DAVE ALVIN CHRONOLOGY : 1980-2002
By M.J. Tolan
1980
In 1980 the Blasters released their debut LP, American Music (Rollin' Rock LP #021). Later that same year, one of the most popular -and to date, most covered- tracks by the Blasters, "Marie, Marie", was issued on the soundtrack to what had earlier been billed as "...the world's only x-rated rock 'n' roll movie...", Teenage Cruisers: The Motion Picture Soundtrack (Rhino LP #016). The original LP has as a subtitle, "The Cream of California Rockabilly Rebellion". According to motion-picture databases, the film was written and directed in 1977, by Johnny Legend (Legend can be seen in the photograph used on the back cover of the liner notes to the 1997 Hightone Records reissue of American Music; I am unsure what role he played in the original Blasters recordings. Legend was best-known for Rockabilly recordings in the 1970's & 1980's - on the Rollin' Rock label, and especiallyyy for Rockabilly Rumble (Rondolet Records LP #1002 : Note, some of his work was eventually issued on CD in 1997, as, Rockabilly Bastard: The Best of Johnny Legend (HMG Music CD #6605)). The music for Legend's film came via Blasters producer Rockin' Ronny Weiser. Although the Blasters track was issued on the soundtrack, I have yet to confirm that it is actually used in the film; although this film has a certain "cult status", it is nevertheless extremely difficult to locate on the rental market - perhaps because it is as billed, "x-rated". Although most fans of the Blasters and/or Dave Alvin already possess several different issues of "Marie, Marie", this particular soundtrack is noteworthy, and perhaps collectible, due to the other artists found on it - and Alvin's later relationship to them. As noted above, all the musicians in question are Weisner-related, with the key Alvin-related artists being Billy Zoom & Ray Campi. Zoom would later be guitarist in X, and at one point in time be replaced by Alvin in this band, while Alvin would assist on several tracks on Campi's 1998 solo release, Train Rhythm Blues. By the end of the year, the British band Matchbox had covered "Marie, Marie", for their forthcoming release Midnite Dynamos (Magnet Records LP #5036). However, more significant was the cover by Irishman Shakin' Stevens, who also used the track as the LP title, Marie, Marie (Epic Records LP #8725), and released several 45's including this tracks; in the next 20 years his cover of the Alvin-penned tune was released, re-released, and repackaged on more than 25 LPs & CDs. Contrary to at least two sources, there are not photographs of Alvin / Blasters in the 1980 edition of the book X-Capees: A San Francisco Punk Photo Documentary , by Raye Santos, Richard McCaffree, and Richard Minissali (a.k.a. photographer f-Stop Fitzgerald) - though it does include one shot of the band, X. In all likelihood, fans have confused this volume with the somewhat similarly titled, Beyond & Back - The Story of X, as both volumes feature some photographs by Minissali (see 1983 listing below).
1981 saw the popularity of the band soar and the self-titled, second release, The Blasters, was issued on the Slash label and distributed by Warner Brothers (Slash LP/CS #23680). Many fans and critics alike still consider this the best Blasters LP. Side one is clearly some of their best work ever, and contains the definitive versions of "Marie, Marie", "I'm Shakin'", "Border Radio", "So Long Baby, Goodbye", and "American Music". U.S. singles off the project included a double-sided 45 of "I'm Shakin" (Slash 45 #110?); a double-sided 45 of "So Long Baby, Goodbye" (Slash 45 #117); "I'm Shakin'"/ "No Other Girl" (Slash, 45, #?); "So Long Baby, Goodbye"/ "Border Radio" (Slash 45 #?). In Europe (or at least France), singles included "I'm Shakin'"/"Hwy 61" (Slash 45 #898), "American Music"/"Border Radio (Slash/F-Beat 45 #xx27), "I'm Shakin'"/"No Other Girl" (Slash/F-Beat 45 #xx25), and "Marie, Marie"/"American Music" (Slash 45 #919) - though many of these are dated 1982-1983. Dave Alvin was also a "member" of Chris Desjardins' (a.k.a., Chris D.) best-known band, The Flesh Eaters. Alvin was guitarist on what critics refer to as the best Chris D.-backed project, A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die (Ruby Records LP #JRR-101, and later, Slash LP #?). This LP saw at least one single, "See You in the Boneyard" (SST 45? #?), and includes a single live track, "Satan's Stomp". The band toured the U.S., playing numerous gigs - though not always with Alvin on guitar. Several times they were recorded, sometimes for radio, sometimes by the bootleggers. On one notable occasion, they were billed as RRVBG (The Roots-Rock-Voodoo Blues Guys). Their bootlegged, East-Coast concert was released by an "anonymous" outfit, known only as Born Again Records - under the geographically questionable title, Live, Live, Live in L.A.! (Born Again Records LP #XXX-666). Alvin is also rumored to have played guitar on "Sloppy Drunk", one of the tracks on the East-Hollywood Freeze-Out LP, by Phast Phreddie & The Precisions (? LP #?). Shakin' Stevens may have included "Marie, Marie" on his first live? project, At the Rock House (Magnum Force Records LP #004).
In 1982, Dave Alvin continued recording and performing in many of the band-incarnations listed above, with a special focus on live projects. Alvin performs an adaptation of Joseph Falcon's "Lafayette", a cover used on the West Coast rockabilly project released as L.A. Rockabilly (Rhino Records LP #056). The Blasters were invited to record a concert for public television, and were joined by legend Carl Perkins for a brilliant finale (authentic 8x10 promotional photographs from this show are extremely collectible, and have sold for $15-75 at auction); the performance was part of PBS's Sound Stage, and was recorded live in Chicago. Perhaps the most popular outing of the year was when the Blasters recorded their only official live LP, Over There: Live @ The Venue, London (Slash LP/CS #23735). This is more an EP than LP, and the work clearly not their best - though still quite good. It is unfortunate that a band that repeatedly -over the course of years - offered brilliant show after brilliant show, performed only average on the night of the LP-recording. Another known live recording from 1982 was the work of bootleggers; there may or may not be an "official" title of this project, originally available only on LP. It has since appeared on CD (read CDR) under the titles Live in L.A. & Live at the L.A. Country Club. A Blasters track, "High School Confidential", was included on the radio-station-only series New Music: The Alternative (Volume 7, program 1: promo only). I have yet to confirm it, but Dave Alvin might have been guitarist for a radio-session recording by Chris D.'s band, The Flesh Eaters, done for KPFK-Los Angeles; the track, "Meet My Family Doctor", was recorded live on 5 December 1982, and later issued as a limited-edition LP, 12 O'Clock Rock: The 10th Anniversary Commemorative Souvenir (KPFK: Radio Free Americas 1-7 promo LP #10020?).
