Whiskeytown's Strangers Almanac was one of the best records of the 1990s, and on March 4th, it's being re-released with a bonus disc of material that sounds pretty great -- including a cover of Fleetwood Mac's "Dreams."Of course, Whiskeytown was around before the YouTube era, so there aren't a lot of clips available. This one, of the band performing "16 Days" on Austin City Limits, is not bad. It differs from the time I saw the band at a club in Dallas in a few ways:
1. Ryan Adams is not cursing at the "frat boys" in the audience.
2. Half the crowd isn't leaving because they feel offended.
3. The crowd is not throwing glass bottles at Adams, and he is not returning the favor by indiscriminately throwing a couple back himself.
4. While Caitlin Cary does say, "Thank you, this is an honor," at the end of this clip, she doesn't have to apologetically tell the audience to focus their wrath on Adams instead of the rest of the band. (She basically told people to throw glass at him, not everyone else. It was a fun show, especially because I left unharmed.)
I remember someone at Geffen sending this to me, and giving it one listen and thinking that one Uncle Tupelo was enough. But, four or so years later I heard "Pneumonia" and thought maybe I'd made a mistake in judgement. I'd call Ryan Adams a flash in the pan if he didn't go and get a new pan every few years. . . .
ReplyDeleteThis was the first alt-country album I ever got. (I think The Jayhawks' Rainy Day Music followed shortly thereafter.) I still think it's a great album, too. I was listening to "16 Days" just this morning.
ReplyDeleteBy far this was Ryan Adams' finest hour.
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