Bonnie “Prince” Billy | ||
| Allmusic Biography : Bonnie "Prince" Billy is one of the many aliases singer and songwriter Will Oldham has used in his career in music, though it would become the most prolific, with Oldham releasing nearly all his material under the moniker from 1999 onward, the year he released the breakthrough album I See a Darkness. Whether known as Bonnie "Prince" Billy, Palace, Palace Brothers, or Palace Songs, Oldhams music has consistently used the musical framework of vintage folk and country as a vehicle for his songs imaging the joys and failings of human nature. Depending on his mood, Oldhams voice can be clear or creaky (his best vocal work often appears on interpretive albums such as 2017s Best Troubador, 2018s Wolf of the Cosmos, and 2013s What the Brothers Sang, the latter a collaboration with Dawn McCarthy), and the arrangements may be full-bodied or spectral (the evolution from Palace Brothers 1994 album Days in the Wake to 2001s Ease Down the Road and 2004s Bonnie "Prince" Billy Sings Greatest Palace Music is instructive), but the literacy and emotional power of his songs have been constant in his recorded work, and hes grown from being an interesting outlier in alt-country to a respected figure in folk and roots music circles. The Louisville, Kentucky native worked as an actor during the late 80s and early 90s, starring in John Sayles 1987 mining film Matewan, appearing in the 1989 TV movie Everybodys Baby: The Rescue of Jessica McClure, and the 1991 big-screen film Thousand Pieces of Gold. Oldham debuted as a musician in 1992 with the Drag City single Ohio River Boat Song, which he released as Palace Songs; his debut album, There Is No-One What Will Take Care of You, arrived the following year as a Palace Brothers offering. By 1995s Viva Last Blues, he was beginning to work as Palace Music, a name that stuck until 1997s Joya, which Oldham released under his own name. However, with 1998s Black Dissimulation and the following years I See a Darkness, the Bonnie "Prince" Billy name seemed to stick, for the most part: Aside from the soundtrack Ode Music and Guarapero: Lost Blues 2, the majority of Oldhams work from then on was credited to Bonnie "Prince" Billy. Ease Down the Road arrived in early 2001, featuring collaborators David Pajo, Catherine Irwin, Mike Fellows, and Harmony Korine. Master and Everyone appeared two years later. In 2004 came the release of a rather surprising project for Oldham -- Bonnie "Prince" Billy Sings Greatest Palace Music, in which his usual collaborators were joined by a band of Nashville session musicians for a set of polished re-recordings of songs from his back catalog. Oldhams next project found him collaborating with guitarist Matt Sweeney (who had previously worked with Chavez and Zwan, as well as playing banjo on Ease Down the Road) for the evocative January 2005 release Superwolf. Reflective, bittersweet, and achingly melodic, it was praised as one of the years first truly strong albums. Oldham and Sweeney followed up Superwolf that July with an extended single, I Gave You, featuring two non-album tracks. Sweeney was also on hand for the live album Summer in the Southeast, issued by Sea Note in November 2005. Oldham and Sweeney were joined by a full band for the shows. The singer released another solo album, The Letting Go, in September 2006 and followed it up with an EP of cover songs titled Ask Forgiveness in November 2007. Oldham was especially prolific in 2008, beginning the year with the live album Wilding in the West, an Australia-only release recorded in California during his 2007 tour. That spring, Oldham returned with Lie Down in the Light, one of his more polished efforts, which he followed that fall with Is It the Sea?, another live album recorded on his 2006 U.K. tour and released by Domino. Just a few months later in spring 2009, Beware, an ambitious effort featuring contributions from Rob Mazurek, Azita Youseffi, and the Mekons Jon Langford, arrived, and yet another live effort, Funtown Comedown, appeared before the year was up. His next project involved the Cairo Gang, loosely a solo project for guitarist Emmett Kelly (who had often played with Oldham). The co-billing produced a record in early 2010 entitled The Wonder Show of the World, followed by the similarly themed Wolfroy Goes to Town in 2011. Marble Downs, a collaboration with the like-minded Trembling Bells, appeared in 2012, as did Now Heres My Plan, a six-song EP under the Bonnie "Prince" Billy moniker that included reworkings of older tunes. The EP served as a companion piece for Oldhams book Will Oldham on Bonnie "Prince" Billy, a collection of conversations between Oldham and experimental sound artist Alan Licht. In 2013, Oldham reteamed with Letting Go guest vocalist and Faun Fables frontwoman Dawn McCarthy for What the Brothers Sang, a collection of Everly Brothers covers. That same year he self-released an unannounced self-titled album on his Palace Records imprint. Oldham took the grassroots approach on the album very seriously, going as far as hand-delivering copies to record stores as a means of distribution. In 2014, the 11th Bonnie "Prince" Billy album, Singers Grave/A Sea of Tongues, materialized. Though Oldham had been constantly prolific, the album was his first substantially distributed original material since 2011s Wolfroy Goes to Town, though much of the album reworked songs from that era with different arrangements. In early 2016, Oldham took a look back with the album Pond Scum, a set of live-in-the-studio recordings originally cut for John Peels BBC radio program, which included a number of Palace/Bonnie "Prince" Billy favorites and an idiosyncratic cover of Princes "The Cross." That same year saw Oldham collaborating with Krautrock revivalist Cooper Crains Bitchin Bajas on the LP Epic Jammers & Fortunate Little Ditties, as well as releasing a second album with Trembling Bells, The Bonnie Bells of Oxford. In May 2017, Oldham released Best Troubador, a tribute to Merle Haggard in which Bonnie "Prince" Billy and his friends covered 15 songs written or recorded by the great country star. Oldham returned in 2018 with another album of covers. On Wolf at the Cosmos he interpreted every song from Norwegian singer Susannas 2007 album Sonata Mix Dwarf Cosmos; "People Living" was released as the albums lead single. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 41 Title: Blue Lotus Feet Released: 1998-11-30 Tracks: 7 Duration: 14:02 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 One With the Birds (05:13) 2 The Southside of the World (03:04) 3 When Thy Song Flows Through Me (02:29) 4 I Am the Sky (00:53) 5 Blue Lotus Feet (01:14) 6 Polestar of My Life (00:22) 7 Door of My Heart (00:44) |
 | Album: 2 of 41 Title: I See a Darkness Released: 1999-01-19 Tracks: 11 Duration: 37:56 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 A Minor Place (03:43) 2 Nomadic Revery (All Around) (03:58) 3 I See a Darkness (04:49) 4 Another Day Full of Dread (03:10) 5 Death to Everyone (04:31) 6 Knockturne (02:17) 7 Madeleine‐Mary (02:31) 8 Song for the New Breed (03:23) 9 Today I Was an Evil One (03:52) 10 Black (03:45) 11 Raining in Darling (01:52) |
