Tom House (born 1949 in

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...

) is an American singer-songwriter and poet whose music combines elements of country, singer-songwriter, and folk.

Biography

House wrote hundreds of poems during the two decades before 1997. Of these, three had been included in ''The Bicentennial Edition of the Tennessee Anthology of Poetry''. From 1982 to 1988, he edited and published the journal ''raw bone'', which was known for publishing spare, brutal writing. House's first recording to be released was "The Hank Williams Memorial Myth", a spoken-word intro to the 1996 compilation album ''Nashville: The Other Side Of The Alley''. In 1997, he released his debut album, ''The Neighborhood Is Changing'', on Checkered Past Records. The album featured multiple members of Lambchop. As of 2012, he had released a total of 13 albums.

Critical reception

Greil Marcus wrote in ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...

'' that House's 1998 album ''This White Man's Burden'' was "an extraordinary collection of warnings and threats, and it sounds as if it came right out of the ground." He later named the album his 6th favorite of 1998.

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...

, however, was less favorable in his review of the album, awarding it a "neither" rating, indicating that it "may impress once or twice with consistent craft or an arresting track or two. Then it won't." Jim Caligiuri of the '' Austin Chronicle'' wrote that House's third album, ''Til You've Seen Mine'', was "easily his most accomplished" and gave it 3 out of 4 stars. Erik Hage of '' No Depression'' wrote that on House's 2004 album ''That Dark Calling'', "House is still very much his own man, but there's a levity to his approach here that suggests the singer is perhaps more concerned with healing than drumming up haints and spooks." Andy Whitman of '' Paste'' wrote that on the album, "House is a fine songwriter with a great eye for detail, but his dour sensibilities become oppressive after a while."

Discography

*''The Neighborhood Is Changing'' ( Checkered Past, 1997) *''This White Man's Burden'' (Checkered Past, 1998) *''Til You've Seen Mine'' (Munich, 1999) *''Jesus Doesn't Live Here Anymore'' ( Catamount, 2001) *''Long Time Home From Here'' (Catamount, 2003) *''That Dark Calling'' (Catamount, 2004) *''The Last Desperate Man'' (Catamount, 2008) *''Burning With the Message'' (self-released, 2008) *''Winding Down the Road'' (Mud, 2012)

Appearances

*''Nashville: The Other Side Of The Alley'' ( Bloodshot, 1996)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:House, Tom Living people 1949 births Musicians from Durham, North Carolina Musicians from Nashville, Tennessee American folk singers American country singer-songwriters Country musicians from Tennessee Country musicians from North Carolina Singer-songwriters from Tennessee Singer-songwriters from North Carolina