A few of our guests from this year
want to share their Christmas song favorites with all of you. I'll be featuring
each one from today through Christmas Eve. I'e saved the dual answer/ dual video for your Christmas Even enjoyment.
I asked the question -
What is the one Christmas song...
that when you hear it, you know the holiday season is officially here?
I've tried to locate a video for
each one.
Michelle: This might be a boring answer but
I’d say probably White Christmas. I grew up watching the movie White Christmas
with Bing Crosby every year with my parents, so the song is definitely
nostalgic for me. There are many beautiful versions of it, and it’s a classic
for a reason.
Jason: I like the old jazzy
ones best. My favorite is probably “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. As
you may have noticed from my songwriting, I’m a real sucker for a sad song.
Note: since he mentioned 'old' jazz, I had to go with this treasure from Kenny G
You will find Michelle & Jason Hannan by following any of these social media links:
I do apologize for moving this review. I spent about three hours in the early morning pulling weeds but still managed to get overheated on Monday. I slept all day trying to recoup. Yesterday (Tuesday) was back out in the garden for more of the same but this time I paid attention to my body and quit before I had a repeat.
There ya go! Now we're back on track and I'm excited to bring you the review of this new album from Michelle and Jason Hannan - CHEATER'S WALTZ
Like Michelle, I've probably heard a concept album ( I even own a copy of Redheaded Stranger) but didn't really know that was a category. When I heard the back-story for Cheater's Waltz I knew, as a writer, this was a unique piece of work. Did I mention the idea for this album came from Jason? The man is amazingly creative. He and Michelle blend their thoughts, songwriting, and over-all music together in a way that makes them stand out among the masses.
If you're wondering what a concept album is, here's the cliff-note. As opposed to a collection of songs that all have a common theme, the songs flow from one to the other, telling a story. Each song is connected to the one previous and the one that follows, much like links in a chain. Like a good book, you have a beginning, a middle and an end... with all the other happenings in between. As a writer, I can tell you those points are not always easy to hit at the precise moment they need to happen nor is filling in those blanks. Their bandmate, Howard Parker, (who also contributed a beautiful instrumental on the album) was
invaluable in helping to arrange these songs.
The album tells the story of a
woman who’s had bad luck with love. She decides to take one more chance when
she meets a stranger in a bar. The album chronicles her new relationship going
from good to bad and then to the absolute worst. A nasty break up followed by a
murder and its aftermath.
I gave you a taste of the album yesterday with their first track, Nothing Left to Lose, opening up with the protaganist feeling as if she has nothing left to lose so takes one last chance at finding happiness. Michelle's lead vocals were the perfect catalyst for the story.
As the story continues with Before I Met You, as a listener you're thinking she may have found footing. While that could be true, we get this from a man's perspective. While Jason's rendition of a classic first recorded by Joe 'Cannonball' Lewis (one of the writers) back in 1953 followed by Carl Smith in 1956 and Charley Pride in 1967 is well done, I think the tune may have been better from Michelle as the woman's perspective.
The first of two interludes, Loren's Lament, was written by Howard Parker. He also takes the lead on the resonator guitar, masterfully evoking the soulful undercurrent of the album.
My earliest memory of a pedal steel guitar, I was six years old and there was a band playing on the back of a flat bed on the main drag of downtown Longmont, CO. I fell instantly in love and very few instruments speak to me more than its cry. As with Loren's Lament, Parker brought the emotion of Here We Are in December to the forefront, making the listener not just feel the story but to become the woman in the song.
Cheater's Waltz, the title track of the album, is the perfect seque from the lamenting of the previous track and flow to the next as well keeping the classic barroom feel.
Michelle comes back in on If You Won't Say It's Over. The lyrics give us more of an insight to the woman's plight and maybe previous relationships... her evolution to this point.
If you want to talk 'classic' country, listen close to Jason as he channels a bit of George Jones on Livin on Barroom Time. As I listened to this track, I had to back up a couple of times to make sure I wasn't hearing The Corvette Song.
Everything I've Got's In Tennessee, brings the woman back to where she started, with the plot twist I was not expecting.
Michelle brings a small church rendition of Leaning On the Everlasting Arms.
That petal steel is the perfect opening for Bourbon and a Broken Heart, pulling on the heartstrings as you cry in your beer or cry in bourbon and branch... either way, you're either going to feel better or like hell when all is said and done.
The mandolin is the star of The Sentence, leaving more questions than answers.
The reprise of Cheater's Waltz on this album is reminiscent of a walk to the gallows.
Between the pure classic country of this album and the notes of southern gospel in Feel Like My Time Ain't Long, CHEATER'S WALTZ hits all the notes of both a great story and a stellar compilation of talent.
CHEATER'S WALTZ releases JUNE 18th!
I'm tipping my hat, with the misstep on track 2.
.8
You will find Michelle & Jason Hannan by following any of these social media links:
Today, we're talking to Michelle and Jason Hannan. They are a husband and wife duo from Frederick Maryland and leading the group - OneBlueNight
Let's open the chute!
Let's open the chute!
Let’s start by learning a bit
about each of your backgrounds. Both of you come from deep musical roots. What
influenced each of your music careers from those backgrounds?
