Performing at Stevefest this year!

At seven lines and a tight 19 words, the definitive Slaid Cleaves bio — written with humble but poetic economy by the artist himself — neatly sums up everything you really need to know about the man: 

Slaid Cleaves. Grew up in Maine. Lives in Texas. Writes songs. Makes Records. Travels around. Tries to be good.

Granted, there’s a whole lot of story and details that can be shoehorned in there to pad and flesh it out. But until “writes,” “makes,” “travels” and “tries” are all made past-tense and one final line is tacked on for an epitaph — hopefully something along the lines of, “Died full” — all that’s really called for, from time to time, is a footnote or two to bring folks up to speed on his latest batch of literate, sepia-toned Americana songcraft. This year’s bounty comes baring the admittedly foreboding title of Everything You Love Will be Taken Away, but fans of the Austin-based singer-songwriter needn’t fear: Everything you love about the man’s singular voice and music is still very much . There’s been some notable changes made, all in the name of artistic growth, but rest assured: all that living, writing songs, making records, traveling around and trying to be good has, par for his course, made Slaid Cleaves even better.

Everything You Love . . . is the followup to 2006‘s Unsung, a lovingly crafted collection of covers written by some of Cleaves’ favorite — if somewhat lesser known — fellow travelers on the troubadour road. But it’s been a good five years since Cleaves’ last album of self-penned songs, 2004’s acclaimed Wishbones, which fans had waited nearly as long for in the afterglow of the songwriter’s 2000 breakthrough, Broke Down. But though Cleaves may never be confused with the infamously prolific Ryan Adams, his slow-and-steady-wins-the-race pace, not unlike that of Guy Clark, yields albums full of uncommonly fine-tuned songs built to stand the test of time. To the long list of past road- and radio-proven Cleaves classics (“No Angel Knows,” “Horseshoe Lounge,” “Broke Down,” “One Good Year,” “New Year’s Day,” “Wishbones,” “Drinking’ Days,” etc.), one can now add highlights from the new album like “Hard to Believe,” “Beyond Love,” “Temporary” and especially the opening “Cry,” from which Everything You Love’s title was taken.

“I think of that song as sort of a breakthrough,” Cleaves says of “Cry,” which from the very first listen jumps out as not only one of the most emotionally trenchant songs of his career, but also arguably one of his catchiest. “showcases a shift in focus that I've taken with this record.  It's a bit more internal, personal. I actually recorded that song four separate times, because from the start it like something new and special, and I wasn't quite sure how to present it. I always felt like this e could go the way if I did it right. I thought it had the bones of a thoroughbred.” 

“Cry” may be the centerpiece of Everything You Love Will be Taken Away, but it is not the only “not typical” Slaid moment here. Although character studies like “Black T Shirt” and “Tumbleweed Stew” showcase Cleaves as the portrait-painting writer fans know best, by and large, everything else about the album — from the songs to the cover art to the title itself — represents a conscious effort to break the mold. 

“I’ve been putting out records for 12, 15 years now, so most of the people who listen to this kind of music know who I am,” Cleaves says. “So I was very concerned with the possibility of inducing yawns if I were to just put out the same kind of record. And to reflect the different feel of this record I felt it needed to be presented differently. That’s how I chose the title; originally it was going to be Hard to Believe, which sounds like a ‘typical’ Slaid Cleaves record. I commissioned an illustration for the cover because I didn’t want yet another black and white picture of my face — I wanted some color and creativity and emotion there.”

Colorful though it may be, the cover painting — by songwriter/artist Dan Blakeslee [a fellow native of Cleaves’ hometown of South Berwick, Maine] — is steeped in sorrow, depicting a mournful man laying in a graveyard beneath an indigo, starry sky. Inside are liner notes penned by another Maine local, celebrity Cleaves fan and master of the macabre Stephen King. Clearly, this is not, as Cleaves joked at a recent show, “the feel good album of the year.” 

“There’s definitely a grim aspect to it,” admits Cleaves with a chuckle. “The title of the record is from ‘Cry,’ but that phrase pretty much applies to every song on the album. Whether it’s your loved ones, your way of life, or even just your sense of innocence and hope, every song in some way is about how it all gets taken away. The last song, ‘Temporary,’ is my take on the age-old theme that death is the one thing that can make you appreciate how precious life is, how fragile it is.” Fittingly, some of the lines in that song were lifted right off tombstones in the cemetery near Cleaves’ house in Austin; he became fascinated with them when he took up jogging two years ago. 