The Rhino compilation Rockin' Lafayette was issued (Rhino Records LP #056), and in the beginning of 1983 the Blasters recorded their most ambitious, and to date, underappreciated project: Non Fiction (Slash LP/CS #23818). Though still in the "rockabilly" vein, the collection of songs showcased Dave Alvin's emerging breadth as a songwriter, and hinted at even more socially-conscious tracks that would follow. An EP was released, entitled Barefoot Rock, which included the title track, "Fool's Paradise", and "Long White Cadillac" (Slash EP #2017?); this same EP was also released as an unidentified radio-promo LP (white jacket: no EP #), as well as a 45 single with a duplicate flip-side (Slash 45 #?). A 45-single of "Red Rose" was backed with "Leaving" (Slash 45 #?); in Europe (or just France?) and perhaps? the U.S., there was a double-sided 45 of "Red Rose" (Warner Brothers 45 #267). The Blasters also filmed a video for "Red Rose" -sometimes referred to as "One Red Rose"due to the hook of the song- to support the release of Non Fiction. The Blasters video-single was aired on MTV, and later issued on laser disc as part of the video set by The New Music Foundation. The Blasters track, and also an interview with Dave Alvin?, can be found on The Original Cutting Edge Anthology (? LD/VHS #?). The Blasters also had one track, "What Will Lucy Do?", on the Warner Brothers anthology Attack of the Killer B's! : The B-side Anthology, Vol.1 (Warner LP/CS #23837). Last but not least, Dave Alvin had two spoken tracks on the set, English as a Second Language (? LP/CS #?): "I Don't Sweat" & "Old White Women in Vermont"; this spoken -and music based- anthology also featured several Alvin-related artists, in particular, John Doe, Jeffrey Lee Pierce, Exene Cervenka, and Chris D. The first of a 2-LP project, The Blasting Concept, was issued (SST LP #013); although the title sounds Blasters-related, and members of the band had and later again would play with some of the artists linked to these projects, there is no connection to Dave Alvin or the Blasters (the same is true for the SST t-shirts that were sold, using the same moniker). At least two fans reported that several photographs, which include Alvin, can be found in Beyond & Back - The Story of X (Chris Morris & f-Stop Fitzgerald, ed., 1983); this appears to be only loosely true. There appear to be but two pictures which include Alvin. One, is a standard pic of Alvin in the not-so-traditional Flesh Eaters lineup (photo credit to Howard Rosenberg, p.19), while the other is a post-performance and quite possibly inebriated Alvin, with Ms. Cervenka (photo credit to Gary Leonard, p.60). This slender and somewhat obscure book, feature text by L.A. critic Chris Morris, and photographs by architecture photographer, f-Stop Fitzgerald.
1984 was a rather odd year for both Dave Alvin, and the Blasters. No new studio LP was offered, and instead the band focused on touring, and also on a soundtrack-based project for film-director Walter Hill. The band can be seen briefly in Hill's movie, The Streets of Fire (RKO Pictures VHS/LD/DVD #?); their work is more prominent and popular on the film's soundtrack of the same name (MCA Records LP/CS/CD #5492); note, RKO/MCA also released a 45 rpm single of Dan Hartman's "I Can Dream About You", backed with "Blue Shadows" by the Blasters (MCA Records, 45, #?). Although the band performs "live" in the film, the MCA soundtrack is made up of studio tracks (bad choice on Hill's part). The Blasters tracks include a cover of the Leiber & Stoller classic, "One Bad Stud" (performed originally in 1954 by The Honey Bears (Spark Records 45 #104); they also performed a Dave Alvin-original, "Blue Shadows". Hill surrounded himself with the best people, hiring Ry Cooder to score it, and Jimmy Iovine to supervise production. Although the movie was more or less a flop by Hollywood finance standards, the soundtrack sold rather well - especially so, for an extremely low-grossing film. Film reviewers certainly didn't help ticket sales and, unfortunately, often misinterpreted the film. Few critics, if any, took seriously Hill's subtitle to the project. The full film title was, The Streets of Fire: A Rock 'n' Roll Fable ; it was intended to be a screen-version of filmed-theater, combining the music of rock, the myths of popular culture, and the visuals of the comic book (how anyone could take seriously William Defoe's hair, wardrobe, and dialogue is a complete mystery). Nevertheless, critics and perhaps fans alike, simply didn't "get it", or didn't care - though some parts of the film are so weak, it is hard to blame them. Also, on the film front, and also relating to Defoe, was John Robinson's motion picture Roadhouse 66 (? VHS #?). The soundtrack included songs written by James Intveld, Los Lobos, Chuck Weiss, Dave Alvin and others. In the film, actor William Defoe does a version of the track "Marie, Marie". Dave Alvin had not yet broken all ties with The Flesh Eaters, nor other SST artists. Alvin played guitar on two tracks -"Eternity is Here" & "The Stranger in Our Town"- for Jeffrey Lee Pierce's band, The Gun Club (Animal Records LP #1477 & Capital Records LP/CD #13064). Alvin's work is on The Gun Club's, Las Vegas Story, which like their Fire of Love project, was produced by Flesh Eater Chris D. Alvin is also found on Chris D.'s mostly acoustic project, Time Stands Still (Enigma Records LP/CS #71130), with D's new Divine Horsemen band - which in this case was supported to some extent by Jeffrey Lee Pierce & Texacola Jones. Later that year, U.K. country-rocker Shakin' Stevens released his first greatest-hits collection, The Greatest Hits: Shakin' Stevens (EPIC LP/CS #10047), which included his well-known cover of Dave Alvin's, "Marie, Marie".
1985 saw the last of the Dave Alvin-Blasters projects, namely, Hard Line (Slash LP/CS #25093). The two best cuts, "Dark Night" & "Colored Lights" saw single, soundtrack, and video release. As the credits clearly reveal, Dave Alvin was again branching out; this time, he was joined by X-songwriter and bassist John Doe, who shares two song-writing credits on the project. Arguably, the track drawing the most critical attention was the one penned and produced by John Mellencamp, "Colored Lights", which was released as a music video (MTV #?), a 12" EP - with two different flip-sides, "Dark Night" (Slash EP #2259) and "Help You Dream" (Slash EP #?), and also as a 45 rpm - with two different flip-sides, "Help You Dream" (Slash, 45 #29055) & "Colored Lights" [both sides the same song & version] (Slash 45 #?). To promote the LP Hard Line, the band toured relentlessly, including filmed TV spots for MTV (Live @ The Ritz), Farm Aid, and Rock Palast. The Blasters also had a single, "Red Rose", appear on the Slash Records compilation project entitled Slash Cuts - The U.K. Sampler (SLAP LP #8 & Demon LP #008?) - on some Demon issues it is said the song is listed as "One Red Rose". While touring Europe, which included performances for the above-mentioned Rock Palast concert-series, the Blasters also performed at "The Milky Way"?, where bootleggers recorded and issued a show. A concert back in the U.S., perhaps recorded for The Westward One Radio Network (Concert #85-16?), appears to be the basis for a European bootleg LP (picture disc, this time: b&w band photo on one side; a color of Dave & Fender on the flip-side), The Age in Which We Live - The Blasters Live in Europe (Gambler Music Ltd., London). A Warner Brothers LP, The Slash Early Sessions (Warner Brothers LP #23937), may? have included Blasters & Gun Club tunes, and may? have been released in 1985?. Although neither Dave Alvin nor the Blasters made an official, live appearance in W.T. Morgan's documentary film, The Unheard Music: X (later repackaged as, X: The Unknown Quantity, The Unheard Music (CBS FOX LD/VHS #620080)) there is an ever-so-brief photo clip of Alvin, amidst the fast-paced, film-collage, "the evolution of X". Alvin was by now a member of the X/Blasters off-shoot band, The Knitters. The debut LP by this acoustic outfit, Poor Little Critter on the Road (Bloodshot Records LP/CS #111? & Warner Brothers LP #25310) was very well-received, and included an Alvin-Doe track, "The Call of the Wrecking Ball"; this track would later appear on an anthology, which is perhaps pirated music - an Asian LP entitled Hangman's Knot (? LP ?). A Knitters track, "Trail of Time", was also found on the above-mentioned Demon/Slash-Records anthology, Slash Cuts. The Knitters are reported to have been included on an LP entitled Radio Tokyo Tapes, Volume 3 (Passport Records, #8391), alleged to be a purely acoustic and purely exclusive offering, with tracks from numerous Slash & SST artists, including Henry Rollins, The Minutemen, Phranc, The Divine Horsemen, and others. This "acoustic" claim is probably correct, but the "exclusive" one has yet to be confirmed. Track listings for the Knitters are "Wild Side of Life" & "Honky Tonk Angels". Alvin also had one of his songs, "Little Honey", covered on X's, Ain't Love Grand (Elektra Records LP/CS/CD #60430); Ain't Love Grand also included the singles, "Burnin' House of Love" (Elektra Records LP/CS/CD? #604302), and "My Soul Cries Your Name" (Elektra Records LP/CS/CD? #?). Later? in the year, X was captured live by the bootleggers, resulting in, Live in Brooklyn! (Born Again Records LP #XXX-777), clearly an underground issue. Dave Alvin may or may not have been guitarist on this set, as it is yet to be confirmed and confirmation is made more difficult by the fact that there don't appear to be any liner notes accompanying this recording.
