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Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of…
''Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of...'' is American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird's eighth solo studio album. It was released on June 3, 2014 through Wegawam Music Co. The album is a collection of covers of The Handsome Family, an American band Bird knows personally and professionally, having toured and collaborated. Previous covers of their songs include an earlier version of "Don't Be Scared," on ''Weather Systems'', "Giant of Illinois" off the compilation album '' Dark Was the Night'', "When the Helicopter Comes," from '' Hands of Glory'', and "Tin Foiled," on '' Fingerlings 3''. Bird toured with the husband-and-wife duo in 2013. Reception The album received a Metacritic score of 76 based on 12 reviews, indicating generally favorable reviews. The album debuted at No. 12 on ''Billboards Folk Albums chart, selling around 2,000 copies in the first week. It has sold 13,000 copies in the US as of March 2016. Track listing Charts Personnel * Andrew Bird - violin, vocals ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Andrew Bird
Andrew Wegman Bird (born July 11, 1973) is an American indie rock multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. Since 1996, he has released 16 studio albums, as well as several live albums and EPs, spanning various genres including swing music, indie rock, and folk music. He is primarily known for his unique style of violin playing, accompanied by loop and effect pedals, whistling, and voice. In the 1990s, he sang and played violin in several jazz ensembles, including Squirrel Nut Zippers and Kevin O'Donnell's Quality Six. He went on to start his own swing ensemble, Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire, which released three albums between 1998 and 2001. ''Weather Systems'' (2003) was his first solo album after Bowl of Fire disbandment, and it marked a departure from jazz music into indie music. Bird's 2019 album ''My Finest Work Yet'' was nominated for "Best Folk Album" at the 2020 Grammy Awards. Beyond his own record releases, he has collaborated with various artists, including The Ha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Weather Systems (Andrew Bird Album)
''Weather Systems'', released in 2003, is Andrew Bird's second solo album and his first after disbanding Bowl of Fire. Bird has said that the album was simply a side project during his four or five year recording of ''Andrew Bird & the Mysterious Production of Eggs''. At least two of the songs on the album suggest this fact: "I" is a slower, more dreary version of ''Armchair Apocrypha'' "Imitosis," and "Skin" is a similarly slow, instrumental version of ''The Mysterious Production of Eggs'' "Skin is, My." The disk features an eight-minute film by Bob Trondson about Bird and the recording of the album. The cover art was done by Jay Ryan. The first track, "First Song," borrows its title and most of its lyrics from a poem in Galway Kinnell's book, ''What a Kingdom It Was'', published in 1960. The penultimate song, "Don't Be Scared," is Bird's version of a song written and performed originally by The Handsome Family. Track listing Other appearances * The track "I" is an early ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tift Merritt
Tift may refer to: Places * Tift County, Georgia, a county in south-central Georgia, United States People with the given name * Tift Merritt (born 1975), American singer-songwriter People with the surname * Andrew Tift (born 1968), British portraitist *Asa Tift ( 19th century), American salvager *Nelson Tift (1810-1891), American jurist, businessman, sailor and politician *Ray Tift (1884-1945), American baseball player See also * Tift County School District * Tift County High School *Tift College Tift College was a private liberal arts women's college located in Forsyth, Georgia. Founded in 1849, the college ceased operations in 1987, after being merged with Mercer University in nearby Macon, Georgia. The campus facilities have been a ... * Tift County Courthouse {{disambiguation, geo, given name, surname ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Singing Bones
''Singing Bones'' is the sixth studio album released by The Handsome Family. It was released in 2003 by Carrot Top Records (North America) / Loose Music (Europe). It includes a cover of the folk song " Dry Bones," known from Bascom Lamar Lunsford's 1928 version on Harry Smith's ''Anthology of American Folk Music''. In 2014, the album received a resurgence of interest when the song "Far from Any Road" was used as the theme song for the first season of HBO's crime drama ''True Detective''. Reception The album was well received by critics: according to Metacritic, the album has received an average review score of 85/100, based on 8 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim." "Far from Any Road" Besides its appearance in ''True Detective'', "Far from Any Road" was also used as an opening song for ''Guns N' Roses 2014 world tour, and during the ending credits of the 2015 ''The Simpsons'' episode "Cue Detective." "Far from Any Road" also charted on SNEP, the official French singles ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wilderness (The Handsome Family Album)
''Wilderness'' is the ninth studio album by The Handsome Family. It was released in May 2013 by Carrot Top Records. ''Wilderness'' is an often surreal concept album about nature, with each song named after an animal. The album was released both as a single album and a box-set version that included a companion book of essays and art by Rennie Sparks. Reception The album was well received by critics: according to Metacritic, the album has received an average review score of 76/100, based on 9 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews." James Monger of AllMusic noted the album's Kafkaesque, dreamlike quality, praising the "remarkably affecting" song "Wildebeest," about the death of 19th-century songwriter Stephen Foster. A.V. Club reviewer Christopher Bahn described ''Wilderness'' as "one of the strongest, most cohesive albums of their career", calling it "rootsy, literary country-rock that’s a little like a collaboration between Hank Williams and Edgar Allan Poe." He par ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Down In The Valley (album)