| I See a Darkness : Allmusic album Review : Bonnie "Prince" Billys album I See a Darkness seems to pick up where Will Oldhams 1997 album Joya left off; a more melodic style than the veteran Palace listener might be used to. Oldham definitely hasnt abandoned his foundation of mordant lyrics and minimalist arrangements, but he has built a variety of different layers that make this album an emotional and pleasurable listening experience. In "Nomadic Revery," Oldham draws upon his classic Appalachian sound; its the kind of song that begs you to join in. Oldham has always given the kind of energy to his characters voices that most people are afraid to relate to. This is all too evident in "Death to Everyone," Oldham punches out his bitter poetry in his most somber voice. The album takes its most surprising turn on "Madeleine-Mary," a Celtic-style folk song set to a Rastafarian guitar sound. "Today I Was an Evil One" introduces a horn section that drives home his morbid words in a strangely elegant manner. The album closes with a short and rare love song called "Raining in Darling"; Oldham stretches his voice to its most impressive limits, and the number is touching and hopeful. | ||
 | Album: 3 of 41 Title: Get On Jolly Released: 2000-09-11 Tracks: 6 Duration: 21:51 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 2/15 (05:00) 2 25 (03:08) 3 81 (03:21) 4 86 (02:10) 5 64 (02:52) 6 66 (05:17) |
 | Album: 4 of 41 Title: Get the Fuck On Jolly Live Released: 2001 Tracks: 8 Duration: 50:30 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 XXV (06:14) 2 II/XV (07:15) 3 LXXXI (04:56) 4 LXXXVI (06:32) 5 LXIV (06:15) 6 LXVI (06:43) 7 XIII (06:59) 8 CII (05:31) |
 | Album: 5 of 41 Title: Ease Down the Road Released: 2001-03-12 Tracks: 12 Duration: 44:06 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 May It Always Be (04:03) 2 Careless Love (02:06) 3 A King at Night (04:28) 4 Just to See My Holly Home (03:40) 5 At Break of Day (04:16) 6 After I Made Love to You (03:53) 7 Ease Down the Road (03:06) 8 The Lion Lair (06:01) 9 Mrs William (03:03) 10 Sheep (02:54) 11 Grand Dark Feeling of Emptiness (03:23) 12 Rich Wife Full of Happiness (03:06) |
| Ease Down the Road : Allmusic album Review : Will Oldham has long confused record buyers with his constantly changing monikers. Though the persona attached has remained fairly consistent, his releases under Bonnie "Prince" Billy brought a subtle but undeniable shift. Following the cracked, wayward style he adopted on 1997s Joya, Oldham settled on the steady understated "Bonnie" voice of I See a Darkness. The lyrics became more direct and the narrators strange mythology deepened. If that album embraced its subject as a necessary, even beautiful aspect of life, Ease Down the Road finds the singer comfortable with this new-found acceptance. Backing Oldham is a cast of new and old faces who deliver their parts with an unusually soft, smooth touch. The singer eases into this setting, singing of his estranged upbringing, plans to construct his own kingdom (through questionable means), and love. The latter is Oldhams biggest preoccupation, finding its way into nearly every song, like the albums subplot. Though unable to choose between the love of one woman and the ability to be with whomever will suit his needs, the narrator is largely unconcerned with the conflict. Ease Down the Road features some of his most direct dealings with the subject on "May It Always Be" and "After I Made Love to You." As the album develops, this material is balanced with the more characteristic musings of "The Lion Lair," "Sheep," and "Grand Dark Feeling of Emptiness": songs that trace the same fictional histories found on I See a Darkness. The end result is the natural and necessary expansion of a unique songwriting voice. Seeming more confident than ever, Oldhams Ease Down the Road is a wonderful addition to a catalog that should earn him a place among the finest songwriters of his age, or any age. | ||
 | Album: 6 of 41 Title: More Revery Released: 2001-06-11 Tracks: 6 Duration: 14:43 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Someones Sleeping (01:29) 2 Sweeter Than Anything (02:20) 3 Same Love That Made Me Laugh (01:53) 4 A Dream of the Sea (03:21) 5 Strange Things (02:31) 6 Just to See You Smile (03:06) |
 | Album: 7 of 41 Title: Master and Everyone Released: 2003-01-13 Tracks: 10 Duration: 34:09 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 The Way (03:49) 2 Aint You Wealthy, Aint You Wise? (04:12) 3 Master and Everyone (02:35) 4 Wolf Among Wolves (03:47) 5 Joy and Jubilee (02:45) 6 Maundering (03:05) 7 Lessons From Whats Poor (03:41) 8 Even If Love (03:24) 9 Three Questions (03:14) 10 Hard Life (03:34) |
| Master and Everyone : Allmusic album Review : The fourth Bonnie Prince Billy record in six years finds Will Oldham relaxing into a beautiful groove; similar to 2001s Ease Down the Road, Master and Everyone is quite melodic compared to his Palace or self-titled releases, with less of the dire apocalyptic imagery and more reflections from his literate, anti-romantic backwoodsman. Like most of Oldhams recordings, this one rewards close attention, which reveals recording ambience ranging from creaking wood to a soft patting on the floor (a foot keeping time), and, of course, Oldhams half-resigned, half-plaintive croon. Little gets in the way of these songs. Circular lines from an acoustic guitar demarcate the choruses, a cello adds a bit of emotional warmth to one song, and a few others have the wheezing keys of what sounds like a pump organ. Fortunately, the songs stand up to the examination. "The Way" ("Love me the way I love you") is very nearly sweet, stranded between desperation and hope. Elsewhere Oldham is a true fatalist, resigning himself to the inevitable power of love to ruin his life and using the creepiest of old-timey metaphors to get his point across. On the title song, he explains the situation ("You tell me there are other fish in the sea, and another gathers roses for me/On this we will agree"), then uses the chorus to illustrate his worst fear: "Im now free, master and everyone/Servant of all and servant to none." "Wolf Among Wolves" is especially eerie, with the merest whisper of feedbacked guitar and a wordless vocal punctuating the puzzled lyrics, "Why cant I be loved as what I am?/A wolf among wolves, and not as a man among men." One of the few guests on Master and Everyone is Marty Slayton, who contributes duet vocals to a pair of songs, a surprisingly close crossover to the folk crowd sparked by the success of O Brother, Where Art Thou? Mostly, though, Oldham concentrates on crafting unremittingly introspective and confessional material in a spare, old-timey format. As sometimes happens on the recordings of his kindred spirit Cat Power, however, such unstinting uniformity can be a curse as well as a blessing. | ||
 | Album: 8 of 41 Title: Pebbles and Ripples Released: 2004 Tracks: 6 Duration: 26:32 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 I Kill Therefore I Am = Oppression (05:25) 2 Brokedown Palace (03:56) 3 Someone to Watch Over Me = Silversparkle (03:45) 4 Babylon System / I Cant Live Without You (05:00) 5 Love Me Tonite = Smokey Smoke Rolled (03:29) 6 Lullaby of Spring (04:57) |
