Red House Painters |
Songs For A Blue Guitar (July 22, 1996) |

Red House Painters — Songs For A Blue Guitar (July 22, 1996)
♦♦≡♦♦ Beautiful, sad, meandering guitar–led songs, fronted by Mark Kozelek’s distinctive rich yet melancholic vocals. SUN KIL MOON AND RED HOUSE PAINTERS’ MARK KOZELEK EXPLAINS HIS UNLIKELY INSPIRATION, REFLECTS ON AGING, AND CHOOSES BEAUTY OVER CATHARSIS.
Formed: 1989 in San Francisco, CA
Location: San Francisco, CA
Album release: July 22, 1996
Recorded: 1995–1996
Record Label: Supreme Recordings / Plain Recordings, / Island, UMe
Duration: 70:29
Tracks:
01. Have You Forgotten 6:13
02. Song For A Blue Guitar 5:59
03. Make Like Paper 12:03
04. Priest Alley Song 4:34
05. Trailways 6:41
06. I Feel The Rain Fall 2:35
07. Long Distance Runaround 4:42
08. All Mixed Up 5:50
09. Revelation Big Sur 5:48
10. Silly Love Songs 10:57
11. Another Song For A Blue Guitar 5:07
Ξ All songs written and composed by Mark Kozelek, except where noted.
Ξ Track 7 written by Jon Anderson
Ξ Track 8 written by Ric Ocasek
Ξ Track 11 written by Paul McCartney Credits:
♠ Performed and produced by Mark Kozelek.
♠ Backing vocals on “Song for a Blue Guitar” and “All Mixed Up” performed by Stephanie Finch.
Recorded at:
♠ Record Two Studios, Mendocino County, Comptche, California.
♠ Hyde Street Studios, San Francisco.
♠ Polk Street Recording, San Francisco.
♠ Mixed at Madhatter Studios, Los Angeles.
♠ “Another Song for a Blue Guitar" recorded and mixed at Polk Street Recording.
♠ Mark Needham — recording engineer.
♠ Billy Anderson — engineer.
♠ Darren Mora and Dale Lawton — second engineers at Madhatter.
♠ Mastered by John Golden at John Golden Mastering, Newbury Park, California.
♠ Photography by Michele Turriani.
♠ Art direction and design by Paul McMenamin at v23. Description:
Ξ Songs for a Blue Guitar is an album by Red House Painters, released on July 22, 1996 in the UK, and a day later in the US. It is effectively a Mark Kozelek solo album, since no other members of the band are listed in the liner notes. The album introduced heavier, electric guitar driven rock to their sound in songs like “Make Like Paper”, and Kozelek’s cover of Paul McCartney & Wings’ “Silly Love Songs”.
Review
Ryan Schreiber, Rating: 9.0
♠ Songs For A Blue Guitar started out more a solo record than anything. Primary band member Kozelek went into the woods with some musicians he’d never worked with before and songs that had yet to be finished. While that may not sound like anything crazy to the average musician, to Kozelek it marks the end of an era.
♠ All previous Red House Painters records were pre–written and practiced before the studio sessions. Everything was mixed by Kozelek, a self–proclaimed anal retentive perfectionist.
♠ The new material is a little more loose. I don’t want to compare it to the mellower side of Neil Young just because you’re going to read that comparison in every single review of this record, but it’s such an obvious influence that it can’t be ignored.
♠ Obviously, Red House Painters have always been rock for the Prozac set, but songs like “Make Like Paper” and “Priest Alley Song” show a different side of Kozelek the world has not yet seen: The Rocker. Some might be skeptical as to whether Mark’s rockin’ abilities are up to par after being so toned down all these years. You have nothing to worry about. This is some of his best work yet.
♠ Red House Painters have done quite a few covers of all different styles over the years, from Simon and Garfunkel's somber “I Am A Rock” to Kiss’ balls–out “Shock Me.” Blue Guitar lets three new covers free. An ass–kicking version of Yes’ “Long Distance Runaround,” a beautiful, softer style “All Mixed Up” that reveals what incredible lyrics the song originally had when Ric Ocasek wrote them to perform with the Cars back in the ‘80s, and a completely insane, 11–minute cover of Paul McCartney and Wings’ “Silly Love Songs.”
♠ When press kits say that a band has “evolved musically,” I’ve found that it usually means they’re beginning to suck. This is one of the few exceptions where that statement is actually true. ♠ http://web.archive.org/
Website: http://www.sunkilmoon.com/
Mark Kozelek: http://www.markkozelek.com/
INTERVIEW
BY EVAN SAWDEY, 7 May 2008
http://www.popmatters.com/feature/theres-never-anything-planned-an-interview-with-mark-kozelek/
Studio albums:
♠ Down Colorful Hill (14 September 1992)
♠ Red House Painters aka Rollercoaster (24 May 1993)
♠ Red House Painters aka Bridge (18 October 1993)
♠ Ocean Beach (27 March 1995)
♠ Songs for a Blue Guitar (23 July 1996)
♠ Old Ramon (10 April 2001)_____________________________________________________________
Red House Painters |
Songs For A Blue Guitar (July 22, 1996) |
♦♦≡♦♦ Beautiful, sad, meandering guitar–led songs, fronted by Mark Kozelek’s distinctive rich yet melancholic vocals. SUN KIL MOON AND RED HOUSE PAINTERS’ MARK KOZELEK EXPLAINS HIS UNLIKELY INSPIRATION, REFLECTS ON AGING, AND CHOOSES BEAUTY OVER CATHARSIS.
