Saturday Spins Vol. 36
Ryan Bingham and The Texas Gentleman Live at Red Rocks
Every Saturday I use the Discogs Randomizer Gizmo to pick a record from my collection and write about it here.
This week’s Saturday Spin was not so much chosen at random as it was selected by the USPS—meaning it arrived much earlier than anticipated. In fact, it was supposed to be shipped on November 22, but I received it on the 21! I love it when that happens. The album itself was released digitally on November 8.
Ryan Bingham is a fantastic artist that I have been listening to for like 15 years now. Like most people, or those not attuned to former rodeo cowboys turned country artists, I was introduced to Bingham by way of the 2009 film, Crazy Heart. A great film with one of the best soundtracks ever—including a Bingham/T-Bone Burnett-penned song “The Weary Kind”.
Bingham has also dabbled in some acting, appearing the in aforementioned film as well as the television drama, Yellowstone. I have not yet watched Yellowstone because the crowd that peaked in high school routinely share memes featuring characters from the show, and I just can’t bring myself to watch it because of that.1
Making some excellent tunes is where his real talent lies. I was super pumped to see that he had been making music with The Texas Gentleman. They are a great backing band that also makes some pretty great tunes on their own. Check ‘em out.
Hype Stickers
Since I am a bit of a crazy person I always always save the hype stickers from albums. I usually stick them on the inside of the jacket or on the provided inner sleeve—which I usually replace. Anyway, this album in particular had a hype sticker hawking some Ryan Bingham distilled bourbon, using the alliterative Bingham’s Bourbon.
Not the craziest or weirdest of hype stickers, but certainly an interesting one. Bob Dylan has his own whiskey as well, and yes I did spring for a bottle. It’s not quite finished yet, and I have to say it is pretty damn good. I may have ti try some of Bingham’s Bourbon too.
The album itself comes in a nice gatefold jacket. It is a little under an hour and a half of music so it is a double LP. The cover has a great shot of Bingham playing, while the back of the jacket features Bingham and The Texas Gentleman in a group shot with the crowd. The gatefold opens to show the entire crowd and a pretty cool bat-signallike projection of Bingham’s signature logo. The same seen above in the whiskey advert.
This must have been an awesome show to be at. There are 16 tracks in all and are recorded in such a superb fashion that you almost feel like you’re there when listening with headphones. There is clarity in the sound of the band itself, especially when there are extended jams. There is just enough crowd noise to let you know that it’s live album.
There is a good mix of classic Bingham Songs, “Southside of Heaven”, “Sunrise”', “Ghost of Travelin’ Jones”, “The Otherside”, and of course, “Bread & Water.” The opening track, “Nothin’ Holds Me Down”, is a newer song, but really sets the tone for the concert. Bingham and the band come out swinging on that one. It also features an extended jam. Classic Bingham track, “Bluebird” goes from a slow dirge (the album version) to a rocking ballad replete with screaming guitar solos.
An album like this really solidifies Bingham’s troubadour chops. I had the chance to see Ryan Bingham way back in 2011 or 2013 at the now-defunct Altar Bar in the Strip District of Pittsburgh. It was an excellent show. While not quite the same grand scale as Red Rocks, Bingham and his backing band at the time, The Dead Horses, brought the house down.
This is a good album to rock out to on your Saturday, so do yourself a favor and put it on ,but don’t say I didn’t warn you when you find yourself playing air guitar around the house.
Given my limited knowledge of the show, he memes don’t really relate either. The same people do the same thing with characters from Peaky Blinders.