MARKUS RILL: The Hobo Companion

Markus Rill

The Hobo Companion

© 2004 Markus Rill

CD permanently out of stock. Sorry!

Blue Rose artist Markus Rill releases The Hobo Companion, the first of his cds to be available in the US. Gritty rock n´ roll, rough-edged alt-country, folk noir and bluesy stuff.

tracks

1 Waiting Around To Die
2 A Girl Called Jo
3 One More Dollar
4 Hobo Dream
5 So I Can Take My Rest
6 No Penitentiary
7 If I Needed You/Ft. Worth Blues
8 Folsom Prison Blues
9 Where Do We Go From Here?
10 To Kill A Mockingbird
11 Run, Run, Run
12 Wild Blue Heart
13 Nowhere Begins

notes

"Songs shimmering beautifully with ambiguity . . . brilliant lyrics" (Rolling Stone)

"First-rate songs" (Village Records)

"Sharply drawn flesh & blood-characters . . . a songwriter with boot-dirt authenticity" (Miles Of Music)

"The quintessence of European alt. country" (100% Roots)

"At eye level with America's top acts" (Glitterhouse)

Markus Rill's "The Hobo Companion," released January 2005, is the perfect companion piece to his acclaimed 2004 album, "Hobo Dream." "Companion" shows the gravel-voiced singer-songwriter as a passionate live performer, inspired interpreter of other people's songs, and spellbinding all-acoustic recording artist. Although culled from various recording sessions, radio appearances, and live shows, the record holds together beautifully and provides the listener with a joyful ride through the diversified landscape of Americana music. There's Rill's haunting yet powerful take on Townes van Zandt's "Waiting Around To Die" and a steel guitar-laced version of Robert Earl Keen's "So I Can Take My Rest", both of which would've been standout tracks on each of his four studio albums. There´s an all-acoustic boogie stomp through an as-yet-unreleased Rill original called "No Penitentiary." There's stripped-down duets with Seattle siren Rachel Harrington on Rill's own "Where Do We Go From Here?", Gillian Welch´s "One More Dollar," and a clever amalgam of the van Zandt-classic "If I Needed You" with Steve Earle's ode to his mentor, "Ft. Worth Blues." And then there are two songs taken from a radio session recorded in a quasi-bluegrass quartet, energetic home demos of new Rill material and fun live workouts of some of his classics.

Now available for the first time in the US, "The Hobo Companion" is too good to be missed.

BIO:

A sandstone voice, smokin' roots'n'roll songs, and strong storytelling lyrics - that's what Markus Rill is all about.

Rill´s world is filled with loners, lovers and losers - memorable characters whose stories unfold against a backdrop of gritty rock'n'roll and rough-edged alt.country, folk noir and back porch blues. Four acclaimed albums and seven years of steady touring all over the old continent have made Rill Europe's premier Americana artist. In fact, he's the only European performer signed to the legendary Blue Rose record label.
He has performed with Townes van Zandt, Chris Knight, Tom Russell, Hal Ketchum, The Drive-By Truckers and recorded with Duane Jarvis (Lucinda Williams), Steve Conn (Sonny Landreth, Bonnie Raitt), George Bradfute (Jason Ringenberg), Rick Plant (Buddy Miller) and Billy Block. His latest studio album "Hobo Dream", recorded in Nashville, TN., earned him rave reviews and generated comparisons to the likes of Steve Earle, James McMurtry, Gillian Welch, and Tom Waits.

Rill honed his craft living in Austin, TX. where he forged formative friendships with local songwriters and cut his teeth at open mics while studying American literature.

reviews

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  • It takes a Rill to know a Rill
    author: Brian Rill

    Markus Rill is a real man and a real good musician i love his new cd and his Cash covers

  • A tasty dessert to his last studio album
    author: Rolling Stone/Germany

    Markus Rill - The Hobo Companion: As the title suggests, here's the dessert to his last studio album "Hobo Dream". To continue the metaphor: It's as tasty as a bowl of red jello after a solid Hamburg fish platter. (note: Apparently, this is a local specialty. Think "vanilla ice cream after a chicken-fried steak"). There are some older songs ("A Girl Called Jo", "Nowhere Begins") in thoroughly shaken and heavily stirred live band versions, there are some highly promising solo demos - and best of all: Markus Rill has lured a great duet partner to his little farm, the wonderful Rachel Harrington. Together they saddle their horses for "One More Dollar" (Welch/Rawlings) and "If I Needed You" (Townes/Earle). And they ride safely off into the horizon. 3 1/2 stars

  • Presenting the multi-faceted world of Americana like no other European.
    author: Chill Music

    Markus Rill - "The Hobo Companion": As the title suggests, "The Hobo Companion" is the ideal companion piece to his new album Hobo Dream" (his best so far). Markus Rill from Würzburg is Germany's top singer-songwriter, presenting the multi-faceted world of Americana between Texas and Nashville like no other European, performing at eye level with internationally renowned US acts. This fine 13-song-compilation, conceived by the troubadour with the soulful sandpaper voice himself, includes various live tracks recorded at 2004's Orange Blossom Special, the Neusüdende fall festival, and Radio Flora in Hannover. They are complented by solo demos, studio sessions with his band The Gunslingers and/or beautiful duets with his partner Rachel Harrington, a young folk woman pursuing her career in Seattle. The track listing offers a lot of variety: Original songs (old and new) stand next to awesome cover versions of songs by Townes van Zandt, Gillian Welch, Robert Earl Keen, Steve Earle and Johnny Cash. At this level of quality, The Hobo Companion" is not only a terrific companion piece for his numerous fans but an album that can win him new followers on its own merits. Thomas Dewers (Chill Music)

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