Swamp Dogg Offers Life Advice on 'Ugly Man's Wife' Ahead of New 'Blackgrass' LP
In celebration of the new album, Swamp Dogg has announced an album release show at Zebulon in Los Angeles on the album’s release day.
By: Josh Sharpe May. 08, 2024
The Virginia-born, Los Angeles based artist, songwriter and producer Swamp Dogg has released “Ugly Man’s Wife,” the final pre-release single to be pulled from his forthcoming album Blackgrass: From West Virginia to 125th St out May 31 via Oh Boy Records.
A tongue-in-cheek offering of wisdom with background vocals from The Cactus Blossoms, the song was featured in Garden & Gun who proclaimed, “Along with the album’s stellar instrumentation, his songwriting is rich in detail with vivid characters, a hallmark of the best in bluegrass.”
About the new single, Swamp Dogg explains: “I wrote ‘Ugly Man’s Wife’ with one of my favorite co-writers, Bob Jones, now deceased. I promised him that I would record it on my next album. I kept my word.”
In celebration of the new album, Swamp Dogg has announced an album release show at Zebulon in Los Angeles on the album’s release day with special guests James Intveld and DJ Jonathan Toubin. Tickets are on sale now.
“Ugly Man’s Life” follows the release of “Count The Days” (feat. Jenny Lewis) and “Mess Under That Dress,” which was met with acclaim from BrooklynVegan, Exclaim, Stereogum, and The New York Times. In March, the feature-length documentary Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted premiered at SXSW and received raves from The Austin Chronicle and The Hollywood Reporter who called it, “a documentary that draws its voice and aesthetic from the spirit of its subject, resulting in a tight 97 minutes that feel organic and satisfying and, as befits that subject, appealingly odd.” Rolling Stone also included Swamp Dogg’s official showcase in their Best of SXSW roundup proclaiming, “Swamp Dogg sounded bold and robust, his vigor encouraging his band to ratchet up the energy… every musician on stage was locked into an undeniable groove.”
Produced by Ryan Olson (Poliça, Gayngs) and recorded with an all-star band including Noam Pikelny, Sierra Hull, Jerry Douglas, Chris Scruggs, Billy Contreras, and Kenny Vaughan, the 12-song collection is a riotous blend of past and present, mixing the sacred and the profane in typical Swamp Dogg fashion as it blurs the lines between folk, roots, country, blues, and soul. Special guests like Margo Price, Vernon Reid, Jenny Lewis, Justin Vernon, and The Cactus Blossoms all add to the excitement, but it’s ultimately the 81-year-old Swamp Dogg’s delivery—sly and playful and full of genuine joy and ache—that steals the show.
“Not a lot of people talk about the true origins of bluegrass music,” says Swamp Dogg, “but it came from Black people. The banjo, the washtub, all that stuff started with African Americans. We were playing it before it even had a name. I’m trying to touch on every kind of music I grew up loving and listening to. This is my way of letting people know that I’m not just a soul singer or whatever they think I am. I’m so much more.”
Blackgrass: From West Virginia to 125th St tracklist:
1) Mess Under That Dress
2) Ugly Man’s Wife
3) Curtains On The Window
4) Have A Good Time
5) To The Other Woman (feat. Margo Price)
6) Songs To Sing
7) Count The Days (feat. Jenny Lewis)
8) Gotta Have My Baby Back
9) Your Best Friend
10) This Is My Dream
11) Rise Up (feat. Vernon Reid)
12) Murder Ballad
Photo Credit: David McMurry
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