more from
Landslide Records
We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

Afterglow

by Mike Mattison

/
  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      $10 USD

     

1.
Charlie Idaho Do you remember in ’26 When the river broke loose And they were looking for a quick fix? One day you’re living The next you’re obliged And what are you gonna do? Every mule’s working when the levy breaks The police don’t get you It’s the cold and the snakes Charlie’s gonna fix it Whatsoever it takes And what are you gonna do? [Chorus:] Charlie Idaho shot the Mercy Man Charlie Idaho shot the Mercy Man At least the poor boy died If you be a skinner be sure than you can Before you go to work For the dark-eyed man A bridle whip And a gun in his hand And what are you gonna do? Looking all over the whole corral Nary a mule With its shoulder well A government man Come to give him hell And what are you gonna do? [Chorus:] Every story’s got a Mercy Man A boss that’s out to get you A fool like I am The only difference being If you give a damn What are you gonna do? Hannah’s gonna roll like she done before Another break Another pour A man can take a battle But not the war What are you gonna do?
2.
Afterglow 03:19
Afterglow Hanging on to midnight Is the way that I’ve been living Every which way up and back You’re a thirst that I’ve been given Got a big, uneasy feeling Pushing sideways through my heart If it holds me down I’ll come apart [Chorus:] I don’t know but I’ve been told New York City’s mighty cold Guess I’ll have to put my jacket on Riding through the afterglow A two-step on the radio I won’t hear you crying when I’m gone Cherry blossom sunrise In the Shenandoah Season Just the memory of her kiss Puts the hurt in to the leavin’ Got a big, uneasy feeling Pushing sideways through my heart If it holds me down I’ll come apart [Chorus:] Oh, when I’m gone
3.
Deadbeat 04:19
Deadbeat I want to know if you can love me Cuz what you see is what you get I want to know if you can protect me From all these trigger-happy pieces of shit God, I didn’t choose this place Man, I didn’t want to know But here I am Here we are God, I want to lose myself Somebody needs to hold my hand I’m taking all the drugs I can I want to know if you can direct me To the next late-breaking town The competition seems friendly And all the kids are getting down I can hear your plans a-hatchin’ Hold ‘em tight up to your vest Cuz I don’ want another love That’s a gladiatorial mess God, I didn’t choose this place Man, I didn’t want to know But here I am Here we are, let’s go God, I want to lose myself Somebody needs to hold my hand I’m taking all the drugs I can [Chorus:] Deadbeat Hard times What’s yours is mine God, I want to lose myself Somebody needs to hold my hand I’m taking all the drugs I can [Chorus:]
4.
Word’s Coming Down Hey, it’s been going like for years Slappin’ on the topical cures Wrenching gears Baby, turn off that talk show station I think it’s time we took a vacation From this nation [Chorus:] Cuz the word’s coming down Deliver them without a sound Say, what’s it take to make a connection? Looking for a new direction In affection My, my, what’s that trapdoor for? Just when you can’t take any more Through the floor [Chorus:] Come with me We’ll stake out all the places Follow me You’ve got to see their faces Well, it’s three o’clock in the morning I can’t close my eyes Never been satisfied in my time Take me back baby Won’t do you mean no more The future is an open door Now we’re sure
5.
