Railroad Reveals ‘When And Where’ In Third Album
Unpredictably zany Confederate Railroad, the band whose hit repertoire ranges from the trashy (“Trashy Women”) to family values (“Daddy Never Was the Cadillac Kind,” “Jesus and Mama,” “Elvis and Andy”), claims to have had a difficult time finding material for its new third album, “When and Where.”
“We wanted it to be better than average and even better than our average,” says lead singer Danny Shirley, adding that he found he had to be choosier than ever.
“After the success of ‘Trashy Women,’ we got some really off-the-wall stuff pitched to us. Some of the humor was just too tacky - R-rated and then some. And after ‘Elvis and Andy’ we started getting songs that were downright corny. So it was quite an endeavor to find the right material.
“We looked at both albums and listed the things that worked and the things that didn’t. Everything good about both of these albums is on this third one.”
The fare on “When and Where” seems to touch all the Confederate bases. It includes a traditional values song in “When He Was My Age” and trademark oddness in “Bill’s Laundromat, Bar and Grill.” There is a profile of a dangerously lovesick character in “All I Wanted” and love for one’s old stomping grounds in “Sounds of Home.” There’s blue-collar humor in “Toss a Little Bone” and a soul sound in the band’s remake of Delbert McClinton’s “My Baby’s Lovin’.”
Bluegrass popularity surges
The recently released 1994 National Endowment for the Arts report on “Arts Participation in America” shows that bluegrass music is now enjoyed by more than 55 million Americans and that it gained nearly 14 million new fans between 1985 and 1992.
The report shows bluegrass to be ninth in popularity of all music preferences in the United States among people 18 and older. Of those surveyed, 30 percent listed bluegrass among their music preferences, just behind jazz (34 percent) and classical (33 percent). The leader is country (52 percent).
Imagine what the 1995 bluegrass figures will be, reflecting diva Alison Krauss’ invasion of the mainstream. Her current album, “Now That I’ve Found You: A Collection” on Rounder, has just been certified a million-seller, which was previously unheard of in bluegrass circles.
Twain song a flip-flop
Shania Twain, the hottest-selling thing on the country scene at the moment (along with John Michael Montgomery), says her fast-rising single “Any Man of Mine,” which she wrote with the help of her husband, started out as “This Man of Mine.”
“It praised the man, he was just perfect,” she recalls. “He was always on time, was the perfect gentleman, did everything right. Then we did the exact opposite, we flip-flopped it, because it was more fun to make it the other way.
“And we made it more (exaggeratedly) demanding, which is more of my character, anyway,” she adds with a laugh. “I like to say things in a fun way.”