Much like the man himself, Peter Stampfel’s 18th solo album requires some explanation. Available September 19, Song Shards: Soul Jingles, Stoic Jingles, Vintage Jingles, Prayers And Rounds (Jalopy) marries two distinct concepts. The first section’s aphorisms were inspired by prayers and observations derived from Stampfel’s love of weed and his stint in Alcoholics Anonymous. For the second half, the 86-year-old freak-folk pioneer offers a selection of ad jingles, starting with one he heard on the radio way back in 1945.
As a member of the Holy Modal Rounders and the Fugs in the ’60s and ’70s, Stampfel blew the lid off folk music and gutted its earnest boho trappings. Featuring a young Sam Shepard on drums, the Rounders shared stages with the Velvet Underground, Pink Floyd and Ike & Tina Turner. They went as far as they could go with mainstream audiences in 1969, when their tune “If You Want To Be A Bird (Bird Song)” was featured in the iconic counterculture film Easy Rider.
In ensuing decades, Stampfel collaborated with everyone from recently deceased freak-folk contemporary Michael Hurley and singer/songwriter/comic artist Jeffrey Lewis to Yo La Tengo and They Might Be Giants. He also won a Grammy for his extensive liner notes in the 1997 Anthology Of American Folk Music reissue. Fittingly, Song Shards’ online liner notes and track annotations amount to almost 14,000 words. The collection was produced by Piety Street Recording founder Mark Bingham in New Orleans and Brooklyn.
If measured insanity delivered with well-orchestrated brevity is your thing, Song Shards won’t disappoint. We’re proud to premiere this five-song sampler featuring “God May Be Indifferent,” “Beer Jingle,” “More Wack?”, “Log Cabin Syrup” and “Maximum Love.”
—Hobart Rowland