But “Temporary” was only partially born in a boneyard; the melody actually came to Cleaves in a dream. So did the one for “Beyond Love.” “That actually happens maybe 10 times a year,” Cleaves says, “but the bittersweet part is, nine times out of 10, as I'm coming out of sleep with these melodies I’ll be too groggy to even reach for my bedside recorder and find the right button, and by the time I fully wake up, I’ve lost it. So the ones I do catch are precious to me. Those two songs coming out of dreams that way was really the genesis of this record, because it signified a slight shift in my approach to writing. Instead of just looking for stories to tell, I switched to a more internal, emotional and mysterious form of lyrical songwriting. Once I got an inkling that I was going to be able to do that, I tried to use it throughout the record.” 

Outside of his new angle on songwriting, Cleaves stuck mostly with the tried-and-true while making Everything You Love . . . , teaming again with co-writing buddies like Rod Picott, Adam Carroll and Michael O’Connor and recording the bulk of the album with famed roots-rock producer Gurf Morlix (Ray Wylie Hubbard, Lucinda Williams) in Austin. Additional tracks were cut with long-time road-guitarist Charles Arthur in Virginia, and Austin singer-songwriter and producer Billy Harvey was called in help find that elusive, perfect take on “Cry.”

But as befits an album distinguished by his most personal songs to date, this marks Cleaves’ maiden voyage on the newly launched co-op label Music Road Records. The brainchild of fellow Austin songwriter Jimmy LaFave, noted engineer Fred Remmert and Kelcy Warren, Music Road will allow Cleaves the opportunity (and challenge) to be much more hands on in regards to the record’s promotion — and by extension, his career.

“What I like about the deal is that I’m in on all the decisions,” he says. “It feels good to have so much more control over my fate now. My CDs are like children to me; I want the very best for them, and I want to give them every opportunity to be heard. Their success or failure will have a huge impact on my life for years to come. I figured, I cut my own hair, I fix my own car — so why shouldn’t I be the one responsible for getting this work of mine out into the world? 

“In the co-op deal,” he continues, “I’ve got money invested now, as well as all the time and effort. And I stand to gain a lot more than I would with a ‘standard’ deal if the record does well. It’s a lot more work and will maybe mean even less time to write songs, but I’ll take the extra responsibility for a shot at the extra reward.”

Only time will tell how this new journey pans out; check back again in, oh, hopefully sometime before another five years have gone by. But in the meantime, there’s plenty of reward to savor right here and now in the digital grooves of Everything You Love Will be Taken Away. Hold onto it for dear life, and savor every minute of it.

Richard Skanse, Editor, Texas Music

The music of Jack Williams, rooted in his native South Carolina, is shaped by a 51-year career of playing folk, rock, jazz, R&B, classical and the popular music of the 30s, 40s and 50s. He is counted among the most dynamic performers on today's "folk" circuit - "...one of the most enlightened and entertaining performers I've ever encountered", said Dave Humphreys of Two-Way Street Coffeehouse in Downer's Grove, IL. Jack is considered a "musician's musician", an uncommonly unique guitarist, a writer of vivid songs with a strong sense of place, and a storyteller in an old Southern tradition who further illustrates each tale with his guitar. Rich Warren of WFMT Chicago's The Midnight Special said, "His artistry is nothing short of amazing". Vic Heyman, inSING OUT!, wrote, “He is one of the strongest guitar players in contemporary folk.”

    Avoiding the compromises of the commercial music industry during his 50+-year professional career, Jack prefers touring under the radar, playing concerts, large and small, week in and week out, from the sheer love of music and performing. Playing for more than 50 house concerts each year, Jack enjoys the intimacy of that venue most of all, with a more personal connection to his listeners. Jack is a sought-after artist on all contemporary acoustic music stages, from coffeehouses to music halls and city arts stages. In addition to his solo career, as a guitarist he has accompanied such luminaries as Tom Paxton, Peter Yarrow, Mickey Newbury and Harry Nilsson. From acclaimed appearances at the Newport, Boston, Philadelphia, Kerrville, New Bedford SummerFest Folk Festivals, his musicianship, songs, stories and commanding presence have established him as an uncommonly inspiring and influential performer.

