Gary Stewart pre-RCA archival comp due from Delmore in July

Delmore's new Gary Stewart rarities disc One Track Mind makes an ace companion for Jimmy McDonough's new biography of the late honky tonk hero. 

Previously unreleased, pre-RCA recordings by the once, future and forever King Of The Honky-Tonks. For nearly two decades, we obsessively scoured the vaults of multiple publishing houses along Music Row, and the endless archives of Gary's closest friend, Tommy Schwartz, all in search of elusive performances rumoured to exist. One Track Mind is Delmore's third deep dive into the Gary Stewart legacy, which began with the Grandma's Roadhouse LP in 2010.

One Track Mind (out July 17 via Nashville's Delmore Recording Society) finds Gary toward the beginning of his career as a songwriter—newly arrived in Nashville from Fort Pierce, Florida, signing first with Cedarwood and then Forrest Hills publishing. Working primarily with early songwriting partner Bill Eldridge, several tunes heard on this collection would be recorded by luminaries of the genre, including Del Reeves ("One Track Mind"), Cal Smith ("You Can't Housebreak a Tomcat"), Jack Greene ("There's a Whole Lot About a Woman (A Man Don't Know)") and Nat Stuckey ("The Snuff Queen”). But no one sang these songs like Gary Stewart.

Also included are a handful of stripped down departures from the Nashville sound. Recorded in Gary's Williamson County, TN trailer, "Beautiful River" is a gorgeous, solo ballad, complete with his signature whistling. Alongside it is a guitar-vocal demo of "The Snuff Queen" -sourced from a beat-to-hell acetate disc- that puts an altogether different country-blues spin on this early Gary classic. (The studio version of "The Snuff Queen", was released as a B side by Kapp in 1970, and later included on the 1975 MCA compilation LP, "You're Not The Woman You Used To Be"). The LP culminates in a jaw dropping, early recording of "Williamson County", which is unlike anything Gary recorded before or since. A singular performance that needs to be heard to be believed, and almost unrecognizable from the polished version recorded for 1975’s Out of Hand, Gary’s debut LP for RCA. The whereabouts of the other songs Gary recorded that day remains a mystery.

What isn't a mystery is that Gary sings every song here with everything he's got. Whether you're new to the powerful artistry of Gary Stewart, or a long time obsessive, there's much to love within these fully loaded grooves. Delmore couldn't be prouder to have the opportunity to bring more Gary Stewart music into the world.

The digital / CD release contains four bonus tracks, including the complete legendary Mowtown session. Delmore released the first two Motown numbers as a Record Store Day vinyl only single in 2018. Gary's demo of the Four Tops classic "I Can't Help Myself" (Sugar Pie, Honeybunch), is heard here for the first time, and all three are making their digital debuts.

Last month, a definitive biography, Gary Stewart: I Am From the Honky-Tonks, was published by Jimmy McDonough (author of the New York Times bestseller Shakey: Neil Young's Biography). Read more about Jimmy McDonough's Gary Stewart biography on The Perlich Post right here. And check out an interview with Jimmy McDonough over here.

Is the Country Music Hall Of Fame next? It's about damn time. 

Pre-order a copy of Gary Stewart's One Track Mind via Bandcamp right here. Check out a short documentary on Gary Stewart following the track listing below. 

Gary Stewart – One Track Mind

1. One Track Mind

2. Kings And Queens

3. Woman Will Tear The Heart Right Out Of A Man

4. Big Bad Train

5. Living The Life Of A Dog

6. Don't Put A Poor Hand On Me

7. Her Apple Pie

8. My Mind Is On You

9. Iron Bar Motel 02:46

10. The Bottom Of The Pile

11. There's A Whole Lot About A Woman (A Man Don't Know)

12. If You Come Back Darling

13. You Can't Housebreak A Tomcat

14. The Snuff Queen (acetate)

15. Beautiful River (trailer demo)

16. Williamson County

Happy Birthday Fred Neil

Celebrate Fred's birthday with a copy of the recent archival release 38 MacDougal out now via Delmore Recording Society. 

Here's the scoop from Delmore...

