Bloggerhythms

In 1975 film director Jim Szalapski had a burning desire to film a documentary showcasing the new generation of singer-songwriters and performers he believed were about to change the face of country music. Fortunately his dream came true even though it took six years for the fruits of his labor, Heartworn Highways , to be released in 1981. Many of the unknown artists featured in Szalapski's film include now respected alt-country or outlaw-country artists Townes Van Zandt, Steve Earle, Guy Clark, Rodney Crowell, David Allan Coe, and John Hiatt. Lesser known but still talented performers such as Larry Jon Wilson, Gamble Rogers, and Steve Young are featured here too. Detailed liner notes stress that this CD version of Heartworn Highways is not a "literal soundtrack" to the film because producers David Gorman and Michael Nieves wanted a "CD that stood on its own as an audio companion to the movie." Gorman and Nieves sought to create a specific mood for ...

Kim Richey is, and probably always will be, one of my favorite female singer-songwriters. Richey's appeal lies with her ability to use her beautifully strong voice to easily communicate her equally strong melodies. In addition, her songs almost always feature a full band that help make all five of her CDs well arranged affairs. This is true whether the song is a rocker, a country tune, or a ballad. All of the producers who have worked with Richey seem to understand her completely including Giles Martin, who produced Chinese Boxes , her first CD after a five year absence. (Martin's very famous father, George, produced The Beatles). Richey's first two discs, her self-titled debut and her masterwork, Bitter Sweet , are similar sounding upbeat country albums. Then, beginning with 1999's Glimmer , Richey began traveling the road of a singer-songwriter while steering herself away from country music. Each subsequent release has sounded entirely different from the one that p...