The Imus Ranch Record [Slimline]

Performer: Various Artists
Engineer: Chris Stone; Vanessa Parr; Dave Sinko; Ellery Durgin; John Hiatt; Kevin McKendree; Michael Dumas; Neal Cappellino; Scott Baggett; Tony Castle; Paul Hart; Justin Guip; Casey Wood; Joe Martino
Producer: Delbert McClinton; Tom Overby; Dwight Yoakam; Emory Gordy, Jr.; Eric Liljestrand; John Hiatt; Al Anderson; Kevin McKendree; Kyle Lehning; Larry Campbell; Lucinda Williams; Raul Malo; Scott Baggett; Steve Fishell; Vince Gill; Adam Shoenfeld; Buddy Cannon; Tracey Gershon (Compilation); Don Imus (Compilation); Tracy Gershon (Compilation); Kyle Lehning (Compilation)
Distributor: RED Distribution

Notes: Personnel: Adam Shoenfeld (vocals, electric guitar); Danny Flowers, Doug Pettibone, Lucinda Williams, Rob McNelley (guitar); Al Anderson, Luther Dickinson, Richard Rodney Bennett, Tom Bukovac (acoustic guitar, electric guitar); Larry Campbell (acoustic guitar, mandolin, fiddle); Leigh Cochran, Dwight Yoakam, John Hiatt, John Willis, Mac McAnally, Bryan Sutton, Buddy Miller (acoustic guitar); Jimmy Vivino, Joe Stark, Keith Gattis, Kenny Greenberg, Pat Buchanan, Raul Malo, Vince Gill, Steve Gibson, Brent Mason (electric guitar); Tommy White (steel guitar); Curtis "Cortini" Jones (Spanish guitar); Willie Nelson (nylon-string guitar); Loarie Loar, Tammy Rogers King (mandolin); Burnt Hickory Chamber Orchestra, Larry Hall (strings); Mickey Raphael (harmonica); Brian John Mitchell (accordion, piano); Harvey Thompson (saxophone); John Hobbs (piano, keyboards); Gary Prim, Reese Wynans, Gordon Mote (piano); Kevin McKendree (electric piano, Wurlitzer piano, Wurlitzer organ); Skip Edwards (organ); Jeff Roach, Randy McCormick (keyboards); Casey Wood (vibraphone, tambourine); Emory Gordy, Spencer Campbell, David Sutton (bass instrument); David Hungate, Larry Paxton (acoustic bass); Butch Norton, Lynn Williams (drums, drum); Kenneth Blevins, Levon Helm, Mitch Marine, Eddie Bayers, Paul Leim, Brian Pruitt, Chad Cromwell (drums); Crystal Taliefero (congas, background vocals); Delbert McClinton (djembe); Kerlan Spur (percussion); Teresa Williams, Pam Lee, Pearl Minnix, Jon Mark Ivey, Jessi Alexander, Lisa Cochran, Marabeth Jordon, Amy Helm, Ann McCrary, Wes Hightower, Bekka Bramlett, Bergen White, Regina McCrary, Louis Dean Nunley (background vocals). Audio Mixers: Chris Stone; Vanessa Parr; Dave Sinko; David Leonard; Ellery Durgin; John Hiatt; Kevin McKendree; Kyle Lehning; Neal Cappellino; Scott Baggett; Tony Castle; Justin Guip. Liner Note Author: Beverly Keel. Recording information: Blackbird Studios, Nashville, TN; Highway 61 Recording, Tanning & BBQ; Levon Helm Studios, Woodstock, NY; OmniSound, Nashville, TN; Rancho Digital, Santa Fe, NM; Sony Tree Studio, Nashville, TN; Sound Emporium Studios, Nashville, TN; Stepbridge Studios, Santa Fe, NM; The Cave II, Dallas, GA; The Compound, Nashville, TN; The Rock House, Franklin, TN; The Tracking Room, Nashville, TN; The Village Recorder, Los Angeles, CA; Track Record Studios, North Hollywood, CA; Warm Front Studios, Nashville, TN. Photographer: Deidre Imus. Controversial radio personality Don Imus masterminded this album to raise money for his Imus Ranch, a charitable organization working with cancer-stricken children. Known as an Americana maven, Imus called in some famous friends to contribute cover tunes. So we get everything from Big & Rich's banjo-laden version of the Beastie Boys' "Fight For Your Right To Party" to Lucinda Williams's languorous take on the Waylon Jennings/Willie Nelson hit "Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys." There's a 500-pound gorilla in the room when listening to this record, and its name is Don Imus. Conservative radio host Imus found himself in the midst of a firestorm of controversy in 2007 when during a discussion of the Rutgers University women's basketball team, he referred to the players as "nappy-headed hos." While Imus apologized for the remark, it was hardly an isolated incident. For the purposes of this compilation, however, Imus and his wife, Deirde Imus, operate the Imus Ranch, a cattle ranch in New Mexico where children with life-threatening illnesses (and sometimes their siblings) spend a week as working cowpunchers, caring for and cleaning up after the animals to help the kids build self-esteem. Imus has used his high media profile and corporate connections to raise money for the ranch (the children attend for free), and his latest fund-raising project is The Imus Ranch Record, in which 13 country and roots music artists each cover a song Imus has picked out for them. As music, this is hit and miss, like most benefit compilations, and while a number of the good tracks are very good indeed, when this set goes wrong it's cringe-inducing. While Willie Nelson could probably do a song like "What a Difference a Day Makes" in his sleep, he delivers it with the easy, satisfying grace that's his trademark, and Vince Gill's take on "A Satisfied Mind" is splendid, while Dwight Yoakam's rollicking tear through Doug Sahm's "Give Back the Key to My Heart" is a pleasant surprise that Sahm would doubtless have enjoyed. And if Lucinda Williams overplays her vocals just a bit on "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys," she brings a bluesy resonance to the tune that been missing in most versions. But Big & Rich's bombastic and irony-free rendition of the Beastie Boys' "You've Got to Fight for Your Right to Party" is simply embarrassing, Little Richard gets lost in the mix on "I Ain't Never" in what feels like a lost opportunity, and though John Hiatt sounds fine on the Bottle Rockets' "Welfare Music," the song's open attack on Rush Limbaugh feels rather curious on an album curated by another reactionary radio personality. As music, the good tunes on The Imus Ranch Record outnumber the bad, but there are just enough misfires to keep this from being a truly satisfying listen. And as for the cause, it's certainly worthy, but it's worth noting there are plenty of other ways you can donate money for ill and needy children without involving the controversial Imus. ~ Mark Deming

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