Lily-O

Submitted by gregg.schaufeld on
Release Date
DescriptionExcerpt

Lily-O, an album of reimagined folk songs by singer/fiddler/banjoist/guitarist Sam Amidon, was produced by Valgeir Sigurðsson and features jazz guitarist/composer Bill Frisell, a longtime hero of Amidon's, along with Amidon’s other frequent collaborators, bassist Shahzad Ismaily and drummer Chris Vatalaro. The album "showcases his ability to transform music," says NPR. "Every little unexpected twist shimmers with originality ... His highly personal approach opens a window on the American past and lets us feel it like nothing else around." The New York Times calls it "hauntingly beautiful." MusicOMH calls it "gorgeous."

Description

Lily-O, a new album of reimagined folk songs by Vermont-born singer/fiddler/banjoist/guitarist Sam Amidon was released September 30 by Nonesuch Records, with the vinyl following on October 27. The album was produced by Valgeir Sigurðsson (Björk, Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Feist) and features the innovative jazz guitarist and composer Bill Frisell, along with Amidon’s other frequent collaborators, bassist Shahzad Ismaily and drummer Chris Vatalaro. 

“'Walkin’ Boss' is one of the first songs I learned on the banjo, by playing along with a recording by Jeff Davis as a teenager,” Amidon said. “As it happens this is also the first tune that we recorded during the sessions, on a crisp October morning in Reykjavik."

Frisell has been a hero of Amidon’s since the young Vermont native first heard the guitarist play at the Village Vanguard during a teenage visit to New York City. The two musicians stayed in touch and had their first live collaboration in 2011; not long after, Amidon began contemplating a return to Iceland to make a third album at Sigurðsson’s Greenhouse Studios. He eventually invited Frisell to join him and Sigurðsson, along with Ismaily and Vatalaro, to record what became Lily-O.

“I decided to put us all in a room together in Reykjavik for a few days,” Amidon said. “I knew if I got Bill together with those guys they would get into a deep situation. I imagined that we would do something weird and fiddle-based, but when we got in there it just felt great to sing the songs I had gathered. Recording took about four days. I'd teach them the basic structure of the song; we'd do a few takes, and move on to a new one. There's maybe one or two overdubs but otherwise you're hearing what we played.”

Lily-O’s ten songs are mostly traditional folk songs gathered from disparate sources and refashioned in Amidon’s signature way. The interplay between the four musicians is informed by their backgrounds in improvised music and the spontaneous nature of the sessions. As always, the central element is Amidon’s voice, which, in his deceptively understated manner, tells tales of adventure, love, violence and redemption.

Lily-O follows four albums by Amidon including his 2013 Nonesuch debut, Bright Sunny South. 2010’s I See The Sign and 2008’s All Is Well were made for the Icelandic label Bedroom Community and featured orchestral arrangements by composer Nico Muhly. Along the way Amidon has performed worldwide in myriad contexts, collaborating with musicians such as Muhly, Thomas Bartlett/Doveman, Beth Orton and Glen Hansard. He has appeared as a guest artist on recent albums by Tune-Yards, Aoife O’Donovan and the Blind Boys of Alabama.

ProductionCredits

PRODUCTION CREDITS
Produced by Valgeir Sigurðsson
Recorded at Greenhouse Studios, Reykjavik, Iceland
Engineered, mixed and mastered by Valgeir Sigurðsson
Additional recording by Paul Evans at Greenhouse, and John Spiker at Studio Supreme
Studio Manager at Greenhouse: Paul Evans
Studio Assistant: Adrian Libyere

Cover photograph: “Swat Valley Picnic” by Peter Smith (www.photosmithuk.com)
Graphic design by Evan Gaffney

All songs composed by Sam Amidon/Traditional, arranged by Sam Amidon, except track 2 composed by Sam Amidon; track 9 by Rosa Lee Watson, arranged by Sam Amidon; track 10 music by Sam Amidon/Alexander Johnson (1818), lyric by Isaac Watts (1719)

Bill Frisell appears courtesy of Masterworks/OKeh Records

Executive Producer: David Bither

Nonesuch Selection Number

543642

ns_album_releasedate
Album Status
Artist Name
Sam Amidon
MusicianDetails

MUSICIANS
Sam Amidon, sing, banjo, acoustic guitar; also fiddle on “Blue Mountains”
Bill Frisell, electric guitar
Shahzad Ismaily, electric bass; also Moog synth on “Pat Do This”
Chris Vatalaro, drums, electronics; also flutes on “Pat Do This,” and his piano moment

Cover Art
UPC/Price
Label
LP+MP3
UPC
075597953404
Label
CD+MP3
UPC
075597953398
Label
FLAC
Price
10.00
UPC
075597953657
Label
MP3
Price
9.00
UPC
075597954500
  • 543642

News & Reviews

  • The 2024 Big Ears Festival is next week, taking place in venues throughout downtown Knoxville, TN, March 21–24, with more than a dozen Nonesuch artists past, present, and future performing as part of the label's 60th anniversary celebrations. In addition to all of the music and film offerings, Big Ears also hosts a number of artist conversations with music journalists Ann Powers and Nate Chinen, including talks with Sam Amidon, Laurie Anderson, Darcy James Argue, Rhiannon Giddens, Mary Halvorson, Robin Holcomb, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Brad Mehldau, Davóne Tines, and Yasmin Williams.

