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Caught On A Wire

by Evie Ladin Band

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1.
CHORUS skyscrapers of stone, turn the metal into mountains give me a home, that ain’t so damn crowded we are made blind, by golden light california california i cry it’s been dry as a bone, no rain on the horizon one cigarette out the window and all of it burns one giant shake, the oceans will rise california california i cry not so long ago, they all came for riches and riches they found beyond measure, a bounty no end what is the price to steal paradise california california i cry CHORUS the money it flows into highrises up on the hillside they see a far view down in the flatlands we’re just trying to get by california california i cry the moon it hangs heavy over bridges of steel we sit in our cars on our phones surrounded by cars suspended in heaven, under wide western sky california california i cry CHORUS BRIDGE you can sleep out every night, enjoy the life but to pay your rent, you ain’t got the time miss a couple paychecks and you’ll be fresh outta luck and sleeping out all of the time CHORUS
2.
Glory 04:22
GLORY sometimes i am and sometimes i ain’t i ain’t baby most of the time sometimes i can and sometimes i can’t i can’t without you by my side The sun is shining all around it’s not shining on me how long will you stay in this town will you come go, come go with me will you come go with me glory wind in my hair glory sun at my heels glory shadows are lengthening down glory the world come go with me sometimes i ain’t and sometimes i am i am when i know where i stand sometimes i can’t and sometimes i can i can be the one you demand The sun is shining all around but it’s not shining on me how long will you stay in this town or will you come go, come go with me will you come go with me glory wind in my hair glory sun at my heels glory shadows are lengthening down glory the world come go with me you came to me in a color scheme blacks and browns turned into greens yellows and reds filled up my bed and my head filled with glorious dreams glory…
3.
Life Raft 04:11
the only time it was good we’d hold each other if we could sad against the world keeping the world away it’s a bad bad world keeping the world away the only time we felt alright we shut the door against the night sad against the world keeping the world away it’s a bad bad world keeping the world away CH life raft - daring the loneliness to turn us over life raft - if I let go will I sink or swim life raft - will the loneliness turn us over life raft - will I sink or will I swim life raft - turn us over life raft - sink or swim life raft - but I let go and I swim life raft - to the shore life raft - I land life raft - put my feet on the floor life raft - I swim life raft - to the shore life raft - Don’t need you any more you telling me i ain’t no good that you would leave me if you could sad against the world keeping the world away it’s a bad bad world keeping the world away holding me out in the road can’t get gone though you know it’s over keeping the world away it’s a bad bad world keeping the world away life raft - daring the loneliness to turn us over life raft - if I let go will I sink or swim life raft - will the loneliness turn us over life raft - will I sink or will I swim life raft - turn us over life raft - sink or swim life raft - but I let go and I swim life raft - to the shore life raft - I land life raft - put my feet on the floor life raft - I swim life raft - to the shore life raft - Don’t need you any more
4.
Gone Again 03:45
Early one morning in the dirty light Me & my Billy went out on a ride We had to move fast, had to catch wind Take another turn, we’re gone again gone again, gone again He bragged to me of all his plans Heading up north to grab some land Needed me to help him win Take another turn, we’re gone again gone again, gone again, take another turn we’re gone again gone again, gone again Late in the day with the sun in our eyes Me & my Billy went out in the rye We lay down to have a little rest Wake up in the morning, he’s gone again gone again, gone again, wake up in the morning he’s gone again gone gone gone again, take another turn he’s gone again gone again, gone again He’s not your boy and he’s not your friend, Shows up late and stays till the end Comes for the food and stays for the bed Take another turn and he’s gone again gone again, gone again gone again, gone again gone again, gone again gone again, gone again
5.
Let’s go downtown Go get down Papa says i can’t go ‘less you go with me Sunday morning comes on fast I want this night to last Sunday morning turn out your light I’m holding on to Saturday night. I’m holding on to Saturday night. Let’s go downtown Just wander around Papa says I can’t go ‘less you go with me Check out the clubs they got every kind Deejay, metal, house, country line Sunday morning turn out your light I’m holding on to Saturday night. I’m holding on to Saturday night. Let’s go downtown Go get down Tell your mama to let you go cuz you’ll be with me We’re gonna to dance till our feet are sore Then we’ll dance a little more Sunday morning I can see your light I’m holding on to Saturday night I’m holding on to Saturday night Sunday morning turn out your light
6.
Tumbleweed 03:15
Roll me like a tumble, a tuuuumble roll me like a tumble weed a hop a skip a jumpin sailin and a bumpin handspringing down the street let the wind catch me and a lift me up high knocking and a rockin, got my down on the upside baby what do you do when we’re rolling around tumble me to the ground, my baby & i Roll me like a tumble, a tuuuumble roll me like a tumble weed how the wind is blowin we move in a slow mo float on a breeze caterwauling hauling cross a wide open sky smashed up and crumpled, caught on a wire baby what do you do when we’re rolling around tumble me to the ground, my baby & i See us tumbling down Rolling around on the ground Free, we are found
7.
Late in the evening when the sun is all gone I put up my work and head up for home But supper’s not waiting in a pot on the stove This is not how my story goes No, this is not how my story should go But men play their war games and our lives are sold So I earn dollars, send them back home Late in the evening when the sun is all gone CH Late in the evening when the sun is on fire Burns the horizon like a jumpin live wire I look at my hands, will they carry me on? Late in the evening when the sun is all gone INST One day to another, we’re trying to survive For us to eat, they eat us alive I learn a new language, still they spit out my name the jobs they don’t want, they don’t want me to take When I save enough I’ll bring you here Its not what we’re aiming for but a little bit nearer and when in this country our children are born they’ll have one foot in the door CH: Late in the evening when I lay down to rest I thought i’d be doing better, and this isn’t my best Stars in the east Lord I wish I was home Late in the evening when the sun is all gone I look at my hands, will they carry me on? Late in the evening when the sun is all gone
