Tom Russell - The Rose of the San Joaquin (1995)

wederom een geweldig album van Tom Russell. de man grossiert in het maken van authentieke, pure, eerlijke muziek die binnen dringt in de ziel van de luisteraar. dit album stond in de States langere tijd in de top 10 van "Americana" albums. "The Rose of the San Joaquin" en "Heartaches Are Stealin" schreef hij samen met Ian Tyson, "What Do You Want" co-written met Peter Case, "Out In California" en "Between the Cracks" co-written met Dave Alvin, en "Strawberry Moon co-written met Pat Alger. verder "The Gardens" een nummer van Chris Gaffney en de traditional "Tramps & Hawkers. de overige nummers zijn Tom Russell originals, waaronder de geweldige melodie en tekst van "The Sky Above, The Mud Below" prachtig akoestisch uitgevoerd met Tom Russell op vocal and acoustic guitar. "Volver, Volver" ook bekend van de uitvoering van Ry Cooder, krijgt hier een uitvoering van Trio Los Cristobal (met Chris Gaffney). op dit album worden prachtige accenten gelegd door o.a. accordeon en de backing vocals van Katy Moffatt hebben zeker een meerwaarde. album werd geproduceerd door Dave Alvin & Greg Leisz en opgenomen in Hollywood.

onder de muzikanten op dit album bevinden zich:
Tom Russell: vocal & acoustic guitar
Andrew Hardin: acoustic & electric lead guitar, gut-string lead guitar, percussion, harmony vocal
Bobby Lloyd Hicks: drums, percussion, harmony vocal
Bob Glaub: bass
Greg Leisz: dobro, mandolin, electric & high string guitar, pedal steel guitar, slide guitar, acoustic guitar
David Jackson: accordion
Michael Thompson: hammond B3 organ
Don Heffington: drums, percussion
Chris Gaffney: accordion
Dave Alvin 2nd verse lead vocal en Peter Case 3rd verse lead vocal & harmonica op "Somebody's Husband, Somebody's Son"

uit de liner notes (Tom Russell, July, 1995)
quote
"Someone drops a quarter in a jukebox in a bar in the San Joaquin Valley. An accordion rattles the speakers and a cracked voice sings "Volver, Volver". A drunk at the bar shakes his head, whispers to himself, and stumbles out the door, into the darkness...
I had a great uncle named "Limpy Louie" Malloy who had a bad leg and a broken heart. He ran away from home in the 1920"s and wandered up and down the San Joaquin Valley. He drank, he picked fruit, he worked as a janitor in a boxing gym.. he fell in and out of love and vanished between the cracks. My grandfather found Louie one day on L.A.'s skid row and brought him home for dinner. Louie ate his peas with a knife and wouldn't talk. He had a rose tattooed on his right hand, between thumb and forefinger.
The next morning Louie was gone again. Forever"
unquote