Green on the Red-BBC Sessions

Release date: May 7 2007

Format: Album
Genre: Country and Western
Our Rating: 3/5

The influence of Neil Young is everywhere it seems. It is certainly in the music of Green On Red. This is particularly noticeable on the third track D T Blues with its thin hauntingly effective vocals, it also epitomises the lazy guitar sound that characterised the bands playing. Originally from Tucson Arizona, it’s easy to conjure up images of vast empty landscapes when you listen to their songs - as well as the odd, empty bottle of bourbon. If you like your Country and Western a little off kilter then check this out.
By Steve Simpson, MyVillage

Press release
Monday 7th May sees the release of Green On Red - The BBC Sessions on the newly formed Cooking Vinyl imprint Maida Vale Records, which will be digging deep into various radio station’s vaults for interesting live sessions, and concert audio. 

Green on Red – The BBC Sessions features 22 songs, recorded from 1989 to 1992 at the BBC’s legendary London based Maida Vale Studios.  This is the first time these session tracks have been made available on a commercial release.

Below, Green On Red founder Dan Stuart explains about the recording of these sessions:
 
“I imagine that the radio personalities who sponsored these sessions weren't always pleased with the results. Maybe they had shown up at a gig and watched the singer throw up on his shoes and were hoping for some sort of recorded equivalence. What they got instead was a Harlan Howard cover ("Busted") or a thinly disguised knock off of a Jimmy Reed tune ("Itch and Shout"). Gathering all the "Billy" verses from "Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid" was sure to please. Instead of guitar heroics, we offered 16 year old accordionist Sally Burke plucked right off the streets of Norwich. Damn, they sound like decrepit pub rockers, what gives?

A lot of this sideways approach was possible due to the type of musician we liked to surround ourselves with back then. Green On Red Part 1 had been an experiment in chemistry that was unpredictable at best.  Chris Cacavas and Jack Waterson are both unique players to say the least. The uncertainty of a fizzle or a nuclear chain reaction proved overly stressful, at least for me. Let's just forget that it was I who was always the catalyst of doom, shall we? When the original GOR melted down, Chuck and I looked for a certain type of player who was not easily offended and who didn't mind a little weenie wagging. Rene Coman and Chris Holland were gentlemen who liked to slum; JD Foster was always up for a freak show. The only real mistake was drummer Greg Elmore from Quicksilver Messenger Service who scared the bejesus out of us... just ask our old manager Martin Elbourne, his hands are still shaking.

Looking back, I'm in awe of all the bureaucratic interest that was thrown our way. Sometimes we showed up for history and sometimes we really just couldn't be bothered. Oh, the arrogance! Towards the end, it came down to a forlorn Chuck and I wandering into Johnnie Walker's broadcast booth with a fistful of guitars and hearts full of regret.  We would plunk ourselves down and pretend to be the country blues artists that we actually were. Johnnie would poke fun and we would play Step' 'n' Fetchit. The irony was lost on us but not for the audience... radio does that only too well.

Sadly, the late great John Peel never much gave a hoot about GOR. We ran into him once down in the lobby of Radio One. I told him that if he did a session with us I would go down on him. What followed was a look of total horror. Christ, it wasn't like I was going to swallow or anything. He scampered back up to his vinyl lined hamster cage and that was that. Oh well, his loss.”

www.greenonred.net

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MyVillage, 18th April