8.
News Cyclone 04:48
I can’t stick to a schedule it seems I move slowly in and out of my dreams I wake and fall back into bed I tell myself its the rain It’s coming, and the day is dark again I hear gunshots, the news is bad I get the feeling that we’re all being had There’s fire and smoke and the laws are broke How do we push back the rain It’s coming and the day is dark again CH all i hear is the radio let me hear the rain its a news cyclone verbal hurricane all i hear is the radio oh let me hear the rain trapped in a vacuum news cyclone hurricane Tunnels of money under river of souls The borders are broken their stories left un-told The sun has taken off running I tell myself its the rain It’s coming, and the days are dark again CH all i hear is the radio let me hear the rain its a news cyclone verbal hurricane all i hear is the radio oh let me hear the rain trapped in a vacuum news cyclone hurricane Build a fire, take off the chill Look for the way even if there is no will Fire, smoke, laws broke How do we push back the rain It keeps coming and the day is dark again CH all i hear is the radio oh let me hear the rain its a news cyclone verbal hurricane all i hear is the radio oh let me hear the rain trapped in a vacuum news cyclone hurricane Let the words empty out of my head Stare out the window and watch the sky Just a little bit lighter than it was in the night I tell myself its the rain
9.
People are you ready People are you ready People are you ready don’t you want to go And we’ll all go together We’ll all go together, children See them walking down by the water with a rainbow round their shoulders
10.
CHORUS New York to New Orleans Every point in between San Francisco, Baltimore I’ve been almost everywhere Everywhere ain’t worth it anymore if it all comes from the same store. I ain’t no johnny cash never claimed to be but still i got the gas pedal riding under me my job it takes me on the road riding, rolling, gotta drive i’ve paid off all i owed never had a 9-5 the more the years go by every exit looks the same i can’t believe my eyes the homogeneity micky d’s, box o’jack shells and gulfs a mile wide family diners get a stack of precut precooked freeze dried fries CHORUS CHORUS INST VERSE INST no matter where you are you don’t have to talk to folk you don’t have to leave your car do your business by remote Everywhere ain’t worth it anymore if it all comes from the same store. in my home town they’re tearing pretty houses down behind them rise and rise boxes filled with boxes no surprises Everywhere ain’t worth it anymore if it all comes from the same store. That shirt says USA, but it’s made in Singapore and it all comes from the same store Cut down the Amazon, deliver it to your front door and it all comes from the same store Enough is enough, but more is more and it all comes from the same store New York to New Orleans Every point in between if it all comes from the same store. San Francisco, Baltimore I’ve been almost everywhere if it all comes from the same store. Everywhere ain’t worth it anymore if it all comes from the same store.
11.
Mr Joe 03:16
CH in your pretty little dress with your eyes so bright come dance with me tonight take my hand, fly away move it or you lose it and i ain’t gonna lose it today old man in the middle of a crowd his eyes are heavy, music’s too loud we all get old, we all slow down tonight he’s gonna dance around he tightens the tie, lace up the boots ride the 24 down the same old route It’s Friday night, the hall’s aglow come on dance with Mr Joe CH Mr Joe’s got it all going on he won’t hold you too close or too long his hands are clean, his eyes are closed hold on, kick back, let the good times roll When its all he can do he put the suit back on pays his tab, calls a cab, city rushes on Mr Joe, he floats above he’s filled up with love CH
12.
i want to go slow, i want to slow down been running so fast can’t keep my feet on the ground i need a break from my life i am working on overtime, time and a half, when can i stop and lay down my head CHORUS Let me lay down beside the cool water Let me lay down on the cold hard ground Lay myself down on a bed full of feathers When can I lay down and rest Let me lay down take my rest i’m getting off this train, before it hits the next stop i gotta stop moving or things are gonna get dangerous I wanna sit down my head is aching just from holding it up when can i stop and lay down my head CH BRIDGE Memory lingers of when we connected Right here beside one another what pleasure To touch and to taste and to talk in real time Let us lay down you and I Let me lay down beside the cool water Let me lay down on the cold hard ground Lay myself down on a bed full of feathers I hear the horns honking, the cars racing by I want to live high i want to live low sit down and give some time to the people i know let the light and the love filter into my eyes till they burn with the lust and the lift of this life it is long, it is short when can i lay down my head Let me lay down beside the cool water Let me lay down on the cold hard ground Lay myself down on a bed full of feathers When can I lay down and rest When can I lay down and rest When can I lay down and rest Let me lay down take my rest
13.
Mockingbird 02:28
Mockingbird outside my window Make me think the dawn has come I get that ugly feeling that I put away another one makes you think it’s dawn you’ve been singing all night long Another all night all night long playing all night playing all night mockingbird, lets you and me holler into the trees Most little birds they sing at dawn they’re not singing all night long I don’t know what other birdies sing Mine just hollers bout everything Makes you think it’s dawn that you’ve been singing all night long Another all night all night long singing all night playing all night mockingbird, lets you and me holler into the trees Seems every gal who writes a song has a little birdie helping her along well my little bird outside my door is a mockingbird and it sings the night o’er makes you think it’s dawn that you’ve been dancing all night long Another all night all night long..... Mockingbird, you mocking me….

