John Elliott
&
The Hereafter

BACKYARDS

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   The American West

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   Good Times

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   Daylight Saving

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   Losing Streak

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   I Think I Found A New Friend

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   Over A Year

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   Cassius Clay

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   Radio Lite

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   So This Is When It Comes

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    Out In The Branches

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    Empty In The Heartland

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(KEEP SCROLLING DOWN... THERE IS A LOT OF STUFF HERE... )

8.13.11 was the recording release performance and party for "Backyards." It was a great Saturday night in Hollywood at the Hotel Cafe. Summertime. Full moon. Set list:

RADIO LITE / GOOD TIMES / DAYLIGHT SAVING / LOSING STREAK / I THINK I FOUND A NEW FRIEND / OVER A YEAR / CASSIUS CLAY / THE AMERICAN WEST / OUTLAW / PISSIN' ON PLANTS IN THE SUBURBS

Outlaw 8.13.11 LA, CA by Garland Lane

Backyards Physical Manifestations

Post 9/11 World $7.11 90s Route $11.22 Old School $22.11

THE POST 9/11 WORLD: It's the digital age. You are all about zeroes and ones (and saving cash and trees). Buy this and you will be mailed a download card in an envelope. On this card will be a unique SECRET CODE that can be used (via the internet) to gain access to mp3s of the new album, a digital photo-text-art-lyric-storybook, and SIDEYARDS: 22 additional tracks - first or second draft demos of all the album tracks plus 11 songs that didn't make the cut. Find out all about SIDEYARDS here. This costs $7.11 plus fifty cents to ship it. 

THE 90s ROUTE: Ah, the heady days of the Clinton administration. AOL, landlines, Seinfeld and COMPACT DISCS. Boy, did we love those for awhile. You still do. You've got them displayed in their original cases on a shelf (or in several CD books). Buy this and you will get a compact disc of the album and a beautiful, full color photo-text-art-lyric-storybook. This costs $11.22 plus shipping.   

OLD SCHOOL: You have to go forward to go back. The vinyl vibe. Records. Two sides. An intermission in between. Analog. You have a growing collection of records, new and old. You know from experience that this is the best way to listen to recorded music. Buy this and you will get Backyards on VINYL in an original, limited edition, jacket collage. Records take a long time to produce so please be patient. You will also receive THE POST 9/11 WORLD download card with this option, including SIDETRACKS (22 additional songs) - see here for details. This costs $22.11 plus shipping.  

John Elliott : singing, acoustic guitar, piano, electric guitar, orchestra bells, glockenspiel, phone-o-phone, field recordings

Mike Schadel : drums, tambourine, shaker, singing

Colin Warling : bass, mandolin

Mike Wendland : electric guitar

Andy Featherston : various aux percussion

Ryan Zwahlen : oboe, english horn

David Moss : cello

Trevor Smith : banjo

Rebecca Cunningham : french horn

Jennifer K. Stevenson : clarinet, bass clarinet

Catherine Barrett : harp

Mike Wells : wurly

Kevin Costner : spoken word

Bill Davis, Anthony da Costa, Jack Wilson & Jason Weems : singing on “cassius clay”

Grace Park : singing on “i think i found a new friend” and “empty in the heartland”

Eli Bolin : singing on “good times” and “over a year”

1996 Wayzata High School Concert Choir : singing on “so this is when it comes”

“Backyards” was produced by John Elliott. It was arranged, performed and recorded by John Elliott, Mike Schadel, Colin Warling and Mike Wendland at Beer City Studios in Los Angeles, CA (San Fernando Valley) and at Elizabeth’s house in Austin, TX. It was mixed by John Holmes, Aaron Glas and John Elliott (in various combinations at various times). It was mastered by Ryan Foster at FREQ Mastering in Portland, OR.

All songs written by John Elliott (BMI 2011)

Here's a review from Norway translated via the Google Translator from Norwegian to English:

John Elliott's "Backyards" places so elegantly in the sound that was perfected by Simon & Garfunkel, and of course a number of folk musicians before them. There are references to both the former folk music, but also more recent Britishfolk-pop. Here you will find both the Beach Boys backing vocals and the occasional banjo and mandolin. The songs are acoustic in the expression, but he has brought a band that knows how to punch to where it is needed.

Elliott has a very nice and pleasant voice, and writes spruce texts about daily challenges and love. This is a wonderful autumn album which like the sort of music when you crawl under the blanket with a cup of cocoa and a good book. I think evocative and melancholy are the two key words I hunt here. So are you looking for something evocative and melancholy of the musical autumn cosiness, you could do a lot worse than buying this disc.

http://www.musikkbloggen.no/2011/10/smaplukk-fra-platebunken-10/

Here's a video about the making of the album: