The Daily Deep Cut

The editors at JamsBio like to think of ourselves as music fans first, not critics, and that’s the sensibility we strive for at JamsBio and that we seek in other sites as well. That’s why we’re so jazzed about Damn Fine Day, a site that each day profiles a deep album cut that’s been overlooked, but deserves a place in everybody’s collection. In the name of spreading the gospel about great music, we present “The Daily Deep Cut,” where we add our two cents about the songs featured on Damn Fine Day. Once you read our unique take, we’ll send you over to Damn Fine Day so you can stream the full track and download it if you like. Sometimes we might even suggest another deep track from the same album or present some other novel twist on what their hawking.

What’s most striking to me about Rodney Crowell is how much of a mover and shaker he was in the country music scene during the mid-to-late 1970s right on through the 1980s. Born and bred in Houston, TX, much like Townes Van Zandt, Crowell moved to Nashville in 1972 and immediately befriended both Van Zandt and Guy Clark. Not a bad start for a 22 year old aspiring songwriter. From there, Crowell established himself as one of Nashville’s hottest young songwriting talents, penning hits for Jerry Reed, Roseanne Cash, the Oak Ridge Boys, Crystal Gayle, Bob Seger, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, and Emmylou Harris, who he also performed with as a guitarist in the Hot Band. But Crowell found time to make his mark as a singer as well, recording a breathtaking debut in 1978. Ain’t Living Long Like This stands as one country music’s most thrilling releases, a brilliant collection of well-chosen covers (“Elvira,” “A Fool Such as I”) and singular originals (“Leaving Louisiana in the Broad Daylight” “Song for the Life”) rendered with subtlety and range that belied Crowell’s young age.

Crowell was a restless soul, and for his second release, But What Will the Neighbors Think, he took things in a decidedly more pop direction. Co-produced with Craig Leon (the Ramones, Suicide, Blondie), it had an ’80s rock sheen slathered on top of Crowell’s country croon. But it was a sign of the times, a country-pop platter predating the rise of Garth Brooks, Shania Twain, and other platinum-selling Nashville cats. Today’s pick on a href=”http://www.damnfineday.com/” target=”_blank”>Damn Fine Day is a doozy – a killer cover of Guy Clark’s “Heartbroke.” As usual, Gary Moore provides a wonderful commentary about the song, so I suggest you hop on over and take it in as you listen to Crowell’s stellar interpretation. And then, when you have the time, track down some of Crowell’s other fine work, most notably Ain’t Living Long Like This, Diamonds & Dirt, and Roseanne Cash’s Seven Year Ache.

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