about

Caught On A Wire explores the beauty and paradoxes of life with stylistic integrity

Steeped in the Appalachian arts, banjo phenom, dancer, and singer-songwriter Evie Ladin is pleased to announce her fourth full-length album, Caught On A Wire. Produced by the Evie Ladin Band, the polyrhythmic heat of Ladin’s clawhammer banjo, resonant voice, and real stories are on full display, in conversation with the inspired instrumentation of bandmates Keith Terry on bass and percussion, and guitarist Erik Pearson.

A full-time creative in every capacity, Ladin mines decades of touring and performing to illuminate a heartbreakingly honest take on the human experience through original songs on Caught On A Wire. With a rare combination of both breadth and depth, employing stylistic integrity in a myriad of genres, her Evie Ladin Band explores beauty and disappointment, the highs and the lows, and the paradox of feeling both simultaneously.

With this record, Ladin channels her love of tradition, creation, and performance along with frustrations, digging deep into the painful contradictions of the everyday. On the track “Almost Everywhere”, she calls out the homogeneous, corporate nature of American pop culture, even beyond the music scene. “New York to New Orleans / Every point in between / San Francisco, Baltimore / I’ve been almost everywhere /Everywhere ain’t worth it anymore / if it all comes from the same store.”

On the lullaby-esque “California, I Cry”, she sings about the incongruities of the state she now calls home, the difficulties and expense, held up against it’s beauty and creativity. “The song came to me while sitting in traffic on the Bay Bridge,” says Ladin. “There I was stuck in a jam of cars, and yet all around me is this amazing natural beauty.” The floaty electric guitar and vocals sing with nostalgia and California sunsets while the rhythmic acoustic strum brings a touch of Woody Guthrie to the otherwise indie sounding song.

On the more traditional, banjo based “Glory”, Ladin tackles personal insecurity. “sometimes I am and sometimes I ain’t / I ain’t baby most of the time / sometimes I can and sometimes I can’t / I can’t without you by my side / The sun is shining all around / it’s not shining on me” sings Ladin. “The song is about the way we can hold ourselves back from participating in the incredible things that are right in front of us,” she says.

