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The former Blasters frontman‘s 1986 solo debut album is a soulful collection of blues, jazz, country, and pop songs originally written and recorded between 1925-1953. More than just an engaging document of pre-rock Americana, the album features avant-garde legend Sun Ra and his Arkestra, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, and New Orleans saxman Lee Allen, whose session work with Little Richard and Fats Domino have earned him near-mythic status.
Before there was any acknowledgement of what’s now known as the Great American Songbook, a genre called Americana, Triple-A radio, or even an internet to aid in research, a dedicated band of crate-diggers sprang up around LA, discovering long-lost gems on 78s and 45s: Barret “Dr.Demento” Hansen, with his novelty records; Lux Interior of the Cramps, foraging for country and rockabilly; Billy Vera, amassing an R&B archive… and perhaps the most eclectic of the lot, Phil Alvin. As renowned music journalist Chris Morris observed in the liner notes, “If you made a trip to the Alvins’ family home in Downey, affectionately known as ‘the Flop,’ in the early ‘80s, it was almost inevitable that Phil would reach into a crate of 78s and pull out some gem you had never heard.” That pioneering eclecticism was admired by critics and fans alike, although Alvin was perhaps just a step or two ahead of the general audience, which is why this album was a cult favorite and not a platinum smash. If anything, it has a better chance at reaching a broad fan base now than it did when it was new. Today, this brilliantly sung, stirringly performed, and deeply felt record is ready for a new embrace by contemporary listeners, who should be ready to catch up to its prophetic sound.
This release comes on the heels of Liberation Hall’s Mandatory: The Best of the Blasters, a definitive 20-song collection of the band’s hits and deep cuts. Liberation Hall plans further releases throughout 2024 in celebration of the Blasters’ 45th anniversary.
credits
released November 3, 2023
1 Someone Stole Gabriel's Horn
Dirty Dozen Brass Band
Featuring, Tenor Saxophone – Lee Allen
2 Next Week Some Time
Guitar – Phil Alvin
3 The Ballad Of Smokey Joe
Sun Ra And The Arkestra
4 Death In The Morning
Backing Vocals – The Jubilee Train Singers
Drums – David Carroll
Guitar – Phil Alvin
5 The Old Man Of The Mountain
Sun Ra And The Arkestra
6 Daddy Rollin' Stone
Guitar – Mike Roach, Gary Masi
Drums – David Carroll
Bass – Gary Taylor
Piano – Gene Taylor
7 Titanic Blues
Guitar – Phil Alvin
8 Brother Can You Spare A Dime?
Sun Ra And The Arkestra
9 Collins' Cave
Guitar – Phil Alvin
Violin – Richard Greene
10 Gangster's Blues
Guitar – Phil Alvin
Sun Ra And The Arkestra
Fred Adams – Trumpet
Marshall Allen – Flute, Alto Sax
Bruce Edwards – Guitar
Alvin Evans – Flügelhorn, Trumpet
John Gilmore – Clarinet, Tenor Sax
Tyrone Hill – Trombone
James Jackson – Bassoon
Stanley Morgan – Conga Drums
Arthur O'Neil – Drums
Sun Ra – Piano
Rollo Radford – Bass
Leroy Taylor – Bass Clarinet, Alto Sax
Danny Thompson – Alto Sax, Baritone Sax
June Tyson – Vocals
Ronald Wilson – Tenor Sax
The Dirty Dozen Brass Band
Gregory Davis – Trumpet
Kevin Harris – Tenor Sax
Charles Joseph – Trombone
Kirk Joseph – Sousaphone
Benny Jones Jr. – Bass Drum
Roger Lewis – Baritone Sax, Soprano Sax
Jenell Marshall – Snare Drum
Ephram Powns – Trumpet
Recorded at Quad Tech Studios, Los Angeles; Sea Saint Studio, New Orleans; Variety Studio, New York City
Dedicated to "The Big Man" Joe Turner
Indebted to Sun Ra, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Cab Calloway, Henry Townsend, Bing Crosby, and Peetie Wheatstraw
Special thanks to Lee Allen, Danny Thomson, June Tyson, Glen Howard, Steve La Vere, and Christina King
Soulful guitar interplay form the heart of this lovely Americana collaboration from Dave Alvin and Jimmie Dale Gilmore. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 2, 2018
The slashing roots rock on “Out On the Line” always makes its way to the kind of triumphant chorus that quickens the pulse. Bandcamp New & Notable Apr 2, 2023