  • Sam Amidon has announced a headline solo tour of the US this spring, following a North American tour as special guest of This Is the Kit and a weekend at Big Ears Festival in Knoxville. The new shows start in Northampton, Massachusetts, on March 26 and includes stops in New Hampshire, New York, California (with Sam Gendel), Oregon (with Laura Veirs), and Washington. The This Is the Kit tour starts in Brooklyn February 21.

  • About This Album

    Lily-O, a new album of reimagined folk songs by Vermont-born singer/fiddler/banjoist/guitarist Sam Amidon was released September 30 by Nonesuch Records, with the vinyl following on October 27. The album was produced by Valgeir Sigurðsson (Björk, Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Feist) and features the innovative jazz guitarist and composer Bill Frisell, along with Amidon’s other frequent collaborators, bassist Shahzad Ismaily and drummer Chris Vatalaro. 

    “'Walkin’ Boss' is one of the first songs I learned on the banjo, by playing along with a recording by Jeff Davis as a teenager,” Amidon said. “As it happens this is also the first tune that we recorded during the sessions, on a crisp October morning in Reykjavik."

    Frisell has been a hero of Amidon’s since the young Vermont native first heard the guitarist play at the Village Vanguard during a teenage visit to New York City. The two musicians stayed in touch and had their first live collaboration in 2011; not long after, Amidon began contemplating a return to Iceland to make a third album at Sigurðsson’s Greenhouse Studios. He eventually invited Frisell to join him and Sigurðsson, along with Ismaily and Vatalaro, to record what became Lily-O.

    “I decided to put us all in a room together in Reykjavik for a few days,” Amidon said. “I knew if I got Bill together with those guys they would get into a deep situation. I imagined that we would do something weird and fiddle-based, but when we got in there it just felt great to sing the songs I had gathered. Recording took about four days. I'd teach them the basic structure of the song; we'd do a few takes, and move on to a new one. There's maybe one or two overdubs but otherwise you're hearing what we played.”

    Lily-O’s ten songs are mostly traditional folk songs gathered from disparate sources and refashioned in Amidon’s signature way. The interplay between the four musicians is informed by their backgrounds in improvised music and the spontaneous nature of the sessions. As always, the central element is Amidon’s voice, which, in his deceptively understated manner, tells tales of adventure, love, violence and redemption.

    Lily-O follows four albums by Amidon including his 2013 Nonesuch debut, Bright Sunny South. 2010’s I See The Sign and 2008’s All Is Well were made for the Icelandic label Bedroom Community and featured orchestral arrangements by composer Nico Muhly. Along the way Amidon has performed worldwide in myriad contexts, collaborating with musicians such as Muhly, Thomas Bartlett/Doveman, Beth Orton and Glen Hansard. He has appeared as a guest artist on recent albums by Tune-Yards, Aoife O’Donovan and the Blind Boys of Alabama.

    Credits

    MUSICIANS
    Sam Amidon, sing, banjo, acoustic guitar; also fiddle on “Blue Mountains”
    Bill Frisell, electric guitar
    Shahzad Ismaily, electric bass; also Moog synth on “Pat Do This”
    Chris Vatalaro, drums, electronics; also flutes on “Pat Do This,” and his piano moment

    PRODUCTION CREDITS
    Produced by Valgeir Sigurðsson
    Recorded at Greenhouse Studios, Reykjavik, Iceland
    Engineered, mixed and mastered by Valgeir Sigurðsson
    Additional recording by Paul Evans at Greenhouse, and John Spiker at Studio Supreme
    Studio Manager at Greenhouse: Paul Evans
    Studio Assistant: Adrian Libyere

    Cover photograph: “Swat Valley Picnic” by Peter Smith (www.photosmithuk.com)
    Graphic design by Evan Gaffney

    All songs composed by Sam Amidon/Traditional, arranged by Sam Amidon, except track 2 composed by Sam Amidon; track 9 by Rosa Lee Watson, arranged by Sam Amidon; track 10 music by Sam Amidon/Alexander Johnson (1818), lyric by Isaac Watts (1719)

    Bill Frisell appears courtesy of Masterworks/OKeh Records

    Executive Producer: David Bither