 | Album: 9 of 41 Title: Greatest Palace Music Released: 2004-03-22 Tracks: 16 Duration: 58:10 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 New Partner (04:31) 2 Ohio River Boat Song (02:54) 3 Gulf Shores (03:54) 4 You Will Miss Me When I Burn (04:08) 5 The Brute Choir (03:41) 6 I Send My Love to You (02:28) 7 More Brother Rides (03:04) 8 Agnes, Queen of Sorrow (03:13) 9 Viva Ultra (03:56) 10 Pushkin (04:01) 11 Horses (03:45) 12 Riding (03:42) 13 West Palm Beach (04:03) 14 No More Workhorse Blues (02:55) 15 I Am a Cinematographer (07:44) 16 [untitled] (00:04) |
 | Album: 10 of 41 Title: Superwolf Released: 2005-01-07 Tracks: 11 Duration: 43:56 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 My Home Is the Sea (05:48) 2 Beast for Thee (03:41) 3 What Are You? (02:38) 4 Goat and Ram (05:15) 5 Lift Us Up (02:56) 6 Rudy Foolish (04:12) 7 Bed Is for Sleeping (02:56) 8 Only Someone Running (03:13) 9 Death in the Sea (02:38) 10 Blood Embrace (07:57) 11 I Gave You (02:37) |
| Superwolf : Allmusic album Review : Will Oldhams musical personality is strong and distinct enough that when he collaborates with another artist, with rare exception he firmly takes the lead (whether or not that was the intention). And while guitarist Matt Sweeney (formerly of Chavez and Zwan) gets equal billing with Oldhams alter ego Bonnie "Prince" Billy on 2005s Superwolf, one listen confirms that this is primarily Oldhams work, with Sweeney obviously second in command. (The liner notes state that Oldham wrote the lyrics and Sweeney wrote the music, though to these ears Sweeney is either remarkably gifted at channeling Oldhams musical notions or the lyricist passed along a few melodic ideas as well.) However, this isnt to say Sweeneys presence isnt strongly and clearly felt here -- Superwolf exists in a musical landscape very much like Bonnie "Prince" Billys earlier recorded work, such as Ease Down the Road and I See a Darkness, but Sweeneys periodic interjections of hard guitar lines give this a firmer musical texture and a stronger structural backbone than one might expect. Also, with Sweeney on hand, Oldham has kept some of his less appealing musical eccentricities in check -- this is one of his strongest and best-focused works in years, with the slow tempos adding drama to songs that manage to go somewhere in dramatic fashion despite their deliberate pace, and Sweeneys spare but evocative guitar lines fill the spaces without cluttering the frames. Even if Oldham ends up being front and center on Superwolf, the results make it clear the man works best with a strong collaborator, and its hard not to hope Oldham and Sweeney continue to work together in the future. | ||
 | Album: 11 of 41 Title: Summer in the Southeast Released: 2005-11-07 Tracks: 17 Duration: 1:08:02 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Master and Everyone (03:40) 2 Pushkin (04:15) 3 Blokbuster (04:19) 4 Wolf Among Wolves (03:56) 5 May It Always Be (03:03) 6 Break of Day (05:16) 7 A Suckers Evening (04:00) 8 Nomadic Revery (03:16) 9 I See a Darkness (04:29) 10 O Let It Be (04:02) 11 Beast for Thee (04:13) 12 Death to Everyone (05:45) 13 Even If Love (02:58) 14 I Send My Love to You (02:19) 15 Take However Long You Want (04:00) 16 Madeleine-Mary (04:01) 17 Ease Down the Road (04:22) |
| Summer in the Southeast : Allmusic album Review : Will Oldham is inexhaustible as well as unpredictable. This live set recorded during the summer of 2004 goes out of its way to trash his well-crafted American gothic persona. With a four-guitar front line that includes David Bird, Matt Sweeney, and Pink Nasty (who also contributes vocally throughout), Ryder McNair on piano and organ, drummer Peter Townsend (no relation), and brother Paul on bass, Oldham rocks up most of his Bonnie "Prince" Billy shelf and a tossed-in Palace number to shatter the reverence of his earlier live offerings. This one is loose, raw, and full of crackling energy and force. Check the live version of "I See a Darkness" or "Death to Everyone." But this also comes off as a dark, fierce record of broken love songs, as if Oldham is trying by means of this very electric rock & roll band to exorcise the demon of love gone bad -- very bad. And while its true that these songs have been recorded before, theyve never come off like this, like a man at the end of his rope yet refusing to give up the ghost. "A Suckers Evening" snarls and swirls as Oldham twists and turns each word in his mouth as if it were bitter soiled fruit he needs to spit before it poisons him completely. Country, garage rock, American poetic bile, and sheer venomous energy fuel this terrific set that ranks among Oldhams finest moments on record. | ||
 | Album: 12 of 41 Title: The Brave and the Bold Released: 2006-01-23 Tracks: 10 Duration: 39:44 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Cravo é Canela (03:09) 2 Thunder Road (06:28) 3 It’s Expected I’m Gone (03:21) 4 Daniel (04:59) 5 Love Is Love (03:31) 6 Pancho (03:13) 7 That’s Pep! (02:41) 8 Some Say (I Got Devil) (03:33) 9 Cavalry Cross (05:08) 10 On My Own (03:41) |
 | Album: 13 of 41 Title: The Letting Go Released: 2006-09-18 Tracks: 24 Duration: 1:45:40 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Love Comes to Me (04:31) 2 Strange Form of Life (03:46) 3 Wai (03:37) 4 Cursed Sleep (05:35) 5 No Bad News (04:45) 6 Cold & Wet (02:21) 7 Big Friday (02:43) 8 Lay and Love (03:50) 9 The Seedling (04:36) 10 Then the Letting Go (05:19) 11 Gods Small Song (04:03) 12 I Called You Back (07:51) 13 Ebb Tide (05:12) 1 Little Boy Blue (02:23) 2 His Hands (05:30) 3 Black Dissimulation (03:53) 4 Southside of the World (03:07) 5 I Confess (03:44) 6 Less of Me (02:17) 7 Barcelona (05:43) 8 Lets Start a Family (Blacks) (03:17) 9 Little Boy Blue 2 (03:09) 10 I Am Drinking Again (10:31) 11 Crying in the Chapel (03:52) |
| The Letting Go : Allmusic album Review : Will Oldham has usually preached the gospel of less-is-more, but after an own-covers record that emanated from the belly of Nashville itself (Bonnie Prince Billy Sings Greatest Palace Songs), followed by a collaboration with guitarist Matt Sweeney (Superwolf) and a churning live record (Summer in the Southeast), his work began to seem positively indulgent. The Letting Go is not quite as far a stretch, but it is yet another intriguing departure. Granted, its approach would strike most bands as skeletal, but compared to his last solo album of originals, 2003s Master and Everyone, it sounds downright gaudy. It was recorded in Iceland with a producer, Valgeir Sigurosson, who gets more out of Oldhams voice and songs than has ever been heard on record. Oldhams harmony companion, Dawn McCarthy from Faun Fables, takes a much larger role than her predecessor on Master and Everyone, and her credit for harmony arrangements tells you everything you need to know about how important she is to the success of this album. Oldhams songwriting is breathtaking, close to the best of his career, although little changed from the norm -- his surreal, fatalistic take on Americana Gothic. "Cursed Sleep" is especially wonderful, with a string arrangement that harks back to Nick Drakes "Way to Blue," haunted vocals from McCarthy the chanteuse far in the background, and a set of lyrics that build up to a tragic peak ("Cursed love is never ended, cursed eyes are never closing, cursed arms are never closing, cursed children never rising, cursed me never despising"). To the other extreme is "Cold & Wet," a downright jaunty (despite the lyrics), fingerpicked blues of the type that Mississippi John Hurt would have recorded for Vanguard in the mid-60s, and percussion from Dirty Three drummer Jim White that could be confused with electric drums or the worst recorded organic drum set ever heard. Truth to tell, since the quality of Oldhams songwriting has rarely wavered, the excellent arrangements and McCarthys contributions make The Letting Go the best of his career to this point. | ||
