Album Review: The Jayhawks - Blue Earth (1989)

The Jayhawks - Blue Earth (1989)

If Wilco and Son Volt are the Cain and Abel of the modern alt-country movement (who’s who has yet to be determined), then the Jayhawks would be their quiet older brother who made a happy living on the farm and was left out of the Bible because nothing bad happened to him… whatever. The point is that the Jayhawks, along with Uncle Tupelo, were pioneers of their genre and had established themselves well before Uncle Tupelo split into Wilco and Son Volt. With 1989’s Blue Earth, their second album, the Jayhawks were still finding their way, but were well on their way. While technically Blue Earth is a collection of demos, recorded gradually over a few years after the band’s 1986 self-titled debut, it plays and feels like a proper sophomore album and expands upon its predecessor. At this point, the band still holds fast to the twang of its country roots, but the songs are stronger and more complex, a clear indication of what would be achieved on Hollywood Town Hall (1992), the bands definitive alt-country opus; indeed, the bookends of Blue Earth (“Two Angels” and “Martin’s Song”) would eventually end up on their 1992 masterpiece. “Two Angels,” in fact, is the clear standout here, showcasing the steady instrumental progression overlain by the natural and seemingly flawless harmonies of singer/songwriter/guitarists Mark Olsen and Gary Louris; it’s what would become the band’s trademark sound. Other highlights include the proto-Wilco ramble of “Five Cups Of Coffee” and the haunting roll of “I’m Still Dreaming, Now I’m Yours.” The rest of the album is pleasant enough, but not necessarily heart stopping, just sort of pleasantly forgettable. The original purpose of the collection was to attract a record company to sign the group, and it worked, paving the way for the band’s true ascension with their subsequent release. Still, Blue Earth is an important chapter for the band, and seminal in the rise of the genre, an alt-country album before alt-country really existed. Smoke on that one Taylor Swift!

3/5

“Two Angels, one bad end / This life is easy / Back home there’s a funeral”

S. McSmoke-Smoke