Kate Campbell
The Portable Kate Campbell
Sing Me Out
Compadre Records (Houston)
Pierce Pettis
Great Big World
Compass Records (Nashville)
By: Zach Peterson
 Faulkner wrote: "Tell
me about the South. What it's like there? What do they do there?
Why do they live there? Why do they live at all?"
These words are printed in the liner notes for Kate Campbell's
The Portable Kate Campbell and couldn't better describe
what Campbell does in her songwriting. Like a modern-day Faulkner,
she works to expose the paradoxes, simple pleasures, hurts and
struggles in the post-1950s Deep South.
Born in New Orleans and raised in northern Mississippi, Campbell
describes the difficult-and incomplete-transformation of a changing
geography rich in a suffocatingly difficult past. Her characters
range from Elvis ("Tupelo's Too Far") to a girl who
hears the news of Martin Luther King's assassination in a K-Mart
parking lot ("Galaxie 500"). The songs are rich in
history (Campbell has a Masters in history from Auburn), spirituality
and a social conscious that is neither preachy nor shallow.
Campbell's latest two releases feature new recordings of previously
released material. The Portable Kate Campbell focuses
on the secular: songs about the civil rights movement ("Crazy
in Alabama", "Bus 109"), the American dream ("Visions
of Plenty") and unrelenting love ("A Perfect World").
Meanwhile, Sing Me Out compiles songs about God, in one
form or another. It isn't a gospel record, but rather a compilation
of songs about faithful people of all types. These folks are
not perfect, however.
In "Signs Following," a preacher has "spirits
from the bottle" lead his soul awry. As Campbell describes
this is "domestic violence with a holy rage." Conversely,
"Jesus and Tomatoes" is a comical vignette about a
woman who grows tomatoes in the "holy image," which
become a money-making tourist attraction. The last verse demonstrates
Campbell's understated wit:
The profits kept rolling in
I prayed they'd never end
And filed for a tax exemption
I heard a knocking at my door
It was a lawyer for the Lord
Saying don't do this no more
I said come and dine with me
We'll have a BLT
Another slice-of-the-ironic concludes Sing Me Out.
"Funeral Food" describes the post-service festivities
honoring the death of a woman who "made the best chocolate
cake." Campbell sings:
Pass the chicken,
Pass the pie.
We sure eat good
when someone dies.
The way she is able to capture the essence of a moment rivals
the very best short story writers. Within three and a half minutes,
a life story or an isolated incident can both be described with
the same depth and conciseness. Like the best journalists, Campbell
doesn't waste words.
Though these two records contain no new songs, the re-recordings
bring freshness to the material. Even those who own the three
albums (Moonpie Dreams, Visions of Plenty and Rosaryville)
the material is plucked from (29 of the 33 songs in total were
redone) shouldn't shy away from owning them. Nashville producer,
guitarist and songwriter Will Kimbrough brings his production
skills to the forefront complete with guest vocal appearances
from Kim Richey ("See Rock City"), Rodney Crowell ("A
Perfect World"), Nanci Griffith ("Galaxie 500"),
Jonell Mosser ("Rosaryville") and Jeff Black ("Porcelain
Blue").
 Another great observer of the
modern Deep South is Pierce Pettis. A highly literate, earnest
and observant songwriter, Pettis's latest, Great Big World,
combines twelve new examples of songwriting mastery. A former
PolyGram machine songwriter, Pettis is a master collaborator.
Half of the album's songs are co-writes with an array of today's
top writers including David Wilcox ("Great Big World")
and Irene Kelley ("You're Gonna Need This Memory").
As is his tradition, Pettis opens Great Big World with
a song by the late, widely-unknown singer-songwriter Mark Heard.
"Another Day in Limbo" sets a fast-pace to a relatively
relaxed affair. Pettis sings:
Angels with dirty faces
face another day in limbo,
which fits a popular theme in much of Pettis' own writing:
the paradoxes of faith. Clearly, Pettis writes from a faith-based
perspective, but like Campbell this isn't a happy-faced, unquestioning
faith. The difficulties of life and the struggle for purity inform
and enrich Pettis' songs.
In "Alabama 1959," he observes the world of his
childhood, where his mother taught him to be polite and call
blacks "colored people." Pettis deals with the topic
with a sensibility that most would be unable to conjure. The
song is neither an apology nor a celebration; rather it's a reflection
of an uneasy and inescapable past that can't be forgotten.
Most of Great Big World is a celebration of love in
various forms. "Black Sheep Boy" is poignant dedication
to Pettis' son, who has ADD. In turn, "Leonardo" deals
with DaVinci's own struggles with maintaining his focus. The
song also includes a rather insightful mention of DaVinci's friendship
with Machiavelli, who had a decidedly different approach to life.
"Rodeo Around the World" and "Cracker Jack
Ring" are joyous odes to love in the physical form. "Shady
Grove" is delicate re-working of the traditional tune that
keeps the chorus, while new verses replace the old ones. The
record concludes with "Song of Songs" a lovely reflection
on love, loss and rejuvenation. Gentle guitar picking lays the
foundation for one of most mature lullabies ever written.
Both Pettis and Campbell are keen observers of modern times.
Both songwriters delve deep into their southern roots and inform
their writing with a sense of history that isn't afraid to look
back, but also refuses to shy away from a brighter future.
www.katecampbell.com
www.piercepettis.com
Contact Zach Peterson at zapper-at-rockzilla.net
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