In Texas heeft men op het
moment niet te klagen over geboren verhalenvertellers, die de traditie van
Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark en John Prine voortzetten. Dit jaar verschenen al
prachtige albums van Terry Klein en Brian Blake. Daar kan nu het tweede album Everything
Is at Least Both van Stefan Prigmore aan toegevoegd worden.
Meteen vanaf de etherische opener
David and Goliath werd ik het album
ingezogen. Oorspronkelijk een gedicht ontstaan tijdens een van Stefan’s
wandelingen. Coproducer Clay Parker voorzag het van een intrigerend tintje.
De hoes is volgens zijn
vrouw Becky een verwijzing naar de titel : “The cover is dark, and looks almost
black, with striking white lettering. When we look closely, we can make out two
faint figures. One of them is gone from us now. A few years ago, these two made
a gorgeous album together in our home. They were connected by much more than
friendship, and their philosophy on life gave this album its name. Everything
is always at least both, and more...”.
Sinds zijn tienerjaren maakt Stefan muziek, waarmee hij in de
voetsporen trad van zijn vader, net als hij vaak inspiratie halend tijdens zijn
wandelingen in het bos en langs de rivier. Zijn muziek is een toegankelijke mix
van Americana, folk en rootsmuziek. Hij heeft een
onderscheidende en dynamische stem en zijn teksten komen oprecht over op de
luisteraar.
De mooie orgelpartijen zijn van
Clay Parker en het geweldige dobro en steel gitaarspel van James McCann. Veelal
zijn songs van eigen hand of cowrites, waaronder CV-One-Nine, wat hij schreef met de talentvolle Jaimee Harris. Everything Is at Least Both is een album
wat mij snel wist te overrompelen.
Hieronder de niet geheel objectieve, maar wel bijzonder informatieve
recensie van vrouwlief Becky :
Today, my husband Stefan Prigmore released a new album called Everything Is at Least Both. I'm excited
for everyone to hear it, but at home, we've been living with and loving and
nurturing this album for the past year. I know it like my own hands. I know
everything about it, even the stuff I don't understand about the technical side
of things. Let's get into it...an album review by his wife, biggest fan, best
friend, dog mom, and shoulder to lean on.
The cover is dark, and looks almost black, with striking white
lettering. When we look closely, we can make out two faint figures. One of them
is gone from us now. A few years ago, these two made a gorgeous album together
in our home. They were connected by much more than friendship, and their
philosophy on life gave this album its name. Everything is always at least
both, and more...
The first track is a spoken word poem written by Stefan during his
hitchhiking days. He wanted to use it somehow, and he took it to Clay. Stefan
was so excited when he called to tell me about all the spooky, dark, ethereal
stuff Clay had come up with for instrumentation. It really became something
entirely new and unique within Stefan's catalog.
The second track, Gunpowder
and Pine, was also a collaboration with Clay Parker, the producer engineer
for the album. Stefan had a pre-recording session with Clay in south Louisiana,
at which I know for certain there was plenty of whiskey, pie, and biscuits.
Stefan started the song after we moved to East Texas, and Clay helped finish
writing it. Stefan was so happy about the way Clay's lyrics finished the
verses, and it came together in a very warm and comfortable way. It has been
such a joy to watch their friendship and creative partnership evolve and
strengthen. This track also welcomes Pete Damore and James McCann to the album.
Pete (Ordinary Elephant) on mandolin and octave mandolin adds depth and folk
roots and general awesomeness. James on dobro and steel guitar kicks everything
up several notches. I remember getting a video of their weekend recording
session, and they were all standing around grinning hugely at each other and clearly
enjoying themselves very much. I think of that when I hear these songs.
The third track is a song called I Play C, written by prolific Fort Worth songwriter James Michael
Taylor. It's a heartbreaking and hopeful tune of dust, death, despair, family, and
unconditional love. Stefan has played a cover version of it in honor of James
for many years. When I met James, he had just played this song at Rodney
Moore's Picking Round the Campfire at Last Call bar. Stefan wasn't there yet,
and James charmingly introduced himself to me and told me the name of the song.
Rodney helpfully jumped in, "She knows the song, she's dating
Stefan!"
The fourth track is called Tracy.
When I first started dating Stefan, I knew this song was about an ex
girlfriend. It was also everyone else's favorite song of his. I had a brief
flare of envy, and then I listened to the words. This is the best breakup song
ever, and I'm so grateful.
The fifth track is Devil
Dogs and the Rattlesnake. These south La boys really dig into the swamp on
this one, as Stefan spins a fabled yarn of acceptance, redemption, lessons
learned, and the power of nature.
When Stefan decided to start playing a cover of Heather Little's
song Razor Wire, it was during
pandemic quarantine. He had always been moved by the song, but he burrowed
further into it and obsessed for hours on the perfect guitar parts to make it
his own. It's track six on the new album with some beautiful instrumentation
and arrangements by Clay, James, and Pete. Friends of both Stefan and Heather
sometimes enjoy requesting that each of them play their own versions of this
wonderful song.
Next up is the rollicking, rocking romp called Lacretia. Stefan told more about the
background of this song on a recent Funkytown podcast. Suffice to say, yes it's
about that one bait shop on Jacksboro Highway. Yes, this lady was a real rough
cob. And no, we don't know for sure whether she was actually murdered. But she
didn't act like someone who cared about escaping death threats, so no one knows
for sure.
Track eight is CV 19.
This song was cowritten with Jaimee Harris while the world was shut down. We
had watched in shock as our dear friend's death was made into a political
issue, and that was never okay. These events in March 2020 shaped everything we
felt and experienced during the pandemic. Our friend was dynamic, joyful, and a
true voice of God on Earth.
Track nine is the rousing favorite, Door Girl. This version is slower than we've been accustomed to,
and I asked Stefan about it. He said, "James really takes this thing into
outer space." It turns out, this is absolutely true. The tones on steel
guitar are out of this world. This hilarious song is always a crowd pleaser,
with its witty phrases and quintessential introduction, "And then she
moved to Houston with my brother." Thanks for giving me the chance, LF!
Track ten is Kramer's Song.
Out at the junction of Stephens and Throckmorton counties, there's a magical
wooden shack where you can belly up to the bar, watch the game, get the gossip,
hear the music, and get a six pack to go. We met Keaton there - a friendly,
open guy with a great smile and a love for music. I chatted with him about his
job in the oil fields, and he bought one of everything from Stefan's merch box.
He helped me balance on a chair and attach my signed dollar to the wall of the
beer joint as is their custom. When we heard his bright light was gone, we were
devastated and our hearts went out to the family and friends in that little
area.
The final track eleven is an unbelievable version of longtime
favorite Real Man. Everyone on this
track is giving it everything they've got. Soaring vocals, intricate rhythms,
hints of blues and zydeco and Motown, and gut wrenching lyrics. Stefan plays
drums on this track, which is common for him, but not everyone knows it was his
first instrument. He plays for the love of his dad Chuck, a fantastic drummer
and our favorite veteran, whom we miss everyday. He's pictured here at his last
dove hunt.
Theo Volk
Releasedatum : 11 november 2022 Independent
Website: http://www.stefanprigmore.net/