Country music from a fan's point of view since 2008
Jessi Colter’s return to the recording studio turns out not to be a new set of her own songs, but a concept album, setting a selection of her favorite psalms to music composed by Jessi herself and her producer Lenny Kaye. A clear labor of love, I am not sure how wide its potential market is, but that is obviously not the point. The arrangements do not fit comfortably into any particular genre. The vocal tracks were cut in 2007-2008, accompanied by Jessi’s piano and Kaye’s guitars, and have now been augmented with various additional instruments. Jessi actually started composing the music spontaneously in the mid 1990s.
‘Psalm 150 Praise Ye The Lord’ opens the album with hushed, awed vocals and a sweeping, sometimes quite loud arrangement which gives a strong impression of being awed by the power of God, although it does not sound particularly joyful.
‘Psalm 75 Unto Thee’ has a gentle contemplative feel and Hammond organ backing. The soothing ‘Psalm 114 And The Mountains Skip Like Rams’ has a lengthy instrumental introduction, extending the track to over eight minutes, but then nothing about this album is conventional.
‘Psalm 99 He Is Holy’ is pensive and understated. ‘Psalm 24 Who Is The King Of Glory’ is similarly thoughtful. ‘Psalm 136 Mercy And Loving Kindness’ is more forceful and feels a little uneven.
Those of you who know your Bible will know that there are only 150 psalms in most translations. ‘Psalm 151 King David’s Last Psalm’ is based on an apocryphal psalm about David’s defeat of Goliath which is accepted as canon by the eastern Orthodox churches. It is an interesting inclusion, although the title Jessi gives it is rather odd.
‘Psalm 21 Be Thou Exalted’ has ethereally wailing backing vocals which counterpoint and almost overwhelm Jessi’s lead vocal in an Eastern way. It’s a long way from country music, but it is effective In its own way. ‘Psalm 45 My Song To A King’ also has a slight Eastern feel with a minor keyed tune, but is more accessible to western ears.
‘Psalm 73 Like A Beast’ offers a glimpse into the recording sessions, with a number of false starts and spoken sections.
‘Psalm 23 The Lord Is My Shepherd’ is of course the best known of the psalms, and to be honest I prefer some of the existing musical settings to Jessi’s, both musically and lyrically, although it is pleasant enough.
‘Psalm 72 Arise O King Of Old’, the final selection, is perhaps my favorite musically, with a very pretty melody.
This album is very hard to classify, so I shall not attempt to give it a grade. It will not be everyone’s cup of tea, and is really more of a religious aid than a listening experience, but it has much to offer those who want to hear a largely contemplative spiritual exercise, and perhaps to share in it.
Jessi Colter released Live from Cain’s Ballroom in 2013. The album her first live set, taken from a concert she performed with aid from her son, Shooter Jennings.
The eighteen-track set actually features just eleven songs, interspersed between six interludes and an intro. I wasn’t deeply familiar with Colter’s back catalog before we spotlighted her this month, so I really didn’t know what to expect from her output. I liked what I heard and I’m glad to hear her here, still in fine voice, with vim and vigor.
“I’m Not Lisa” is as sublime as I expected it would be, sparse and a beautiful showcase for the power she still possesses vocally. Similarly great is “What Happened To Blue Eyes,” another of her earlier hits.
Jennings joins her on two songs, both of which are very good, although not my taste. Jennings really isn’t a ‘country’ singer, or at least he leans on his growl and bluesy sensibilities for these recordings.
The tracks with Jennings are indicative of the album as a whole, which I wouldn’t classify as country in any noticeable way. The bluesy stylings work well for Colter, who truly does shine throughout this set. “Rainy Day Women” is a revolution, with sly guitar work brilliantly framing Colter’s slinky twang. “Storms Never Last” is also another of the highlights.
As a whole, Live From Cain’s Ballroom does little for me musically. I’ve never truly been into the guitar and piano-heavy bluesy style Colter is performing for the audience at this show. I can’t fault anything with the album itself, and it’s nice to have a recording of Colter in concert. The band is as strong as Colter, which makes this a winning set for fans of this style.
Grade: A-
Out of the Ashes was released in 2006, four years after the death of Waylon Jennings, and with the exception of a 1996 children’s collection, was Jessi Colter’s first album in 22 years. She teamed up with Don Was, who had a reputation for reinvigorating the careers of other veteran artists both inside and outside of country music. He was best known for his work with Bonnie Raitt and had also worked with Waylon, Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson both as individuals and as members of The Highwaymen.