Though not in terms of work, but in terms of recording and production credits, 1986 was a rather slim year for Alvin (though slim only by Dave Alvin standards). He made his first joint-effort with Beat Farmers-percussionist, Country Dick Montana. Alvin is rumored to have played guitar on 2 tracks for the Beat Farmers LP, Glad 'n' Greasy, though this is not the case. In fact, this is surely more an EP than LP, and may have been issued only as a 6-track CD; Alvin & Gene Taylor joined Dan Stuart & Loudon Wainwright to form the "All Ugly American Choir", which provided the backing vocals on the song "Beat Generation" (Demon VEX #005; reissued, Rhino CD #707912); a different, non-Alvin, version is found on, Tales of the New West (Rhino CD/CS/LP #00853) - which was produced by Los Lobos & ex-Blaster Steve Berlin. Also issued in 1986 was an MTV-based video anthology, The Cutting Edge, 86 (? LD/VHS #?), which has the above-cited Alvin interview backed by Blasters music. As noted above in the 1983-entry, The Blasting Concept, and related-references to "Blastered", stem from a two-volume SST Records project, and are not tied to Alvin or the Blasters in any way; The Blasting Concept, 2 was released in 1986 (SST LP/CD #043).
1987 was arguable the most significant and diverse year in Dave Alvin's career. The
year saw a reissue of the Blasters recent Cutting Edge video segment; this time the
anthology was issued as volume 2 on the IRS video history (Rhino LD/VHS #0006730).
The Blasters also found one of their early tracks, "So Long Baby, Goodbye", selected
for use on a motion-picture soundtrack to Ridley Scott's, Someone To Watch Over
Me (Columbia Pictures VHS/LD/DVD #?). Dave Alvin's original ? video track was
also released via MTV, as part of the116-minute The Best of The Cutting Edge series
- also volume 2 (? LD & VHS #?).
Another Blasters track was chosen for soundtrack issue when, in 1988, "So Long Baby Goodbye" was part of The Bull Durham Motion Picture Soundtrack (Orion Pictures CD/CS #?). Dave Alvin had a solo version of "Border Radio" released as part of the UnCut Magazine music series, Unknown Pleasures (? CD #?); this track, and this anthology, might have later been reissued as Rare & Classic Tracks from the Archives of Demon Records (UnCut Magazine Music LP/CD #3?). Alvin also had one track on the CD Best of Hootenanny: Anthology (? CD #?). Alvin was still a sometimes-member of The Flesh Eaters, as he is again found on a live project, The Flesh Eaters Live! (Homestead Records LP/CD #1242); Alvin is guitarist for five tracks (this CD is made up of selections from four different concerts: Alvin is found on only the first 5 tracks, recorded in Los Angeles, in April, 1981). Though no longer touring with X, one Dave Alvin-song was covered on X's long-awaited, concert-recording, Live at the Whiskey A Go-Go on the Fabulous Sunset Strip (Elektra Records LP/CS/CD #607882). Finally in 1988, Alvin was liner-notes author for Jack Smith's self-titled effort, Jack Smith & The Rockabilly Planet (Flying Fish Records LP/CS/CD #510). The Blasters song "One Red Rose" was featured on the 1985 Geffen Music soundtrack for William Friedkin's motion picture To Live & Die in L.A. (Geffen CD #24081), though it apparently played no real role in the film. Although a little surprising, Alvin does not, as is sometimes said, appear on the 2-volume collection, A Town South of Bakersfield (Enigma CD/CS #73302) , though many Alvin-related are found there (Rosie Flores, James Intveld, Candye Kane, Katy Moffatt, Dwight Yoakum, etc.).
There was yet another issue of the Blasters on MTV video, as the I.R.S. reissue of The Best of Cutting Edge, which included one Blasters track and a Dave Alvin interview? (Rhino LD #?); this unedited MTV-segment of the Alvin/Blasters tracks is hosted by Peter Zaremba, of The Fabulous Flesh Tones. The Blasters can also be found on an obscure video, part of the Underground U.S.A. - Music Magazine #4. The 7-track music video includes "Colored Lights", by The Blasters. One Alvin track was recorded live when X was bootlegged in Los Angeles; the unofficial concert was "released" as Live in L.A.! (? LP # ?). Yet another Alvin-classic was covered, this time by country artist Dwight Yoakum. Yoakum's project, Just Looking For a Hit (Warner Brothers CD/CS #25989), includes a rendition of the ode to Hank Williams, "Long White Cadillac". Alvin also played guitar on various 1989-projects, including one-track for John Wesley Harding's Here Comes the Groom (Sire Records CD/CS #26087; Warner Brothers LP/CD #26087). Alvin played guitar on one track, "Goodbye Lonesome, Hello Baby Doll", for the self-titled project by The Lonesome Strangers, (Hightone Records CD #8016); he also was guitarist for the same track on Syd Straw's Private Sessions (? CD #?); he also played on "Almost Magic", found on Syd Straw's Surprise (Atlantic/Virgin Records LP/CS/CD #91266). Before the year ended Dave Alvin was also found by playing guitar on two tracks on the debut of Chris Gaffnew & The Cold Hard Facts (ROM Records LP #26011).
Although the original incarnation of the Blasters was long gone, a 1991-release is in many respects the best, single, Blasters item ever pressed - best in the sense that it is clearly representative of the band's style and talent. The 20-track, CD-release, The Collection (Warner Brothers CD #264512), included most all of the well-known classic Blasters tunes; it also included 3 previously-unreleased, bonus tracks - the most unique of which was "Justine", which featured ex-X & ex-Flesh Eater, John Doe on lead vocals. The CD sold well, yet for unexplained reasons, quickly went out-of-print. It is currently quite collectible, and often brings a whopping $30-$100 on internet auctions. Why Warner Brothers failed to re-issue The Collection was a mystery. In some respects, 1990 was -in terms of new releases- a hiatus period for Dave Alvin, as the release of Blue Blvd would not arrive until 1991. However, Alvin was part of two original motion-picture soundtrack efforts: Cry Baby (Universal Pictures VHS/LD? #?), featuring Johnny Depp, and The Sea of Love (? VHS/LD #?), starring Al Pacino. Alvin would handle numerous productions and provide the music for 2 tracks on the John Waters' Cry Baby project (MCA CD/CS #571832?), as he wrote "High School Hellcats", and co-wrote, with Doc Pomus, "King Cry-Baby"; friend and sometimes-Blaster James Intveld provided the vocals for the Johnny Depp character. Alvin (on guitar) would join Tom Waits (vocals & guitar) for a cover of "Sea of Love", for the film of the same title. Dave Alvin also assisted on one track on Katy Moffatt's, Child Bride (Philo Music CD #1133). Three Dave Alvin-related tracks were selected for inclusion for the second greatest hits package of The Flesh Eaters, Prehistoric Fits: Greatest Hits Volume 2; this project was issued in three variations: a traditional release (SST LP/CD/CS #264); colored vinyl - yellow (SST LP #264-x); and as a picture disc album (? LP #?) - note, this last item is probably pirated. It is sometimes said that Alvin assisted on John Doe's solo project Meet John Doe (David Geffen Music CD #24291) -and in particular it has been said and priiinted that he is on guitar for the song "Worldwide Brotherhood". If this is true, then it appears to be uncredited assistance, as Alvin is not listed in the liner notes - least not in the notes to the original David Geffen CD. Shakin' Stevens released yet another hits package including "Marie, Marie", The Hits of Shakin' Stevens (Epic Records LP/CD #?).