Mastertone Studios, NYC, 1965…Amidst Fred Neil's mounting friction with producer Paul Rothchild, Fred walks out on the unfinished sessions for what was to be his debut album, Bleecker & MacDougal. Fearing he wouldn’t return to the studio, his friend and guitar player, Peter Childs, invited him down to the Greenwich Village apartment he shared with John Sebastian, at 38 MacDougal. According to Childs, “the best chance to get Freddie back wouldn’t be to try to persuade him verbally, but to get him over to the apartment for a bit of music-making”. What transpired on that afternoon was a legendary singer-songwriter and his long-time accompanist making music for the pure joy of it, a one-of-a-kind private performance, captured on Ampex reel to reel, and stored for over fifty years! 

The story behind the previously unreleased recordings which comprise the intriguing eight-song 38 MacDougal album was beautifully told in Peter Lee Neff’s 2019 Fred Neil biography, That’s The Bag I’m In. Fred and Peter Childs perform songs that would later wind up on “Bleecker & MacDougal” (“Travellin’ Shoes”, “Country Boy”, “Gone Again”, “Candy Man”, “Little Bit Of Rain”), a definitive “Sweet Cocaine”, and two PD songs that don’t appear on any other Fred Neil album; the traditional folk song, “Once I Had A Sweetheart”, and the African-American spiritual, “Blind Man Standing By The Road And Crying”. The latter is our personal favorite, and despite the biography mentioning the song cutting off before it ends, Delmore’s tape magically contained the complete performance in all its glory. Fred takes the song on a personal and deep journey, and Peter adds the most perfect musical touches. It’s also the first appearance on a Fred Neil record of one of the many Spiritual songs that were often a part of his live repertoire. 

Get a copy of Fred Neil's 38 MacDougal album via Bandcamp right here. 

Check out the audio clips of "Gone Again," "Sweet Cocaine" and "Blind Man Standing By The Road and Crying" from the album followed by a performance of "Little Bit Of Rain" recorded at Cafe Au Go-Go in 1964. 

Happy Birthday Gary Stewart!

Remembering the late great Gary Stewart with his countrified cover of "Baby I Need Your Loving" and an old classic.

Delmore uncovers lost Jay Bolotin recordings 1970-75

Jay Bolotin's No One Seems To Notice That It's Raining is due November 9 from Delmore Recordings. 

Here's the scoop from Delmore's Mark Linn...

I found a copy of Jay Bolotin's 1970 self-titled debut album at a record shop in Nashville back in 2008.  I immediately loved it, and in no short order began wondering what had become of the artist, and if additional recordings might exist.  On the internet there were references to a visual artist of the same name, with images displayed unlike anything I'd ever seen before.  It turned out to be the same Jay Bolotin.

Further reading on the websites of galleries and museums where his art had been displayed revealed mentions of his music, and specifically to his time in Nashville. Artists like Kris Kristofferson, Mickey Newbury, and Merle Haggard were named as being involved with Bolotin in those bios, which of course turned my intrigue level up to 11.

At the time, I was nearing the end of a ten year odyssey, discovering and compiling Kris Kristofferson's earliest publishing demos for release. To say that the process transformed me from being a Kristofferson fan into an obsessive would be an understatement.  So now I was really curious!  I loved the Bolotin record, but couldn't compute a connection to Merle Haggard.  I eventually tracked down Jay, who had recently been tracked down by Numero, who were about to release a song from his self titled debut on their Wayfaring Strangers comp called "Dear Father". It took several months or maybe a year  before Jay and I really started communicating.  But when mentions of Kristofferson, et.al.  started appearing in stories related to the Numero release, I had to ask Jay to unravel the mystery.



As it turned out, none of those now legendary folks had ever heard that record, because Jay never mentioned it to any of them.  What those artists were referring to were the songs Jay wrote and recorded mostly in Nashville a couple of years later. After a disappointing experience trying to record a followup LP in NYC,  Jay headed south, closer to where he grew up in Kentucky. Once in Nashville, there were many ups and many downs, publishing deals, recording sessions at Quadrafonic Sound produced by Norbert Putnam, close calls with record companies; and alot of songs, mostly on reel to reel tapes, and mostly being stored by his friend Owsley Manier (the original owner of the fabled Exit / In club in Nashville).

Several months or maybe years passed before the tapes would be carefully transferred, catalogued, and debated upon.  There were at least three records of strong material found, including an almost finished record produced by Haggard!  A box set was discussed, but Jay was concerned that nobody knew who he was, and it would be an impossible task to sell.  We finally arrived at the songs for a single album, which really capture a moment in time. Early 1970s Nashville, when things felt more open and free, and possible; and just before the out of town "suits" descended and the doors slammed shut to anything out of the norm.

