Houston Publishing Demos 2002 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Demo album by | ||||
Released | August 21, 2015 | |||
Recorded | 2002 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 38:46 | |||
Label | Vagrant | |||
Producer | Alain Johannes | |||
Mark Lanegan chronology | ||||
|
Houston Publishing Demos 2002 is a demo album by alternative rock artist Mark Lanegan. It was released on August 21, 2015 on Ipecac Recordings, although it was recorded thirteen years earlier. Musicians who played on the album include Lanegan collaborator Mike Johnson, guitarist Ian Moore, and Willie Nelson's longtime harmonica player Mickey Raphael.
In his book I Am the Wolf: Lyrics & Writings, Lanegan writes he traveled to Houston in 2002 "to fulfill a publishing contract I had signed with an old friend, producer and label head Randall Jamail, a talented man who took no shit from anyone and who would not have been pleased if he knew the honest state of my unprepared and unraveling songcraft, such as it was." Lanegan wrote many of the songs in the parking lot on the spot as the band overdubbed in the studio. As he recalls in I Am the Wolf:
Despite the haphazard, stumble-burn way the writing was done, Randall did a stunning production job and in time I came to realize that instead of a bunch of demos, he had actually shaped a unique record that stood on its own merit. Among the tunes that have stayed in my mind: "When It's in You", which is an early version of "Methamphetamine Blues" and has a sort of mil psychedelic vibe instead of the more strident sound on the later version; "Grey Goes Black," a minimal miniature reflecting my numbness over 9/11; and "Way to Tomorrow," a song I wrote and recorded my last night in town upon hearing the devastating news that Layne Staley died.
Mark Deming of AllMusic: "The arrangements are full-bodied but leave plenty of open space, which suits the dusty overtones of Lanegan's melodies, and this music is a fine match for the phantoms and lost souls who populate Lanegan's songs (ten of which get their first public hearing on this release). Houston: Publishing Demos 2002 is by no means a lost masterpiece, but in many ways this is more satisfying and a better platform for Lanegan's talents than Bubblegum, which was his next solo effort, released in 2004.
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | (80/100) [1] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
Pitchfork | (7/10) [3] |
Renowned for Sound | [4] |
All tracks are written by Mark Lanegan
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "No Cross" | 2:10 |
2. | "Two Horses" | 4:17 |
3. | "When It's in You (Methamphetamine Blues)" | 4:17 |
4. | "High Life" | 2:19 |
5. | "I'll Go Where You Send Me" | 3:12 |
6. | "Grey Goes Black" | 1:51 |
7. | "The Primitives" | 2:04 |
8. | "Blind" | 3:50 |
9. | "Halcyon Daze" | 2:50 |
10. | "Nothing Much to Mention" | 2:26 |
11. | "A Suite for Dying Love" | 4:14 |
12. | "Way to Tomorrow" | 5:41 |
McKinley Morganfield, known professionally as Muddy Waters, was an American blues singer and musician who was an important figure in the post-World War II blues scene, and is often cited as the "father of modern Chicago blues". His style of playing has been described as "raining down Delta beatitude".
Mark William Lanegan was an American singer and songwriter. First becoming prominent as the lead singer for the early grunge band Screaming Trees, he was also known as a member of Queens of the Stone Age and The Gutter Twins. He released 12 solo studio albums as well as three collaboration albums with Isobel Campbell and two with Duke Garwood. He was known for his baritone voice, which was described as being "as scratchy as a three-day beard yet as supple and pliable as moccasin leather" and has been compared to Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen and Nick Cave.
Tender Prey is the fifth studio album by Australian rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, released on 19 September 1988 on Mute Records. Produced by Flood, the album was recorded during several sessions over the course of four months in London and West Berlin and dedicated to Fernando Ramos da Silva.
Daring Adventures is the fifth studio album by Richard Thompson, released in 1986.
The Winding Sheet is the debut studio album by alternative rock artist Mark Lanegan. It was released in 1990 on Sub Pop. The album was Lanegan's first solo work, and is notable in its departure from the characteristic sound of Screaming Trees, the band he fronted from 1985 until 2000.