 | Album: 14 of 41 Title: Ask Forgiveness Released: 2007-11-19 Tracks: 8 Duration: 29:41 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 I Came Here to Hear the Music (04:42) 2 Ive Seen It All (03:42) 3 Am I Demon (03:43) 4 My Life (04:03) 5 Im Loving the Street (02:38) 6 The Way I Am (04:13) 7 Cycles (04:09) 8 The Worlds Greatest (02:28) |
 | Album: 15 of 41 Title: Wai Notes Released: 2007-12-11 Tracks: 10 Duration: 36:31 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 The the Letting Go (04:28) 2 Strange Form of Life (02:31) 3 Lay and Love (03:38) 4 God Is Love (04:15) 5 The Signifying Wolf (02:45) 6 The Seedling (02:56) 7 I Called You Back (05:14) 8 Wai (03:13) 9 Cursed Sleep (04:31) 10 Gods Small Song (02:54) |
 | Album: 16 of 41 Title: Wilding in the West Released: 2008-01-23 Tracks: 14 Duration: 59:33 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 O Let It Be (03:36) 2 Little Small Song (05:09) 3 Then the Letting Go (05:12) 4 The Gator (03:34) 5 Master & Everyone (04:08) 6 No Such as What I Want (03:11) 7 Naked Lion (02:14) 8 No Bad News (04:59) 9 Wai (03:14) 10 Three Questions (02:58) 11 Weaker Soldier (04:45) 12 I Called You Back (05:04) 13 Magnificent Billy (02:16) 14 Is It the Sea / My Home Is the Sea (09:07) |
| Wilding in the West : Allmusic album Review : Recorded in California in 2007, Wilding in the West is a live Bonnie "Prince" Billy document, incorporating 14 ragged-but-right songs. His band includes guitarist Emmett Kelly, bassist Aram Stith, drummer Alex Neilson, and keyboard player Azita, plus Dawn McCarthy and Paul Oldham on vocals. The material comes largely from 2003s Master and Everyone and 2006s The Letting Go, not so very far away from 2005s live album Summer in the Southeast (which even has a similar design scheme). Billy is an impassioned performer in a live context, and while the quiet beauty of songs from The Letting Go and Master and Everyone is what made them so powerful in the studio, theyre not without their charms here. Overall, however, this one -- an Australian exclusive upon its release in 2008 -- is definitely one for the fans. | ||
 | Album: 17 of 41 Title: Lie Down in the Light Released: 2008-05-19 Tracks: 12 Duration: 45:45 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Easy Does It (03:54) 2 You Remind Me of Something (The Glory Goes) (03:56) 3 So Everyone (04:02) 4 For Every Field Theres a Mole (03:20) 5 (Keep Eye on) Others Gain (04:35) 6 You Want That Picture (03:51) 7 Missing One (02:48) 8 Whats Missing Is (04:28) 9 Where Is the Puzzle? (03:50) 10 Lie Down in the Light (04:09) 11 Willow Trees Bend (04:08) 12 Ill Be Glad (02:44) |
| Lie Down in the Light : Allmusic album Review : So whos been giving Will Oldham singing lessons? The artist currently known as Bonnie "Prince" Billy has displayed a rather inconsistent skill set when it comes to vocals in the 15 years since the Palace Brothers debut album, but on 2008s Lie Down in the Light, Oldham sounds more tuneful than ever before; on the opener, "Easy Does It," he could pass as the leader of some better than average country-rock outfit from the early 70s, which matches the jaunty but laid-back vibe of the tune. Some of the songs here recall the more spare and troubling style that marked Oldhams earlier work, such as "So Everyone," "Willow Trees Bend," and "Whats Missing Is," but hes still showing a greater control over his vocal instrument than before, sounding like a real singer in a way he often hasnt in the past, and while the production and arrangements on this album are lean and uncluttered, theyre rooted in a warmth and lyricism that make this one of the most satisfying albums Oldham has offered as Bonnie "Prince" Billy. Oldhams obsession with Southern gothic archetypes hasnt changed much on this set, but the 11 new songs here feel fresh and unforced, with a grace in the wordplay that matches the natural flow of the music, and whether the mood reflects hope ("For Every Field Theres a Mole"), longing ("Lie Down in the Light"), or contemplation of the mysteries ("You Want That Picture"), these songs hit their target true and clean. Lie Down in the Light doesnt sound like an immediate masterpiece in the manner of 2006s The Letting Go, but on the whole its as strong and satisfying as anything Oldham has released in the last ten years, and its encouraging that he keeps getting stronger and refining his gifts with the passage of time. And who knows what will happen if he keeps seeing that vocal coach. | ||
 | Album: 18 of 41 Title: Is It the Sea? Released: 2008-10-20 Tracks: 13 Duration: 1:08:12 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Minor Place (04:41) 2 Love Comes to Me (04:18) 3 Bed Is for Sleeping (03:52) 4 Arise Therefore (03:25) 5 Wolf Among Wolves (04:45) 6 Aint You Wealthy, Aint You Wise? (04:46) 7 Cursed Sleep (07:51) 8 Molly Bawn (07:33) 9 Birch Ballad (04:45) 10 New Partner (04:39) 11 Is It the Sea? (06:30) 12 My Home Is the Sea (07:30) 13 Master and Everyone (03:30) |
 | Album: 19 of 41 Title: Among the Gold Released: 2009 Tracks: 6 Duration: 20:48 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Only a Dream (04:12) 2 Loves Old Sweet Song (03:11) 3 Beautiful Dreamer (01:41) 4 Kiss Me Again (03:25) 5 Let Me Call You Sweetheart (03:18) 6 Silver Threads Among the Gold (05:01) |
 | Album: 20 of 41 Title: Unfinal Call: A Sum of Bonnie Prince Billy Worx Released: 2009 Tracks: 11 Duration: 43:22 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 The Way I Am (04:13) 2 Another Day Full of Dread (03:10) 3 Wolf Among Wolves (03:49) 4 After I Made Love to You (03:52) 5 Only Someone Running (03:11) 6 The Brute Choir (03:42) 7 Strange Form of Life (03:42) 8 You Want That Picture (03:48) 9 Master and Everyone (04:08) 10 I See a Darkness (04:35) 11 66 (05:05) |
 | Album: 21 of 41 Title: Beware Released: 2009-03-16 Tracks: 13 Duration: 46:08 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Beware Your Only Friend (04:01) 2 You Cant Hurt Me Now (03:42) 3 My Lifes Work (03:53) 4 Death Final (03:01) 5 Hearts Arms (03:26) 6 You Dont Love Me (03:09) 7 You Are Lost (02:55) 8 I Wont Ask Again (04:26) 9 I Dont Belong to Anyone (03:15) 10 There Is Something I Have to Say (03:19) 11 I Am Goodbye (02:21) 12 Without Work, You Have Nothing (03:45) 13 Afraid Aint Me (04:49) |
