We Must Eat Michigan's Brain

State Songs

   Released in 1999 on Rounder Records, a subsidiary of Zoe Records, State Songs is John Linnell's first and only full length solo album.  With a name like State Songs, one might expect this to be an educational CD full of state facts.  However, it isn't.  The songs have very little to do with the states at all.   The album relies upon Linnell's insecure deadpan sense of humor, and it works.  Linnell makes use of a 103 and a 165 band Wurlitzer organ which has a turn of the century carousel-like sound.  The Wurlitzer organ is used in such songs as the bittersweat yet triumphant Utah, and the self-bashing yet beautiful New Hampshire.  There is of course the famous Linnell speed polka in Michigan, and the off-beat insane lyrics of Oregon.   Montana is a hard rocker with a side of melancholy.  The song Iowa makes good use out of Linnell's rare synths.  This album is not just for TMBG fans, but also for avant guard patriots.  The biggest "hits" off this album were South Carolina, West Virginia, and Montana.  My favorite song is South Carolina which is full of  driving piano riffs, horns, and Linnell's monster voice.

My Rating For this Album is: A-

The Track Listing for State Songs:

1. Illinois
2. The Song of the 50 States
3. West Virginia
4. South Carolina
5. Idaho
6. Montana
7. Pennsylvania
8. Utah
9. Arkansas
10. Iowa
11. Mississippi
12. Maine
13. Oregon
14. Michigan
15. New Hampshire
16. Nevada