Tom Russell at CSPS

TOM RUSSELL
Widely regarded as one of the best songwriters at work today, Tom Russell was born in Los Angeles in 1950. Raised on the cowboy music of the American West, his talent was evident even in his teens, and began issuing albums under his own name in the early '70s. While much of Russell's work mined the country tradition, he was also known to flavor his work with Tex-Mex, folk, and the cowboy music of his youth. At the same time, Russell's material was being recorded by luminaries ranging from Ian Tyson to Johnny Cash, Guy Clark to k.d. lang ... just to name a few.
After an acclaimed career spanning two decades, Russell found another gear with 1999's Man from God Knows Where. A concept album eight years in the making, the critically-acclaimed LP presented a song cycle inspired not only by America's pioneers, but by Russell's own immigrant ancestors. Borderland, a set inspired by Russell's newfound home in the Juarez border region of Texas, followed in 2001, and Modern Art appeared in April 2003. Russell's controversial next album, Hotwalker, harked back to Man from God Knows Where, an epic collage that combined Russell's songs with the recorded rants of circus midget Little Jack Horton, as well as the voices of Lenny Bruce, Charles Bukowski, Jack Kerouac, Edward Abbey, Harry Partch, Ramblin' Jack Elliott and Dave Van Ronk.
Supporting the notion that he really is one of America's greatest songwriters, Tom Russell's most recent album, 2007's Wounded Heart of America, features his songs as recorded by Johnny Cash, Dave Alvin, Iris DeMent, Suzy Boguss, Nanci Griffith, Jerry Jeff Walker, Laurie Lewis, Eliza Gilkyson and others. Tom himself appears singing three new songs. One of them, "Who's Gonna Build Your Wall" is a brilliant composition he performed on Late Night with David Letterman the week the album was released.
Thu Mar 13 | 8 pm
CSPS | 1103 Third St SE | Cedar Rapids
$14 advance | $17 day of show

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