Out of the Ashes is not a straight country album. It is heavy on blues and roots rock, with a touch of Gospel occasionally thrown into the mix. Jessi wrote or co-wrote nine of the album’s twelve tracks. It has an earthier sound than her earlier work and her voice sounds grittier but is still in fine form. It is a concept album but only in the very loosest sense. It is about grieving and eventually emerging from that grief and moving on. It opens with a cover of the Gospel song “His Eye Is on the Sparrow”, given a bluesy treatment, and moves on to the sassy, bluesy “You Can Pick ‘Em”. The piano-driven “The Phoenix Rises” is a beautiful ballad about rebirth and new beginnings and is my favorite. The similarly-themed mid-tempo “Out of the Rain”, performed with its writer Tony Joe White is an older song dating back to the 1980s. Waylon had supplied vocals on an unreleased version and they are incorporated into this version. It signals that Jessi has moved on and is ready to explore new relationships, and she takes the plunge headfirst on the steamy “Velvet and Steel”.
Other favorites include the ballad “The Canyon” — about a couple ready to go their separate ways, and told metaphorically from the point of view of a horse:
Don’t lay your bridle on my shoulder
Don’t bring your bit to my mouth
Don’t lay your blanket on my body
Just take your saddle and move out.
The album closes with another Gospel number “Please Carry Me Home”, performed with Jessi’s co-writer and son Shooter Jennings. The track had previously been included on a multi-artist anthology of songs inspired by the film The Passion of the Christ.
The only track I didn’t care much for was the cover of Bob Dylan’s “Rainy Day Women #12 & 35”, which seems slightly out of place, with its ambiguous references to people “getting stoned”. It’s not clear if this is a drug song or people being pelted metaphorically with stones, or both.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from this collection, but the more I listened to it the more I liked it and I ended up enjoying it much more than I expected to. It is available on streaming services and can also be downloaded or purchased on CD.
Grade: A-
There currently isn’t much available by this duo, and they did not record much together since their voices really didn’t blend all that well.
Leather & Lace was issued on vinyl & cassette by RCA in February 1981 and features the following ten songs:
01) You Never Can Tell (C’est La Vie)
02) Rainy Seasons
03) I’ll Be Alright
04) Wild Side Of Life
05) Pastels And Harmony
06) I Believe You Can
07) What’s Happened To Blue Eyes
08) Storms Never Last
09) I Ain’t The One
10)You’re Not My Same Sweet Baby
All American Country was issued on CD by BMG in 2003 and features the following ten songs:
Suspicious Minds
Under Your Spell Again
I Ain’t The One *
Storms Never Last *
Wild Side Of Life *
You Never Can Tell (C’est La Vie) *
Sight For Sore Eyes
I’ll Be Alright *
What’s Happened To Blue Eyes *
You’re Not My Same Sweet Baby *
Songs marked by * also appear on Leather & Lace.
There are only four actual duets on Leather & Lace (01, 04, 08, 09) with Jessi being solo on 02 and 06 and Waylon being solo on the remaining four songs.
All American County has the four duets on Leather & Lace plus “Suspicious Minds”, “Under Your Spell Again” and “Sight For Sore Eyes” are duets, meaning that the modern era CD is the better collection if you are looking for actual duets. This CD is still readily available, whereas Leather & Lace has been out of print for a long time.
Waylon & Jessi did not have a tremendous amount of chart success as a duet, with “Wild Side of Life” (a medley of Hank Thompson’s hit and Kitty Wells’ answer song) reaching #10 in 1981 and “Storms Never Last” reaching #17” in 1981. The only other top twenty hit was “Suspicious Minds”, the old Elvis #1 pop hit from 1969 reaching #2 in 1976.
Truthfully, while I am a big Waylon Jennings fan, neither of these albums is particularly satisfactory. I would regard the best song (found on both albums) as “You Never Can Tell”, a Chuck Berry song from 1964. The solo efforts on Leather & Lace (especially the Waylon tracks) are throw-aways so I would give Leather & Lace a C. I would give All American Country a B for having more duets and better songs.
Jessi’s career slowed down in the late 70s as her radio success fizzled out and she and Waylon had their first (and only) child, Shooter, in 1979. However, in 1981 she recorded a popular album of duets with Waylon (Leather and Lace). This prompted her to return to the studio on her own account, and she resumed her deal with Capitol. Waylon shared production duties with Randy Scruggs.
Although jessi’s duets with Waylon had been hits, it turned out that country rado was now really only interested in jessi as Waylon’s wife. Her solo singles were roundly ignored, with the most successful release from this album, ‘Holdin’ On’, peaking at #70. This is a nice quite upbeat song about splitting up, written by Jessi and Waylon with Basil McDavid.
