An album repurposing traditional tunes as contemplative, moving meditations on the Old West.
The cover of Hal Cannon’s latest solo album finds him seated as a Hindu deity floating gently and serenely awaiting enlightenment. The image was created by renowned artist Edward Bateman. Cannon says: “I’m privileged to have collaborated with Ed Bateman on several album covers and music videos. Ed is a brilliant, artist, photographer, friend, and teacher and I’ve always felt grateful our work resonates together.” And the image is entirely appropriate. Cannon is something of a guru when it comes to the history of the Old West, writing books and producing radio and TV series and winning awards for his work.
he starts with an almost Indian take on ‘The Old Chisholm Trail,’ which he calls ‘Long, Come ‘Long.’ The Harmonium provides a drone which sits at odds with the Western refrain of “ky, yippie-yippie-yeh,” turning it into something approaching a meditation. Next is the only original here ‘Frosted Horses.’ Cannon’s Substack has explanations of how each of the songs came about. “At some point, I tired of writing songs with so many words. I wanted to write something that had the feeling of a haiku, capturing a moment in just a few words. I wanted to write a song that was more visual than verbal. ‘Frosted Horses”’ is that sort of song.” And it’s the simplicity of bot words and music which is the key to this beautiful tune.
‘Old Paint Old Pain’ a variation on ‘Goodbye, Old Paint,’ is an extraordinarily emotional song. Cannon says, “In my mind, “paint” is merely one letter away from “pain,” and grief is an old pain most of us know well.” The bass clarinet which takes the place of the fiddle you might expect in a Western song adds to the pathos, which is clearly genuine and heartfelt.
The broadside ballad ‘The Unfortunate Rake’ has been adapted many times since it travelled to the Americas. Cannon’s version called ‘Hurdy Gurdy Girl’ returns it to its roots and could easily have been recorded in the North East of England. We are straight back to the old west with ‘Left Texas,’ a song he learnt from folklorist John Lomax’s work in the 1940s. The ambient soundscape driven by Harmonium, Banjo and Mandola throughout the album is particularly effective here. We stay on the plains with ‘Old Charlie,’ his “reinterpretation of the old cowboy classic, ‘The Night Herding Song.‘ It’s a nod to the skills of night herding and in particular to one former slave and revered cowboy, Charlie Willis.” Dogies for those of us who have never been near a prairie are Calves.
After all the cattle herding, we have arrived at the town of ‘Two Dot’ (pop 26) in Montana, where retirement awaits. This is what Bruce Springsteen will be singing when he’s 94. ‘Year of ’83’ based on ‘Trail to Mexico’ about being taking a cattle herding job in 1883. A reflection on being far from a dying loved one, framed around a Cowboy in Mexico while his brother is suffering from AIDS in San Francisco, in 1983 this time. As with everything here the music is almost incidental to the words and the message but serves to illustrate those lyrics wonderfully.
He ends with a version of ‘Dryland Farmer’ retitled ‘Fast Horses’ about the fencing in of the prairie. “They’re growing big potatoes and them little roasting ears. Then we’ll ride no more fast horses. Then we’ll ride no more fast horses, and our saddles will be gone. Oh, the country’s chocked with fences.” A beautiful if poignant way to close an album that flags so many aspects of Western culture that have disappeared.
This is a historical document as much as entertainment. Cannon’s use of the “folk process” to adapt and update words to suit his purposes is keeping with the best of the tradition. It may not be the easiest of listens, but it is an essential one.
