreleased, except for tracks 14 and 16.
Musicians
Ryan AdamsRyan Adams
David Ryan Adams is an American alt-country/rock singer-songwriter, from Jacksonville, North Carolina. Initially part of the group Whiskeytown, Adams left the band and released his first solo album Heartbreaker in 2000...
- acoustic & electric guitars, singing, banjo, piano, percussion
Phil Wandscher
Phil Wandscher
Phil Wandscher is the former guitarist of the alt-country band Whiskeytown, and is currently a member of Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter.Wandscher appeared on Death Cab For Cutie's album Transatlanticism, singing backing vocals on the album's title track...
- electric guitar, singing, organ, percussion
Caitlin Cary
Caitlin Cary
Caitlin Cary is an alt-country musician.Born to Hall Cary and Carol Campbell Thomas in East Cleveland, Caitlin Cary was raised with her half-brothers, Brian, Craig, and Keith Thomas, in East Cleveland and Cleveland Heights. She began playing the violin at age six. She attended the College of...
- violin, singing
Steven Terry - drums, singing, percussion
Jeff Rice - bass guitar
Additional musicians
Alejandro EscovedoAlejandro Escovedo
Alejandro Escovedo is an American singer-songwriter.-Biography:The son of Mexican immigrants to Texas, Escovedo is from a family that boasts several professional musicians, including brothers Coke Escovedo and Pete Escovedo, and Sheila E...
- singing
John Ginty - piano, wurlitzer electric piano, hammond b3 organ, church keys
Greg Leisz - pedal steel guitar, lap steel guitar, mandolin
Curt Bisquera - percussion
Rick Latina - pedal steel guitar
Dan Navarro
Dan Navarro
Dan Navarro is an American vocalist, guitarist and voice actor best known as half of the duo Lowen & Navarro-Discography:Lowen and Navarro*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Benatar#cite_note-0 We Belong]Lowen and Navarro...
- trumpet
Crecencio Gonzalez - trombone
Jim Goodwin - alto sax
Jim Scott - percussion
Production credits
Produced, engineered and mixed by Jim ScottRecorded at Woodland studios, Nashville and Ocean Way studios, Hollywood
Mixed at Ocean Way studios, Hollywood
Mastered by Stephen Marcussen at Percision Mastering, Los Angeles.