Bobby Bare, Jr.
Posted: July 20, 2005 1:25 pm
From Flagpole.com:
http://www.flagpole.com/articles.php?fp=5450
Always Looking On The Bright Side Of Misery
Bobby Bare, Jr. Photo by Thomas Petrillo
A quick glance at the titles of Bobby Bare Jr.'s early songs - "Kiss Me or I Will Cry," " I Hate Myself" - suggests the affable Nashville resident was once in need of a therapist (or at the very least, a greeting card pick-me-up). However, it's Bare's constant thread of self-deprecation that often makes him so endearing. And for a guy whose dad, Bobby Bare Sr., is recognized as one of the progenitors of country music's "outlaw" movement, Bare Jr. remains modest to a fault.
"Not to duck any questions, but honestly, I have the worst opinion of my music that there is," says Bare. "What I think is usually wrong. Other people's opinion is often more valid than my own when it comes to that subject."
Though he insists he doesn't know what he's doing most of the time, Bare isn't entirely the clueless greenhorn he makes himself out to be. His previous band Bare Jr. re-introduced the kid who dueted as a toddler with dad on the classic country track "Daddy What If" as a frizzy-haired wiseacre with a preference for Cheap Trick-esque guitar rock. After two albums (1998's Boo-Tay and 2000's Brainwasher) and several tours that saw the band open for The Black Crowes and Aerosmith, Bare opted to downsize things a bit with The Young Criminal's Starvation League, his current project.
"Being on a bigger label and having to chase [modern] rock radio just wasn't that appealing," says Bare. "A lot of the stuff I listen to is more on the end of Built to Spill or Pavement or The Pixies, so opening up for Aerosmith and Fuel wasn't really where I wanted to be. I'm married with a baby now, too. So that's just a whole new version of chaos - having a wife and child who need you there as opposed to being single and running around playing rock and roll."
Though Bare's initial YCSL material played up the countrier leanings, his indie rock allegiance was showing, too. That ragtag, hooky brand of pop-rock dominates YCSL's latest release, 2004's From the End of Your Leash, as is demonstrated by catchy, sarcastic romps like "Valentine" and "Your Adorable Beast." Bare, however, didn't abandon those country roots; steel guitar is a constant ingredient and one of Leash's most pleasant inclusions is a version of "Things I Didn't Say," a song written by the late Shel Silverstein and originally recorded by Dr Hook & the Medicine Show. Silverstein was a collaborator and close friend of Bare's father, and in tribute, Bobby Jr. has covered a Silverstein song on every YCSL album thus far.
"The main difference between Bare Jr. and the YCSL is the suddenness of it all," says Bare. "Before, we'd spend forever recording, overdubbing and fine-tuning songs that we'd already done for two years. So by the time we'd actually got 'em on record, I'd be tired of hearing it all. Now, though, everything happens shortly after the band's heard the songs for the first time. I'm better at that and it makes it easier for me to actually sit down and listen to my own records."
Though he does like to give his own records a spin, Bare would just as soon cast praise on the work of others. Take his studio version of YCSL, a revolving cast of friends that has included Jesus Lizard/ Hank III guitarist Duane Denison, violinist Andrew Bird and Lambchop's Mark Nevers. The road version, though, more of a Young Criminal's Duo, is Bare on vocals/ guitar with drummer/ bassist Brian Kotzur (of the Silver Jews, whose forthcoming album features an appearance by Bare). Bare also made the guest list for the second volume of Nashville recordings by Frank Black, which is slated for a late ‘05/ early ‘06 release (as a companion to Black's eminent Honeycomb) and features a surreal cast of pros including Motown Funk Brother Bob Babbitt, Faces keyboardist Ian McLagen and Stax guitar man Steve Cropper. On top of that, Bobby Jr. and Nevers produced the soon-to-be-released The Moon Was Blue, the first new album from Poppa Bare since 1983's Drinkin' From the Bottle, Singin' From the Heart.
"I'm a huge, monster-big Pixies fan," gushes Bare. "So Grimey, who was the guitarist in Bare Jr., and I walk into the studio in Nashville where Frank Black's knocking out, like, 12 songs in 24 hours. Tom Peterson from Cheap Trick's there, Levon Helm's there. So, naturally, I did the ‘I'm a really big fan' kind of thing, but I ended up getting to sing on the record, which was really cool. I'm also really proud of the record Dad's putting out soon. It's the first Bobby Bare album in over 20 years. He's doing stuff like [Harry Nilsson's] ‘Everybody's Talkin'.' Oh yeah, it's good!"