| Beware : Allmusic album Review : Its only an artist supremely confident in his art who can begin an album with the string-band hoedown that is "Beware Your Only Friend" (complete with rustic handclaps and a mixed vocal chorus). But Bonnie "Prince" Billy is certainly an artist comfortable in any surrounding, from the Baroque isolationism of The Letting Go and the laid-back charm of Lie Down in the Light to the smooth countrypolitanism of Sings Greatest Palace Music. Musically, Beware has a bit of everything; although nothing is as spare and haunted as The Letting Go, Billy moves from modern string band to smooth strings-and-slide to ragged alt country without batting an eyelash -- and thats just the first three songs. Oldham also has no fear in his lyricism, which intersperses clear, direct thoughts about relationships with metaphors or language that cloud the issues just as the sun was beginning to shine (thats just his neo-primitivist take on "the old, weird America"). Simply contrast his divulging lyrics on "You Dont Love Me" ("You say you like my eyes only, or just the way I giggle/Sometimes you like the smell of me or how my stomach jiggles") to the fatalist cipher that appears in "Death Final": "In a pit of bodies, I am loved by all/ By hamhock and by handkerchief, by damsel and by dall." Befitting the title, there are many cautionary notes to be found, such as the opener "Your Only Friend" ("I want to be your only friend/Beware of me") and "You Are Lost" ("Well you are bound to be put down at any cost, and if you listen to me you are lost"). The band, anchored by guitarist Emmett Kelly, bassist Joshua Abrams, percussionist Michael Zerang, and violinist Jennifer Hutt, provide close accompaniment, sometimes hesitating after a verse to pick up on Oldhams next declamatory phrase. A few arrangements may turn even the staunchest alt country stomachs, with a loose-limbed gawkiness that any musician under the age of 50 would have trouble pulling off; Oldham does indeed pull it off, but that wont make it any easier for some listeners. Oldhams brand of folk music is certainly old enough and weird enough, but there are noticeably fewer moments of beauty and fewer lyrical revelations than on his best material. | ||
 | Album: 22 of 41 Title: Silent City Released: 2009-09-28 Tracks: 12 Duration: 41:14 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 The Night Is, and Lights Are (04:25) 2 The Top Hat (03:36) 3 Sinclair Serenade (00:35) 4 Sleeping in the Driveway (04:05) 5 Well, There Are a Lot of Stories (05:16) 6 Silent City (04:36) 7 And Under the Winesap Tree (03:13) 8 Its Different Now (04:10) 9 Papa Made That Last Verse Up (00:48) 10 Some Glad Day (04:31) 11 As Old as the Stars (03:09) 12 To Hear Still More (02:50) |
 | Album: 23 of 41 Title: Funtown Comedown Released: 2009-12-15 Tracks: 11 Duration: 44:55 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Ohio River Boat Song (03:39) 2 May It Always Be (04:44) 3 Hemlocks and Primroses (03:44) 4 The Glory Goes / Wolf Among Wolves (08:29) 5 We All Us Three Will Ride (03:04) 6 Easy Does It (04:10) 7 Lay and Love (05:15) 8 Rider (03:04) 9 Rambling Fever (03:06) 10 You Want That Picture (03:57) 11 Idle Hands Are the Devils Playthings (01:43) |
| Funtown Comedown : Allmusic album Review : Released only on vinyl, Funtown Comedown is a sparkling find buried in Will Oldhams tangled discography under his various Palace and Bonnie "Prince" Billy monikers. Recorded live at Funtown, in Oldhams hometown of Louisville, he is here credited as Bonny Billy, and backed by the Picket Line, a local bluegrass sextet. For Oldham, whose rich songs can often get lost in overly glum arrangements, the pairing with the Picket Line is a stroke of genius. Bluegrass is a perfect fit for Oldhams dark, allusion-laden lyrics, transforming his moody songwriting into something inviting and warm. Oldham and the Picket Line dig in on a few classics, too, including Merle Haggards "Ramblin Fever" and a soaring close-harmony take on Ralph Stanleys "Hemlock and Primroses." But the joy is hearing a high lonesome string band breathe timbral sunlight on Oldhams world. Humor has never been far from the surface in Oldhams lyrics, but here it blossoms freely. During "Wolf Among Wolves," he even howls a bit. Some tunes, like "We All Three Us Will Ride," succeed as ageless bluegrass melodies, even if they lack the genres incessant choruses. Where much of Oldhams output is mood music, Funtown Comedown is a consistent, upbeat good time. Oldhams lyrics frequently demand multiple listens, the music sometimes an arbitrary carrier for their richness. Sold by Oldhams joyous harmonies with fiddler Cheyenne Mize (with whom he also recorded 2009s Among the Gold EP), Funtown Comedown is one of Oldhams few releases that actively court the listeners to -- in this case, literally -- drop the needle at the beginning again. | ||
 | Album: 24 of 41 Title: The Wonder Show of the World Released: 2010-03-23 Tracks: 10 Duration: 47:52 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Troublesome Houses (04:24) 2 Teach Me To Bear You (05:45) 3 With Cornstalks Or Among Them (03:08) 4 The Sounds Are Always Begging (04:58) 5 Go Folks, Go (05:54) 6 Thats What Our Love Is (07:23) 7 Merciless And Great (05:32) 8 Where Wind Blows (04:16) 9 Someone Coming Through (03:46) 10 Kids (02:46) |
| The Wonder Show of the World : Allmusic album Review : Although The Wonder Show of the World is the first Bonnie "Prince" Billy record to feature a co-billing with the Cairo Gang, hes been accompanied by guitarist Emmett Kelly many times, both as part of his live band and in the studio for some of his best work of the 2000s (The Letting Go, Lie Down in the Light). This time its special, though, with Kelly in the limelight like hes never been on record and a spare, no-frills production to emphasize the music-making on display. His playing is fluid and virtuosic but never showy, and his range is impressive, from fingerpicked guitar to lazy but jagged country-rock (on the occasional track with drums) to the brooding, stately "Teach Me to Bear You," where he tears off a solo channeling Eric Clapton during the last few seconds of a five-minute track. As always, Will Oldhams lyrics never fail to impress, and the best are front-loaded. The mystery of the opener, "Troublesome Houses," is revealed quickly ("I once loved a girl, but she couldnt take that I visited troublesome houses"). He inhabits his characters fully, and his lyrics reveal these characters inner thoughts in intriguing fashion: some are stark and declamatory, others hurt and questioning, still others simply puzzled and helpless when faced with the hands theyve been dealt. More than most Bonnie "Prince" Billy records, this is one of those austere records, filled with lyrical archaisms -- fans will think first of Master and Everyone -- but Kelly and company prove a capable foil for the monolith of Oldhams rustic songwriting and singing. | ||
 | Album: 25 of 41 Title: The Mindeater Released: 2011 Tracks: 4 Duration: 20:39 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 The Mindeater (04:25) 2 Roki for Now (05:13) 3 I Wonder If I Care as Much (07:52) 4 Suddenly the Darkness (03:09) |
 | Album: 26 of 41 Title: Wolfroy Goes to Town Released: 2011-10-03 Tracks: 10 Duration: 50:18 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 No Match (05:55) 2 New Whaling (05:39) 3 Time to Be Clear (04:04) 4 New Tibet (04:32) 5 Black Captain (06:35) 6 Cows (04:55) 7 There Will Be Spring (03:32) 8 Quail and Dumplings (04:52) 9 We Are Unhappy (06:46) 10 Night Noises (03:28) |
