I had the chance to ask Allison Moorer a few questions about her favorite records. Her new record Crows comes out February 9th. I covered the first single, “The Broken Girl”, here. Five Records is an occasional feature of artists talking about the music that inspires them. Read more of these posts here.
Tammy Wynette
The Essential Tammy Wynette
“There are so many great records that have influenced me. Tammy Wynette’s Greatest Hits, but also Willie, Waylon, Jessie Colter and Tompall Glaser’s Outlaws and The Jayhawks’ Tomorrow The Green Grass.
Neil Young
Harvest
“Neil is just an all-around great artist — great songwriter, singer, player, and does the work to remain vital even after doing it for so long.”
Joao Gilberto
Getz/Gilberto
“I listened to this record a ton while I was making Crows.”
The Beatles
Help!
“There are many songs I wish I had written! Can we start with the Beatles Help!? It has “Yesterday” on it. I’d take that one…“
Grizzly Bear
Veckatimest
“As far as new releases, I’ve been digging this.”
Allison Moorer – Like The Rain
Posted: January 29th, 2010 | 1 Comment »
Matt Hillyer is the frontman for Dallas-based honky-tonkers Eleven Hundred Springs. I interviewed his bandmate Steve Berg here. Eleven Hundred Springs’ new record This Crazy Life comes out February 2nd. Five Records is an occasional feature of artists talking about the music that inspires them. Read more of these posts here.
The Stray Cats
s/t
“This is really hard to find nowadays, I found it at a local record store. I remember seeing the cover and wanting to do what they did — there’s only three guys, and it doesn’t seem like rocket science, but its pretty intricate and interesting. “
The Reverend Horton Heat
Smoke ‘em If You Got ‘em
“He made no apologies for not being commercial enough. His dedication to his songwriting and his show are what I always admired. I was lucky enough to be right there, he was like my uncle, and a professional on his own terms. He knew when to say no, when it made sense.”
Doug Sahm
The Genuine Texas Groover
“I listened to this record while we were making This Crazy Life — he had a sound that spanned a whole lot of genres, being able to blend his influences into something all his own. I never like to limit myself to western swing or honky tonk, I like to mess around with all of it. Doug showed that people are supposed to have their own sound, their own voice.”
Buddy Holly
Greatest Hits
“I wish I had written “True Love Ways” — that song is just really hard to beat. He wrote it when he was 22, and brought strings into rock music. By today’s standards, he might be considered a nerd, but he is definitely one of the fathers of rock and roll.“
Ryan Bingham
Roadhouse Sun
“At times I don’t even know what to think about him — he used to open our shows with just an acoustic guitar. It seems like his contemporaries are moving in one direction, and he just throws something out that no one expected.”
Eleven Hundred Springs – Every Time I Get Close To You
Posted: January 15th, 2010 | 1 Comment »
I recently spoke with Adam Carroll, a singer/songwriter from Lockhart, TX. He and Michael O’Connor are about to release Hard Times, which I covered here. Five Records is an occasional feature of artists talking about the music that inspires them. Read more of these posts here.
Neil Young
Live Rust
“ When I was 19, I listened to this thing forever, before I started playing guitar. If there was anyone that made me want to get into music, it was Neil.“
Sir Douglas Band
Texas Tornado
“Doug Sahm — He makes San Antonio really cool, which it is. He plays blues, Tejano, just that old style. I really admire that he did what he wanted to. A lot of musicians talk about him, but I dont think he gets enough credit.”
Ernest Tubb
The Legend and the Legacy
“Michael and I were trying to write honky tonk songs while making Hard Times. If you want to call yourself a honky tonk singer, you had better listen to Ernest. He’s not the best singer in the world, but he’s the best at what he does, which is good news for me.”
Kris Kristofferson
Spooky Lady’s Sideshow
“Theres a song called “One For the Money” that he wrote for Sam Peckinpah, that I wish I had written. Also, from the same record, “The Lights of Magdala” is about as good as it gets.“
Scott Nolan
Canadian Amplifier – Bootleg Series Vol. 1
“He does stuff with sound, and this little bitty guitar, that is cooler than anyone I’m hearing. He can do more interesting things with beat up old equipment that new gear can’t recreate. Also a great writer.”
Adam Carroll – Rice Birds
Posted: January 8th, 2010 | 1 Comment »