Formed: 1989 in San Francisco, CA
Location: San Francisco, CA
Album release: July 22, 1996
Recorded: 1995–1996
Record Label: Supreme Recordings / Plain Recordings, / Island, UMe
Duration: 70:29
Tracks:
01. Have You Forgotten 6:13
02. Song For A Blue Guitar 5:59
03. Make Like Paper 12:03
04. Priest Alley Song 4:34
05. Trailways 6:41
06. I Feel The Rain Fall 2:35
07. Long Distance Runaround 4:42
08. All Mixed Up 5:50
09. Revelation Big Sur 5:48
10. Silly Love Songs 10:57
11. Another Song For A Blue Guitar 5:07
Ξ All songs written and composed by Mark Kozelek, except where noted.
Ξ Track 7 written by Jon Anderson
Ξ Track 8 written by Ric Ocasek
Ξ Track 11 written by Paul McCartney Credits:
♠ Performed and produced by Mark Kozelek.
♠ Backing vocals on “Song for a Blue Guitar” and “All Mixed Up” performed by Stephanie Finch.
Recorded at:
♠ Record Two Studios, Mendocino County, Comptche, California.
♠ Hyde Street Studios, San Francisco.
♠ Polk Street Recording, San Francisco.
♠ Mixed at Madhatter Studios, Los Angeles.
♠ “Another Song for a Blue Guitar" recorded and mixed at Polk Street Recording.
♠ Mark Needham — recording engineer.
♠ Billy Anderson — engineer.
♠ Darren Mora and Dale Lawton — second engineers at Madhatter.
♠ Mastered by John Golden at John Golden Mastering, Newbury Park, California.
♠ Photography by Michele Turriani.
♠ Art direction and design by Paul McMenamin at v23. Description:
Ξ Songs for a Blue Guitar is an album by Red House Painters, released on July 22, 1996 in the UK, and a day later in the US. It is effectively a Mark Kozelek solo album, since no other members of the band are listed in the liner notes. The album introduced heavier, electric guitar driven rock to their sound in songs like “Make Like Paper”, and Kozelek’s cover of Paul McCartney & Wings’ “Silly Love Songs”.
Review
Ryan Schreiber, Rating: 9.0
♠ Songs For A Blue Guitar started out more a solo record than anything. Primary band member Kozelek went into the woods with some musicians he’d never worked with before and songs that had yet to be finished. While that may not sound like anything crazy to the average musician, to Kozelek it marks the end of an era.
♠ All previous Red House Painters records were pre–written and practiced before the studio sessions. Everything was mixed by Kozelek, a self–proclaimed anal retentive perfectionist.
♠ The new material is a little more loose. I don’t want to compare it to the mellower side of Neil Young just because you’re going to read that comparison in every single review of this record, but it’s such an obvious influence that it can’t be ignored.
♠ Obviously, Red House Painters have always been rock for the Prozac set, but songs like “Make Like Paper” and “Priest Alley Song” show a different side of Kozelek the world has not yet seen: The Rocker. Some might be skeptical as to whether Mark’s rockin’ abilities are up to par after being so toned down all these years. You have nothing to worry about. This is some of his best work yet.
♠ Red House Painters have done quite a few covers of all different styles over the years, from Simon and Garfunkel's somber “I Am A Rock” to Kiss’ balls–out “Shock Me.” Blue Guitar lets three new covers free. An ass–kicking version of Yes’ “Long Distance Runaround,” a beautiful, softer style “All Mixed Up” that reveals what incredible lyrics the song originally had when Ric Ocasek wrote them to perform with the Cars back in the ‘80s, and a completely insane, 11–minute cover of Paul McCartney and Wings’ “Silly Love Songs.”
♠ When press kits say that a band has “evolved musically,” I’ve found that it usually means they’re beginning to suck. This is one of the few exceptions where that statement is actually true. ♠ http://web.archive.org/
Website: http://www.sunkilmoon.com/
Mark Kozelek: http://www.markkozelek.com/
INTERVIEW
BY EVAN SAWDEY, 7 May 2008
http://www.popmatters.com/feature/theres-never-anything-planned-an-interview-with-mark-kozelek/
Studio albums:
♠ Down Colorful Hill (14 September 1992)
♠ Red House Painters aka Rollercoaster (24 May 1993)
♠ Red House Painters aka Bridge (18 October 1993)
♠ Ocean Beach (27 March 1995)
♠ Songs for a Blue Guitar (23 July 1996)
♠ Old Ramon (10 April 2001)_____________________________________________________________