1991
In 1991, Alvin's follow-up to Romeo's Escape, Blue Blvd, was finally released (Hightone Records CD #8029). The project received assistance from ex-Blasters Lee Allen, Katy Moffatt, and Dwight Yoakum - to name a few. It includes some of Alvin's best, and to date, last real rock tunes - with the exception of several live tracks on Interstate City. Alvin also released several poetry-based (spoken tracks) on the hard-to-find, Triple-X-Records anthology, Side Affects: Poetry & Prose (Triple-X Records LP/CS #510604). This project includes the tracks, "Firefly", "Talking to Plants", "Fighting With Bill Fossil" & "Interstate City"; note, the final track is not the same as the song-lyrics, found most famously on the live CD, Interstate City. Side Affects was not Alvin's only spoken release in 1991. His historical introduction, and acoustic version, of "Andersonville", was included on the re-issue of In Their Own Words (Razor & Tie Records CD/CS #2813). Alvin also assisted by playing guitar to Julie Cruise for one track -"Summer Kisses / Winter Tears"- which would be used on the soundtrack to Wim Wenders' film, Until the End of the World [Bis ans Ende der Welt] (Warner Brothers CD/Cs #26707); this was the same song recorded by Elvis Presley for the 1960 motion picture The Flaming Star. The soundtrack to one of the most popular films of the year included a cover of a Dave Alvin song, as Kelly Willis' rendition of "Little Honey" is on the soundtrack to director Ridley Scott's, Thelma & Louise (MCA Records CD/CS #10239). Alvin also assisted on one? track of ex-Go-Go's, Belinda Carlisle's solo-effort, Live Your Life Be Free (MCA CD/CS #10446), where he can be found on guitar and vocals on " ??? "; one of his songs was covered on Phranc's, Positively Phranc - which includes "Hitchcock" - a song to which Alvin added the guitar track (Island / Polygram CD/CS #848282). Alvin added guitar tracks (how many?) for ex-Beat Farmer Buddy Blue's Guttersnipes 'n' Zealots (Rhino CD #70779). A remembrance of rock-legend Bill Haley, "Haley's Comet", which was co-written with Tom Russell, appears on Russell's Hurricane Season CD (Philo CD #1141). Capital Records re-issued on CD Gun Club's 1984-release, Las Vegas Story (Capital CD #13064), which as listed above, included Alvin on guitar. Though not composed or directly connected to Alvin, the band Firehouse included on their Flyin' the Flannel CD, a track entitled "A Song for Dave Alvin" (Columbia/Sony CD #47839) - though I am not sure what the connection is to Alvin.
As a solo-artist, Alvin assisted Sonny Burgess on the Tennessee Border CD (Hightone Records CD #8039); on some promotional materials & liner notes the issue is listed as "Sonny Burgess, with Dave Alvin", while on others it is just, plain, "Sonny Burgess". Regardless of the credits listed, Alvin did play guitar, produce, and offer several songs to Burgess. On the final CD-issue, only one Alvin-track made the cut - "Flat Top Joint"; also on the CD is a cover of one-time-Blaster James Intveld's "My Heart Is Achin' For You" - which Intveld had recorded earlier for the L.A. rockabilly LP listed earlier, Rockin' Lafayette (1982). Later in the year yet another Alvin-related track was selected for soundtrack inclusion when Alvin's solo version of "Border Radio" -off Every Night About This Time- was found on the soundtrack for the film Tombstone After Dark (Demon Records CD/CS #713), which also included a track by Joe Ely -"Me and Billy the Kid"; later this same year Ely would cover the first of several tracks penned by Alvin. Ely was one of the first to cover Alvin's "Every Night About This Time", and did so on his Love & Danger project (MCA Records CD/CS #10584). Three Alvin-compositions were covered on Chris Gaffney's Mi Vida Loca - "Mi Vida Loca", "68", & "6 Nights a Week (Hightone Records CD #8038) - note that Allsion Anders (director of the 1987 film Border Radio) later directed a 1992-93 film, Mi Vida Loca; the soundtrack of this project does NOT, as is sometimes said, include any Dave Alvin-related music. Alvin played lead guitar on one track, "The Life I Left Behind", on the third CD by Billy Bacon & The Forbidden Pigs, Dressed to Swill (Triple X Records CD #511392); their first CD, Una Mas Cerveza, (Triple X Records CD #51102), was directed by Beat Farmers guitarist Buddy Blue. Alvin also played guitar on two? tracks on Jerry Gidden's project, The Devil's Front Door (Doctor Dream Records CD #9263), "Goodnight Irene" & "The Devil's Front Door".
MCA Music released an anthology, Classic Rock - Volume 3, which included the Blasters version of "American Music" (Priority Music CD #53712 & MCA Records CD/CS #25240) . Alvin was also a lead-member in a Triple-X production, issued by Hightone Records; an all-star band called The Pleasure Barons - which featured ex-Beat Farmer Country Dick Montana, and ex-VJ & all-round crazyman Mojo Nixon; their only official live release, The Pleasure Barons Live in Las Vegas (Hightone Records CD #8044) included many covers, but no covers of Dave Alvin songs. Nevertheless, Alvin does handle guitar on all tracks, and vocals on three songs: "Closing Time", "Games People Play" & "Gangster of Love". Slash Records re-issued The Flesh Eaters project, A Minute To Pray, A Second To Die (Slash CD/CS #828807); they also reissued Poor Little Critter on the Road (Slash/Warner Brothers CD #25310 & #828810). The key to 1993 was Alvin's release of, Museum of Heart (Hightone Records CD #8049); the project resulted in the single(s) "?" & "?" (? CD #?). Alvin entered the acting arena [as the chauffeur] when he appeared in the TV-mini-series Tales of the City - also rebroadcast and issued on videocassette as Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City (? VHS #?). Alvin assisted on the liner notes for the Ray Charles-anniversary collection, Genius & Soul: The 50th Anniversary Collection of Ray Charles (Rhino CD/CS #72859). Shakin' Stevens may have re-recorded "Marie, Marie" for release on his This Ole House collection (Epic Records CD/CD #?).