McDavid is the main co-writer for the album, with another five songs credited to him and Jessi. The charming love song ‘Ain’t Making No Headlines (Here Without You)’ about coping with separation was also covered by Hank Jr, with slightly altered lyrics.
Slightly different versions of the bluesy title track bookend the album. ‘Ridin’ Shotgun (Honkin’)’ features backing vocals and harmonica and ‘Ridin’ Shotgun (Tonkin’)’. ‘Hard Times And Sno-Cone’ is a little quirky; its precise meaning is unclear but with its references to a man who ‘called her a woman but he knew she was a child’, it may possibly have been inspired by Jennifer Harness, Jessi’s teenage daughter by her first marriage to Duane Eddy. She had had a baby at just 15, who Jessi and Waylon helped to raise alongside their own son Shooter, just a year older, and married soon afterwards. The most interesting of the McDavid co-writes is the airy ‘Jennifer (Fly My Little Baby)’, to and about Jennifer. Jennifer and Waylon both guest on vocals, making this a real family affair, with Jennifer singing:
Mama don’t worry about Jennifer
Jennifer’s gonna be fine
I know it won’t be easy
Mom I’m gonna give it a try
You gave me some dreams
Now I’ve got wings and I’m headed for the sky
I have the trust in you to have the faith in me
So come on won’t you watch me fly…
Jessi and Waylon then advise:
To all you mamas and daddies
Who have a Jennifer you love so
If you wanna hold on to her
First you gotta learn to let her go
Jessi throws in a pair of very current covers: Waylon’s 1981 hit ‘Shine’, and Corbin/Hanner’s spiritual ‘On The Wings Of My Victory’, later recorded by Glen Campbell. She also takes on a much older song, the delicately pretty ‘A Fallen Star’.
‘Somewhere Along The Way’, the only solo Jessi Colter composition on this album, is a subdued ballad about regret for past choices. Co-producer Randy Scruggs contributed ‘Nobody Else But You’, a pretty love song with a lilting melody.
The album is available on a three-album/double CD with Mirriam and That’s The Way A Cowboy Rocks And Rolls.
Grade: B+
After detouring with religious and inspirational music on Miriam, Jessi Colter returned to originals for 1978’s That’s The Way The Cowboy Rocks and Rolls. Much like her previous releases, the album was co-produced by her husband Waylon Jennings.
The album arrived too late to capitalize on the success of either Wanted! The Outlaws or her #2 peaking duet with Jennings, “Suspicious Minds.” Thus, the two singles failed to gain any traction at radio. “Maybe You Should’ve Been Listening,” a gentle ballad, peaked at #45. The second and final single, “Love Me Back to Sleep” only reached #91. Jacky Ward would score a #7 hit with the title track, a beautiful steel-drenched mid-tempo number, in 1980.
The main problem with That’s The Way The Cowboy Rocks and Rolls is the album’s lack of commercial viability. The title track and opening number “Roll On” are the only two cuts that can pass as uptempo and either one would’ve been better choices for singles than what Capitol sent to radio. Colter also does well with “Black Haired Boy” and “My Cowboy’s Last Ride,” both very good story songs. The remainder of the album is good, but nothing terribly exciting.
Grade: B
Though you’d never know it from the title, 1977’s Mirriam is a collection of inspirational and religious-themed tunes, all composed by Jessi Colter. Her chart success had tapered off since the high point she’d reached two years earlier with “I’m Not Lisa”, but but thanks to the success of 1976’s Wanted! The Outlaws, she had gotten back on the radio with “Suspicious Minds”, a duet with Waylon Jennings that had reached #2. It seems odd, therefore, that Capitol would follow up that success with a religious album which was bound to have more limited commercial appeal.
Like Jessi’s earlier Capitol albums, Mirriam (a title chosen to honor Jessi’s birth name), was produced by Ken Mansfield. This time, however, Richie Albright stepped as co-producer, a role previously held by Waylon. Waylon does appear in the musician credits, however, both as a guitarist and as a background vocalist on “I Belong to Him”, the album’s sole and non-charting single. Roy Orbison is also credited as a background vocalist on this track. Steel guitar great Ralph Mooney is once again onboard as well.
Some of the songs are more overtly religious than others. The opening track “For Mama” is, as the title suggests, a tribute to Jessi’s mother. “Put Your Arms Around Me” and “I Belong To Him” could be taken as either love songs or prayers, while others such as “God, If I Could Only Write Your Love Song” and “New Wine” are unquestionably spiritual. “There Ain’t No Rain” is a rollicking gospel number complete with a choir and is one of the album’s standout tracks, but I think “I Belong To Him” is probably my favorite.
