Early Warnings

by Holly Near

Overview

With Holly Near's Redwood label having gone bust, putting all her early albums out of print, Appleseed culls tracks from two of her 1980s releases, Watch Out! and Sky Dances, and adds the version of Pete Seeger's "Quiet Early Morning" from its 1998 Seeger tribute, Where Have All the Flowers Gone, to construct this compilation. Near adds a sleeve note under the word "context," pointing out that most of the songs derive from the Reagan era and represent early warnings for political storms that are here today. The compilation doesn't do any favors for Watch Out!, which was a timely collection of topical songwriting set to a folk/bluegrass/acoustic new age musical palette contributed by the likes of John McCutcheon, Barbara Higbie, Michael Manring, Darol Anger, and others. But Sky Dances marked the beginning of Near's apparent writing block, and excerpting her own compositions from an album largely made up of cover tunes, while dropping some of the lesser tracks from Watch Out! makes for a stronger collection than either album separately. Near fans, of course, will want the original albums, but they're hard to find, and this is a reasonable selection from them. ~ William Ruhlmann

Product Details

Release Date:	08/21/2012
Label:	Appleseed Records
UPC:	0611587105622
Rank:	160906

Tracks

1. The Meek Are Getting Ready
2. Don't Let the Singer Down
3. War of the Flea
4. Watch Out!
5. Step It Out Nancy
6. The Train Song
7. Couple of Friends
8. She
9. Nicaragua Night
10. Sun Won't Stop
11. Child
12. Sky Dances
13. West Virginia Friend
14. Quiet Early Morning

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Holly Near   Primary Artist,Vocals
Irene Sazer   Viola
Barbara Higbie   Piano
John McCutcheon   Hammer Dulcimer,Guitar (Acoustic),Banjo
Lorraine Duisit   Vocals,Mandola,Mandolin
Nina Gerber   Guitar (Acoustic)
Michael Manring   Bass
Ralph Gordon   Cello,Bass (Acoustic)
Ray Obiedo   Guitar (Electric)
Darol Anger   Cello
Paul Reisler   Guitar (Acoustic)
Freyda Epstein   Violin,Vocals,Double Bass
Carrie Barton   Bass (Electric)
Rafael Manriquez   Guitar (Acoustic)
Debbie Cotter   Banjo
Cam Davis   Drums
John Bucchino   Piano,Keyboards

Technical Credits

Paul Stubblebine   Mastering
Steve Wood   Composer
John McCutcheon   Arranger,Composer,Producer
Jeff Langley   Composer
Leslie Ann Jones   Mixing,Engineer
Pete Seeger   Composer
Roy Brown   Composer
Michael Manring   Arranger,Producer
Holly Near   Arranger,Composer,Producer
Tom Anderson   Engineer
Jimmy Durham   Composer
Jesse VanAntwerp   Photography
Jerome Clark   Composer
Jerry Rubino   Photography
Jo-Lynne Worley   Arranger,Producer
Joanie Shoemaker   Arranger,Producer
John Bucchino   Arranger,Producer