Listeners will recognize Werner American roots, first heard in country/blues 2011 dyed "kicking the Beehive;" However, the collection of documents that appear in HAYSEED comes even closer to home. "Everything was mandolin and banjo and bass and violin," she says. "A sound that is as-forgive the term, but it finally applies-organic as a sound can begin." Released in Mango dog and distributed through thirty Tigers, the album itself was commissioned at the University of Nebraska lied Center For The Performing Arts and the Institute of agriculture and natural resources and the whole project started with seed money from fans during a successful campaign of PledgeMusic.
Werner fans encouraged with unusual rewards as signed farm corn cobs of his people, and a percentage of the money raised was donated to three charities of agriculture; Practical farmers of Iowa in Ames, organic and sustainable education service of the Midwest (Moses) of Spring Valley, Wisconsin and of the Land Institute in Salina, Kansas. Known for his engaging and energetic live show, Werner will be adding another homemade aspect to their tour schedule HAYSEED — making appearances in local farmers ' markets across the country.
HAYSEED was produced in Boston, songwriter and producer Crit Harmon (Lori McKenna, Martin Sexton, Mary Gauthier, Ed Romanoff). "I chose Crit to produce because it is a composer himself, and that was very important for me," says Werner. "And also because he grew up on a farm in the Midwest and meets the business end of a wagon. I knew that would be the spirit, the sense of humor and sense of place in these songs. I also knew he would mount a large cast of musicians, and this is a list of a list of players of the Boston area. " This cast includes the legendary guitarist Duke Levine, upright bassist Marty Ballou, double genius Steve Sadler and Red Molly Laurie MacAllister on backing vocals.
"Crit totally picked up when I said that this must sound like it is being played on the front porch of a farmhouse," Werner continues. "I wanted this thing almost as turned off as someone could endure. I mean, Dubuque was the big city, where I grew up, and that is about as urban, like the sound of this album could get and still be faithful in Delaware County, Township, section 14 Prairie. "
In HAYSEED, Werner employs his songcraft and signature wit to offer a variety of songs as hilarious as they are insightful. "There is a certain sense of humor that goes along with agriculture, because things always don't come out the way you hoped," says she. "If you can't laugh about it, you can be the wrong line of work." Opener "City Kids" sets the tone for the record with an ironic comment about what Werner refers to as "revenge of the Nerds". "The truth is that if you grew up on a farm, you always felt a small square, a little backwards," she explains. "But times change and turn tables.
And who pays $ 25 a pound of organic pork these days? Is not the farmers, people. " A banjo and upright bass accompaniment, Werner practically spits out the phrase in the title: "all the children of the town, they had cute little dogs, a dog that sits and begs, a dog with all four feet, does not smell like pigs." The crazies herbicides "folk" is an instant classic campfire. "Pesticides are a fact of farm life, but I didn't know quite how to handle it. This seemed like a new approach ". The reflective, "something to be said" is the heart of registration-which turns out to be a heart suit, in fact. "I did a series of concerts in rural Nebraska, and this girl sent me a note saying, ' thank you for coming to this waste of cornfields, '", says Werner.
"It struck me-took the wind out of me, really-that this girl felt this way about where she was growing. I had to find a way to say, boy, Listen, you are with the view of something. It took me years to see it, but I really see it now. " A melodic motif Slinky presents the "Egg Money," a tune that charts the tale of revenge in a shrewd farm wife. Other highlights include the joyful Hayseed, sexy fun "Bumper Crop," the silent and "Silver Star" plant, dedicated father of Werner and the heartbreak of twice-dyed "while you wait for the rain. The album closes with "Ode to Aldo Leopold," a song in tribute to a man now recognized as one of the founders of sustainable agriculture.
After starting his career with the release "Midwestern Saturday night" in 1993, his second record "live at Tin Angel" impressed executives at private/BMG Music, who released their acclaimed debut record last of the Good straight girls "" in 1995. She also received praise from critics for their subsequent recordings "time between trains" (VelVel, 1998) and "new nonfiction" (Indie, 2001). She has toured the country with acts such as Richard Thompson, Keb Mo and Joan Armatrading and was featured in a Peter, Paul and Mary 1998 PBS special as one of the best of the next generation of popular composers.
HAYSEED is the fourth in a series of concept albums, starting with 2004 's "I can't be new," which features original songs in the style of Cole Porter and George Gershwin, followed by "the Gospel" in 2007 and "classics" in 2009. country-blues in 2011 with "Kicking The Beehive" hinted at this turn to the countryside.
To access the music, photos, tour schedule and more information, go to www.susanwerner.com