A Shot of Love in a Time of Need/Autobiographical Notes

A Shot of Love in a Time of Need/Autobiographical Notes

by Willie Murphy
A Shot of Love in a Time of Need/Autobiographical Notes

A Shot of Love in a Time of Need/Autobiographical Notes

by Willie Murphy

CD

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Overview

Singer/pianist Willie Murphy is the kind of artist for whom the term "cult hero" was invented. His career began with a bang back in 1969, when he partnered with guitarist "Spider" John Koerner to make the head-turning psychedelic Americana album Running, Jumping, Standing Still for Elektra. With his group Willie & the Bumble Bee he backed Bonnie Raitt and became a blues-rockin' journeyman. With 40 years of hard roads behind him, Murphy sounds as energized as ever on this double album. Not merely a double-length release, this package is really two separate albums, each with their own title, cover, and agenda. Up front is A Shot of Love in a Time of Need, a collection of funky, R&B-based tunes, including both covers and Murphy's own songs. On the flipside -- literally -- is Autobiographical Notes, a collection of tunes Murphy's had kicking around for a while but couldn't find a home for until now, mostly because of the varied styles they encompass. Murphy comes out with all guns blazing on the first disc, unleashing a visceral piano style that seems to get in between the cracks in the keyboard, and a gritty, soul-slathered vocal delivery that's perhaps best triangulated somewhere in the middle of Leon Russell, Jim Dickinson, and Dr. John. He's capable of bringing life even to an overdone tune like "Land of 1000 Dances," and his original tunes stand up alongside the R&B classics he covers. The second disc is a hodge-podge of honky-tonk, folk-rock ballads, soul, and Band-esque roots rock, plus a bluesy cover of Fred Neil's "The Dolphins" thrown in for good measure. If Autobiographical Notes isn't as consistent as its funkier partner, that's part of its eccentric, ragtag charm; whatever mode it finds Murphy in, it portrays him accurately as a true American original doing his thing out there in the margins of the music biz, where a man can really get his mojo working. ~ J. Allen

Product Details

Release Date: 11/10/2009
Label: Red House Records
UPC: 0033651022527
Rank: 135617

Tracks

Disc 1

  1. Everything I Do Gonh Be Funky (From Now On)
  2. Love Attack
  3. Land of 1000 Dances
  4. Life Is But a Dream
  5. Actions Speak Louder Than Words
  6. Mud Puddle
  7. Something To It
  8. I'll Be Here
  9. Sometimes Dreams Come True

Disc 2

  1. Voice in the Night
  2. Story of My Love Life
  3. Dolphins
  4. Up Along the Coast
  5. Fairy Tale
  6. Something To It
  7. Hello Don't Mean I Love You
  8. Road Song
  9. Dust to Dust
  10. Ramblin' Revo
  11. Voice in the Night

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Willie Murphy   Primary Artist,Vocals (Background),Bass,Piano,Guitar,Vocals,Keyboards
Dan Lund   Guitar
Howard Merriweather   Drums
Maurice Jacox   Sax (Baritone),Sax (Baritone)
Voyle Harris   Trumpet
Merlin Brunkow   Sax (Tenor)
Suzanne Warmanen   Vocal Harmony
Max Ray   Sax (Tenor),Sax (Baritone),Sax (Tenor),Sax (Baritone)
Michael Velasquez   Drums,Drums
Marbue Williams   Bass
Jose James   Sax (Alto)
Lucia Newell   Vocals (Background)
Scott Snyder   Trumpet
Jim Anton   Bass
Gordon Knudtson   Drums
Willie Nelson   Bass,Drums,Piano,Guitar,Vocals
Irv Williams   Sax (Tenor)
Hall Sanders   Sax (Tenor)
Bob Rockwell   Sax (Tenor)
Prudence Johnson   Vocals (Background)

Technical Credits

Fred Neil   Composer
Hy Weiss   Composer
Rob Genadek   Mixing
Willie Murphy   Producer,Mixing,Composer,Engineer
Quinton Claunch   Composer
Raoul Cita   Composer
Greg Reierson   Mastering
Allen Toussaint   Composer
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