Mark Peters - Further Listening Playlist
Red Sunset Dreams is the follow-up to Mark Peters' hugely acclaimed debut Innerland, it features a number of guest musicians, including former One Dove singer and songwriter Dot Allison and pedal steel legend BJ Cole. Like its predecessor, Red Sunset Dreams is an album about an imaginary landscape. Whereas Innerland was an introspective psychogeographic trip inspired by Mark’s move back to his hometown of Wigan and the memories it stirred up, Red Sunset Dreams looks outwards, across the Atlantic to the United States of America, but very much through a UK prism; a representation of the subconscious Americana that’s buried deep in our collective psyches. The result is an incredibly evocative trip through the landscapes of old Western movies, exploring their links with the North West of England while touching on wider themes such as isolation, freedom and dementia.
Sonically, it builds on the palette of the previous record with instrumentation equally inspired by the ascendant ambient Americana movement and classic country-rock. As a result it ends up somewhere between Acetone’s peerless I Guess I Would, Diamond Head-era Phil Manzanera and the dusty instrumentals on the second disc of David Sylvian’s 1986 classic Gone To Earth.
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To celebrate the release Mark has kindly made us a Further Listening playlist, to go alongside Red Sunset Dreams. Dig in below
1) J.J Cale - Durango
From his ‘Anyway The Wind Blows’ anthology. Deserty spacerock. A classic ‘I would have never guessed it was him’ moment.
2) Emmylou Harris - Still Water
From her ‘Wrecking Ball demos and outtakes’ bootleg.
There’s a different take on the official reissue of ‘Wrecking Ball’. I prefer this one, it has nice reverse guitar effects.
3) Acetone - Juanita
An instrumental cover of The Flying Burrito Brothers track from Acetone’s ‘I Guess I Would’ mini album. I feel really strongly that this should be re-released. It’s an insanely overlooked gem.
4) Buddy Emmons - ‘La Hiver Sur La Plage’
From the ‘Suite Steel’ album on Elektra, a collection of covers by the eminent pedal steel guitarists of the day. Buddy stretches out Bill Evans’ ‘Peace Piece’ and creates something brilliant of his own.
5) Billy Swan - ‘Don’t Be Cruel’
A laid back version of the Elvis hit by the (rumoured) Graceland security guard. There’s something a bit ‘late Robert Plant - ish’ about his vocal to me.
6) Michael Nesmith & The First National Band - Rene (uncut version)
A spotlight on the brilliant Red Rhodes (who also features on the Suite Steel album) from the expanded ‘Nevada Fighter’ cd. If you like it, check out his playing on Nesmith’s ‘Two Different Roads’ and Bert Jansch’s ‘L.A Turnaround’ album.
7) Floyd Cramer - Lonely Again
Floyd was an in demand session pianist, you’ll have heard his playing on Elvis and Roy Orbison hits.
8) Lloyd Green - Amazing Grace
From ’Ten Shades Of Green’, Lloyd was another session heavyweight who took the opportunity to make some solo records. He was the main steel player on The Byrds ‘Sweetheart of The Rodeo’. In amongst these albums you always find the odd soulful pearl…
9) Kitty Wells - Forever Young
A Dylan cover from her album of the same name released on the Allman Brothers Capricorn label.
Similar to late soul 60’s albums by jazz artists like Ella Fitzgerald and Julie London, I find the combination of a loose country rock arrangement with Kitty’s ‘Grand Ol Opry’ style vocal very appealing.
10) Lee Underwood - Aspen Trails
From the cassette only, Steve Roach produced ‘California Sigh’ from 1988. Like Tom Verlaine or John Coltrane, I feel the former Tim Buckley collaborator is one of those players who had perfect touch and the ability to create a sublime mood with just a couple of notes.
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