Michelle: I grew up listening
to country music in the 90s, whatever was on the radio. My mom always said that
I was singing before I could talk. My grandfather was the only real musician in
my family and I would sit and listen to him sing and play his piano or guitar
and try to pick up what I could. He’s the one who introduced me to traditional
country - artists like Patsy Cline, George Jones, Merle Haggard - the stuff
that influenced all of the great songs I heard in the 90s. I sang along with
the radio in the car and was always playing something and singing along at
home. My mom used to get out her tape recorder and record me singing along to
stuff, I wish I still had those tapes! She tried to get me to sing in front of
other people; I remember a Thanksgiving where I literally got under the kitchen
table to sing because I was so shy! When I was a teen, my older brother had a
guitar, and when he left the house I would sneak in and grab it and try to make
chords. It took a while, but I finally taught myself how to accompany my
singing. I got older and kind of abandoned the idea of making something of
myself in music - I was extremely self-conscious. It wasn’t until I met Jason
in 2014 that I actually got a chance to sing on stage. He really brought me out
of my shell and helped to shape me into the musician I am today. I’m extremely
lucky to have met him - both in a musical sense and in a personal sense, as
we’ve been happily married for several years now!
Jason: I grew up in Mississippi and just about everybody played music down
there. My father, Hal Windham, was a musician of note in the Gulf Coast music
scene in the 70’s. He recorded a single with Malaco Records in 1976 that got some
airplay regionally (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Pyh3n1ohJM). So it was in
my blood and I would just try to learn whatever instruments I could growing up.
I got involved with bluegrass when I was in the military and played guitar,
bass, and mandolin in several bluegrass bands up until I met Michelle and we
both decided to return to our country roots. We clicked immediately vocally,
more so than anyone else I’ve ever sung with. It was pretty crazy. Oh yeah, we
got married too. She needs higher standards!
Concept Album. As a writer, I love the idea of using an
entire album to tell a story while at the same time, each track can stand on
its own and strike a chord with any of your listeners.
Will you share with my readers the
seed for the storyline came from?
Jason: I wrote a song with my
daughter called “Everything I’ve Got’s in Tennessee” back about 9 years ago or
so, long before this album was ever a thing. The song ended up coming together
as a murder ballad. Not by design, that’s just the way it fell together. When
we decided to write a concept album that song seemed like a natural starting
point. Michelle rewrote the melody for it and added a verse. We built the album
around that song and it ended up being the second single we released from the
album. For the rest of the album we knew what plot points we needed to hit and
tried to write or find songs that fleshed them out, then we added interludes to
transition between the 3 acts. It was an ambitious project and we’re very
pleased with how it came together.
Jason, I know you were
inspired to do a concept album based on a teenage experience of hearing Willie
Nelson’s Red Headed Stranger album. My question is for Michelle. What was your
first thought when Jason brought the idea to you?
Michelle: I had never really
paid much attention to the idea of a concept album. I can't think of many that
I've heard myself, although it's possible that I have listened to one without
realizing it was a cohesive work. When Jason brought it to me, it seemed like a
really cool idea and it only got cooler once it started to develop. He really
drove this project, and I definitely admire his creativity and drive.
Cheater’s Waltz is the story
of a woman’s journey. Have you thought about flipping the coin and giving a
male’s perspective?
Jason: That’s an interesting
idea! There are actually a couple songs on the album that are from the guys’
perspective, both sung by me. One is “Before I Met You” and the other is
“Livin’ on Barroom Time”. Taken as a whole, they don’t really present the guy
in a very flattering light. He’s certainly not the hero of the story. And one
of the most challenging things about writing this album (for me) was trying to
write from a female perspective. I certainly wouldn’t rule out writing another
concept album from a male’s perspective at some point in the future.
Michelle: An album from the
perspective of the cheater would be interesting. I see the opportunity for a
ghost story at the end…that could be cool!
You share a big part of the
credit on this album to fellow bandmate, Howard Parker. Aside from amazing
instrumental talent, what did he bring to the table?
Michelle: Howard was an integral part of
the planning and execution of the album. He had some great ideas regarding
arrangements, and was always receptive to us bouncing ideas off of him. Of
course, he also wrote the beautiful “Loren’s Lament”, the instrumental on the
album, which really helped to set the tone for the rest of the album. It’s rare
to find someone who lines up so well with your own ideas and taste when you’re
dealing with a lot of original music. We’re very blessed to have Howard as a
bandmate and friend.
Jason: Oh man, we couldn’t have
done any of this without Howard. In addition to what Michelle said, Howard is also
an extremely underrated singer! He can harmonize with the best of them. You can
really hear him do his thing vocally on the album’s last track, the a cappella
quartet. The part he’s singing is not easy and he knocks it right out of the
park!
You had a lot of time to bring
this package together. Were there any bumps along the road?
Jason: Speaking for just
myself, the hardest part was the production side. This is the first album I’ve
ever totally produced and mastered myself and I really had to work hard to make
it sound like I wanted. I got what I wanted but I do honestly worry more about
what critics will say about the production than anything else. I was very lucky
because all the musicians that were involved (Michelle, Howard, Shannon Bielski
on fiddle, Jim Robeson on accordion) turned in stellar performances.
I try to really get in touch
with the heroines in my books. Michelle, was there anything in this story you
felt you identified with?
Michelle: I think I identified
most with her seemingly wild nature at the beginning of the story, especially
in the first song. I’m starting to settle down though! Of course, we’ve all had
heartbreak and challenges in our relationships. I can’t say I’ve ever
considered murder though. That’s what I tell Jason, anyway.
When folks listen to this
album, what do you hope their experience will be, or that they’ll walk away
thinking…..
Jason: I just hope people are
immersed in the story, that they are moved by it in some way, that it makes
them feel something. If they do, I’ve gotten what I wanted out of it. It’s a
rare enough thing these days, what with the direction the country music
industry has gone in.
Here's the first track from their new album, Cheater's Waltz.
You will find Michelle & Jason Hannan by following any of these social media links:
