The Proper Years

by Bill Kirchen

Overview

The "proper" in the 2020 anthology The Proper Years refers to the Proper label, the imprint Bill Kirchen called home between 2006 and 2010. During that time, he released three albums -- 2006's Hammer of the Honky-Tonk Gods, 2010's Word to the Wise, and 2013's Seeds and Stems -- all of which are featured on this double-disc set, along with selected cuts from Transatlanticana, the 2016 album the guitarist cut with Eggs Over Easy keyboardist Austin DeLone. All this means that The Proper Years is light on unheard material but it does have snappy liner notes from Kirchen himself, and it's a convenient way to get these fine albums all at once. When the three LPs are compressed into a two-CD set, the result is high-octane Bakersfield boogie that is as much fun in its first hour as it is in its last. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	07/24/2020
Label:	The Last Music Company
UPC:	5052442013525
Rank:	29495

Tracks

Disc 1

1. Hammer of the Honky-Tonk Gods
2. Rocks Into Sand
3. Get a Little Goner
4. Skid Row in My Mind
5. Working Man
6. Soul Cruisin'
7. Truth Be Told
8. Devil With the Blue Dress
9. One More Day
10. Heart of Gold
11. If It's Really Got to Be This Way
12. Bump Wood
13. Shelly's Winter Love
14. Man in the Bottom of the Well
15. I Don't Work That Cheap
16. Time Will Tell the Story
17. Husbands and Wives
18. Open Range
19. Arkansas Diamond

Disc 2

20. Word to the Wise
21. Ain't Got Time for the Blues
22. Valley of the Moon
23. Too Much Fun
24. Tell Me the Reason
25. Down to Seeds and Stems
26. Rockabilly Funeral
27. Semi-Truck
28. Womb to the Tomb
29. Flip Flop
30. Swing Fever
31. It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry
32. Truck Stop at the End of the World
33. Mama Hated Diesels
34. Hot Rod Lincoln
35. Talkin' About Chicken
36. Think It Over
37. Oxblood
38. The Times They Are A-Changin'

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Bill Kirchen   Primary Artist,Guitar,Vocals,Vocal Harmony,Guitar (Baritone),Guitar (Electric)
Commander Cody   Primary Artist
Paul Carrack   Primary Artist
Butch Hancock   Primary Artist
Norton Buffalo   Primary Artist
Geraint Watkins   Primary Artist,Keyboards,Vocals (Background)
Maria Muldaur   Primary Artist
Dan Hicks   Primary Artist
Nick Lowe   Primary Artist,Bass,Vocals (Background)
Chris O'Connell   Primary Artist
Blackie Farrell   Primary Artist
Austin DeLone   Primary Artist,Keyboards,Vocals (Background),Organ,Piano
Elvis Costello   Primary Artist
Bucky Lindsey   Vocals
Sarah Carroll   Vocals
Malcolm Mills   Drums
Suzannah Espie   Vocals
Lisa Best   Vocals
Micky Kemp   Vocal Harmony
David "DB" Berzansky   Guitar (Steel)
Kevin Blackie Farrell   Featured Artist
Chris Gaffney   Vocals
Danny Levin   Fiddle
Dave Gonzalez   Vocals
Trish Anderson   Vocals
Johnny Castle   Bass
Jorma Kaukonen   Guitar (Acoustic)
Rick Richards   Drums
David Carroll   Bass,Vocal Harmony
Robert Treherne   Drums
Gurf Morlix   Guitar (Electric)
Paul Riley   Bass,Vocals (Background)
Jack O'Dell   Drums,Percussion,Vocal Harmony
Cindy Cashdollar   Guitar (Steel)
Garry Walsh   Organ
Maurice Cridlin   String Bass,Bass (Electric)

Technical Credits

Jeff Sarli   Composer
Malcolm Mills   Executive Producer
Chris Burns   Engineer
Brian Voorheis   Composer
Erik Carstensen   Engineer
Nigel Goodson   Composer
Bob Dylan   Composer
Kenny James   Composer
Bill Kirchen   Composer
Kevin Blackie Farrell   Composer
Joe Carroll   Engineer
Barry Farmer   Mastering
Roger Miller   Composer
Jimmy Donley   Composer
Danny Levin   Engineer
Arthur Alexander   Composer
Charlie Ryan   Composer
Dan Hicks   Composer
Tony Johnson   Composer
Shorty Long   Composer
Austin DeLone   Composer
Gary Nicholson   Composer
Jeff Covert   Engineer
Leroy Preston   Composer
Johnny Castle   Composer
Sarah Brown   Composer
Merle Haggard   Composer
Butch Hancock   Composer
Paul Riley   Mixing,Engineer
Billy C. Farlow   Composer
Jack O'Dell   Composer
Donnie Fritts   Composer
George Frayne   Composer