Mirriam wasn’t as well received critically or commercially as Jessi’s earlier work, but it provides an interesting look at the more devotional side of country music’s premier female outlaw. While nothing here reaches the level of greatness, it’s an album that grows on the listener with repeated playings. It is available on a two-disc collection along with Jessi’s two subsequent albums That’s The Way A Cowboy Rocks and Rolls and Ridin’ Shotgun.
Grade: B
The song starts 2.45 in:
Released in July 1976, Diamond In The Rough was Jessi’s third album for Capitol, and her third album release in eighteen months. Like her first two Capitol album, it reached #4 on Billboard’s Country Albums Chart. Unlike its two predecessors, it generated no significant hits – the only single released, “I Thought I Heard You Calling My Name”, died at #29. Basically sales-wise this album coasted on the success of the first two Capitol albums.
Since the last single from the prior album had died at #50, it is pretty clear that the forward momentum her career received from “I’m Not Lisa” had already been lost. From this point forward none of her solo albums would crack the top forty and none of her singles would reach top twenty status.
Diamond In The Rough is not a bad album but I am not sure as to the identity of the target audience since the song selection seems rather random.
The title track “Diamond in the Rough” written by Donnie Fritts (a long-time veteran of Kris Kristofferson’s band) and Spooner Oldham, is a bluesy ballad that is much closer to being piano jazz than anything resembling country music.
“Get Back” a Lennon-McCartney composition, was a huge hit on both sides of the Atlantic in 1969, with Billy Preston’s energetic electric organ giving the song an energy that the Beatles had seemingly lost. Jessi’s rendition is not terrible, but is lethargic and not very interesting.
Better is Jessi’s “Would You Leave Now”, a lovely ballad, exquisitely sung by Jessi. The background features some gentle steel guitar amidst a light string accompaniment.
Although it was a massive hit, I never liked “Hey Jude”, the second Lennon- McCartney song on the album). Jessi sings it well, but at 7:16 the song is simply too long. Had she shortened it to about four minutes, I might have actually liked her gentle approach to the song, but at some point I simply lost interest – the only thing of interest in the coda is the fiddle.
Another Jessi Colter composition follows in “Oh Will (Who Made it Rain Last Night)”. This is another lovely ballad about the pain of leaving, this more of the folk variety rather than jazz. Jessi’s piano is impeccable and the song is quite lovely, just not country.
Oh Will who made it rain last night?
Who could take blue from my sky and paint it black night?
Who’s telling me to look so I’ll see the tears for years we will cry?
Talk to me Will.
You never told lies; who made it rain last night?
Lee Emerson’s “I Thought I Heard You Calling My Name” was the chart single from the album and is a country break-up song. I heard this song quite a bit upon its release and was surprised to find out later that this topped out at #29. There is an interesting story behind Lee Emerson’s death, but I won’t go into that here. Porter Wagoner and George Strait (Strait Out of The Box) both recorded the song.
I said goodbye to you this mornin’
With only these words to explain
I said I’d found someone I love better
But I still hear your voice call my name
I thought I heard you callin’ my name
Funny, I still feel this way.
Your voice seem so close, but I knew
That by now you were many miles away
I walk through the streets of the city
People passing by think it’s so strange
I’m talkin’ but there’s no one beside me
I thought I heard you call my name
“Ain’t No Way” by Tere Mansfield is a good country ballad which I think could have been a decent single. The problem for Jessi, is that she doesn’t have a really forceful voice, but on this song she gets across enough power to sell the song.
Obviously Jessi really loved Waylon, sticking with him through good times and bad times. “You Hung the Moon (Didn’t You Waylon)” is exhibit number one for this proposition. Too personal to be a single, the song leaves the listen with no doubts as to its sincerity.
You did hang the moon, didn’t you Waylon?
` You did hang that moon, didn’t you Waylon?
Weren’t you the one they called the seventh son?
You did hang the moon, didn’t you Waylon?You take so many words and bring them all home with one
You walk into my room and it lights up like the sun
Each step you take leads a way for someone
And I know you’d never do love wrong
“Woman’s Heart is a Handy Place to Be” by Cort Casady and Marshall Chapman is a jog-along ballad with a story to tell about a charmer who can never be faithful, but whom the narrator wants anyway . Jessi does a nice job with the song, but Crystal Gayle also recorded the song to better effect.