1994
The Blasters saw their original version of "I'm Shakin", re-released on The New Wave Hits of the 1980's: Volume 7 (Rhino CD/LD #71700). Alvin had a small acting role as a detective, in the film Floundering (?, VHS/LD/DVD #?). Worth noting is that several of the key personnel for this film made Roadside Prophets in 1996, which starred John Doe; some of their earlier projects included Repo Man and Sid & Nancy. The highpoint of 1994 was clearly Alvin's full-blown, folk-music shift, with the release of, King of California (Hightone Records, CD, #8054); King of California received rave reviews, and included new versions of Alvin-classics, such as "Fourth of July", "Every Night About This Time", "Little Honey", and "Border Radio". Alvin's acoustic slant was supported by his inclusion on the Bottom Line collection of spoken/music tracks, released as In Their Own Words: NY's Bottom Line Club Anthology, Volume 1 (Razor & Tie Records CD/CS #2813). Alvin played guitar on 1? track(s) on Bierce in L.A. by Vale of Tears (Rocco CD #?). Alvin also had one? track, "? ", appear on his labels' Anniversary-issue, Hightone Records, The First 10 Years! (Hightone Records CD #?). Arguably, Dave Alvin's best-known contribution too the year was his production-work for the Haggard-appreciation CD, Tulare Dust: A Merl Haggard Tribute (Hightone Records CD #8058). In addition to producing the tribute to Haggard, Alvin also produced Jumpin' From 6 to 6, by Big Sandy & The Fly Rite Boys (Hightone Records CD #8053). Several Alvin-penned tracks were covered in 1994, including "Brand New Heart" by the Paladins, on The Ticket Home (Sector 2 Music CD #10003), " ??? " by Tom Russell, on Beyond St. Olay's Gate (Razor & Tie Records CD/CS #2815), and "Wanda & Duane", by Marshall Crenshaw ,on Live: My Truck is My Home! (Razor & Tie Records CD/CS #2815); an earlier cover of a Alvin tune, that by Kelly Willis and originally found on the Thelma & Louise Soundtrack, was reissued by Sony on Country Goes to the Movies (Sony Music CD/CS #57473). Music critic and biographer Dave Marsh revised his earlier "encyclopedia of unsubstantiated opinion", The New Book of Rock Lists: From The Beatles, James Brown, the B-52's and Brand Nubian to Elvis Presley, Prince, Pearl Jam, and Public Enemy - All You'd Ever Want to Know About the Rockers and the Rappers, the Music and the Madness, the Winners and the Sinners, the Hits and the Misses (Fireside Books, ISBN #0671787004, 600 pages); this time -in the category of "Great Songs About the Birth, Death, Power, and Endurance of Rock 'n' Roll"- the Blasters "Border Radio" topped the list of 40 key tracks (beating out the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Mick Jagger, The Who, Dire Straits, Chuck Berry, John Fogerty, Neil Young, Bob Marley, and numerous others); this same song by the Blasters also took first prize on Marsh's list of the 30 best songs relating to rock radio (topping The Clash, Elvis Costello, Bob Seger, REM, Roger Waters, The Velvet Undergound, and many others).
1995 was in many ways a touring year; the live CD which would ultimately result from it was still one year off. Razor & Tie Records reissued on CD Alvin's, Romeo's Escape (Razor & Tie CD #2074). Alvin had one track on the anthology, Sunday Morning Sessions (Munich Music CD #176), though his main creative effort resulted in the publication of Any Rough Times Are Now Behind You: Selected Poems and Writings, 1979-1995 (Incommunicado Press, ISBN #0884615090, 164 pages) - a collection of prose and poetry. One Blasters track, "Marie, Marie", was issued on the Rolling Stone Magazine set Sounds of the 80's: Rolling Stone Collection, 1980-1982 (Polygram CD #98825). Also, a popular Blasters European concert was bootlegged on CD; two versions exist, with the latter, quite possibly, being a low-grade copy of the former: Live in 85! (? CD #?) & Live, 1985 (? CD #?). Greatest-hits packages by the Flesh Eaters were again reissued, Prehistoric Fits (SST CD #264) & Destroyed By Fire (SST CD #094), which includes ? tracks with Alvin on guitar. Alvin produced a host of projects, including Billy Bacon & the Forbidden Pigs, Other White Meat (Triple X Records CD/LP #51203), and Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys, Swingin' West (Hightone Records CD #8064). Other production credits go along with Alvin contributing guitar work and/or producing covers of his own songs. These projects include Chris Gaffney's Loser's Paradise, which found Alvin on guitar for two tracks -"East of Houston, West of Baton Rouge" &ammmp; "Sugar Bee"; Gaffney also covered Alvin's song, "Help You Dream" (Hightone Records CD/CS #8062). Alvin produced Tom Russell's The Rose of San Joaquin, which included covers of two Alvin-Russell songs: "Out in California" & "Between the Cracks" (Hightone Records CD #8066); Alvin is on guitar on the ? live tracks: ???. Several Alvin songs were covered on various other projects. Dwight Yoakum performed "Long White Cadillac", for his first live project, Dwight Live (Warner Brothers CD/CS #45907). The Paladins saw a reissue of their project, The Ticket Home (Sector 2 Music CD #10003) - which included a cover of an Alvin tune, and MXPX included a cover of "Marie, Marie", on their EP On the Cover (Tooth & Nail CD/CS #1044). The first artist to cover a Dave Alvin tune, Shakin' Stevens, had his original cover of "Marie, Marie" re-released on two projects: The Greatest Hits of Shakin' Stevens (Epic CD reissue #46693) & on the Sony collection, Rock-A-Billy Rock (Sony Music CD #22199). Jerry Giddens released an obscure greatest hits collection, Walking Wounded: Giddens Cuts a Decade, 1984-1994 (? CD ?); this anthology includes, "The Devil's Front Door", featuring Alvin on guitar - this was the title track from Giddens' 1992 project, which would be re-released in 1999. Sets of Alvin, Peter Case and Tom Russell, from Sala Consigliare (Italian Festival, August 1995), were recorded by fans and released as a 2 CD set - and also as an edited single CD; these are rumored to be fan-based recordings. A photograph of the Alvin brothers was included -along with an very brief story- in Art Fein's, Greatest Rock & Roll Stories: The Most Outrageous, Magical, and Scandalous Events in the History of Rock 'n' Roll (General Publishing Group [Rhino], ISBN #188164975X, 256 pages). Ted Roddy (of Ted & the Talltops, an outfit which also featured Jim Heath, a.k.a., Rev. Horton Heat) included a version of a song credited to him and Alvin, "Since I Lost You"; the song is available on his release Full Circle (Hightone Records CD #8065).
In 1996, "Dark Night" was used in and issued on the motion picture soundtrack to Richard Rodriquez's From Dusk Till Dawn (Sony Music CD/CS #67523). Dave Alvin & The Guilty Men released their first concert, Interstate City (Hightone Records CD #8074). Alvin was also captured live during his tour of Australia, resulting in a limited-edition [99 copies], bootleg CD, Live on the Underside of Down Under (Dead Koala Bear Music Unlimited and UnIncorporated CD #2-Damn-Million). Hightone Records issued yet another anthology disc, Roadhouse Revival: A Hightone Sampler, this one with 2 Dave Alvin songs: ? & ? (Hightone Records CD # Promo). Alvin also contributed to the Tom Waits tribute, with his rendition of "Ol' 55"; Alvin's version of this song was packaged & issued in more than one fashion. His track was included on the promo sampler, The Songs of Tom Waits (? CD #?), the full-length CD, Step Right Up - The Songs of Tom Waits (Manifesto CD #41101 & Virgin Records CD #30) - which also included a song by ex-Gun Club vocalist Jeffrey Lee Pierce; the latter CD was also sold along with two Waits CDs under the packaged-title, Waits Box (? CD #?) - which didn't appear to be a true "box set", but merely a bunch of CD's cellophaned together. Alvin's production credits continued to grow as he again supervised a Sonny Burgess CD, this one simply titled Sonny Burgess (Rounder Records CD/CS #3144); he also produced Jackpot by The Derailers (Watermelon Records CD #1051), which included his guitar work on two??? tracks. Ex-Beat Farmers Country Dick Montana's The Devil Lied To Me (Bar None Music CD #080) also included Alvin on guitar & John Doe on bass for two of the tracks?, namely "???" & "???"; Alvin also played guitar on one track? of Super Ball, by the Iguanas, a project for Jimmy Buffett's mini-label, which also featured Chris Gaffney on vocals (Margarittaville Records CD #531040). Two artists covered Alvin songs in 1996: Jo-El Sonnier included "So Long Baby, Goodbye" in his concert recorded and released as Live in Canada (Stony Plain CD #1224) & Johnny Rodriguez re-recorded "Every Night About This Time, for his CD You Can Say That Again (Hightone Records CD/CS #8073). Alvin's publisher issued an anthology edited by Nicole Panter (Incommunicado Press, 1884615163, 253 pp.), Unnatural Disasters: Recent Writings from the Golden State. The work includes Alvin's "A Prayer for Los Angeles" (it also includes a piece by Border Radio director Allison Anders).