''Down in the Valley'' is an Ireland-only compilation of songs by The Handsome Family. It was released 1999 by Independent Records. The subtitle of the compilation runs: "A treasury of their most willowy and haunted songs." The compilation contains tracks from '' Odessa'' (1994) (tracks 10 & 13), '' Milk and Scissors'' (1996) (tracks 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 14), and '' Through the Trees'' (1998) (tracks 2, 4, 6, 11, 12). Track listing #"Tin Foil" – 2:41 #"My Sister's Tiny Hands" – 3:28 #"Lake Geneva" – 3:14 #"Weightless Again" – 3:39 #"#1 Country Song" – 3:37 #"The Giant Of Illinois" – 3:06 #"Drunk By Noon" – 2:51 #"Don't be Scared" – 2:50 (a different version appears on ''In the Air IN, In or in may refer to: Places * India (country code IN) * Indiana, United States (postal code IN) * Ingolstadt, Germany (license plate code IN) * In, Russia, a town in the Jewish Autonomous Oblast Businesses and organizations * Independ ...'') #"The House Carpenter" – 3:38 #"Arle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
In The Air (The Handsome Family Album)
''In The Air'' is the fifth album released by American band The Handsome Family. It was released in 2000 by Carrot Top Records (North America) / Loose Music (Europe) and comes as an enhanced audio CD with an additional video for the song "Amelia Earhart vs. The Dancing Bear," from '' Milk and Scissors'' (directed by Bill Ward). Los Angeles Times critic Randall Roberts praised the "tender urgency" and "morbid wit" of the song "So Much Wine”, calling it "a little pearl of destruction" and "the perfect introduction to the Family’s world." Track listing All music by Brett Sparks, all lyrics by Rennie Sparks. # "Don't Be Scared" – 2:39 # "The Sad Milkman" – 3:40 # "In The Air" – 3:30 # "A Beautiful Thing" – 3:39 # "So Much Wine" – 3:48 # "Up Falling Rock Hill" – 2:57 # "Poor, Poor Lenore" – 3:41 # "When That Helicopter Comes" – 2:32 # "Grandmother Waits For You" (inspired by "Where We'll Never Grow Old" as performed by The Smith Sacred Singers) – 3:50 # "Lie D ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Through The Trees
''Through the Trees'' is the third full-length album released by The Handsome Family, released in 1998 on Carrot Top Records/Loose Music. The album has received significant critical praise, and is considered one of the band's best works. Recording ''Through the Trees'' was written in the aftermath of Brett Sparks' mid-1990s hospitalization and diagnosis of bipolar disorder.Layne, Joslyn " The Handsome Family Biography, ''Allmusic'', Macrovision Corporation The closing song, "My Ghost", was inspired by Brett's experiences in the psychiatric unit. The album was recorded in a makeshift warehouse loft space in a run-down part of Chicago, using equipment lent to the band by Wilco's Jeff Tweedy, who was a friend and fan of their work. They had met each other through Tweedy's wife Sue Miller, owner of the Chicago club Lounge Ax. Rennie Sparks later told Folk Radio UK in an interview: "Jeff offered to let us borrow a bunch of gear he had but wasn’t using (an ADAT, a Mackie mixer, Lex ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Milk And Scissors
''Milk and Scissors'' is the second album by American band The Handsome Family. It was released 1996 by Carrot Top Records, and by Scout Releases in the same year. Production The production of the album was interrupted by Brett's brief stay in a mental hospital. Critical reception The ''Chicago Tribune'' called ''Milk and Scissors'' "one of the finest albums of 1996." The ''Chicago Reader'' called it "wonderfully depressing." Track listing All music by Brett Sparks and all lyrics by Rennie Sparks, except as noted # "Lake Geneva" – 3:11 # "Winnebago Skeletons" – 4:13 # "Drunk By Noon" – 2:51 # "The House Carpenter" (traditional, arranged by The Handsome Family, inspired by Clarence Ashley's 1930 recording) – 3:36 # "The Dutch Boy" – 3:51 # "The King Who Wouldn't Smile" – 2:35 # "Emily Shore 1819-1839" – 4:34 # "3-Legged Dog" (Darrell Sparks)– 4:34 # "#1 Country Song" (Brett Sparks) – 3:35 # "Amelia Earhart vs. The Dancing Bear" - 3:13 # "Tin Foil" - 2:41 # "Pud ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Invisible Hands (EP)
''Invisible Hands'' is an EP by the Handsome Family. It was released 1997 as a limited Germany only, vinyl only release by Scout Releases. Only 1000 copies were pressed. The release contains an A4 lyrics sheet which states that "The House Carpenter" is a traditional, arranged by Brett Sparks. However "The House Carpenter" didn't make the record. Track listing All music, Brett Sparks; all lyrics, Rennie Sparks, except "Barbara Allen" (traditional, arranged by Brett Sparks)cf. Brett & Rennie Sparks (1997): Credits. In ''Invisible Hands'' inyl inlay Aachen: Scout Releases. ; Side A #"Tin Foil" #*from previous album ''Milk and Scissors'' #"Grandmother Waits For You" #*early version of the track, a new version was recorded for ''In the Air'' #"Bury Me Here" #*early version of the track, a new version was recorded for ''Through the Trees'' ;Side B #"Birds You Cannot See" #*early version of the track, a new version was recorded for ''Twilight'' #"Barbara Allen" #*this track is exclusive ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fingerlings 3
''Fingerlings 3'' is the third in Andrew Bird’s series of live albums called Fingerlings. Unlike the previous ''Fingerlings'', ''Fingerlings 3'' contains songs not recorded live in front of an audience; "Dear Dirty" is a studio track and "The Water Jet Cilice" and "Ethiobirds" were recorded live (solo) at Andrew’s home studio in a barn in rural western Illinois. Tracks "Dark Matter" and “Scythian Empire" are live recordings of songs that were later included on Bird's 2007 album ''Armchair Apocrypha ''Armchair Apocrypha'' is American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird's fourth studio album and his third post-Bowl of Fire album. The album features more electric guitars, a change from the more acoustic-oriented ''Eggs'', though the songs are simila ...''. Track listing References * {{Authority control Andrew Bird albums 2006 live albums ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
