Looks Like Rain
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''Looks Like Rain'' is a 1969
concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...
by singer-songwriter
Mickey Newbury Milton Sims "Mickey" Newbury Jr. (May 19, 1940 – September 29, 2002) was an American singer-songwriter and a member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. Early life and career Newbury was born in Houston, Texas, on May 19, 1940, to Mam ...
. After recording his debut album with RCA, Newbury was dissatisfied with the resulting album and left RCA to pursue a style closer to his tastes. Recorded at Cinderella Sound, as his next two albums would be, the result is widely considered his first real recording and represents a peak in the singer songwriter movement, especially for Nashville. The sound and style of the record would be highly influential during the Outlaw Movement during
country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...
in the 1970s especially on albums by
David Allan Coe David Allan Coe (born September 6, 1939) is an American singer and songwriter. Coe took up music after spending much of his early life in reform schools and prisons, and first became notable for busking in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville. He ini ...
and
Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...
. Linking the tracks with delicate arrangements and liberal amount of atmosphere (almost all tracks feature rain sound effects), the record contains some of Newbury's most celebrated compositions including "
She Even Woke Me Up to Say Goodbye "She Even Woke Me Up to Say Goodbye" is a song written by Doug Gilmore and Mickey Newbury, and recorded by American country music artist Jerry Lee Lewis. Released in September 1969, it was the first single from his album '' She Even Woke Me Up to ...
", "33rd of August", "I Don't Think Much About Her No More", and "San Francisco Mabel Joy".
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
's review of the album concludes, "''Looks Like Rain'' is so fine, so mysterious in its pace, dimension, quark strangeness and charm, it defies any attempt at strict categorization or criticism; a rare work of genius." ''Looks Like Rain'' was collected for CD issue on the eight-disc '' Mickey Newbury Collection'' from Mountain Retreat, Newbury's own label in the mid-1990s, along with nine other Newbury albums from 1969 to 1981. In 2011, it was reissued again, both separately and as part of the four-disc Mickey Newbury box set ''
An American Trilogy "An American Trilogy" is a 1972 song medley arranged by country composer Mickey Newbury and popularized by Elvis Presley, who included it as a showstopper in his concerts. The medley uses three 19th-century songs: *"Dixie" — a popular folk so ...
'', alongside two other albums recorded at Cinderella Sound, ''
Frisco Mabel Joy Frisco Mabel Joy'' is a 1971 studio album by singer-songwriter Mickey Newbury. This was the second of three albums Newbury recorded at Cinderella Sound. The album includes the original version of "An American Trilogy", which Elvis Presley later ...
'' and '' Heaven Help the Child''. This release marks the first time that ''Looks Like Rain'' has been released on CD in remastered form, after the original master tapes (long thought to have been destroyed in a fire) were rediscovered in 2010.


Track listing

All tracks composed by Mickey Newbury; except where indicated # "Write a Song a Song/Angeline" # "
She Even Woke Me Up to Say Goodbye "She Even Woke Me Up to Say Goodbye" is a song written by Doug Gilmore and Mickey Newbury, and recorded by American country music artist Jerry Lee Lewis. Released in September 1969, it was the first single from his album '' She Even Woke Me Up to ...
" (Mickey Newbury, Doug Gilmore) # "I Don't Think Much About Her No More" # "T. Total Tommy" # "33rd of August/When the Baby in My Lady Gets the Blues" # "San Francisco Mabel Joy" # "Looks Like Baby's Gone"


Personnel

* Mickey Newbury – vocals, guitar *
Charlie McCoy Charlie McCoy (born Charles Ray McCoy, March 28, 1941) is an American harmonica virtuoso and multi-instrumentalist in country music. He is best known for his harmonica solos on iconic recordings such as " Candy Man" ( Roy Orbison), "He Stoppe ...
– harmonica, guitar, bass pedals *
Wayne Moss Wayne Moss (born February 9, 1938, in South Charleston, West Virginia, United States) is an American guitar player, bassist, record producer and songwriter best known for his session work in Nashville. In 1961, Moss founded Cinderella Sound reco ...
– guitar, engineer *
Jerry Kennedy Jerry Glenn Kennedy (born 10 August 1940)Cusic, Don. (1998) "Jerry Kennedy". In ''The Encyclopedia of Country Music''. Paul Kingsbury, ed. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 277–278. is an American record producer, songwriter and guitar pla ...
– guitar, sitar * Farrell Morris – percussion * Charlie Tallent – engineer


