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The first time you hear Dan Bern, you may think he’s just some Bob Dylan knock-off. But don’t sell him short. Sure, he sounds a bit like Dylan. But Dan Bern is an original. His first (self-titled) album is one of my favorites. Not one of my favorites by Dan Bern. One of my favorites, period. Here’s one I like from that album. I especially like the chorus:Sometimes it seems like there’s so much that you need  Sometimes the world is upside down  Sometimes it seems like the only thing you need  Is holdin’ someone’s hand as you walk through town   Today’s Song  Title: Estelle  Artist: Dan Bern  Album: Dan Bern (1997)YouTube Link: youtu.be/-8yYpa2dlzc Here are the Playlists:   Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3xYKtYparrdJRYAjBj9kjx?si=eb6c3ebc30484204  Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/ware-house-concerts-song-of-the-day/pl.u-Ggz26cZlAVLj 

Conor Oberst is not the guy I turn to when I’m looking for a feel-good, lift-me-up kind of tune. He’s full of angst. But the songs are beautiful. The one today comes from his solo album, Ruminations (2016). The album is a gem. Stripped down acoustic songs, recorded in Oberst’s hometown, Omaha. A year later, he recorded new versions of the songs — with a full band — for a follow-up album, Salutations (2017). If you like today’s version of this song, check out Salutations and let me know which version you prefer. This is a sad song, full of despair. But, in the end, it’s full of longing and hope, too. Here it is… Today’s Song  Title: Barbary Coast (Later)  Artist: Conor Oberst  Album: Ruminations (2016) YouTube Link:  youtu.be/9T7GKl5DTd0 Lyrics There’s a dance hall thereWhere the sick folks goLike the olden daysOn the Barbary CoastThere’s a barefoot childPlaying in the rain  You can sell your waresEven if they’re hardIn the great bazaarOr the parking lot‘Cause it takes a whileTo know who to blame  I might have a taste‘Cause the first one’s freeAnd the checkout girlsGot a thing for meAnd they’re both as sweetAs the day is the long  I don’t wanna feel stuck, babyI just wanna get drunk before noon  I don’t mind my headWhen there’s room to dreamFeel like Paul GauguinPainting breadfruit treesIn some far off placeWhere I don’t belong  Tried to lose myselfIn the primitiveIn YosemiteLike John Muir didBut his eyes were blueAnd mine are red and raw  ‘Cause the modern worldIs a sight to seeIt’s a stimulantIt’s pornographyIt takes all my willNot to turn it off  I don’t want you to feel sad, babyI take everything back, I swear I do  ‘Cause once all the friends I hadHave used me up and leftI bet you hang aroundI bet you’ll hang around awhile Here are the Playlists:   Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3xYKtYparrdJRYAjBj9kjx?si=eb6c3ebc30484204  Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/ware-house-concerts-song-of-the-day/pl.u-Ggz26cZlAVLj

In yesterday’s email (Neil Young’s “Don’t Be Denied”), I mentioned guitarist Danny Whitten. He was a founding member of Crazy Horse. Most know that band for backing Young on several albums and tours. But Crazy Horse also made its mark without Young. Their debut album “Crazy Horse” is a great one — especially the songs Whitten wrote. Here’s one… Today’s Song  Title: I Don’t Want to Talk About It  Artist: Crazy Horse  Album: Crazy Horse (1971)  YouTube Link: youtu.be/NBz_2EqJ5wI Here are the Playlists:   Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3xYKtYparrdJRYAjBj9kjx?si=eb6c3ebc30484204  Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/ware-house-concerts-song-of-the-day/pl.u-Ggz26cZlAVLj 

