Songwriters Reflect Their Eras By Jeff Eason There’s an old Chinese curse that says “May you live in interesting times.” While times of turbulence may be trouble for the populace at large, they are a blessing for the songwriters of America, giving them ample grist for the mill, resulting in songs that are about more than broken hearts. " And we all know what Frank Zappa said about broken hearts… This week we take a look at two singer-songwriters, Tim Lee and Jackson Browne, representing two separate eras in our country. In another article in this issue of The Mountain Times, we look at the new release by one of the High Country’s premier songwriters, Jay Brown. All of these releases feature songs that make the listener glad to be living in interesting times. Tim Lee: No Discretion Music fans with an ear for the more interesting acts in the Southeast may remember the Windbreakers, a jangly 80s act whose albums Terminal and Run are classics of a genre that included early REM albums and Let’s Active’s Cypress. The Windbreakers’ original material was written by Tim Lee and Bobby Sutliff, and a great anthology of the band’s material was released last year in an album titled Time Machine. Lee has also resurfaced and has obviously spent the time away from the limelight to write some great tunes. Last year he released Under the House and this month a new album, No Discretion, hits the stores in conjunction with a Southeastern tour. “I know that some musicians look backwards, but I don’t have any desire to do that,” said Lee. “I like to think that the artists I listen to are challenging themselves and aren’t worried about what me, the fan, wants. So there would be no reason for me, the musician, to be playing right now if I wasn’t trying to move forward. Not to be different or difficult, but to continually try to find the voice that I’m comfortable with. Because the voice I was comfortable with when I was 24, I’m not necessarily comfortable with at 44.” No Discretion features Lee and his musical cohorts performing his new songs in the studio, but with a very live feel. Recorded at various studios in Knoxville, Mississippi and North Carolina, the album has a distinctive 80s Southern rock feel and Lee’s voice recalls that of singer-songwriter Peter Holsapple. “I thought I was through with this record on at least two occasions,” said Lee. “But new opportunities to record kept popping up, and I was constantly meeting new people. We ended up finishing the final song the day before we took everything to the mastering studio.” A veteran of the Southeastern music scene, Lee has spent time as a touring member of the bands Let’s Active, the Swimming Pool Qs, and Marti Jones’ band. His time with Let’s Active has spawned a productive relationship with North Carolina musician/producer Mitch Easter. Easter is at the helm on a number of songs from No Discretion and his “blast o’ pop” recording style can be heard on the gems “I Wanna Believe” and “Speak Up Girl.” “This record is the product of spending the last couple of years doing a lot of gigging,” said Lee. “Most of these songs had been played live before recording, and a lot of the recording was done live in the studio. That approach definitely changes the sound.” Overall, the sound of No Discretion is similar to the classic power pop bands of the 1980s. One can hear distinctive snatches of the dB’s and the Flaming Groovies in Lee’s songwriting style. Lee will be performing at the Town Pump Tavern in Black Mountain on Saturday, September 18th. The show also features Dodd Ferrelle and the Tin Foil Stars and the music starts around 10 p.m. For more information, contact the Town Pump Tavern at (828) 669-4808. The Very Best of Jackson Browne Along with fellow SoCal singer-songwriter Warren Zevon, Jackson Browne put words and music to the West Coast angst of the 70s and 80s. His unique brand of song-craft was heartfelt and poetic yet political and powerful. And like Paul Simon, Browne was one of those serious songwriters who also scored some hits on Top Forty Radio. All of those hits have been selected for the new collection The Very Best of Jackson Browne. This two-disc album on Rhino-Electra is a testament to a career that has been under-appreciated by many of the Americana musicians who have stood on the songwriter foundation built by Browne, Zevon and others. Though Browne is not the strongest singer to ever step up to the mic, his voice is the perfect vehicle for his strangely strong yet vulnerable lyrics. One can argue that the original versions of his songs “Take It Easy” and “These Days” are inferior to the ones recorded by The Eagles and Greg Allman, but no one can say they are less moving. The album features all of Browne’s hits including “Doctor My Eyes,” “Fountain of Sorrow,” “The Pretender,” “Running on Empty,” “Boulevard,” “Somebody’s Baby” and “Tender is the Night.” It also includes lesser-known but career-defining material such as “For Everyman,” “Late for the Sky,” “Here Come Those Tears Again,” “The Load-Out” and the Reagan-era manifesto “Lawyers in Love.” The two-disc set strives to include material from all periods of Browne’s career but, unfortunately, omits some early gems such as “Ready Or Not,” “Rosie” and “The Road.” The collection serves as a wonderful introduction to Browne’s work but it might be fair to warn newcomers to his material that many of his albums were almost concept albums and meant to be heard in their entirety. The Pretender is Browne facing a world where art is compromised by commerce while Running on Empty may be the best album ever created detailing the highs and lows a band endures on the road. The Very Best of Jackson Browne is available through your local independently owned record stores.