Alvin covered "Seeds" for One Step Up, Two Steps Back: The Bruce Springsteen Tribute (Capital Records CD #59780). 1997 saw a Blasters rebirth, as the band issued an official-unofficial project, namely, The Blasters Bootleg (Blasters CS #?). Dave Alvin's record label Hightone remastered the original Blasters LP, American Music, and issued it, on both CD & LP, along with six previously unissued tracks (Hightone Records CD #8086); to purists, this might be the true Blasters "Collection". It is worth noting here that the LP included one track not found on the CD-version; the vinyl-only issue also has "Cry for Me"?. American Music includes 6 tracks written by Dave Alvin, who also authored one section of the liner notes. "Dark Night", the Blasters track found on the From Dusk Till Dawn motion picture soundtrack, was issued again on a film-based compilation, The Tarantino Connection (HIP-O Music CD/CS #40032). John Doe's band X released a 2-CD retrospective, Beyond & Back: The X Anthology (Elektra Records CD #62103); Alvin is guitarist on 4 of the tracks, and two covers of his songs are included here. This is far from a standard greatest hits package -as it is no substitute for owning the origgginal LPs/CDs- complete with demos, studio cuts, live recordings, sound-board cuts, and unreleased tracks. Worth mentioning, is that on the lead-in on a 1982 live track from San Diego, Exene opens with the claim "...Alright, this is a song that I fucked over last night. It's called "The Once Over Twice"; I made a mistake on it ... huh? ... o.k. ... [music starts] this is for The Blasters...". This track, probably taken from a bootlegger or the band's private tapes, should not be confused with the bootleg CD, An X-Xmas Live - The Once Over Twice, which appears to be a combination of two concerts recorded on or near Christmas, 1982; this may or may not be a pirated copy of Once Over Twice, which itself may well be a bootlegged concert?. Note, a 7-track promo-CD was also issued; this sampler includes one Dave Alvin song, "4th of July" (? CD #?). Tom Russell covered yet another Alvin song, ?, which was included on The Round Tower Music Sampler (Round Tower Music CD #087). Another Russell project, The Long Way Around (Hightone Records CD #8107) found Alvin involved on a much deeper level, as he was guitarist on the live tracks, vocalist on "Blue Wing", and had another one of his songs covered (actually, this one was co-written by Russell), "Haley's Comet". The Inmates recorded the Alvin-penned track "No Other Girl", and included it on their 1997 release Silverio (Last Call Records CD #301832). Alvin produced another Derailers project, Reverb Deluxe, which included his guitar work on 2 tracks? (Watermelon Records CD #1064 & Sire Music CD/CS #31004). An unconfirmed production credit for Alvin is Candye Kane's release, Diva La Grande (Discovery Music CD #74710) - which was an all-star affair, including work by Big Sandy, Ray Campi, and others; Alvin was guitarist on several? tracks on this project, and he co-wrote three tracks with Kane, "Lord Was a Woman", "I'm in Love With a Girl", & "I Left My Heart in Texas". Robert Keen included, on his PicNic release, a cover of Alvin's "Fourth of July" (Arista CD/CS #18834). Well-known photographer Gary Leonard and journalist Don Snowden released a book-length look back at the 1980's Los Angeles music scene; the work includes material on many of the artists mentioned in this chronology (from Candye Kane and The Go-Go's to The Gun Club and Los Lobos); the book also includes reflections by rock journalists Chris & Keith Morris, many of which include a significant amount of material relating to Alvin, the Blasters, Flesh Eaters, X, etc.: Make the Music Go Bang!:The Early L.A. Punk Scene (St. Martin's Press, ISBN #0312169124, 179 pages).
Alvin saw another acting foray as he was in low-budget, straight-to-video, motion picture, Bleeding Vegas (? VHS #?) - reputed to be an ill-received cross between the films Leaving Las Vegas & Romeo is Bleeding, starring David Carradine. I am not aware of any related soundtrack or Alvin-related music done in conjunction with this project. While this might have been the low point for Alvin in 1998, the highpoint was the release of Blackjack David (Hightone Records CD #8091); note, a sampler CD was issued as a promotional device Blackjack David: Dave Alvin (Hightone Records CD # promo ?), and there was also a CD single, Abilene (Hightone CD # promo ?), which also included the track ?. A Blasters tune used on The Streets of Fire Soundtrack, "One Bad Stud", and was reissued by Rhino on a new anthology, VH1: The Bigs 80's - The Big Movies! (Rhino Records CD/CS #75470). The best Blasters-related project was finalized, Blastered: A Musical Tribute to the Blasters (Run Wild Records CD #903), which includes -as can be expected- numerous covers of Alvin-penned songs; this CD is, on at least two occasions, listed incorrectly as Downey City Limit: Blastered, due to the cover art used on the liner notes (the title is superimposed above a road-sign welcoming you to Downey, California - the Alvin brothers hometown). Alvin also contributed/donated several tracks. The If I Didn't Care Anthology, which included "?" (Entertainers Music CD #252); From the Heart of Studio A: A Folk Scene Collection, which included "Barn Burning" (Red House Music CD #098); and, Root Awakening: an Ear-Opening Music Sampler, which included "These Times We're Livin' In" (Red House Music CD #123). Some sources list the tracks times for this song as 4:09, whereas this same song performed by Alvin appears on Treasures Left Behind (see below), with a time of 4:06; this differential is probably an error, and in all likelihood, there is probably only one version of this song, but it has to be confirmed. The track Hightone Records sponsored what became known as The Monsters of Folk Tour, and culminated in the live CD, recorded April, 1998. of nearly the same title, Monsters of Folk - The American Tour (Hightone Records CD #?), which included three tracks by Dave Alvin: "New Highway", "Railroad Bill" & "How You Want It Done?". Alvin also provided one track and liner notes for a Kate Wolf-memorial CD (real name Kathryn Louise Allen); he recorded her song, "These Time We're Livin' In" for Treasures Left Behind: Remembering Kate Wolf (Red House Music, CD, #114 & Gadfly Records ?). Ray Campi received help on guitar and vocals when Alvin assisted with three tracks on Campi's, Train Rhythm Blue (Mouthpiece Records CD #6018). Some of Alvin's all-but-forgotten live tracks with the Flesh Eaters were brought back to life on what appears to be a pirated CD, A Decade Live! (Food of the Gods CD #99), which is really made up of three different concerts recorded in 1984, 1985 & 1993 - some of which must surely have been bootlegged; Alvin is guitarist for the 6 tracks taken from 198?. Alvin continued producing new projects, and in 1998 the focus was on 13, by Red Meat (Ranchero Records CD #2372). The ever-present covers continued as several diverse artists included Alvin-penned tracks on their releases. Alvin's most-covered song, "Every Night About This Time", was included on Addicted, by 10 Sugar Coffee (Huge Secret Music CD #4398); The Ink Spots & Ella Fitzgerald recorded "Every Night About This Time" for their CD, If I Didn't Care (Entertainers Music CD #252) - it is worth noting that, for whatever insane reason, this is the third time the "Ink Spots" have used this exact phrase as the title for an LP or CD; pre-1998 editions or reissues of so-titled project do not include covers of Alvin-penned songs; Shakin' Stevens saw yet another release of his cover of "Marie, Marie", as Sony re-issued his The Greatest Hits of Shakin' Stevens (Sony Music CD #66993). A related Stevens project which may? include a cover of "Marie, Marie" is Let's Boogie (Epic CD #?), which is a live performance with a massive medley as finale?. However, the only 1998 project to include more than one Dave Alvin-cover was Shadow of the Blues, by Little Charlie & The Nightcats (Alligator Records CD #4862) - which included new versions of "Never Trust a Woman" & "When Your Woman is Gone". Alvin also has (as of yet, unconfirmed) liner-notes credits for Money Road, by The Radio Kings (Bullseye Blues Records CD #9601), and had one track (which one?) included on the anthology, Viva Americana, The New Highway (Boka, CD, #001) - this CD is reputed to have been released with an impressive 44-page booklet of liner notes on the contributing artists. "Border Radio" and Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues" were used in the debut episode of the new Wolf Films / NBC television series "Players". A decent-sized article/interview by Bob Townsend appeared in Stomp & Stammer Magazine (June, 1998) prior to a show at The Star Community Bar. Last but not least, there are record-review mentions of Alvin assisting on another John Doe solo project, another for his former X-bandmate's new incarnation as, The John Doe Thing. The project in question is the hard-to-find EP/CD, For The Rest of Us (Kill Rock Stars Records CD #290). As is the case with Meet John Doe, if Alvin participated on this, it was on an anonymous level, as he is not mentioned in the liner notes (it was produced and recorded by Dave Way, not Dave Alvin); unlike The John Doe Thing's Kissing So Hard (which also featured Exene Cervenka & Smokey Hormel), For the Rest of Us appears not to relate to Alvin or other Alvin-related artists in any way - assuming the liner notes are correct and complete. Ex-4-Star Records rockabilly man Sammy Masters included a cover of Alvin's "Help You Dream" on his sort-of comeback project, Everybody Digs Sammy Masters (Dionysus Records CD #123355 : Note: AMG and other databases also attribute author credits on "Money to Burn" to Alvin; this may well be a mistake, as if this is the song I think it is, I believe it is actually older than Alvin).