Happy Birthday, Neil Young (76). In 1973, one year after he released Harvest, Young embarked on a 60(+) date tour with a new backing band, The Stray Gators.  The shows began with an acoustic set full of familiar material from Harvest and other well-loved albums. But Young was already tired of rehashing his hits. So he loaded the second set with previously unreleased material, performed with a heavy, electric edge. He must have known he was traveling the same path as Bob Dylan. In 1966, Dylan opened shows with a solo-acoustic set full of his well-loved tunes. A second set with his new backing band, “The Band,” rocked the house and horrified the purists. Audiences did not react kindly. But critics look at that tour as monumental. Arguably the invention of folk ROCK. Young’s 1973 tour was ill-fated from the start. While rehearsing for the tour, Young sent home guitarist Danny Whitten because he was strung out and in no condition to work. Soon after, Whitten died of an overdose. He was one of several lost friends who inspired Young to write “The Needle and the Damage Done.” Young and his bandmates feuded throughout the tour (over money and more). And, of course, audiences reacted unkindly to the unknown, electric material that Young dished out each night. Young later described that tour as a train wreck. Time Fades Away has eight tracks — seven of which were recorded on that tour. Young hated the album. He called it his worst. The LP went out of print. And Young refused to release it on CD until 2017. Now you can hear it on the streaming services. I love this album. At the moment he created that music, “fans” and critics dismissed it as an electric wart on Young’s beautiful body of work. But listen to it today, and you hear Neal Young in all his ragged glory. I like every track on this album. Here’s the one I like best… Today’s Song  Title: Don’t Be Denied  Artist: Neil Young  Album: Time Fades Away (1973)  YouTube Link:  youtu.be/HdEX8oBRJAY Lyrics When I was a young boy  My mama said to me  Your daddy’s leavin’ home today  I think he’s gone to stay  We packed up all our bags  And drove out to Winnipeg  When…

It’s Veteran’s Day.  15 years ago, Darden Smith played a concert at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center near Ramstein Air Base in Germany.  He assumed he’d have nothing in common with his audience. He’d never spoken to a man in uniform.  But backstage, he struck up a conversation with a Marine. And they discovered they had friends in common.  They talked for two hours, and that conversation inspired Smith to co-write a song called “Angel Flight.”  The title refers to the flight that carries a deceased soldier’s body home.  A few years after co-writing that song with Radney Foster, Smith founded SongwritingWith:Soldiers in 2012.  From the SWS website: “SongwritingWith:Soldiers holds weekend retreats across the U.S. for veterans from all conflicts. Since 2012, we have connected with hundreds of veterans and military families, creating a safe and inspiring environment to share their experiences and write songs with professional songwriters. These songs have been recorded and streamed across the internet, reaching and connecting more veterans and raising civilian awareness of the challenges the military community faces.”  Mary Gauthier is one of the songwriting pros who regularly attends the SWS retreats. Her album “Rifles and Rosary Beads” (2018) is a collection of songs she cowrote with soldiers (and, in some cases, their spouses). The soldiers get songwriting credits and royalties. It’s a spectacular album.  Darden Smith’s song that started it all is… Today’s Song  Title: Angel Flight  Artist: Darden Smith  Album: Love Calling (2013)  YouTube Link: youtu.be/yQWWNhGF88k Lyrics All I ever wanted to do was fly  Leave this world and live in the sky  I left the C-130 out of Fort Worth town  I go up some days, I don’t wanna come down  I fly that plane, called the Angel Flight  Come on brother you’re with me tonight  Between heaven and earth, you’re never alone  On the Angel Flight, come on brother, I’m taking you home  I love my family and I love this land  But tonight this flight’s for another man  We do what we do because we hear the call  Some give a little, but he gave all  I fly that plane, called the Angel Flight  Come on brother you’re with me tonight  Between Heaven and earth you’re never alone  On the Angel Flight, come on brother, I’m taking you home  Come on brother,…

Alicia Stockman is a Utah-based singer-songwriter. I heard about her from Mary Bragg (who performed at the outdoor concert we hosted at Laumeier Sculpture Park in 2019). Stockman released her new album, “These Four Walls,” last week. Bragg produced the album and performs on it. Lots of great tracks. Here’s one… Today’s Song  Title: Lonely Together  Artist: Alicia Stockman  Album: These Four Walls (2021)  YouTube Link: youtu.be/SvqG0ROh2tU Here are the Playlists:   Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3xYKtYparrdJRYAjBj9kjx?si=eb6c3ebc30484204  Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/ware-house-concerts-song-of-the-day/pl.u-Ggz26cZlAVLj 

Yesterday, I shared John Hartford’s “In Tall Buildings.” I think Brian Wright was thinking about Hartford’s tune when he wrote the song I’m sharing today. Today’s song comes from Wright’s great 2020 release Lapse of Luxury.  I already shared another track from that album called “Patrick’s Crossing” See:warehouseconcerts.org/brian-wright-the-sneak-ups-patricks-crossing/ Hartford’s tall-building song is old-timey, folky — firmly rooted in the 20th century. Wright’s is different. Electric. Modern. Rocking. I like them both. Enjoy… Today’s Song  Title: High Rise  Artist: Brian Wright and the SneakUps  Album: Lapse of Luxury (2020)  YouTube Link: youtu.be/I0Gm7nh9dk4 Here are the Playlists:   Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3xYKtYparrdJRYAjBj9kjx?si=eb6c3ebc30484204  Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/ware-house-concerts-song-of-the-day/pl.u-Ggz26cZlAVLj 

