Complementary Things

This week a new boozing song has come to light. It's one of those end of the night tunes you'd sing to yourself as you fell asleep. With this last paycheck, I ordered an older album from Old Crow Medicine Show, a bluegrass string band out of Nashville. The album, "Eutaw," was released in 2001, but is not available anywhere else but their website or live shows. Well, anyhow, near the end of the album is "Goodbye Booze," a rolling tribute and farewell to the strong stuff. "Goodbye booze/ I'm going to bed/ I had a good time/ but we couldn't agree/ So you see what booze has done to me." I don't like the part that says the boozing days are gone forever, but I think this was more like those times you say you're done for good, but you're right back on the horse the next night, getting sloppy and causing a ruckus.

Ah, well, might as well keep on with the music theme.

With that same paycheck, I also picked up the Avett Brothers new one, "Emotionalism." These boys continue to polish their sound with each album. This album has a more subdued quality to it than say "Mignonette" or "Four Thieves Gone," but it grows on me with each listen. I miss some of the ramshackle shake 'em ups on those older albums, but the beauty of the ballads carry the album through.

A couple gems are "Salina," "All My Mistakes" and "Go to Sleep." No surprise that two of those tunes are of the more raucous on the album. "Salina" has a sort Huck Finn mischievousness to it as the boys avoid capture and plea for towns to leave them alone. "Go to Sleep" is another collaboration with self-labeled anti-folk artist Paleface (does this guy ever leave New York?). It reminds me of a cross between "Salvation Song" and "The Fall." "All My Mistakes" has perhaps the sweetest lyrics on the whole album: "I can't go back/ and I don't want to/ 'cause all my mistakes/ brought me to you."

However, there's no drinking song on the album. There's mention, but nothing to really hang your hat on and belt out while you're wasted on your love seat waiting on that last ferry to Blackout Island.