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American Shuffle (Deluxe Digital Edition) Vail Sessions

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APPLE MUSIC  /  SPOTIFY  /  BANDCAMP

In January 2014, Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank were touring through Colorado behind their new critically acclaimed album Number One Contender. After a show in Aspen, instead of staying in town, the hard travelin’ Hobo Nephews got back on the road.

“We PLAY in Aspen but we don’t STAY in Aspen,” laughed Teague Alexy. “Aspen hotels are slightly above our tour budget so we always drive out of town after the show.”

On this particular night, Ian and Teague Alexy, touring as a duo, drove through the Rocky Mountains to Ian’s old friend Adam Frehm’s place in nearby Vail. Adam is a well-known dobro player in Vermont and a founding member of the alt-bluegrass band Smokin’ Grass. Adam also played dobro on the Chieftan’s legendary Nashville album Further Down The Old Plank Road. Ian and Adam had played and recorded together when Ian lived in Vermont but hadn’t seen each other in over a decade.

“Ian and I slept on the couch and woke up to Adam making coffee and rolling big Colorado cigarettes,” said Teague. “We wiped the sleep from our eyes and before long we grabbed the guitars.”

Ian and Teague were touring behind Number One Contender, but they had their mind on their next album, American Shuffle. They already knew the next Hobo Nephew album was going to be recorded at Trampled By Turtles fiddle player Ryan Young’s new studio.

“Yeah, we were really into jamming these half-finished songs with everyone we could to hear how people would play along,” said Ian. “We’d keep those musical ideas floating around the back of our head until it was time to go to the studio.”

“Are you ready to make rock history?” Adam asked with a smile as he pulled out a little recorder meant for taping live shows. Amidst more laughs, coffee and drags of those Colorado cigarettes, and without a plan, they gathered around the little recorder on the coffee table and the Hobo Nephews Vail Sessions began to come to life.

By the time Adam’s friend Lizzy brought over a bag of breakfast donuts, Ian, Teague and Adam were in the midst of an early version of Teague’s new song “Low Flying Bird.” You can hear Lizzy come and go between verses on the recording but the music doesn’t stop. Teague belts out another chorus while Ian and Adam start trading guitar and dobro lines into an extended instrumental jam. 

By early afternoon, Ian and Teague had packed up the van to head to the next show in Salt Lake City. Five years later, The Vail Sessions are being released as part of the digital deluxe version of American Shuffle. 

 
 
 

American Shuffle digital deluxe track list:

1 . Everybody’s Got a Baby But Me

2. Down The Line

3. Over and Back Again

4. Low Flying Bird

5. When The Night Comes

6. Take This Town

7. Old Number Four

8. Down So Low

9. The Day Billy Martin Quits

10. Me, You and The Universe

11. There’s The Train, Here’s Your Ticket

12. Time To Move On (bonus studio track)

13. Nothing To Say About Love (bonus studio track)

14. Forever Takes So Long (bonus studio track)

15. Over and Back Again (demo)

16. Changed My Ways (Vail Sessions)

17. Time To Move On (Vail Sessions)

18. Low Flying Bird (Vail Sessions)

 

American Shuffle (Deluxe Digital Edition) Now Available

 

American Shuffle (Deluxe Edition), an album by Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank on Spotify

 

APPLE MUSIC  /  SPOTIFY  /  BANDCAMP

Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank and Consider It Correspondence Records are proud to bring you the digital deluxe version of American Shuffle - now available wherever digital music is sold.

“4.5 out of 5 stars. Highly recommended indie folk/roots rock” - Pittsburgh In Tune

”one of 2015’s most unexpected and refreshing records. A most welcome reprieve from the pretense that dominates far too much music these days it’s direct, earthy and one heck of a lot of fun.” - Rapid River Magazine

”their songs - insightful looks at our heroes, hopes, loves and dreams - are the backbone of their sound. American Shuffle is a fine reminder of what Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank are all about. Their songs lead the way, with poignant, colorful looks at life, and their musicianship is superb!” - Nashville Blues Society

“firm musicianship and an appealing homespun sound” - blog critics.org

 

American Shuffle digital deluxe track list:

1 . Everybody’s Got a Baby But Me

2. Down The Line

3. Over and Back Again

4. Low Flying Bird

5. When The Night Comes

6. Take This Town

7. Old Number Four

8. Down So Low

9. The Day Billy Martin Quits

10. Me, You and The Universe

11. There’s The Train, Here’s Your Ticket

12. Time To Move On (bonus studio track)

13. Nothing To Say About Love (bonus studio track)

14. Forever Takes So Long (bonus studio track)

15. Over and Back Again (demo)

16. Changed My Ways (Vail Sessions)

17. Time To Move On (Vail Sessions)

18. Low Flying Bird (Vail Sessions)

 

Old Number Four - Digital Single Now Streaming

Old Number Four, a song by Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank on Spotify

On April 22, 2015, Hobo Nephews Of Uncle Frank’s ode to quarterback Brett Favre, “Old Number Four”, was released as the opening track on the B side of their new album American Shuffle. CBS Green Bay (where Brett Favre played most of his career with the Green Bay Packers) were the first to rave about it.

CBS SPORTS

    “Brett Favre has his own theme song...Old Number Four does a good job of summing up Favre's Ol’ Gunslinger mentality...As far as songs about retired NFL quarterbacks go, this is probably the best one.”  

The Star Tribune in Minneapolis quoted the Hobo Nephews as having written the song while the state of Minnesota was in mourning following Favre and the Vikings loss in the 2010 NFC championship game, and released a video of Brett Favre photos as a Minnesota Viking along with audio of Old Number Four.

STAR TRIBUNE

“There are heroes and myth, mystic and lore,

But there’s never been nothing like Old Number Four...

You gave all you had, then you gave more.

They’ll never forget you Old Number Four”

By the following day, Old Number Four had been covered nationally by ESPN, NBC, FOX, CBS and more, including an epic rant on The Jim Rome Show.

    “Brett Favre apparently has an anthem. A couple of dudes in a coffee shop have dropped a song for the old gunslinger. These guys call themselves Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank, which to me is perfect for the OG because the last time we saw that dude, he looked like he had been stowing away on a freight train with his napsack living off some sardines. This song is about when Uncle Brett was seeing better days. The Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank were so moved by that immortal 2010 title game that they picked up their harmonicas and their guitars and they dropped a folk song about the folk hero.” - Jim Rome

Jim Rome, in his brazen way, hit it right on the head. One of a folk singer’s responsibilities is to sing folk songs about folk heroes. Woody Guthrie’s “Joe Dimaggio Done It Again,” or Bob Dylan’s “Catfish” are part of the tradition of American songwriters tapping into the romanticism we have with our sports heroes. Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank continue this folk music tradition on American Shuffle with Ian Alexy’s “Old Number Four” and Teague Alexy’s “The Day Billy Martin Quits.”


Old Number Four (Consider It Correspondence Records) is now available as a digital single wherever digital music is sold.

APPLE MUSIC / SPOTIFY / BANDCAMP

Green Bay Press Gazette - Favre Gets His Own Song With Old Number Four

Download on iTunes: http://bit.ly/HNASit Order American Shuffle from Chaperone Records: http://bit.ly/ASPO http://www.HoboNephews.com Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank aka roots music troubadours Ian and Teague Alexy are on the road again playing shows surrounding the April 21, 2015 release of their new album American Shuffle.