  Jack frequently shares his musical knowledge with others. In addition to leading numerous workshops as he tours the country, he has been on the staff of The Swannanoa Gathering in NC, Lamb's Songwriter Retreat in MI, The Folk Project in NJ, WUMB's Summer Acoustic Music Week in NH, and co-hosts a semi-annual Music Workshop Weekend near his home in the Ozarks.

  Jack has eight CDs of original music on the Wind River (Folk Era) label, plus his DVD “High Cotton”, a collection of on-stage performances. His newest release, "Bound for Glory" is a two-disc recording of a complete concert before a live audience in Ithaca, NY, for Phil Shapiro's radio show of the same name. His CD “Don’t Let Go” is a collection of cover songs reflecting major influences on his musical development. He produced all of his own recordings plus CDs by Mickey Newbury, Ronny Cox, Eric Schwartz, and others.

Kevin Oliver of NO DEPRESSION described Jack’s music as
“…a musical style that’s equal parts folk storytelling and Tin Pan Alley songcraft, delivered with the impassioned soul of an old blues singer.”

  Friendships with two great singers had an enormous impact on Jack's career and on the development of his own singing voice. In 1973, his relationship with the late Harry Nilsson resulted in an album effort at RCA during an ill-fated period of music industry turmoil. Until 2002, he sometimes toured as sole accompanist to his friend, the late Mickey Newbury, with whom he co-wrote, co-produced, and recorded a live album and video, Nights When I Am Sane (reissued as Winter Winds).

Mickey Newbury said,  "Jack and his music are an American treasure"

  From 1958 through 1988, along with playing jazz (trumpet) and classical guitar, Jack was best known as an electric guitarist in a series of original rock bands and smaller acoustic ensembles. In the late 60's, he gave in to his troubadour nature and began performing solo - singing and playing a gut-string guitar and touring from coast to coast.

Peter Yarrow (of Peter, Paul and Mary) called Jack
"…the best guitar player I've ever heard…"

   As a hired-gun guitarist in the Deep South of the Civil Rights-Easy Rider 60's, Jack’s bands accompanied the likes of John Lee Hooker, Big Joe Turner, Jerry Butler, Hank Ballard, the Shirelles, and the Del-Vikings.

Jack Williams’ music, enriched from these varied influences,
is a truly an All-American Southern music.

Roy Schneider is a multifaceted singer/songwriter who is quickly gaining recognition in the world of Americana and contemporary folk music. Ending his nationally syndicated comic strip in 2008 to focus fully on his musical aspirations, he is “growing at an amazing rate” in the words of one concert promoter in his adopted state of Florida. Roy is currently recording his 3rd studio album to include “Angels Along the Road”, the single that recently earned him a slot in the prestigious Grassy Hill New Folk competition at the 2009 Kerrville Folk Festival. He is proud to have shared bills and stages with many great acts including The Steeldrivers, The Kruger Brothers, Stevie Coyle, Jack Williams, Hans York, Fred Eaglesmith and Chris Knight among others.

A seasoned guitar virtuoso and performer hailing from the Boston area, Roy played his first major tour in the summer of 2009 with a concentration in the southern US and lower midwest. His upcoming album, aptly named “South in the Summertime”, will feature several cuts written on the road. A serious radio effort, a series of regional tours from the northeastern to southwestern US and a trip to the UK later in the year are in the plans for its release. Tracks from Roy’s first two albums have seen airplay on public, college and internet radio stations including the hallowed Grateful Dead Hour with David Gans. He has appeared live on radio stations WMNF Tampa, WSLR Sarasota and WGCU Fort Myers, popular bohemian internet station WMSR (Wildman Steve Radio) in Auburn, AL and made television appearances on WINK-11 and WFTX-4 Fort Myers.

Roy Schneider is honored to include the extraordinary talents of bassman David C. Johnson (Neville Brothers), violinist Keven Aland (Leftover Salmon, Peter Yarrow, Widespread Panic) and mandolin/banjo driver Michael Godwin (Vassar Clements, Bill Monroe) on “South in the Summertime”. He looks forward to touring every inhabited neighborhood in the solar system.
  
To name just a handful of his many musical influences: David Crosby, Guy Clark, Arlo Guthrie, Darrell Scott, Greg Brown, John Hiatt, Mississippi John Hurt, Tom Waits, John Sebastian, Bob Dylan, John Prine, Jerry Garcia, Doc Watson, Robert Johnson, Leadbelly, Bob Marley, David Grisman, Tony Rice, Leo Kottke...