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Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions
Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions is a 2012 box set of albums by Billy Bragg & Wilco, all of which feature songs consisting of previously unheard lyrics written by American folk singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie set to newly created music. It was released by Nonesuch Records on Record Store Day to commemorate Guthrie's 100th birthday.
| Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Box set by Billy Bragg and Wilco | ||||
| Released | April 21, 2012 | |||
| Recorded | 1997–1998 | |||
| Studio | Boston, Chicago, and Dublin | |||
| Language | English | |||
| Label | Nonesuch | |||
| Producer | Wilco, Billy Bragg, Grant Showbiz | |||
| Billy Bragg chronology | ||||
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| Wilco chronology | ||||
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| Billy Bragg & Wilco chronology | ||||
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The set contains all of the tracks from the previously released Mermaid Avenue (1998) and Mermaid Avenue Vol. II (2000), as well as a third disc of outtakes from the original album sessions in 1997 and 1998. A DVD containing the documentary Man in the Sand (1999), which is about the "Mermaid Avenue" project, is included as a fourth disc.
Reception edit
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (April 2012) |
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | [1] |
| American Songwriter | [2] |
| The A.V. Club | A−[3] |
| Consequence of Sound | [4] |
| Drowned in Sound | 9/10[5] |
| The Phoenix | [6] |
| Pitchfork Media | 8.1/10[7] |
| PopMatters | [8] |
| Rolling Stone | [9] |
| Uncut | 7/10[10] |
On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the set has an average score of 85 based on 12 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim".[11] The A.V. Club gave it an A−.[3]
Track listing edit
All lyrics are written by Woody Guthrie, except those of "When the Roses Bloom Again" (see note)
| No. | Title | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Walt Whitman's Niece" (Words: 1946; Music: 1997) | Billy Bragg | 3:53 |
| 2. | "California Stars" (Music: 1997) | Jay Bennett/Jeff Tweedy | 4:57 |
| 3. | "Way Over Yonder in the Minor Key" (Words: 1946; Music: 1997) | Bragg | 4:06 |
| 4. | "Birds and Ships" (Music: 1997) | Bragg | 2:13 |
| 5. | "Hoodoo Voodoo" | Wilco(Tweedy/Bennett/John Stirratt/Ken Coomer)/Bragg/Corey Harris | 3:12 |
| 6. | "She Came Along to Me" (Words: 1942; Music: 1998) | Bragg/Tweedy/Bennett | 3:26 |
| 7. | "At My Window Sad and Lonely" (Words: 1939; Music: 1997) | Tweedy | 3:27 |
| 8. | "Ingrid Bergman" (Words: 1950; Music: 1996) | Bragg | 1:50 |
| 9. | "Christ for President" (Music: 1997) | Tweedy/Bennett | 2:39 |
| 10. | "I Guess I Planted" (Music: 1997) | Bragg | 3:32 |
| 11. | "One by One" (Words: 1939; Music: 1997) | Tweedy | 3:22 |
| 12. | "Eisler on the Go" (Music: 1997) | Bragg | 2:56 |
| 13. | "Hesitating Beauty" (Words: 1949; Music: 1997) | Tweedy | 3:04 |
| 14. | "Another Man's Done Gone" (Music: 1998) | Bragg | 1:34 |
| 15. | "The Unwelcome Guest" (Words: 1940; Music: 1996) | Bragg | 5:09 |
| No. | Title | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Airline to Heaven" (Words: 1939; Music: 1997) | Jay Bennett/Jeff Tweedy | 4:50 |
| 2. | "My Flying Saucer" (Words: 1950; Music: 1995) | Billy Bragg | 1:45 |
| 3. | "Feed of Man" (Music: 1998) | Tweedy | 4:08 |
| 4. | "Hot Rod Hotel" (Words: 1949; Music: 1996) | Bragg | 3:17 |
| 5. | "I Was Born" (Words: 1950; Music: 1996) | Bragg | 1:50 |
| 6. | "Secret of the Sea" (Words: 1939; Music: 1999) | Bennett/Tweedy | 2:42 |
| 7. | "Stetson Kennedy" (Words: 1950; Music: 1997) | Bragg | 2:39 |
| 8. | "Remember the Mountain Bed" (Words: 1944; Music: 1999) | Tweedy/Bennett | 6:26 |
| 9. | "Blood of the Lamb" (Words: 1955; Music: 1997) | Bennett/Tweedy | 4:16 |
| 10. | "Aginst th' Law" (Words: 1947; Music: 1995) | Bragg | 3:03 |