Jay Bolotin's music then and now, is anything but the norm, even though some of his songs sound instantly familiar.  I've spent years immersing myself in these recordings, and it's a great honor - and relief! - to finally be ready to share.  On November 9, Jay Bolotin - No One Seems To Notice That It's Raining (Previously Unreleased Recordings 1970-75) will be available everywhere fine music is sold and streamed.        – Mark Linn, Delmore Recordings

You can pre-order a copy of Jay Bolotin's forthcoming album right here.

Country great Gary Stewart sings Motown for RSD!

Delmore Records dug up two unissued demos of Gary singing Motown classics for the perfect RSD single.

Here's the scoop from the Delmore label...
Anyone that knows the Delmore label knows that we are huge Gary Stewart fans. We've been working on a full length compilation of unreleased Gary for longer than some of you have been alive, and eight(!) years ago we rescued the headneck classic Grandma's Roadhouse from private press obscurity.  And now, we are ecstatic to announce the release of the rarest of all of Gary's previously unreleased recordings as a limited edition 7" single for Record Store Day 2018.

Five years before "She's Acting Single (I'm Drinking Doubles)", Gary Stewart was paid $30 to sing on a demo of Motown hits country style. The session was arranged by publishing lifer Henry Hurt on behalf of Jobete Music, who was hoping to interest country stars in their catalogue.

Absolutely no one seemed to have a copy of the tape that blew the mind of record producer Roy Dea, sending him on a multi year crusade to get Gary a record deal and to produce his records.  As Dea told the writer Jimmy McDonough in the Village Voice in 1988, while discussing that first exposure: “I never knew anyone who blew me away like Gary, an’ I seen Elvis, Hank Williams – all of ‘em. You get hooked on Stewart. He’s like a damn drug.”  The legend of this recording has appeared in nearly every story written about Stewart, but the tapes were presumed lost.

Recently discovered after a ten-year search, and released for the first time ever, the Mowtown seven-inch single is an essential addition to your Gary Stewart jukebox. Available in smart record shops worldwide on Record Store Day, April 21st. Listen to Gary sing the Four Tops classic "Baby I Need Your Loving" below. Read about the single in Rolling Stone – who told them about Gary Stewart?

Happy Birthday Gary Stewart

The early 70s was a good time to be a country-rock band. Hippie culture had been more fully absorbed into America's collective consciousness than it was in the 60s, and at the same time, the backlash against the trippy, psychedelic excesses of the earlier era had begun in earnest, with the ascent of groups like the Band and Poco.

Riley Watkins, Jim Snead and Gary Stewart at Bradley’s Barn.

For some reason, though, top-shelf country-rockers Riley never made any commercial headway. Their 1970 album, Grandma's Roadhouse, was the rarest of rarities until its reissue 40 years after the fact; the original LP was released in a limited edition of only 500. Riley, named for frontman Riley Watkins, was essentially a trio, but singer/guitarist/pianist Gary Stewart was an unofficial fourth member. Stewart, who would become a country star in his own right later in the decade, was writing songs in Nashville and working at Owen Bradley's legendary studio Bradley's Barn when he invited Riley to do some recording. Stewart became a crucial part of the sessions, singing (mostly harmony), playing guitar and piano, and contributing four songs with his Nashville writing partner Bill Eldridge (who added some guitar to the tracks as well).  

The resulting Grandma's Roadhouse is a raw-sounding, rough-and-ready affair with no production frills whatsoever. Even the relatively bare-bones contemporaneous work of the band's aforementioned peers sounds slick in comparison to the tough, gritty tones achieved here. Watkins' gritty, somewhat John Fogerty-ish voice is the perfect vehicle for his and Stewart's greasy, mud-soaked tunes, which combine country twang, rock & roll energy, and some Southern soul influences. There's a loose, freewheeling vibe to the record, but the tunes are all tightly constructed, and the arrangements are strictly low-fat. The closest thing to hippie-era excess is the Allman Brothers Band-esque Watkins/Stewart guitar duel on closing track "Gotta Get Away." Even if it had received wider distribution at the time, Grandma's Roadhouse probably would have been too rough-edged for the mainstream, but it stands as a solid example of what was going on in the early- 70s roots rock underground. Thanks to the fine folks at Delmore Recordings for reissuing it.