If you can play a DVDA I highly recommend "Producer's Cut", produced and arranged by Brian Ahern, her former husband. (Actually you can also play this disc on a DVDV player). It includes all her best songs over many years. The final cut "Old Rugged Cross" is a duet with Johnny Cash, an informal recording that Ahern dug out of a closet somewhere, and which was never before issued. It is haunting. Included on this disc is a video interview with Ahern where he discusses in technical detail how and why the remix for multichannel was done. |
One of these Days, what a group she had huh? |
Eldartford, You must have a different "Producer's Cut" than I have. It is one of the most disappointing discs I have ever purchased--both for song selection and recording quality. I am a big fan of Emmylou but I cannot stand to listen to that disc. |
Her version of "Amazing Grace" still gives me chills. |
That's "Boulder to Birmingham" (CO to AL):
I would walk all the way
From Boulder to Birmingham
If I thought I could see,
I could see your face.
and it's my fave too. |
It's impossible to pick a favorite cut but I've always thought she had a particular genius for fitting perfectly into the music of others without ever becoming a 'background' singer. Her "Duets" album is an amazing showcase of that talent.
I'm particularly fond of "Love Hurts" with Gram Parsons, "That Lovin' You Feelin' Again" with Roy Orbison, "We Believe in Happy Endings" with Earl Thomas Conley and, best of all, "Gulf Coast Highway" with Willie Nelson.
She even does a commendable job of making John Denver sound pretty good on "Wild Montana Skies" but I'll have to admit I made a copy of the CD with that one deleted.
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The duets is pretty good, she is very good interpreting Townes Van Zandt for example her duet of "If I needed You". Also a lesser known but very good duet is her with Sarah McLachlan doing "Angel" on one of the Lillith Fair discs. |
Don_s, I was just about to order the DVDA version of "Producer's Cut," but you took the wind out of my sails. Any others on this? |
Oh yeah her duets with Gram bring tears and shivers==esp Love Hurts. But lately my fave cut is Bang the Drum Slowly about burying her father in Arlington Cemetery as I did in 2000. Her version of Neil Young's Wrecking Ball is incredible also, if you have anything to regret. I really love the whole album REd Dirt Girl, for recent stuff. Old stuff, Leavin' Louisiana in the Broad Daylight brings back the college memories. |
Icy Blue Heart, on the songs of John Hiatt disc |
Don't have a favororite as I like lots of her stuff, but I often listen to Gram Parsons "Grievous Angel" album on which she performs. |
Dekay- good to see your name!! You have good taste (ELH, GP)! |
No favorites, but check her backup/duet work on Guy Clark's albums. I really like her solo work but some of her best work is as a backup singer. |
Haven't heard enough to say I know her work as well as some here, but I particularly like "Deeper Well" from Wrecking Ball, and the title cut from Red Dirt Girl. She sings with one of my all-time favorites, Patty Griffin, on Patty's new album, "Children Running Through" - that cut is titled "Trapeze". Just saw Patty in concert - fantastic as always! Three standing ovations (she came out and played for all three). I've heard a few duets with Dolly Parton and Emmy Lou Harris that I've enjoyed very much, but can't recall those titles. Those two also have a trio's album with Linda Rhondstadt, but I'm not a fan of the latter.
Marco |
I do own the Duetes; I just put in my player and all I get is "no disc"---The cd looks brand new but it has this black banding ring on the outer edge. There is a tiny silver band on the very outer edge/then the black ring and that maybe what makes it hard for my player to read?? I know it played fine on my older Data3. Is this a Reprise thing ??
Just popped in Dylan's Desire-- Guess whom sings backup??
I have seen her 4xs. Twice at the Palomino,once at the Roxy (second row/center)and once at the Greek or was that H-Bowl? Dolly came up on stage from the audience---'should have heard the cat calls. I was maybe 20 yards away.
Tobias, thanks for the clarification. |
I gotta go with "poncho and lefty" she lens so much emotion to her version. Just watched here an Knopfler last night on Soundstage. Great performance. |
Her harmonies on "Desire" are superb. |
Don_s...Do you have the DVDA version, and played back on a good MC system? I can't understand your criticism of the song selection as it includes many of her most popular cuts. Since you can't stand to listen to the disc, why don't you send it off to Warrenh? Seriously. |
Don_s, give me the go and I'll email you my address, and take that baby off your hands. Make me an offer I cannot refuse... :)
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Couple of my favorites are Lucinda William's "Sweet Old World" from Wrecking Ball and Everly Bros.' "So Sad (To Watch Good Love Go Bad)" from Last Date. She sure feels Lucinda's pain on "Sweet Old World"--what a great interpretation.
I haven't listened to Red Dirt Girl (or anything newer than that that might feature her own songs), but when I think of Emmylou, I think, thank God for terrific singers who know terrific songs when they see'em and can bring them to life in their own way. One of the "values" that emerged from the rock era that I think is not so valid, especially when applied to other genres, is that a performer isn't a first class artist if they don't come up with their own music. Artists like EH don't need to write and perform their own stuff to elevate their artistic standing. (But this is not a comment on EH's own stuff one way or the other.) |
I like many of Emmylou's cuts but "Millworker" has always stopped me in my tracks.
Saw her at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia this year and she was great although she didn't do "Millworker." |
Speaking of writing music, the song on her solo "Stumble into Grace" cd titled "Strong Hand" is quite remarkable as a piece of writing and as a performance. One of my current favs. And there's lots of good stuff on Trio and Trio 2. The Western Wall with ELH and LR as a duo is not nearly as good. |
Emmylow has always done some of my favorite songs with another grest artist, Steve Earle. Her song on 'Brother Where art Thou ' is also very good. Favorite album Red Dirt Girl. |
I love em all but I am really taken by her recent album with Mark Knopfler, All The Roadrunning. Just a great collection of tunes, wonderfully arranged, great production. The interplay between the two of them is terrific - try the title track, or my favorites This Is Us and If This Is Goodby.
It feels like they are soulmates - one can only wonder at what the back story might be.
BTW the live CD/DVD is enjoyable (I have always found her easy to look at) but not up to the studio album IMHO |
The back story, IIRC, is that they are an "item" and have been for some years. |
ahh swampwalker - do tell more |
You got to check out EmmyLou singing Amazing Grace with Ladysmith Black Mambazo on their Long Walk To Freedom album. Chilling - and a wonderful recording. |
That's all I know, but thanks for the tip on ELH and LBM. Hard to imagine a female voice with them but Amazing Grace is perfect acapella music. |
One of the most effective 2-channel LPs played back in a matrix multichannel setup is Judy Collins, Amazing Grace. She sings in a church, with lots of good ambience, and then the congregation joins in all around and behind you. Spooky. At the end, as the ambience dies away, you can hear people putting their hymn books away in the pews behind you. I bought the CD, and was greatly disappointed. They minimized the ambience, and the hymn book noises were completely cut off. |