He’s a charmer
He’s broken every heart that’s tried to hold him
It’s tearin´ me apart to know I want him
Knowin´ I can never tell him soHe’s a loner
Runnin´ from a friend to find a stranger
It makes me weak it makes me wonder
Will I ever make it on my own
Will I ever make it on my ownA woman’s heart’s a handy place to be
For a man afraid of givin’ and fightin´ to be free
Yes a woman’s heart’s a handy place to be
I just wish the heart that’s broken now was not a part of me
Ms Marshall Chapman has led an interesting existence (she is six feet tall and much more of a rock & roller than a country songsmith, but she has had considerable success in country music with Sawyer Brown having a major hit with Betty’s Being Bad”.
The album concludes with an unnecessary reprise of “Oh Will (Who Made it Rain Last Night)”. I would have much preferred an additional song.
This is a tough album to evaluate in that both of the Beatles’ covers were complete misfires and several of the songs seem to be out of context on this album.
Grade: C+
Released in January 1976, Jessi’s second Capitol album was produced by Waylon and Outlaw prouducer Ken Mansfield. The overall sound is distinctly more pop influenced than country to my ears.
The first single, ‘It’s Morning (And I Still Love You) is a fairly lush ballad about the morning after a one night stand, with the prospect that it might turn out to be more. It was a moderate success, peaking at #11 on the country chart. Jessi’s voice is stronger than usual on this. The second single, ‘Without You’, is a very intense song begging a lover not to leave, although the vocals are weaker in the up-tempo sections (verging on shouty in places) and much of the arrangement now sounds dated. It didn’t crack the top 40.
‘The Hand That Rocks The Cradle’ (not the better known hit of that name, but like every other song on the album a new Jessi Colter composition) is an uptempo bluesy rock number about a woman left home while her husband is out painting the town. ‘One Woman Man’ is a sultry demand for love from a potential partner with an extended brass arrangement. ‘Rounder’ is about loving a rogue, and I found it a bit repetitive.
I prefer Jessi on ballads, where her fragile voice makes her sound vulnerable. ‘Here I Am’ is a very nice love song with a tasteful arrangement which I enjoyed very much, and ‘Darlin’ It’s Yours’ is very pretty. The slow (and heavily strung in parts) ‘Would You Walk With Me (To The Lilies)’ and ‘I’ll See Your Face (In The Morning’s Window)’ are also quite good. Jessi’s vocals are shaky on the high notes of ‘All My Life, I’ve Been Your Lady’, another love song.
Grade: B-
After her debut failed to gain traction, Jessi Colter went a full five years between albums. She switched labels, from RCA Victor to Capitol Records, and released I’m Jessi Colter in January 1975. The record was co-produced by her husband Waylon Jennings and record executive Ken Mansfield.
Colter composed the entire project herself, which included lead single “I’m Not Lisa,” her most remembered song and biggest hit. The stunning ballad details the anguish of a woman in love with a man who still harbors feelings for his ex:
I’m not Lisa, my name is Julie
Lisa left you years ago
My eyes are not blue
But mine won’t leave you
‘Til the sunlight has touched your face
Not only did “I’m Not Lisa” top the country singles chart, but it hit #4 of the Billboard Hot 100, two major accomplishments that wouldn’t come her way again. Colter would crack the top five just once more with “What’s Happened To Blue Eyes,” the steel-laced second and final single from this album.
The remainder of the album is hit-or-miss, with a diversion into Memphis Soul that detracts from a majority of the tracks. These songs are well-executed, especially “Is There Any Way (You’d Stay Forever),” but the rest (“You Ain’t Never Been Loved (Like I’m Gonna Love You), “Come On In,” and “Love’s The Only Chain”) just aren’t to my taste. I summarily disliked the arrangement on “I Hear A Song,” but the ballad itself is quite lovely. “Storms Never Last” had much the same effect on me.
Colter’s strongest moments on the album are, not surprising, the country ones. “For The First Time” is a glorious slice of honky-tonk, a very welcomed change of pace. She’s even better on the stunning “Who Walks Thru Your Memory (Billy Jo),” the best track by a mile. The steel guitar perfectly frames her gorgeous vocal.
I’m not trying to suggest that I’m Jessi Colter is a bad album, it’s just extremely dated to modern ears, a victim of its era and a project designed to appeal to the popular trends of the time. While she never enjoyed solo success like this again, she struck gold a year later with an appearance along side her husband, Willie Nelson and Tompall Glaser on Wanted! The Outlaws. The album not only solidified the outlaw movement in modern country, but it was the first country album to be certified platinum.
Grade: B
My Kind of Country 