From jazzy vaudeville numbers that inspire you to dance, to moody indie folk that make you feel and think, Ladin’s record is the product of not only a lifetime immersed the study of culture, but a depth of experiences, of joys and disappointments, living on two coasts, raising a career and a family, illuminating the various paradoxes living life in this world.

Raised between Baltimore and New York City, Ladin’s parents were deep into the folk revival. Her mother was an international folk dance teacher, and her dad loved old time music and had a constant open door for traveling bands. “I began playing banjo after John Cohen of the New Lost City Ramblers stayed at our house, and suggested to my dad that my sister and I should play” she laughs. Ladin took lessons from local banjo master Bob Carlin from the age of eight, and travelled with her father to festivals, parties, and camps around the country. It was at one such camp that the teenage Ladin was introduced to African music by then-ethnomusicology student Stefan Senders. “I remember hearing these rhythms, and a light bulb just went off. I became fascinated with the African roots of the American music and dance I had been participating in” says Ladin.

After graduating high school, Ladin went to Brown University where she dedicated herself to studying Africa in all disciplines, and other cultures where music and dance are an intrinsic part of social communication. She traveled to Nigeria as a student and was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to continue her studies there after graduation. But when she returned to the United States, she felt that racial dynamics were too complex to pursue a career in African studies as a white woman, that she would always be an outsider in that community, “and rightfully so.” She was offered a job with Rhythm In Shoes, a percussive dance company based out of Dayton, Ohio, and jumped at the opportunity to bring her skills to full time performance. Ladin spent most of her twenties touring with the company, showcasing traditional percussive dance forms with modern choreography, and developing her performance chops.

It was through Rhythm In Shoes that she met her partner Keith Terry, a percussionist who specializes in body music. Her relationship with Terry brought her to the west coast, where she quickly joined The Stairwell Sisters, an all female old time band, Crosspulse, an intercultural percussion ensemble, and began developing what would become ten years of producing the International Body Music Festival with Terry. With the Stairwell Sisters, Ladin really dug into her songwriting, and in the Body Music scene she applied her traditional music and dance knowledge to new compositions and international collaborations. “I spent my twenties as a professional dancer, my thirties growing into my musicianship and raising a family, and by the time I hit my forties, I really had something to say and was ready to launch my solo career down all of its avenues,” says Ladin.

With long time collaborators Keith Terry and Erik Pearson, she formed the Evie Ladin Band, and has released three previous albums (one of which won the IMA Best Americana Album Award). The band has won ribbons at Clifftop Neo-Trad Stringband Contest, and other festivals. But the launch of the Evie Ladin Band was not without its challenges. “Unfortunately, in our society, women over a certain age aren’t considered to have as much value as performers. I can viscerally remember the exact conference at which I became invisible. It made me so angry because I was thinking, this is where I belong, I’ve been doing this for my whole life, performing and teaching in and out of this tradition, working and creating in this community.” But Ladin refuses to be discouraged by the music industry’s idea of who gets to be a performer. “I already have a successful career in music and dance, and I know that adds value to my perspective, and the audience experience. I’m not sure why for women, having years of work under your belt seems to detract from your commercial appeal. But I don’t subscribe to that.”

For more information on Evie Ladin: www.evieladin.com

credits

released March 21, 2019

Evie Ladin lead vocal, banjo, guitar
Keith Terry vocal, bass, drums, percussion
Erik Pearson vocal, guitars, banjo uke

Sundra Manning piano (7, 10, 11)
Jeff Cressman on trombone (10)

J. Goody, Megasonic engineer, mixing
David Glasser, Airshow mastering
Debbie Berne graphic design
Snap Jackson band photo
________________________
Lyrics by Evie Ladin /Evil Diane Music, BMI
except People Are You Ready, PD
Music created and produced by the ELB
Evil Diane Music/Crosspulse Music/Erik Pearson Music, BMI
©℗ 2019

THANKS to our families, community and fans

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Evie Ladin Oakland, California

The polyrhythmic heat and funk of Evie Ladin's clawhammer banjo, resonant voice, real stories and rhythmic dance - have been heard from A Prairie Home Companion to Celtic Connections, Lincoln Center to Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. The Evie Ladin Band is an expansive stringband, with Keith Terry - bass and percussion, and Erik Pearson - guitar. Body-slappin neo-trad urban folk. ... more

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