| Wolfroy Goes to Town : Allmusic album Review : Bonnie "Prince" Billy fans looking for a return to the surprisingly ornate, Grateful Dead-inspired country-folk of 2009’s Beware may come away a tad disappointed in the ultra-sparse yet warm and winning Wolfroy Goes to Town. The ten songs, nearly all of which arrive via guitar, bass, and Oldhams weathered croon, feel lived in and coveted. It’s typical Oldham fare, with highlights coming from opener “No Match,” which builds to a powerful, harmonious climax, and the nearly seven-minute “Black Captain,” an epic yarn of nobility and heartache that sounds like it’s been around for a century or two. Coming off like a murkier, more intimate version of 2010’s Wonder Show of the World with the Cairo Gang, Wolfroy’s all about lonesome beauty, and the idiosyncratic wordplay that has become Oldhams forte since settling on the Bonnie “Prince” Billy moniker. | ||
 | Album: 27 of 41 Title: The Duchess EP Released: 2012 Tracks: 8 Duration: 00:00 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Duchess (?) 2 Too Old to Die Young (?) 3 Ill Be Looking Out for Me (?) 4 Tincture of Tears (?) 5 Bells of Oxford (?) 6 (Theres Nothing Nobler Than) Yorkshire in October (?) 7 Tuning Fork of the Earth (?) 8 Dancing on the Breath of God (?) |
 | Album: 28 of 41 Title: Bonnie & Mariee Released: 2012-02-13 Tracks: 4 Duration: 19:24 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Not Mocked (05:39) 2 Bird Child (04:39) 3 Loveskulls (04:53) 4 Mad Mad Me (04:11) |
 | Album: 29 of 41 Title: The b-sides for Time To Be Clear Released: 2012-02-28 Tracks: 3 Duration: 13:23 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Time To Be Clear (04:03) 2 Whipped (04:51) 3 Out of Mind (04:29) |
 | Album: 30 of 41 Title: The Marble Downs Released: 2012-04-06 Tracks: 10 Duration: 48:21 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 I Made a Date (with an Open Vein) (06:34) 2 I Can Tell Youre Leaving (04:36) 3 Ferrari in a Demolition Derby (04:14) 4 Aint Nothing Wrong With a Little Longing (06:55) 5 Excursions Into Assonance (04:22) 6 Every Time I Close My Eyes (Were Back There) (05:50) 7 Love Is a Velvet Noose (03:39) 8 My Husbands Got No Courage in Him (02:15) 9 Riding (03:12) 10 Lord Bless All (06:44) |
| The Marble Downs : Allmusic album Review : A collaboration between Trembling Bells and Bonnie "Prince" Billy is fitting on so many levels: both of these artists love to dig deep in the musical histories of their respective homelands and come up with something equally fresh and reverent. They do this brilliantly on The Marble Downs, which shows off the finest points of everyone involved while sounding like an early-70s record collection that was left out in the sun to melt and meld together: raw British folk nestles up against Bakersfield country, while stately brass and acid rock guitars arm wrestle. The opening track, "I Made a Date (With an Open Vein)," is so triumphant and full-sounding with its bold fanfares and solos that it feels more like an ending than a beginning; later on, the tender piano ballad "Excursions into Assonance" sets a Dorothy Parker poem to music that could have come from a parallel universes Simon & Garfunkel. The Marble Downs vocals are just as inspired: Will Oldhams voice sounds more vital than it has in some time, even (or especially) when contrasted against the gorgeous clarity of Lavinia Blackwalls tones. They take each other to new heights, particularly on the garage rock tour de force "Aint Nothing Wrong with a Little Longing," where the gallows humor for a troubled affair finds them trading barbs like "You could have honesty without cruelty/Your brutality was mechanical," and on the trippy chamber pop of "Ferrari in a Demolition Derby," where their lovely harmonies are surrounded by surreal pomp and circumstance. There are songs that sound like long-lost traditional laments, like the gorgeous, heartbreaking "Love Is a Velvet Noose," and songs that actually are traditional laments, such as "My Husbands Got No Courage in Him," one of The Marble Downs many showcases for Blackwall. It does Oldham good to sing someone elses words -- hes especially charming on "I Can Tell Youre Leaving," where he sings, "Like Merle Haggard, youll see the fighting side of me" -- but one of the standout moments is the thunderous cover of his own "Riding." The albums celestial closing track, a cover of Robin Gibbs "Lord Bless All," underscores just how rare it is to hear a mix of sounds and artists that is so organic and unforced, and what a beautiful accomplishment that is. The Marble Downs is a cult classic in the making, and if Oldhams involvement helps more people discover Trembling Bells eclectic brilliance, so much the better. | ||
 | Album: 31 of 41 Title: Hummingbird Released: 2012-05-07 Tracks: 4 Duration: 15:23 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Hummingbird, pt. 1 (04:30) 2 Tribulations (02:56) 3 Because Of Your Eyes (Band Version) (04:43) 4 Hummingbird, pt. 2 (03:14) |
 | Album: 32 of 41 Title: Now Heres My Plan Released: 2012-07-23 Tracks: 6 Duration: 25:02 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 I Dont Belong to Anyone (03:23) 2 Beast for Thee (04:22) 3 No Gold Digger (04:16) 4 After I Made Love to You (05:00) 5 I See a Darkness (02:49) 6 Three Questions (05:10) |
 | Album: 33 of 41 Title: Bonnie "Prince" Billy Released: 2013 Tracks: 10 Duration: 00:00 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 I Heard of a Source (?) 2 Lessons From Stony (?) 3 Triumph of Will (?) 4 I Will Be Born Again (?) 5 Make It Not an Evil Mark (?) 6 The Spotted Pig (?) 7 This Is My Cocktail (?) 8 Bad Man (?) 9 Ending It All (As I Do) (?) 10 Royal Quiet Deluxe (?) |
 | Album: 34 of 41 Title: What the Brothers Sang Released: 2013-02-18 Tracks: 13 Duration: 39:52 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Breakdown (03:09) 2 Empty Boxes (02:47) 3 Milk Train (02:47) 4 What Am I Living For (03:36) 5 My Little Yellow Bird (02:23) 6 Devoted to You (02:25) 7 Somebody Help Me (02:37) 8 So Sad (03:21) 9 Omaha (04:06) 10 It’s All Over (03:05) 11 Poems, Prayers and Promises (03:57) 12 Just What I Was Looking For (03:06) 13 Kentucky (02:33) |
| What the Brothers Sang : Allmusic album Review : After years of playing the role of guest vocalist and harmony arranger-in-chief for Will Oldham/Bonnie "Prince" Billy, Faun Fables Dawn McCarthy finally gets to split the bill on What the Brothers Sang, a lovingly crafted, laid-back collection of songs from the vaults of the Everly Brothers that are as respectful as they are idiosyncratic. Recorded and mixed by David Ferguson (Johnny Cash, Del McCoury Band), and backed by a small army of seasoned session musicians, Oldham and McCarthy approach the songs -- almost all of which came up for air in the 60s and reside (more or less) in the deep end of the duos formidable catalog -- in such an honest and open-ended fashion that its easy to forget where the material was sourced. The pair forgo the brothers tight, by-the-book harmonies for a more languid, naturalistic approach that uses unison singing as a springboard for harmonic exploration (one of the albums biggest thrills lies in wondering which vocalist will break free first), especially on ballads like "Devoted to You," "Empty Boxes," and the weepy, pedal steel-laden "Its All Over," but theyre not opposed to letting loose, as evidenced by the inclusion of likeable yet forgettable open road rockers like "Somebody Help Me" and "Milk Train," both of which, in their original incarnations, benefited greatly from Phil and Dons pop acumen. Not surprisingly, its the less propulsive numbers that truly resonate on What the Brothers Sang, as Oldham and McCarthy sound less emotionally constricted at a more measured pace, and when they allow their muses to meet, as they do on highlights like "Breakdown," "What Am I Loving For," and the beautiful closer "Kentucky," the results are transcendent. | ||
