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burun wrote:Since I never put the CD in my computer until just now, I never realized that Joel RL Phelps/Downer Trio's Customs had a "making of" video on it.

I am probably the last to know.

nope. i am the last to know.

i have never watched any bonus crap that is on a c.d. never. not once. tonight i am going to watch this. joel phelps is just that good.

In the last year, I have aquired Blackbird, the Downer Trio ep, 3, and Warm Springs Night. These are all excellent, but Blackbird is my favorite. "Unless You're Tired of Living", his version of "Lost Continent", and "Landslide" are mindblowing songs to me.

The songs "Razorback", "Rev Robert Irving", "Always Glide", and "Warm Springs Night" are masterpieces. I have yet to hear Customs.

Thank you everybody for the feedback in this thread.

This is how I'd rank the records, in order of preference:

Blackbird
Customs
3
Downer Trio EP
Warm Springs Night
Inland Empires EP

Bill Herzog told me once that customs was recorded very off the cuff. Joel basically taught the songs to the bassist and the drummer(Bill) and when they had the changes down, they just started recording. Joel is also a very nice guy. He was my favorite part of Silkworm.

He's a great, great guitar player. One of my favorites by a damn stretch.

"Blackbird" and "Customs" are both tremendous, but "Blackbird" is his masterpiece. It's his "Firewater". Or his "And Justice for All". It might even be his "Sign o' the Times".

Everything is great, it's just more mood-related than "Blackbird" happens to be.

I dearly wish he'd make another album sometime this decade.

Chug chug blang,
ike

Customs starts and ends really well, but I don't really care for the middle. The Traditions EP is fantastic. The Downer Trio does the best covers in the business.

I like Blackbird too. That's the one I listened to the most over the shortest amount of time. Right when I was leaving college and it was cold and miserable and I was unbelievably stressed out and staying up until 4 am every night.

I like it more than Warm Springs and Customs, but less than the others.

3 is my favorite album by anyone ever. I think the recording is flawless. I already used "gorgeous" to describe it, but I'll do it again. What a gorgeous record! It loses a lot of steam for me after "Who Can I Burn?" so I treat it like an EP. Sincerest apoloties to "Alita Aleta."

Yes, I'd like more JRLP in this world. Radio sessions, demos, and live tracks will be fine.

Do you know what I'd like? Another studio record this decade, sure, but what I'd really like is one or two or eighteen live albums from the Downer Trio. (Or at least more clips like this one.) The world needs more documents of these shows. The world also needs more of these shows.

I have not seen a musician in the past twelve years give a better show than Joel Phelps. Maybe the Sun Ra Arkestra or Mission of Burma matched him, but they didn't top him.

There was a 2005 "tour" EP thing that was half Treasure State and half Downer Trio that was for sale at the Feb '06 shows. It's three songs from Customs: "What Are You Doing Here Cowboy?", "Sgt Said," and "Mother I'm Missing."

When Customs came out there were a bunch of radio sessions that the guys did. KEXP hosted theirs for a pretty long time, but I don't think it's up now (though it may still be -- i think it was streaming wma files and my version of media player won't play it). There were some others I checked out at that time. Tim Cook's page still has a link if I remember correctly.

When I saw Joel open the Muscular Dystrophy benefit headlined by Shins guy last year I thought I was going to cry. Right from the start, from the opening line of the very first song Joel's voice had so much power and intensity I honestly thought a tear might fall. He did a The Sound cover and the Swans' "Children of God" later that night.

A few months later at the next MD benefit I saw a young fella just like me singing along to "Nashville Sound" -- pretty cool considering it's a non album track.

I like this band a whole lot. My post count in this thread probably makes that obvious.

elmofreech wrote:"Nashville Sound"

This is a great, great song, and one of the many reasons I continually hope for a new JRLP/DT release, in whatever format he'll do. (mp3, LP, CD, 78, Edison Cylinder...)

Hey,

Tonight you should blast "Lie For the Day" until the cops come.

Tomorrow, maybe "Blessed Salt Lake".

"The Graze and the Graves" the next.

One a day, once a day, after the cops, after eviction, after jail, until a new record comes.

Believe in it.

Or else what's the point.