All You Can Do Is Mean It All you can do is mean it All you can do is care And if it hurts, believe it There’s something there Baby, it’s raining moonshine Stars coming on like a dream Angels that flicker in heaven Bless all my human being I met my love in Memphis A good time, green-eyed twirl And I’ll never see her face Ever again in this world I gave my love so truly That’s how a heart survives If I should be so lucky She’ll carry it ’til she dies Nobody gives a good God Damn if we win or we lose It’s a game That’s never ours to choose All you can do is mean it All you can do is try Give me your hand, baby Dance with me Into the by and by
6.
Kiss You Where You Live Friday morning, California Smoke is in the air Smells like burning hair in Mendocino Rolling past the vacancies And rumors of repair Tell us life ain’t fair But what do we know? [Chorus:] Baby, all this love to give Is coming to kiss you where you live It follows where I go Losing love like Mercury Slips right through your hands And everywhere it lands Boy, it scatters Curious the chemistry The elemental stage That’s just how we’re made Well, I gather [Chorus:] And the past we made has turned around Like the lies we stepped in to And the words we thought we’d never need Now we do Crazy like a dragonfly Up above the pine Smoke gets in your eyes Hey, forgive me But I remember when you said We’d never, ever touch the stars If we just cried in bars Over “Misty” [Chorus:]
7.
I Was Wrong 03:38
I Was Wrong Never sang me a song Never sang me a song Well, they sang me a song Wasn’t the right song [Chorus:] And it kills me to tell you I was wrong I will tear down the moon I will tear down the moon Save me one little spoon I will tear down the moon [Chorus:] All the history All the warnings Wrong All the hot nights All the cravings Wrong Every goodbye Every daydream All the taking All the leaving Wrong You will give me respect You will give me respect I am nonsense and death You will give me respect Yes, it kills me to tell you I was wrong Would it kill you to tell me You were wrong?
8.
On Pontchartrain I want to go home And hide my heart I want to go home And hide my heart In Metairie, on Pontchartrain I’m never leaving you again I want to go back And hide my tears Stepping gently Through the years In Metairie, on Pontchartrain I’m never leaving Her again They say the Devil paved a highway Just to lure the angels from your shore Oh, California, please let me go Back to that gal I used to know In Metairie, on Pontchartrain I’m never leaving you again I’m never leaving you again
9.
I Really Miss You I took a walk today Through the part of town Where we used to play our games And run around We were bad they say But we had our fun And Lord knows didn’t hurt no one The light had changed But to me it’s always just the same Here in my heart I can see it now And I believed it from the start [Chorus:] I really miss you, babe Running through all my yesterdays I really miss you, babe Running through all my yesterdays And even though this old world tried To turn you in to something Like a suicide You never changed And you kept me sane When I needed you It’s a lot like me to wonder How things could’ve been Instead of picking up the phone And letting you in It’s so strange When two friends say goodbye [Chorus:] The ones I miss the most They come around like ghosts And speak to me They say, we’ve been through so much You used to have a lighter touch And where you going anyway? [Chorus:]
10.
Got Something For You I got something for you You maybe want to know Well, I’m rubber, you’re glue And on and on it goes Baby, bless our souls I got something to say You maybe want to hear My dues are paid And I’m gonna lose this town And burn my conscience down [Chorus:] Cuz it’s all sweet nothings Whispered in my ear Was it all sweet nothing, my dear? I got something for you