 | Album: 35 of 41 Title: Singers Grave a Sea of Tongues Released: 2014-09-22 Tracks: 11 Duration: 41:16 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Night Noises (04:00) 2 So Far and Here We Are (03:17) 3 There Will Be Spring (02:59) 4 Quail and Dumplings (03:59) 5 We Are Unhappy (04:05) 6 Its Time to Be Clear (03:43) 7 Whipped (03:23) 8 Old Match (03:17) 9 Mindlessness (03:52) 10 New Black Rich (Tusks) (03:36) 11 Sailors Grave a Sea of Sheep (05:05) |
| Singer's Grave a Sea of Tongues : Allmusic album Review : Will Oldhams path has never been straight and narrow. Over his lengthy, prolific run, the warbly-voiced troubadour has peppered his heartbreakingly beautiful songwriting with moments of absurdity, humor, and deeply unexpected or confounding moves that could spell commercial suicide for a lesser artist. Early on he changed the name of his project almost record to record, offering albums as Palace, Palace Brothers, and under his given name before settling with the Bonnie "Prince" Billy moniker. In the time between 2011’s Wolfroy Goes to Town and his 11th full-length, Singers Grave/A Sea of Tongues, Oldham offered up an EP of reworked songs from deep in his catalog, an album of Everly Brothers covers, and a completely unannounced album he self-released and distributed, carrying copies in person to various independent record stores. So it should come as no huge surprise that the first largely available album of new Bonnie "Prince" Billy material in years is largely reworkings of songs from the most significant album just before it. The majority of the eleven tracks on Singer’s Grave are revisions of tunes that first appeared on Wolfroy Goes to Town or were released in the same general time-frame. Wolfroy tunes like “Night Noises,” “Quail and Dumplings,” and “We Are Unhappy” re-appear, in some cases replacing the spare, late-night confessional feel of the originals with rollicking bluegrass instrumentation. “No Match” is refurbished as “Old Match,” trading the soft wooziness of the Wolfroy version for a spirited, drum-heavy arrangement and swapping out Angel Olsens sad-eyed backing vocals for a full-on gospel choir. The difference in some cases almost feels overly theatrical, with “So Far and Here We Are” recasting the protracted folk dirge that was once titled “New Whaling” as an electrified slab of cowboy rock with caterwauling backing vocals standing in for the ghostly chorus of the original. All told, Singer’s Grave remains valid and engaging by offering such vivid counterpoints to the usually subdued Wolfroy Goes to Town versions. Oldham’s intentions behind re-recording these relatively recent songs are puzzling, but the curious nature of the album is just another chapter of the mysterious, and in this case highly enjoyable saga of Bonnie "Prince" Billy. | ||
 | Album: 36 of 41 Title: The Bonnie Bells of Oxford Released: 2016 Tracks: 9 Duration: 43:28 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Rainbow / Jolly (05:11) 2 Goat and Ram (05:21) 3 Husband / Riding (05:47) 4 Excursions Into Assonance (04:27) 5 So Everyone (03:18) 6 Loves Made an Outlaw of My Heart (03:39) 7 All Gone, All Gone (03:42) 8 Bottom / No God / Bottle (07:46) 9 Love Is a Velvet Noose (04:12) |
 | Album: 37 of 41 Title: Pond Scum Released: 2016-01-21 Tracks: 12 Duration: 41:57 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 (I Was Drunk at the) Pulpit (06:02) 2 Death to Everyone (04:14) 3 Arise, Therefore (04:03) 4 Jolly Five (64) (04:42) 5 Beezle (02:27) 6 Jolly One (2 / 15) (03:31) 7 When Thy Song Flows Through Me (02:20) 8 The Houseboat (O How I Enjoy the Light) (02:59) 9 Trudy Dies (02:43) 10 The Cross (02:06) 11 Stable Will (02:47) 12 The Idol on the Bar (04:03) |
| Pond Scum : Allmusic album Review : Will Oldham has taken on enough different personas over the course of his career -- recording under several different names, most of them variations on the Palace rubric, and in every style, from the stark solo performances of Days in the Wake to the polished "Nashville Sound" arrangements of Sings Greatest Palace Music -- that he seems to be as much a character actor as a musician. (And hes worked as a professional actor, making the analogy all the more fitting.) With this in mind, this collection of Bonnie "Prince" Billy performances recorded for broadcast on the late John Peels BBC radio show finds Oldham revisiting a number of songs from throughout his career, but with a different perspective, as if hes choosing to re-think his character as he reinterprets his work. The Bonnie "Prince" Billy on Pond Scum performs in a cooler and more refined manner than the troubled man on Days in the Wake or There Is No-One What Will Take Care of You, but the arrangements are spare and whisper-quiet. Though his tenor is better controlled here, his voice cracks and wanders enough to remind listeners this persona is kin to the lost souls who dominated Oldhams early work. This collection can be read as another example of Oldhams stylistic shape-shifting, yet the relative calm and direct approach of these performances also allows for a straightforward appreciation of his songwriting. These versions of "Stable Will," "Jolly One," "Drunk at the Pulpit," and "Trudy Dies" sound emotionally honest and both beautiful and troubling as Oldhams wordplay, by turns mannered and spontaneous, cries out over a minimal backdrop of guitar. On Pond Scum, these songs seem to escape fully formed from Oldhams soul, even the no-frills cover of Princes "The Cross," and if one has to take an educated guess about which Bonnie "Prince" Billy we get on this album, its certain that what he has to say is well worth hearing. | ||
 | Album: 38 of 41 Title: Epic Jammers and Fortunate Little Ditties Released: 2016-03-18 Tracks: 9 Duration: 58:08 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 May Life Throw You a Pleasant Curve (03:13) 2 Nature Makes Us for Ourselves (07:59) 3 Your Heart Is Pure, Your Mind Is Clear, Your Soul Devout (08:18) 4 Your Whole Family Are Well (07:41) 5 Despair Is Criminal (06:18) 6 You Are Not "Superman" (04:55) 7 Show Your Love and Your Love Will Be Returned (08:00) 8 You Will Soon Discover How Truly Fortunate You Really Are (09:13) 9 Your Hard Work Is About to Pay Off. Keep on Keeping On. (02:31) |
