Bright Sunny South

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For the Alison Krauss song, see Bright Sunny South (song).
Bright Sunny South
Amidon-bright-sunny-south-2013.jpg
Studio album by
Sam Amidon
ReleasedMay 14, 2013 (2013-05-14)
StudioSnap Recording Studios and Livingston Studios, London
GenreFolk, pop rock[1]
Length35:18
LabelNonesuch
ProducerSam Amidon, Jerry Boys, Thomas Bartlett
Sam Amidon chronology
I See the Sign
(2010) 		Bright Sunny South
(2013) 		Lily-O
(2014)
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic80/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic4/5 stars[1]
American Songwriter3/5 stars[3]
Consequence of SoundC+[4]
DIY7/10[5]
Drowned in Sound7/10[6]
The Guardian4/5 stars[7]
musicOMH4/5 stars[8]
Paste8.4/10[9]
Pitchfork Media7.7/10[10]
Popmatters7/10 discs[11]

Bright Sunny South is an album by Sam Amidon released May 14, 2013, by Nonesuch Records[1][12] The album was recorded at Snap Recording Studios and Livington Studios in London.[12] Amidon, his friend Thomas Bartlett (a.k.a. Doveman), and Jerry Boys produced the album. Amidon sings and performs banjo, fiddle, acoustic guitar, and piano on the album. Bartlett performs several instruments, as do Shahzad Ismaily and Chris Vatalaro; Kenny Wheeler performs trumpet on two tracks.

Bright Sunny South includes interpretations of both traditional and contemporary songs, like Tim McGraw’s “My Old Friend” and Mariah Carey’s “Shake It Off," as well as a new take on “Weeping Mary,” a shape-note hymn that his parents, Peter and Mary Alice Amidon, had recorded with the Word of Mouth Chorus for Nonesuch Records on the 1977 album Rivers of Delight: American Folk Hymns from the Sacred Harp Tradition.[12][13] NPR's Morning Edition host Steve Inskeep describes Bright Sunny South as "a new spin on very traditional American folk music."[14]

Background and recording[]

Legendary jazz trumpet player Kenny Wheeler appears on two songs on the record, one of his last recorded appearances before his death in 2014.[15]

Track listing[]

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Bright Sunny South"Traditional, reworked/arranged by Amidon[12]4:24
2."I Wish I Wish"Traditional, reworked/arranged by Amidon2:47
3."Short Life"Traditional, reworked/arranged by Amidon3:01
4."My Old Friend"McEwan/Wiseman, arranged by Amidon/Bartlett2:42
5."He's Taken My Feet"Traditional, reworked/arranged by Amidon4:28
6."Pharaoh"Traditional, reworked/arranged by Amidon4:09
7."As I Roved Out"Traditional, reworked/arranged by Amidon3:43
8."Shake It Off"Cox/Carey/Austin/Dupri, arranged by Amidon1:55
9."Groundhog"Traditional, reworked/arranged by Amidon0:46
10."Streets of Derry"Traditional, reworked/arranged by Amidon3:54
11."Weeping Mary"McCurry/Power, arranged by Amidon/Bartlett3:17

Personnel[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Bright Sunny South". AllMusic. Retrieved August 21, 2013.
  2. ^ "Bright Sunny South – Sam Amidon". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  3. ^ Horowitz, Hal (May 22, 2013). "Sam Amidon: Bright Sunny South". American Songwriter. ForASong Media, LLC. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  4. ^ Arroyo, Steven (May 24, 2013). "Sam Amidon – Bright Sunny South". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  5. ^ Cleeve, Sam (May 11, 2013). "Sam Amidon – Bright Sunny South". DIY. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  6. ^ Warfield, Russell (May 13, 2013). "Album Review: Sam Amidon – Bright Sunny South". Drowned in Sound. Silentway. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  7. ^ Denselow, Robin (May 9, 2013). "Sam Amidon: Bright Sunny South – review". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  8. ^ Johnson, Steven (May 10, 2013). "Sam Amidon – Bright Sunny South". musicOMH. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  9. ^ Huffstutter, Nathan (October 21, 2014). "Sam Amidon: Lily-O Review". Paste. Wolfgang's Vault. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  10. ^ M. Deusner, Stephen (May 13, 2013). "Sam Amidon: Bright Sunny South". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  11. ^ Cober-Lake, Justin (May 22, 2013). "Sam Amidon: Bright Sunny South". Popmatters. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  12. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Bright Sunny South". Nonesuch Records. Retrieved August 21, 2013.
  13. ^ "Rivers of Delight: American Folk Hymns from the Sacred Harp Tradition". Nonesuch Records. Retrieved August 21, 2013.
  14. ^ "Sam Amidon: Reshaping An American Folk Tradition". NPR. May 17, 2013. Retrieved August 21, 2013.
  15. ^ Williams, Martin (18 September 2014). "Kenny Wheeler, contemporary jazz musician, dies aged 84". Retrieved 10 July 2017 – via The Guardian.
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