1999 was not a year that would reveal much newly recorded Dave Alvin material. However, a collection done -apparently- to promote the possibility of other artists recording his songs (someone thought there was a shortage of this?) was issued, and it included two new versions of Alvin classics ("Long white Cadillac" & "Don't Talk About Her"). The 30-track-set was released as a limited edition entitled, The Songs of Dave Alvin: 1979-1999 (Bug Music CD - promo only, # ?). Although he did not release any new full-length projects, Alvin was hard at work, and is well-represented in the anthologies. His label's anthology, 15 Years of American Music: Hightone Records, includes his version of "California Snow" (Hightone Records CD #promo?); this anthology also include a Blasters track, "American Music". Alvin is also found on two radio-only, CD-issues, namely From the Heart of Studio A: KGSR Radio - Volume 6 (? CD #?), which includes his live version of "Blackjack David", and also on KCSA: Music Hall Live, also a live, radio-only, CD-issue, which includes ? (? CD #?). Alvin is also found on promo-CD's issued in conjunction with various music magazines; he has one track on the accompanying CD to the weekly, New Country (v.3, no.11), and also one track -"Border Radio"- on the CD included with the U.K.-based, UnCut Magazine - one version of this CD is entitled, Unknown Pleasures: A Demon Records Sampler (Un Cut Up Cd #3). Other anthologies include: Acoustic Café Live #201, (K???-radio, 2-CD re-issue set #?) with "?"; Luxury Liner, Volume III (? CD #?), with ?; Mile Marker 383: A Starbucks Open Road Anthology (Starbucks? CD #?), with ?; and, Hootenanny Live! (? CD #?), with 3 tracks: ? & ? & ?. Alvin also made another appearance on public television (the first being the 1982 PBS SoundStage special), when he was featured on an episode of Austin City Limits (10 April 1999). It was another busy production year for Alvin. He has as of yet unconfirmed production credits for Christy McWilson's self-titled project (? CD #?). He played guitar on two tracks, and also produced Full Western Dress by the Derailers (Sire Music CD #31062); he also offered guitar and production? work for Katy Moffatt's Loose Diamond (Hightone Records CD #8109), as well as played guitar and offered vocals on one track, "East Virginia Blues", on Ramblin' Jack Elliot's The Long Ride (Hightone Records CD #8107) - a project for which he also authored the liner notes. Alvin offered guitar assistance on several other projects, including: ex-Beat Farmer Buddy Blue's, Dipsomania!, where he assisted on three tracks (Clarence Music CD #102); Alvin is also found on Little Milton's somewhat self-titled project, Welcome to Little Milton (Malaco Records CD #7500), which includes Alvin as guitarist on two tracks; Alvin is also guitarist on the re-issue of Jerry Giddens', The Devils Front Door (Dr. Dream Records CD #9263). It was another year of Alvin-covers. The Paladins recorded a third? Alvin-penned track, "Brand New Heart", for their Rejiveinated project (Foil Music, CD, #2866); Tom Russell had yet another Alvin track, "California Snow", released on an anthology issue, The Folk Scene Collection, Volume 2 (Red House Music CD #137). The year was capped off by two flashbacks, of sorts. First, the Razor & Tie record label reissued their 1991 re-issue, In Their Own Words, Volume 1: Live Performances from The Bottom Line, New York City - which includes Alvin's introduction and live version of "Andersonville" (Razor & Tie Records CD #2813x). Second, the acoustic offshoot of the Blasters / X / Flesh Eaters, the Knitters, received a tribute project which included an unreleased track by the band in question, namely "Why Don't We Try Anymore"; the tribute CD is, Poor Little Knitter on the Road (Bloodshot Records CD #052). The Knitters were "captured" live towards the end of the year (4 December 1999), at the Crocodile Café; the concert was subsequently "released" as Rock the Croc, Café Croc Rock, and perhaps other titles. Bruce Sylvester authored an article for Goldmine (#495: July 16, 1999; p.14-15), "Talk Talk, Dave Alvin and the Blasters: Guy Poetry at It's Best".
