Jun 262020
 

John HartfordOn the Road: A Tribute to John HartfordSongwriter, banjo-picker, old-time fiddler, dancer, tv star, radio dj, and, perhaps most importantly, professional riverboat pilot. Welcome to the weird, wide world of John Hartford.

Hartford was a cross between Bill Monroe and Mark Twain—he titled one of his albums Mark Twang. He was among the first to join hippie sensibilities with hillbilly ways. During the late ’60s and early ’70s, Hartford was both a vivid reminder of America’s past musical heritage, and also a harbinger of things to come; he shaped contemporary music almost in spite of himself. “Newgrass,” which in turn fed into the jam band phenomena, is basically Hartford’s concoction (though mandolinist Sam Bush gets some credit too). Even Americana, as it is currently defined, is impossible to imagine without him—the blockbuster O Brother, Where Art Thou project has Hartford’s fingerprints and spirit all over it.

So a new John Hartford Tribute album is most welcomed, and now we have one in hand: On the Road, from LoHi Records. It’s a dang good tribute album, too, starting with the opening cut (by Hartford’s co-conspirator Sam Bush), and never letting up.
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Sep 202016
 
ChicagoFarmer

Other than his hit for Glen Campbell “Gentle On My Mind,” John Hartford songs don’t get covered as often as they should. The pioneering fiddle and banjo player sometimes gets pigeonholed as just a bluegrass guy (and none were better), but he could do so much more, from rockabilly covers to weird experimental stuff (where’s the hip indie cover of his heavy-breathing-and-fart-sounds “Boogie”?). The best recent cover of a Hartford tune has been Jones Street Station’s “In Tall Buildings,” but Chicago Farmer’s new version of “I’m Still Here” gives that one a run for its money. Continue reading »