Thinking about Glen Campbell last week got me thinking about John Hartford. Hartford wrote “Gentle on My Mind.” Campbell made it famous. Hartford came from St. Louis. He went to a fancy private secondary school — the kind of place that breeds lawyers and doctors and business executives. There’s nothing wrong with that. It just wasn’t Hartford’s thing. He was the guy with the banjo slung over his shoulder, playing at hootenannies, forging a different path. I know some of this because my Dad told me. He and John were classmates. I have their 1956 yearbook, the year Dad and John “Harford” graduated. Chet Atkins later told John to add the “t” to his last name. I’m not sure what that accomplished. But the “t” stuck. John Hartford is remembered as an exceptional, multi-talented old-time musician who influenced progressive country music and the string music revival. And, for a while, he worked as a riverboat captain (I’m not kidding). So, of course, John Hartford never worked as a lawyer, doctor, or business executive. But he wrote a great song from the perspective of someone who did… Today’s Song  Title: In Tall Buildings  Artist: John Hartford  Album: Nobody Knows What You Do (1976)  YouTube Link: youtu.be/vWqG1ySAc4g Lyrics Someday my baby, when I am a man,  And others have taught me  The best that they can  They’ll sell me a suit  They’ll cut off my hair  And send me to work in tall buildings  So it’s goodbye to the sunshine  Goodbye to the dew  Goodbye to the flowers  And goodbye to you  I’m off to the subway  I must not be late  I’m going to work in tall buildings  When I’m retired  My life is my own  I made all the payments  It’s time to go home  And wonder what happened  Betwixt and between  When I went to work in tall buildings  So it’s goodbye to the sunshine  Goodbye to the dew  Goodbye to the flowers  And goodbye to you  I’m off to the subway  I must not be late  I’m going to work in tall buildings  So it’s goodbye to the sunshine  Goodbye to the dew  Goodbye to the flowers  And goodbye to you  I’m off to the subway  I must not be late  I’m going to work in tall buildings  Here are…

Yesterday’s Song of the Day was “Remembering,” — Ashley Campbell’s love letter to her father Glen Campbell as he descended into Alzheimer’s. Song of the Day subscriber Mark Herich replied with an email and a recommendation. He wrote: “…regarding Glen Campbell’s struggles with Alzheimer’s, if you have shared that difficult journey with a loved one you should check this video out. Beware, for those of us that suffered along with someone with this horrible disease, it’s difficult to watch, but comforting that someone knows, and can express, what the experience is like.”  The video Mark shared is by Hayes Carll, from his brand new album. Thank you, Mark, for sharing this. It is… Today’s Song  Title: Help Me Remember  Artist: Hayes Carll  Album: You Get It All (2021)  YouTube Link: youtu.be/aNYoY6k_sAI (Official video) Here are the Playlists:   Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3xYKtYparrdJRYAjBj9kjx?si=eb6c3ebc30484204  Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/ware-house-concerts-song-of-the-day/pl.u-Ggz26cZlAVLj 

NEW ARCHIVES: We’ve posted every Song of the Day email on our website here: wareHOUSEconcerts.org/#songoftheday  ***Now for Song of the Day… In an mail last week (Willie Nelson w/ Francine Reed), I mentioned Glen Cambpell’s final days with Alzheimer’s. See that email in the archives here: wareHOUSEconcerts.org/willie-nelson-with-francine-reed-funny-how-time-slips-away/ Last night, I watched the movie “I’ll Be Me,” about the concert tour Glen took AFTER he was diagnosed and far down the Alzheimer’s hole. This movie is gut-wrenching and beautiful. Sad and hopeful. Inspirational. Glen’s touring band included three of his eight children. One of those children: Ashley… …Guitarist. Banjoist. Singer. Caretaker. In the movie, she says “life is memories.” Lots of people say that during the movie as Glen’s memories fade. Here’s a love song Ashley wrote to her father before he was gone. It comes from the movie’s soundtrack. Today’s Song  Title: Remembering  Artist: Ashley Campbell  Album: I’ll Be Me Soundtrack (2015)  YouTube Link: youtu.be/os9qM0d9rmk (Official video. Well worth watching this one!) Here are the Playlists:   Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3xYKtYparrdJRYAjBj9kjx?si=eb6c3ebc30484204  Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/ware-house-concerts-song-of-the-day/pl.u-Ggz26cZlAVLj