Timely tribute to Texan troubadour from home-grown traditional country musician.
With his latest release, ‘Your Pal Slim: Songs of James Hand’ the British country-traditionalist Ags Connolly has achieved a rare feat. Not only has he made an outstanding recording in his own right but in doing so, he highlights the superb craftsmanship of another artist, James Hand. This Texan troubadour may not be a household name but the Oxfordshire-born Connolly has long been an admirer, witnessing Hand’s musicianship in London for the first time in 2006. This led to many more such encounters, the last a tune-swapping session in a Memphis hotel room, with Hand suggesting the two should team up as songwriters, an intent that never happened due to Hand’s passing in 2020 at the age of 67.
Underlining the significance of Hand in his own musical journey, Connolly’s 2014 album ‘How About Now’ featured the song ‘I Saw James Hand’ in which he sang “If I didn’t know I was country, then that made up my mind”. His dedication to the Waco-born ‘Slim’ Hand may even come to resemble the story of Nick Drake, whose death in 1974 was followed by years of obscurity before family members and his estate manager eventually brought Drake’s music to the prominence it enjoys today.
Selecting eleven of Hand’s songs and adding one of his own in similar vein, Connolly assembled a crack team to take into the Oxfordshire studios where the album was recorded. Though far from Texas, the sound is truly authentic, due in equal part to Connolly’s virtuoso country singing and to the presence of several of Hand’s former band members, happy to contribute their skills and familiarity with Hand’s music. First, Connolly laid down guide tracks with bass player Anna Robinson and drummer James Pokorny before bringing in Hand’s former guitarist and band leader Chris McElrath. Joining them were Jake Penrod on steel guitars, Beth Chrisman on fiddle and Brennen Leigh on mandolin, all having played with Hand. Together they bring some real Texan fairy-dust to the Cotswold studio.
For those unfamiliar with his output, Hand released his first album in 1997 at the age of 45. Attracting critical acclaim from The Washington Post and even Willie Nelson, Hand went on to release five more albums. Following his untimely death, fellow-Texan Charley Crockett released his own tribute in 2021, ’10 for Slim’ and their shared love of James Hand saw Connolly opening for Crockett on all of his 2023 European tour dates.
So what are the songs like? Well, the titles give a pretty accurate clue – ‘The Pain of Loving You’, ‘Lesson in Depression’, ‘My Heart’s Been Cheatin’ On Me’ and the opening track ‘In the Corner, At the Table, By the Jukebox’ might come from the pen of a Merle Haggard or a Hank Williams. Pithy and succinct, the lyrics are straight from the heart, full of loss, betrayal, remorse and humour. In bringing this music to the attention of his own audience, Connolly has achieved two purposes, being to highlight the songwriting talent of James Hand while at the same time reminding traditional country music fans in these islands just what a unique talent we have in Connolly himself.