Michael Andrews
http://www.flagpole.com/articles.php?fp=5450
Always Looking On The Bright Side Of Misery
Bobby Bare, Jr. Photo by Thomas Petrillo
A quick glance at the titles of Bobby Bare Jr.'s early songs - "Kiss Me or I Will Cry," " I Hate Myself" - suggests the affable Nashville resident was once in need of a therapist (or at the very least, a greeting card pick-me-up). However, it's Bare's constant thread of self-deprecation that often makes him so endearing. And for a guy whose dad, Bobby Bare Sr., is recognized as one of the progenitors of country music's "outlaw" movement, Bare Jr. remains modest to a fault.
"Not to duck any questions, but honestly, I have the worst opinion of my music that there is," says Bare. "What I think is usually wrong. Other people's opinion is often more valid than my own when it comes to that subject."
Though he insists he doesn't know what he's doing most of the time, Bare isn't entirely the clueless greenhorn he makes himself out to be. His previous band Bare Jr. re-introduced the kid who dueted as a toddler with dad on the classic country track "Daddy What If" as a frizzy-haired wiseacre with a preference for Cheap Trick-esque guitar rock. After two albums (1998's Boo-Tay and 2000's Brainwasher) and several tours that saw the band open for The Black Crowes and Aerosmith, Bare opted to downsize things a bit with The Young Criminal's Starvation League, his current project.
"Being on a bigger label and having to chase [modern] rock radio just wasn't that appealing," says Bare. "A lot of the stuff I listen to is more on the end of Built to Spill or Pavement or The Pixies, so opening up for Aerosmith and Fuel wasn't really where I wanted to be. I'm married with a baby now, too. So that's just a whole new version of chaos - having a wife and child who need you there as opposed to being single and running around playing rock and roll."
Though Bare's initial YCSL material played up the countrier leanings, his indie rock allegiance was showing, too. That ragtag, hooky brand of pop-rock dominates YCSL's latest release, 2004's From the End of Your Leash, as is demonstrated by catchy, sarcastic romps like "Valentine" and "Your Adorable Beast." Bare, however, didn't abandon those country roots; steel guitar is a constant ingredient and one of Leash's most pleasant inclusions is a version of "Things I Didn't Say," a song written by the late Shel Silverstein and originally recorded by Dr Hook & the Medicine Show. Silverstein was a collaborator and close friend of Bare's father, and in tribute, Bobby Jr. has covered a Silverstein song on every YCSL album thus far.
"The main difference between Bare Jr. and the YCSL is the suddenness of it all," says Bare. "Before, we'd spend forever recording, overdubbing and fine-tuning songs that we'd already done for two years. So by the time we'd actually got 'em on record, I'd be tired of hearing it all. Now, though, everything happens shortly after the band's heard the songs for the first time. I'm better at that and it makes it easier for me to actually sit down and listen to my own records."
Though he does like to give his own records a spin, Bare would just as soon cast praise on the work of others. Take his studio version of YCSL, a revolving cast of friends that has included Jesus Lizard/ Hank III guitarist Duane Denison, violinist Andrew Bird and Lambchop's Mark Nevers. The road version, though, more of a Young Criminal's Duo, is Bare on vocals/ guitar with drummer/ bassist Brian Kotzur (of the Silver Jews, whose forthcoming album features an appearance by Bare). Bare also made the guest list for the second volume of Nashville recordings by Frank Black, which is slated for a late ‘05/ early ‘06 release (as a companion to Black's eminent Honeycomb) and features a surreal cast of pros including Motown Funk Brother Bob Babbitt, Faces keyboardist Ian McLagen and Stax guitar man Steve Cropper. On top of that, Bobby Jr. and Nevers produced the soon-to-be-released The Moon Was Blue, the first new album from Poppa Bare since 1983's Drinkin' From the Bottle, Singin' From the Heart.
"I'm a huge, monster-big Pixies fan," gushes Bare. "So Grimey, who was the guitarist in Bare Jr., and I walk into the studio in Nashville where Frank Black's knocking out, like, 12 songs in 24 hours. Tom Peterson from Cheap Trick's there, Levon Helm's there. So, naturally, I did the ‘I'm a really big fan' kind of thing, but I ended up getting to sing on the record, which was really cool. I'm also really proud of the record Dad's putting out soon. It's the first Bobby Bare album in over 20 years. He's doing stuff like [Harry Nilsson's] ‘Everybody's Talkin'.' Oh yeah, it's good!"
Michael Andrews