JP HARRiS' DREADFUL WiND & RAiN - DON'T YOU MARRY NO RAiLROAD MAN

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

June 17, 2021

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

Reviewing JP Harris' second full-length LP, Home Is Where the Hurt Is, I praised it as as unpretentious and unadorned as your favorite plaid shirt. With three records of originals and two EPs of classic country duets, the Tennessee carpenter has left little doubt about his restless authenticity. His originals strike as truly as favorites from a truckstop cassette, and his covers honor the songwriters with faithful tribute. Most recently, JP Harris' 2018 Sometimes Dogs Bark At Nothing (his first project for the Free Dirt label) presented a wide-ranging survey of country music, with nods to early classics, 70s country-soul and harder-edged outlaw numbers. With Don't You Marry No Railroad Man, the songwriter reels back in his influences, returning to his early days as an interpreter of old-timey and folk music. 

JP Harris is joined by Chance McCoy throughout this new project. Both forged a similar path to Railroad Man, an early commitment to the punk community that brought them eventually to the doorstep of folk and a subsequent success in roots music more widely defined. McCoy was invited to join Old Crow Medicine Show during their very successful middle period. A multi-instrumentalist songwriter, he contributes fiddle, companion vocals and overall production to Harris' collection. 

Few of these trad songs will be recognizable to the average listener, though there are few real obscurities. Probably most familiar will be the Scottish "Barbry Ellen". Harris doesn't extrapolate or update these songs, but presents them simply, played on his banjo and McCoy's fiddle, with both typically contributing to the vocal mix. The spartan set-up makes songs like the British "House Carpenter" all the more impressive for their fullness. By contrast, "Little Carpenter" sets Harris' solo vocal to McCoy's haunting fiddle drone. 

On his solo records, JP Harris' low-slung vocal delivery has proven perfect for his honky-tonk originals or for his truck driving country numbers. In that setting there's a raw but reliable quality that commands attention even in a full band setting. The revelation on Railroad Man is how aptly Harris' voice translates to a more intimate folk arena. With its vocal play and solo banjo accompaniment, "Old Bangum" reveals unexpected nuances, also especially highlighted on Dock Boggs' terrific "Country Blues". Of course, there's a real darkness to many of these trad cuts, a quality Harris mines to great effect. Don't you marry no railroad man, he advises on "Mole In the Ground", A railroad man will kill you if he can / And drink of your blood like wine. 

As a rule, I have no patience for folk music in many of its guises, especially the trad stuff that treats its subject as precious and takes no risks. In a recent Facebook post, JP Harris showcased the work of a handful of contemporary folk artists, bulwarks like Allison Russell and Tre Burt that remind us that protest is one of the greatest manifestations of democracy, and song is one of the greatest forms of protest (in Harris' words). Elsewhere on his social media feed, he proves to be a thoughtful man, someone who struggles mightily with the demons of our nature and with the troubling history of our country. It's this very contemporary perspective that informs JP Harris' return to this music played by folks. It the spirit that motivated Woody Guthrie to sticker his guitar with This machine kills fascists, the strain of folk that rails against the establishment and pushes stubbornly against the status quo. JP Harris' Dreadful Wind & Rain won't be mistaken for an outtake from a forgotten Harry Smith session. There's too much of today in the songs, too much of the DIY punk ethos that both Harris and McCoy speak to. That said, it's a perfect time for these sessions that remind us of the living spirit that still beats at the heart of our kind of music. 

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Speaking of our kind of music, there was plenty of that added this week to A Routes & Branches Guide To Feeding Your Monster. One of the most anticipated releases of the year has finally been granted a street date. Set your watches for August 20, when James McMurtry finally lets go of The Horses and the Hounds (New West). September 10 is setting up to be one of the year's strongest dates for new material. Pokey LaFarge releases his second project of the year with In the Blossom of Their Shade (New West). And after flirting with some solo material, Erika Wennerstrom and Heartless Bastards will return with A Beautiful Life (Sweet Unknown). The following week, we can expect From Dreams to Dust from the Felice Brothers via the Yep Roc label. And, on October 1, Jeremy Pinnell will usher in the Fall by sharing Goodbye LA courtesy of Sofaburn Records. You can always find more by clicking on the link.