| 11. | "All You Fascists" (Words: 1942; Music: 1997) | Bragg | 2:43 |
| 12. | "Joe DiMaggio Done It Again" (Words: 1949; Music: 1995) | Bragg | 2:31 |
| 13. | "Meanest Man" (Words: 1945; Music: 1997) | Bragg | 3:46 |
| 14. | "Black Wind Blowing" (Music: 1997) | Bragg | 3:00 |
| 15. | "Someday Some Morning Sometime" (Words: 1948; Music: 2000) | Tweedy | 2:53 |
| No. | Title | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Bugeye Jim" (Lyrics: 1946) | Billy Bragg | 3:18 |
| 2. | "When the Roses Bloom Again" (This song was published in 1901 as "I'll Be With You When the Roses Bloom Again", credited to Gus Edwards (composer) and Will D. Cobb (lyricist). The version contained on this album has altered lyrics and a new melody,[12] with only Cobb and Tweedy receiving writing credit.) | Jeff Tweedy | 4:11 |
| 3. | "Gotta Work" (Lyrics: 1949) | Corey Harris | 2:16 |
| 4. | "My Thirty Thousand" (Lyrics: 1949) | Bragg | 2:40 |
| 5. | "Ought to Be Satisfied Now" (Lyrics: 1939) | Bragg | 3:34 |
| 6. | "Listening to the Wind That Blows" (Lyrics: 1939) | Tweedy | 5:07 |
| 7. | "Go Down to the Water" (Lyrics: 1945) | Bragg | 4:36 |
| 8. | "Chain of Broken Hearts" (Lyrics: 1939) | Tweedy | 3:31 |
| 9. | "Jailcell Blues" (Lyrics: 1953) | Bragg | 2:28 |
| 10. | "Don't You Marry" | Bragg | 3:18 |
| 11. | "Give Me a Nail" (Lyrics: 1943) | Bragg | 1:42 |
| 12. | "The Jolly Banker" | Guthrie | 3:31 |
| 13. | "Union Prayer" (Lyrics: 1949) | Bragg | 4:12 |
| 14. | "Be Kind to the Boy on the Road" | Bragg | 3:46 |
| 15. | "Ain'ta Gonna Grieve" | Tweedy/Jay Bennett | 4:52 |
| 16. | "Tea Bag Blues" | Harris | 4:03 |
| 17. | "I'm Out to Get" (Lyrics: 1946) | Bragg | 3:58 |
Disc 4: Man in the Sand (DVD)
Personnel edit
- Billy Bragg – guitar, vocals
- Jay Bennett – organ, bouzouki, clavinet, piano, drums, background vocals
- Ken Coomer – percussion, drums
- John Stirratt – piano, bass, background vocals
- Jeff Tweedy – guitar, harmonica, vocals
- Additional musicians
- Eliza Carthy – violin
- Bob Egan – slide guitar
- Corey Harris – vocals, guitar, lap steel guitar
- Ben Ivitsky – viola
- Natalie Merchant – vocals
- Peter Yanowitz – drums
See also edit
- Mermaid Avenue (1998)
- Man in the Sand (1999)
- Mermaid Avenue Vol. II (2000)
- Wonder Wheel (2006)
- Woody Guthrie's Happy Joyous Hanukkah (2006)
- The Works (Jonatha Brooke album) (2008)
- New Multitudes (2012)
References edit
- ^ Allmusic link
- ^ Beviglia, Jim (19 April 2012). "Billy Bragg & Wilco: Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions". American Songwriter. Retrieved 5 June 2013.
- ^ a b Hyden, Steven (17 April 2012). "Billy Bragg and Wilco: Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions | Music | Music Review | The A.V. Club". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- ^ Gerber, Justin (27 April 2012). "Album Review: Billy Bragg & Wilco – Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 5 June 2013.
- ^ Lucas, Dan (23 April 2013). . Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 23 September 2013. Retrieved 5 June 2013.
- ^ Lundy, Zeth (1 May 2012). "Billy Bragg + Wilco: Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions". The Phoenix. Retrieved 5 June 2013.
- ^ Deusner, Stephen M. (27 April 2012). "Billy Bragg / Wilco: Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 5 June 2013.
- ^ Franco, Michael (27 April 2012). "Billy Bragg and Wilco: Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions". PopMatters. Retrieved 5 June 2013.
- ^ Hermes, Will (24 April 2012). "Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 5 June 2013.
- ^ McKay, Alistair (2012). "Billy Bragg & Wilco – Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions". Uncut. Retrieved 5 June 2013.
- ^ "Critic Reviews for Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions". Metacritic. Retrieved on 2012-09-20.
- ^ "I'll Be With You When The Roses Bloom Again". UMaine.edu. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
External links edit
- Press release from Nonesuch Records
- Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions at Metacritic