Outlaws and Angels is a live album by American country and western musician Willie Nelson. It was recorded on May 5, 2004, at The Wiltern in Los Angeles, California. It was released on September 21, 2004, by the Lost Highway label. The concert featured guest performers singing duets with Nelson on each song and was later aired on cable television.
Bubblegum is a 2004 rock album by American singer-songwriter Mark Lanegan, released on the Beggars Banquet label under the name "Mark Lanegan Band".
Eternally Yours is the second album by Australian punk rock band the Saints, released in 1978. Produced by band members Chris Bailey and Ed Kuepper, the album saw the band pursue a bigger, more R&B-driven sound, augmented by a horn section. The album also saw the introduction of bass guitarist Algy Ward, who replaced the band's previous bass player, Kym Bradshaw in mid-1977.
Field Songs is the fifth solo album by Mark Lanegan, released in 2001 on the Beggars Banquet label.
Whiskey for the Holy Ghost is the second solo album by former Screaming Trees vocalist Mark Lanegan. The album builds upon the roots music foundation that Lanegan had established with his debut The Winding Sheet.
Scraps at Midnight is the third solo album by the American musician Mark Lanegan. It was produced by Lanegan and longtime collaborator Mike Johnson, and was released in 1998.
Here Comes That Weird Chill EP is a preview of Bubblegum by Mark Lanegan. The primary vocal version of "Sleep with Me", track 8 on the UK release, was omitted from the North American pressing.
Teatro is the 45th studio album by Willie Nelson, released in September 1998 via Island Records. Filmmaker Wim Wenders produced a documentary feature-length film of the recording sessions and live performances.
Patrick Bergeson is an American guitarist, harmonica player and occasional songwriter. Based in Nashville, he is best known for his live and session work with Chet Atkins, Lyle Lovett, Suzy Bogguss and Les Brers.
Broken is the third full-length studio album by English-American production team Soulsavers, and their second album predominantly featuring Mark Lanegan as lead vocalist. The album was released by V2 and Cooperative Music in the UK on 17 August 2009, and released by Columbia Records in the US in September 2009 as a digital download.
Blues Funeral is the seventh studio album by American alternative rock musician Mark Lanegan, released on February 6, 2012 on 4AD. The album was recorded with producer Alain Johannes throughout early 2011 and Johannes, as well as other musicians including Greg Dulli, David Catching and Jack Irons, contributed to the recording process. Blues Funeral was announced for release on November 7, 2011 through Lanegan's official website and less than a month later, the album's lead single, "The Gravedigger's Song," was released as a digital download on iTunes.
Imitations is the eighth studio album by the American alternative rock musician Mark Lanegan, released on September 17, 2013 on Vagrant Records and Heavenly Recordings. It is a collection of cover songs, consisting of songs from Lanegan's parents' music collection and contemporary musicians, including Chelsea Wolfe, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds and The Twilight Singers.
Has God Seen My Shadow is a three-disc compilation album by Mark Lanegan, featuring songs from his releases between 1989 and 2011. It was released in January 2014 under Light in the Attic Records.
December Day: Willie's Stash, Vol. 1 is a collaboration album by American country music singer-songwriter Willie Nelson and his sister, Bobbie Nelson, released by Legacy Recordings on December 2, 2014. It was the first release of Willie's Stash, a set of archival recordings curated by Nelson. Recorded with his road band, the album includes a track featuring Nelson's longtime bassist Bee Spears, deceased in 2011.
Black Pudding is a collaborative album by Mark Lanegan and the multi-instrumentalist Duke Garwood. It was recorded by Justin Smith at Pink Duck Studios and mixed by Alain Johannes at 11AD studios. The album was released in the United Kingdom by Heavenly Recordings on May 13, 2013, and in the United States by Ipecac the following day. The only single from the album, "Cold Molly", was released on April 20, 2013, as a Record Store Day exclusive.