Allison Moorer Flies with “Crows”

The estimable Mrs. Earle hooks up with R.S. Field to craft a high-soaring gem.

By Blurt Staff

Allison Moorer is set to release her new album Crows, on February 9 - it'll be her debut for the Ryko label.  Produced by R.S. Field (Buddy Guy, John Mayall) at the House of David Studio in Nashville, TN, the 13-track album is the follow up to her critically acclaimed 2008 album, Mockingbird, which was a celebration of songs composed by female songwriters including Nina Simone, Patti Smith, Cat Power, her sister Shelby Lynne, and more.   It also follows Moorer's first Grammy Award Nomination for the song "Days Aren't Long Enough," a composition she co-wrote with her husband, Steve Earle, for his Grammy Award Winning 2007 album Washington Square Serenade.  

Speaking with Billboard recently regarding Crows, Moorer stated "I really just set myself free and just threw all the rules out the window." Regarding the album's title, Moorer offered "We have crows in the yard at our place up in Woodstock. I am a little obsessed with birds, and have been told that they are indeed our messengers from the other side.  So I decided that instead of letting the crows make me uneasy, I would start to consider them as friendlies, and that they were actually bringing me a message of comfort."

Ruby Marchand, head of A&R for Ryko, said in an official statement, "Ryko is enormously proud to welcome Allison Moorer to our family of artists.  Allison's extraordinarily evocative songs and vocal style capture her unique signature in the singer/songwriter community.  With the February 2010 release of Crows, Ryko celebrates the beginning of a worldwide relationship with Allison through an album of astonishing breadth and scope." 

In other Moorer news, on December 13^th, 2009, Moorer will be seen in The People Speak, a film inspired by the Howard Zinn book A People's History of the United States and the Zinn/Anthony Arnove-penned Voices of A People's History of the United States.  The film, presented by The History Channel, also features Bob Dylan, Morgan Freeman, Bruce Springsteen, Danny Glover, Matt Damon, John Legend, Rosario Dawson, Josh Brolin, Benjamin Bratt and more.

Tracklisting:

1. Abalone Sky

2. Goodbye To The Ground

3. Just Another Fool

4. The Broken Girl

5. Should I Be Concerned

6. When You Wake Up Feeling Bad

7. Easy In The Summertime

8. The Stars and I (Mama's Song)

9. Still This Side Of Gone

10. Like The Rain

11. Sorrow (Don't Come Around)

12. It's Gonna Feel Good

13. Crows