Selected cover recordings

*
The Box Tops The Box Tops is an American rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee in 1967. They are best known for the hits " The Letter", "Cry Like a Baby", and " Soul Deep" and are considered a major blue-eyed soul group of the period. They performed a mi ...
recorded a presumably early version of "San Francisco Mabel Joy" under the title "Georgia Farm Boy," which was included as a bonus track on the 2000 reissue of 1967's ''
The Letter/Neon Rainbow ''The Letter/Neon Rainbow'' is the debut album by American rock band the Box Tops, released in 1967. Following " The Letter" reaching number one on the singles charts, ''The Letter/Neon Rainbow'' was quickly assembled for a follow-up. The album ...
''. *
Gordon Lightfoot Gordon Meredith Lightfoot Jr. (November 17, 1938 – May 1, 2023) was a Canadian singer-songwriter who achieved worldwide success and helped define the singer-songwriter era of the 1970s. Widely considered one of Canada's greatest songwriters, ...
recorded an unreleased version of "The 33rd of August" before leaving
United Artists United Artists (UA) is an American film production and film distribution, distribution company owned by Amazon MGM Studios. In its original operating period, it was founded in February 1919 by Charlie Chaplin, D. W. Griffith, Mary Pickford an ...
. *
Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American pianist, singer, and songwriter. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as "rock 'n' roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis m ...
had a #2 hit with "She Even Woke Me Up To Say Goodbye" in 1969 which became the title track of a top ten album in 1970. Several dozen artists have cut versions of the song including
Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist known for his distinctive and powerful voice, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. Orbison's most successful periods were ...
,
Keith Richards Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943) is an English musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who is an original member, guitarist, secondary vocalist, and co-principal songwriter of the Rolling Stones. His songwriting partnership wi ...
,
Kenny Rogers and The First Edition Kenny Rogers and the First Edition, until 1970 billed as the First Edition, were an American rock band. The band's style was difficult to singularly classify, as it incorporated elements of country, rock and psychedelic pop. Its stalwart memb ...
, and
Ronnie Milsap Ronnie Lee Milsap (born Ronald Lee Millsaps; January 16, 1943) is an American country music singer and pianist. He was one of country music's most popular and influential performers of the 1970s and 1980s. Nearly completely blind from birth, h ...
. * Waylon Jennings cut "The 33rd of August" for his 1970 album '' Waylon''. * Joan Baez recorded "San Francisco Mabel Joy," "Angeline," and "33rd of August" for her 1971 hit double album ''Blessed Are...'' *
Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...
included "San Francisco Mabel Joy" on his 1973 breakthrough ''
Lonesome, On'ry and Mean ''Lonesome, On'ry and Mean'' is a studio album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released on RCA Victor in 1973. It was, after '' Good Hearted Woman'' and '' Ladies Love Outlaws'', the third in a series of albums which were to est ...
''. * Johnny Cash performed "I Don't Think Much About Her No More" with the Tennessee Three on his
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
show on October 7, 1970.
Bobby Bare Robert Joseph Bare Sr. (born April 7, 1935) is an American country music singer and songwriter, best known for the songs "Marie Laveau", " Detroit City", and " 500 Miles Away from Home". He is the father of Bobby Bare Jr., also a musician. Earl ...
recorded "I Don't Think Much About Her No More" in 1973.
Tammy Wynette Tammy Wynette (born Virginia Wynette Pugh; May 5, 1942 – April 6, 1998) was an American country music singer and songwriter, considered among the genre's most influential and successful artists. Along with Loretta Lynn, Wynette helped bring a ...
recorded the song for her 1974 album ''Woman to Woman.'' Don Williams also recorded the song the same year.
Vampire Weekend Vampire Weekend are an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 2006 and currently signed to Columbia Records. The band was formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chr ...
recorded "I Don't Think Much About Her No More" on their 2019 album '' Father of the Bride'' as a bonus track. * "The 33rd of August" was recorded by David Allan Coe on his 1974
Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...
debut ''
The Mysterious Rhinestone Cowboy ''The Mysterious Rhinestone Cowboy'' is the third album of American singer David Allan Coe, and his first on Columbia Records. Released in 1974, it is his first release in the country music genre. Background Early in 1970, Coe released his blues ...
''. * "San Francisco Mabel Joy" was featured on
Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (born Kenneth Donald Rogers) (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer and songwriter. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particul ...
' 1978 country smash '' The Gambler'' *
John Denver Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. (December 31, 1943 – October 12, 1997), known professionally as John Denver, was an American Country music, country and Folk music, folk singer, songwriter, and actor. He was one of the most popular acoustic m ...
recorded "San Francisco Mabel Joy" on his 1981 album '' Some Days Are Diamonds''.


References

* * * * {{Authority control 1969 albums Mickey Newbury albums Mercury Records albums Drag City (record label) albums Albums produced by Bob Beckham Albums produced by Jerry Kennedy