The NBC TV-show, "The Other Side", used the Blasters song "Dark Night" as the sound segue in the television trailers. Dave Alvin & Bob Dylan recorded several sessions in late 1999, possibly destined for 2002 release - perhaps as part of Dylan's ongoing "Basement Tapes" series. Alvin produced Christy McWilson's CD The Lucky One (Hightone Records CD #8119), and Syd Straw's Surprise CD was reissued (Koch International CD #8038). Alvin guests on guitar on Candye Kane's new CD The Toughest Girl Alive (Bullseye Blues Records / Rounder Music CD #619605). Well-known Acoustic Guitar Magazine published an article on Alvin (1999-2000) and commented on his recordings. Also, the AG "song book" (sheet music / tablature division) division included in volume 6 the sheet music to "Tall Trees"; the CD included with the magazine has Alvin's version of this song - I assume it is the same version found on Blackjack David, though I have yet to confirm this. A promotional KGSR re-release includes Alvin on one live track, "Dry River". This is issued on the radio-only 2-CD set by KGSR (Austin, Texas: 107.1 FM), KGSR Radio Broadcasts, Volume 2: Live, Unplugged & Unreleased! (KGSR, CD, #?); some of the other 41 artists include Joe Ely, Rick Danko, John Hiatt, & Los Lobos; and all proceeds went to benefit the Travis County Children's Advocacy Center. Another Hootenany Live CD is released (Time Bomb Records CD #43542); it includes part of a 1999 Alvin set ("Out in California"), and was titled, simply, Live at The Hootenanny: Volume 1. Alvin hosted "The House of Blues Radio Show" (guest DJ) for "Mojo Blues"; the program was then -and may still be- available on the web from the House of Blues website. Acoustic Guitar Magazine claims Alvin's King of California tops the annual list of "Essential Listening", and he is part of their article (July 2000) on "The Birth of Alt Country". Alvin was present at the EMP (Experience Music Project) grand opening ceremony, and also performed there. The ceremony and corresponding concerts were filmed by both public television and VH-1. Though these recordings were obviously destined for release/sales, I have yet to hear of what has become of them. Alvin recorded audio and video for the EMP museum in Seattle, and is also part of "The Experience" souvenir book; his commentary pertains to the rebirth of punk and alternative rock in California in the late 1970's to mid-1980's: "The Western Front". Alvin was named "Best Country Artist" by the L.A. Weekly Music Awards. WYEP/FM, in Pittsburgh, issued a 2-CD on-air package, with two of these live tracks being by Alvin. KPFK Studio-A, a live radio program, on 20 August 2001 ?, featured a brief set ? by Dave Alvin & Friends ?. Alvin hosted a Minneapolis radio show for KFAI, which aired on 9 October. The Alvin brothers were part of a much-delayed Rhino Records issue of Doo-Wop favorites; the 4-CD, 102-track set includes two tracks "selected" for inclusion by Phil and Dave: "Sheik or Araby" (The Colts) & "One Bad Stud" (The Honey Bears); see The Doo-Wop Box III. Dave Alvin & The Guilty Men contribute one track, "Mobile Blues", to the Mickey Newbury tribute project, Frisco Mabel Joy Revisited - For Mickey Newbury (Appleseed APR #1048); an ad hoc band of guests on this project, called "The Hole Dozen", included Alvin regular Greg Leisz. Various articles (L.A. Times & elsewhere) and unofficial recordings surround the closing of Eddy Jenning's-owned, Jack's Sugar Shack; Alvin highlighted his last night there with a rendition of "So Long Baby, Goodbye". Two people emailed me indicating that a band, The Blazers, had recorded a Alvin-penned track, though they were unclear which one. I could not confirm this. I am unfamiliar with this outfit, though have found reviewers who maintain they are a cross between Los Lobos and The Kinks. If this is the case, then a Blasters song sounds just about right for them. Anyway, perhaps they covered a song in concert or something? I am guessing here, and I simply couldn't find evidence of it, and the project cited to me (Puro Blazers, Rounder Records, #9066) appeared not to include anything Alvin / Blasters-related. The British R&B outfit, The Inmates, recorded the Alvin-penned track "No Other Girl", and included it on their 1997 release Silverio (Last Call Records CD #301832). Teenage Cruisers motion picture soundtrack was reissued on CD (#653002). Alvin & Peter Case recorded a duet, "Monday Mornin' Blues", a track destined for inclusion on the Case-orchestrated Mississippi John Hurt remembrance. The CD is entitled, Avalon Blues - A Tribute to the Music of Mississippi John Hurt (Vanguard Music CD #79582), and their particular track would also be released on an UnCut Magazine anthology CD (see below). Alvin releases Public Domain: Songs for the Wild Land (Hightone Records #8122). Both Alvin, and his no-longer one-off band, The Knitters, were both nominated for L.A. 2000 Music Awards. The mid-1980's Knitters project Poor Little Critter on the Road was again reissued on CD (Rhino CD #79946). Throughout the year Alvin tours with legendary singer-songwriters Bob Dylan and -sometimes- Joni Mitchell; the shows are well-reviewed, especially sets in the Midwest, including one at Market Square Arena, Indianapolis.
Alvin's Public Domain was a collection of folk songs which, as stated in the liner notes, "...belong to nobody. They belong to all of us", ended up winning him a Grammy Award for "Best Traditional Folk Album" - though in the end it turned out not every one of the songs may in fact belong to all of us. Most reviews were extremely favorable, and are readily available via any decent search engine on the web. Texas Boogie: A Collection of Texas Songs (Hightone Records CD #8134), includes Alvin's version of "Abilene", as well as his rendition of "East Texas Blues". Something entitled One More for the Road: The I-10 Chronicles II? (Back Porch Records / Virgin Records CD #50716?) is rumored to include "I'm a Lonesome Fugitive", by Alvin. Some of the other artists include Merl Haggard, Charlie Pride, and Jerry Lee Lewis. Red Meat's Alameda County Line (Ranchero Records CD #0786?), would mark Alvin's 2nd production credit for the honky-tonk outfit. Alvin is one of the many performers handling vocals on the newly-released Los Straitjackets project, Sing Along With (Yep Roc Records CD #2028). Vocalists range from Nick Lowe to Tom Petty-Heartbreaker Mike Campbell; other artists have appeared with Alvin before, such as Big Sandy, Rev. Horton Heat, and Exene Cervenka (Alvin's track is "California Sun"). Alvin was one of the numerous artists with a tribute track on Ernie - The Songs of Ernest Noyes Brookings (Gadfly Records #276). I have not listened to this project, but don't believe these are cover songs, per se. Brookings (1898-1987) was known primarily as a "poet", not a musician. In all likelihood, the respective artists (in this case Alvin, The Figgs, Robyn Hitchcock, The Colorblind James Experience, and more than a dozen others) supported the lyrical compositions with musical ones of their own. A sidebar here, but Gadfly was also connected to another tribute project which included an Alvin track - The Treasures Left Behind: Remembering Kate Wolf, a 1998 release - see above. The 1981 Flesh Eaters project, A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die (Rhino CD #?) was again reissued. A German compilation project, Don't Shoot: L.A. Punk (Mau Mau Records CD # ? ), includes what is listed as a John Doe version of "Wreckin' Ball" - which could well be a mistitled use of the Knitters track "The Call of the Wrecking Ball", penned by Alvin & Doe.(other artists on this project include Divine Horsemen, Rhythm Pigs, Tony Gilkyson, etc.). The October issue of UnCut Magazine includes on the accompanying CD, the Alvin/Case track "Monday Mornin' Blues", which was recorded for Avalon Blues - a tribute to the life's work of Mississippi John Hurt; another issue of UnCut Magazine, is an 18-track offering which includes Alvin's "Shenandoah". OC Weekly magazine (Volume 4 CD) includes "Night Tide" by Big Sandy, and "Don't Let Your Deal Go Down" by Alvin; an article, "You Gotta Write Your Own Blues" - by Buddy Seigal- is available on the magazine's online website. George Gimarc's issued a follow-up work, Post-Punk Diary, 1980-1982 - A Day by Day, Eyewitness Account of the Underground Music Scene - Over 3 years, 900 bands and 3300 Recordings! I have not seen the work, but have been told both X and the Blasters should be covered in the project, though to what extent I cannot say. I have suspicions, however, and doubt the Blasters merit coverage here - though I suspect the Flesh Eaters and perhaps even X are covered (this nearly 400-page work is a follow-up to, Punk Diary, 1970-1979: I believe both books are available, autographed, from the author's official website). There is also a Music Monitor piece by Hal Horowitz, "Dave Alvin - The Interstate City's His Home".
Five of the original Blasters suprise all-but the "inner circle", and reunite for a four-night stand of California dates (I believe, San Diego, Santa Ana, San Francisco, & West Hollywood: March 6-9, 2002). On top of this good news, Rhino negotiates and releases the "definitive" Blasters collection - a 2-CD set entitled Testament: The Complete Slash Recordings from the Warner Archives (though the collection is not quite exactly, COMPLETE).
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