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The Berkshire Tragedy, aka – Knoxville Girl

The folk song Knoxville Girl was made famous by the Louvin Brothers in their opus “Tragic Songs of Life,” but was merely a tradition of several hundred years of folk tales, street songs, and eventually folk songs. Recorded first in the United States by the Carter Family (that I know of), Knoxville Girl is the story of a man that kills his girlfriend/acquaintance in a fit of passion. The song is usually not very explicit, but through the various bluegrass renditions and into the country/alt-country renditions it becomes much darker and detailed. Nick Cave’s version and the Handsome Family’s version are among the most explicit of the modern versions.

To me, this song represents the country tradition – it is human and unapologetic in its subject matter; it’s not complicated or sophisticated in the song patter or verses; and it is endlessly flexible in being adapted to new repertoires. I hope this song is covered indefinitely.

The original ballad can be found (try googling them) under the names “
The Oxford, Lexington, Waxweed, Wexford or Knoxville Girl, The Cruel Miller, The Wittam Miller girl…” I was also able to find a neat collaborative writing project at the University of Minnesota English Department of “Nineteenth Century English Street Ballads” which has a lot more to add to this discussion than I can. If you can, give “The Subgenre of Murder Ballads in the Street Literature of Britain” a read.

1937 – The Carter Family – Never Let the Devil Get the Upper Hand of You
1937 – The Blue Sky Boys – Story of the Knoxville Girl
1956 – The Louvin Brothers – Knoxville Girl
1975 – The Outlaws – Knoxville Girl
1975 – Jim & Jesse and The Virginia Boys – Knoxville Girl
1986 – Elvis Costello – Knoxville Girl
1988 – Jimmy Martin – Knoxville Girl
1996 – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Knoxville Girl
1996 – The Lemonheads – Knoxville Girl
1996 – BR5-49 – Knoxville Girl
2003 – The Handsome Family – Knoxville Girl
2005 – Roger Alan Wade – Knoxville Girl
2007 – Chris Thile & Michael Daves – Knoxville Girl
2009 – The Fox Hunt – Knoxville Girl

The Handsome Family – Honey Moon

The Handsome Family – Honey Moon

Coming straight from the mid- to late-90s alt country scene, The Handsome Family have a reputation for solid laid-back country styles woven with sparse, effective harmonies and gritty, tearing lyrics. Brett’s nasal delivery has enough boom to carry the weight of the lyrics and scratches enough to transfuse the pain directly to the listener, and Ronnie’s harmonies lift the lyrics into stark, empty, starless space. The feeling is truly a grounded, earthly feeling… while stretched hopelessly upward to the heavens.

In a slight change of pace, however, the new album “Honey Moon” treads into a slightly more pop-influenced sound. That is to say, a more regressive-country-pop sound, rather than the realm of modern-country-pop. The songs are lighter on Honey Moon – they are more uplifting and heartworn than on previous albums, but still generally drifting and grounded overall. Of course, the album has been advertised as a celebration of the couple’s 20th wedding anniversary, which certainly accounts for the gentle shift in the content of the lyrics. On the other hand, it might also forecast a shift in what’s to come in future releases. The very idea that the Handsome Family could be moving toward a more commercially-viable theme is not something I necessarily look down upon – “goth-country” is becoming sparse as a genre (I prefer “regressive-country”), and bands are still able to stick to roots Americana by writing love songs instead of murder ballads. I stand by murder ballads at the basis of country music, but there is certainly room for more sweet than bitter in bittersweet. In short, the album contains more of the Everly Brothers’ “Songs Our Daddy Taught Us” than the darker “American” series by Johnny Cash.

Songs like “Little Sparrows,” “A Thousand Diamond RIngs” and “Wild Wood” have a positively upbeat and country-rock feel, which is complimented by the drifting “The Winding Corn Maze” and light-waltz “Darling, My Darling.” My favorite track from the album, “When You Whispered” is also a waltz, but with a breathy bluegrass feel. The world is caught up in the whisper; the private moment between two faceless lovers, paused for a moment and stretched by the listening wind, “when you whispered what you whispered in my ear…”

The Handsome Family – When You Whispered

See them tonight at the Lizard Lounge in Cambridge, MA – Doors at 8:00, $15. Currently sold out online, but tickets will be available at the door.