Field Recordings
To use Neal Casal’s own words to describe his 1997 release, it “…really isn’t a record at all… it’s a sadly broken but strangely contented family of demos, dirges, out-takes, take-outs, songs proper and song fragments.” Containing outtakes from Fade Away Diamond Time, electrified versions of songs from Basement Dreams, and preliminary singles, each song was recorded and mixed in studios from coast to coast between 1994-1996.
Only 1000 copies were initially pressed. The album’s liner notes alone make a physical copy worth scoring – credits include a “guitarred and feathered” Casal, “organ donor” John Ginty, and Greg Leisz on “electric ‘spaceshit” guitar.” Neal dons the moniker “Sundown Slim” to produce a handful of tracks.
Despite the patchwork nature of these tracks, they go together quite well and affirm Neal’s status as the next great Americana singer-songwriter.
“Best to Believe” is a full-band version of the same song from Rain, Wind and Speed. Ginty’s organ and Wurlitzer and Don Heffington’s give it some kick, turning what was a wistful melody into a jam. Similarly, the haunting “Angels on Hold” from the same album sparkles and the additional accompanists give it a rich, less lonely sound.
“Don’t Turn Your Back On Me” is Neal’s grunge moment, and the demo that initially landed him a deal. It’s a great song, and easy to see why it was the springboard that launched his career. From that moment, everything he did got better and better.
“Still I Got You” really showcases Neal’s Americana voice, a hint of twang, some really pure blues-y guitar weaving throughout, as with “Midway,” a song whose light-hearted airiness quickly makes you forget about the desolation of being stranded in a small town in the middle of nowhere, Pennsylvania.
“Sleeping Under Stone” is another Barbara Keith song (Fade Away‘s “Detroit or Buffalo” is also a Keith original) that Neal pays heart-rending tribute to. There are a few show recordings from the late 90s-early 2000s where he talks about finding the record in a thrift store, looking her up in the phone book, and actually befriending the Greenwich-scene folk singer. His vocals are so intensely sweet on this recording.
I started writing this thinking that Field Recordings is one of my less-listened to albums but actually I do thoroughly adore and love each of these songs. They are green and raw, but it’s all there – the spellbinding tenor, the classic song structure, the breakneck solos- this collection makes Casal’s studiousness and attention to detail apparent. Field Recordings proves just how much potential Neal had as a songwriter.
Full notes from NC to explain this record in his own words:
This here plastic platter that you’re pondering isn’t really a record at all in the normalest and simplest sense of the word “album.” Speaking truthfully, it’s a sadly broken but strangely contented family of demos, dirges, out-takes, take-outs, songs proper and song fragments, all recorded at different times in different basements, living rooms, altered states, and state of the art studios, real, imagined, and car tested… the end of the beginning, I do believe… It’s mostly electric band music with a few acoustic bits thrown in for the blue folkster in all of us. I’d never thought much of releasing these things before now, but I guess letting a few more songs into the world isn’t such a bad idea when you get right down to it. After all, it ain’t the mistake but the heart behind it. So steal yourself a pony, turn the key, and lean back into the jangle, the stumble, and the soar… and don’t spook Buster, ’cause he just might run away with you….
N.C. JUNE 97′