| Epic Jammers and Fortunate Little Ditties : Allmusic album Review : The third outing from the Cooper Crain-led, Windy City-based experimental trio sees the Bitchin Bajas teaming up with the equally mercurial Will Oldham (aka Bonnie "Prince" Billy) for a good, old-fashioned minimalist hoedown. The aptly named Epic Jammers and Fortunate Little Ditties offers up a trance-inducing set of bucolic folk emissions that pair elliptical melodies with Oldham riffing on fortune-cookie aphorisms. Opener "May Life Throw You a Pleasant Curve" eases the listener into the float tank with a summery, Incredible String Band-inspired refrain and Oldhams affable warble, and coming in at just over three minutes, it serves as a pleasant apéritif. What follows is largely the same, but bereft of any sort of brevity, which is to be expected from a musical partnership between two such metaphysically minded entities. The Bajas and Oldham promise the listener that "you will receive many unknowable hours of joy from this album of collaborative cosmic music," but that largely depends on the listeners threshold for homilies and loops. There is a strong spiritual undercurrent at play throughout the nine tracks, especially on the epic "Your Heart Is Pure, Your Mind Is Clear, Your Soul Devout," which arrives via the soft clang of what sounds like Buddhist meditation bells. That sentiment is echoed again on the monastic "Your Whole Family Are Well," which echoes (sonically) the Muslim call to prayer, as well as mid-period Dead Can Dance. All of the free associating and good-natured droning can be a bit torpor inducing, so its a nice surprise when the closer, "Your Hard Work Is About to Pay Off, Keep on Keeping On," arrives. Loose, languid, yet structured enough to feel like a proper bit of pop craft, it brings things back to earth, if only for a short spell, its unfettered hippie heart aglow with positivity and possibility. | ||
 | Album: 39 of 41 Title: Joya Released: 2017-01-26 Tracks: 12 Duration: 40:34 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 O Let It Be (03:43) 2 Antagonism (05:18) 3 New Gypsy (03:13) 4 Under What Was Oppression (03:05) 5 The Gator (02:26) 6 Open Your Heart (03:27) 7 Rider (01:31) 8 Be Still and Know God (Dont Be Shy) (03:10) 9 Apocolypse, No! (03:44) 10 I Am Still What I Meant to Be (03:51) 11 Bolden Boke Boy (03:48) 12 Idea and Deed (03:12) |
 | Album: 40 of 41 Title: Best Troubador Released: 2017-05-05 Tracks: 16 Duration: 54:33 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The Fugitive (03:31) 2 Im Always on a Mountain When I Fall (02:45) 3 The Day the Rains Came (03:12) 4 Haggard (Like Ive Never Been Before) (03:46) 5 I Always Get Lucky With You (03:47) 6 Leonard (03:13) 7 My Old Pal (03:42) 8 Roses in the Winter (03:58) 9 Some of Us Fly (05:05) 10 Wouldnt That Be Something (03:27) 11 Pray (03:16) 12 Thats the Way Love Goes (03:04) 13 Nobodys Darling (04:05) 14 What I Hate (excerpt) (00:20) 15 I Am What I Am (02:39) 16 If I Could Only Fly (04:36) |
| Best Troubador : Allmusic album Review : Will Oldham is a superior songwriter and vocalist when he wants to be, but theres just enough of a willful persona to his work as Bonnie "Prince" Billy and within the Palace rubric that its hard to tell when hes being serious and when hes pulling his audiences collective leg, even when his work is good. One of the things that makes Best Troubador something truly special is that, more than nearly all of Oldhams work to date, hes playing straight throughout, and for a good reason. The misspelled but sincere honorific of the title refers to Merle Haggard; according to the liner notes, this album was in the works before Hags death in April 2016, but when the great man passed, Oldham and his collaborators refashioned it into a tribute album devoted to songs Haggard wrote or sang. Most of the album was recorded and mixed live, with flute and sax added to the arrangements along with the more traditional guitars, fiddles, and banjos, and the overall effect is certainly idiosyncratic, as one might expect from Oldham; this sounds like a slightly buzzed guitar pull as often as it sounds like a fully focused recording session. But if the tone of these performances is laid-back, theyre also sincere and committed, and as a vocalist BPB has rarely been better. As a songwriter, Oldham clearly appreciates the craft of Haggards songwriting, as well as the honest emotional pull of these tunes, and he sings them with a genuine measure of respect and love. And the grainy drawl of Oldhams voice was made to order for these stories of the ups and downs of life and love, and its all but impossible not to be moved by this craggy sincerity and the genuine soul of this music. There are more deep cuts than familiar hits on Best Troubador, but thats another part of what makes this album so pleasurable; this is a deep dive into Haggards body of work as seen through the eyes of Bonnie "Prince" Billy, and Oldham and his crew deliver plenty of reminders why Hag was one of the greatest songwriters of his generation. In his liner notes, Oldham writes, "Hag wont make more music, but the music he made is deep and rich and complex and forever yielding." Best Troubador does a splendid job of showing how right he is about Haggard and his songs, and youd have to go back to 1994s splendid multi-artist disc Tulare Dust to hear as sincere and affecting a tribute to this most American of artists. | ||
 | Album: 41 of 41 Title: Wolf of the Cosmos Released: 2017-11-17 Tracks: 12 Duration: 00:00 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Intruder (?) 2 Born in the Desert (?) 3 Hangout (?) 4 People Living (?) 5 Stay (?) 6 For You (?) 7 Better Days (?) 8 Traveling (?) 9 Demon Dance (?) 10 Home Recording (?) 11 We Offer (?) 12 Lily (?) |
| Wolf of the Cosmos : Allmusic album Review : Will Oldham is one of the better-regarded songwriters of his generation, but in recent years hes taken up a sideline as an interpretive vocalist. As Bonnie "Prince" Billy, Oldham recorded an album of songs associated with the Everly Brothers, What the Brothers Sang, with Dawn McCarthy in 2013, and on 2017s Best Troubador, he covered 15 numbers from the Merle Haggard songbook. For 2018s Wolf of the Cosmos, Oldham has chosen not to cover a handful of songs, but an entire album: here, he interprets all 12 songs from Susannas 2007 release Sonata Mix Dwarf Cosmos, in their original sequence. Its anyones guess what prompted Oldham to offer his own take on someone elses album in toto, but Wolf of the Cosmos manages to pay homage to Susanna Wallumrøds vision while making room for Oldhams very distinct musical outlook. The original performances on Sonata Mix Dwarf Cosmos were deliberately spare, often suggesting the presence of only one or two instruments accompanying Susannas vocals, and while theres more varied instrumentation here, the arrangements are whisper quiet, with the clink of Chris Rodahaffers banjo and the sigh of Cheyenne Mizes violin sounding almost spectral next to the thoughtful murmur of Oldhams vocals. Oldham may not have written these tunes, but they fit him beautifully. Wallumrøds wordplay feels perfectly natural filtered through Oldhams instrument, and his vocals find him at the top of his game, delivering performances that are at once introspective and deeply felt, finding a wealth of emotion in the simplicity of his approach. Oldhams willfully cryptic manner has largely been set aside on these sessions, and theres a sincerity in this work that he doesnt always allow himself when tackling his own songs (though the lyric sheet translates the songs into Korean, just in case you feared hed abandoned all his eccentricities). Wolf of the Cosmos may call into question the status of Will Oldham as a songwriter, but it shows that as a performer, Bonnie "Prince" Billy is doing some of the finest work of his career. | ||