about

Mike Mattison is a roots singer and songwriter best-known for his work in the Derek Trucks Band, Scrapomatic, and the Tedeschi Trucks Band, with whom he has won a Grammy with each for Best Blues Album. The TTB has also won five Blues Music Awards from the Blues Music Foundation and two Canadian Maple Blues Awards.

Mattison’s new album,”Afterglow,” presents a startling array of original material that is based in Americana t but which stretches to Blues and beyond. Mattison co-produced the album with fellow TTB member Tyler “Falcon” Greenwell, who also plays drums. Additional musicians include Dave Yoke (guitars), Franher Joseph (bass), Kofi Burbridge (keyboards), Scrapomatic’s Paul Olsen (guitars), and Rachel Eckworth (keyboards).

“‘Afterglow,’ said Mattison, “is really the result of the three of us, (guitarist) Dave Yoke, (drummer/engineer) ’Falcon’ Greenwell and myself on acoustic guitar, tracking live in Falcon’s garage, and adding the bass later. So it’s a throwback recording in a way, a nod to our garage band days: Loose and louche. We were lucky to have Jason Kinsgland’s guiding hand on the final mix. He has the perfect touch.”

“‘Afterglow,’ is pretty emblematic of the album. Derek Trucks provided the chords to the chorus and Paul Olsen the snappy introduction. It’s a story about memory and moving on, which is the topic of most of these songs. How to avoid being trapped by memory, the past.” Next to the title track, he adds, “‘Charlie Idaho Shot the Mercy Man’ hits the right Americana note. It’s based on a chillingly true story from Alan Lomax’s book ‘The Land Where Blues Began,’ about a levee camp boss who murders a ‘Mercy Man’ sent by the government to make sure that the mules in his camp weren’t being mistreated. Nobody seemed to mind about the workers. It’s a story of hard labor, fear, futility, animals, men and very little mercy. Maybe a pinch of humor?”

“We were lucky to have the great Frahner Joseph of Delta Moon fill in on bass. Paul Olsen, of Scrapomatic, had to be on the album; his guitar is always the glue. And, thankfully, we were able to record with our friend, the incomparable Kofi Burbridge before he passed away last year. He and I wrote ‘I Really Miss You’ about 16 years ago and we were never able to record it with our other bands. He had the chords and story concept, I wrote the lyrics and melody ‘to-order,’ as if were, and we shook hands on the results. It was that easy.”

Mattison released his first solo album “You Can’t Fight Love” in 2014 on Landslide Records and looks forward its follow up, “Afterglow,” also on Landslide, with a street date of March 20, 2020.

A native of Minneapolis, MN, Mattison attended Harvard University where he graduated cum laude in 1991 with a concentration in American Literature.  After a stint as a journalist, he began his music career with Paul Olsen as one half of the blues duo Scrapomatic, who have released four albums to date.  As Scrapomatic's star rose, Mike was picked up by slide-guitarist Derek Trucks and began touring as lead singer with the Derek Trucks Band. Since 2001 he has appeared constantly with Scrapomatic, the Derek Trucks Band and the Tedeschi Trucks Band, performing on five continents and in every state, except Alaska.  Mattison has gone on to win two Grammys with Trucks: 2009's Best Blues Album for the Derek Trucks Band's "Already Free," and 2011's Best Blues Album for the Tedeschi Trucks Band's "Revelator." His compositions, “Bound for Glory” and "Midnight in Harlem," received significant airplay and the latter was highlighted in the band’s performance for the DVD of Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival 2010. Mattison’s own distinctively different version of “Midnight In Harlem” is featured on “You Can’t Fight Love.”

He is proud to have toured, recorded and shared the stage with such legends as B.B. King, Carlos Santana, the Allman Brothers Band, Solomon Burke, the Black Crowes and Herbie Hancock, and he continues to make regular appearances at Montreux Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz Festival, Bonnaroo and an annual September run at the Beacon Theatre in New York. “I've learned musicianship, professionalism, how to tour and how to navigate the music business from my work with Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi.  Invaluable stuff.  And I've seen the world!  We've played on five continents, played in every state (except Alaska); appeared on Leno, Conan and were invited to the White House.  It's mind-boggling." The experience surely impacted Mattison’s drive towards establishing himself as a solo artist. However, a major goal remains: “I would like to grow up to be Dr. John, the Night Tripper.”


For more information, go to www.landsliderecords.com
PUBLICITY: Pati deVries, PatideVries@deviousplanet.com, 917-751-2532 
RADIO PROMOTION: Leslie Rouffe, Leslie@songlinesmusic.com 615-298-2262
LABEL PROMOTION: Nancy Lewis-Pegel, npegel@att.net , 404-312-6237
MANAGEMENT: Blake Budney, blakebudney@earthlink.net, 828-350-7955
LABEL MANAGEMENT: Michael Rothschild, Landslide Records, mrland@mindspring.com, 404-931-9049
BOOKING AGENT: Wayne Forte, Entourage Talent, booking@entouragetalent.com, 212-633-2600
DIGITAL DISTRIBUTION: Mick Wainman, DMM, mick@digitalmusicmarketing.com, (818) 843-5934
RETAIL DISTRIBUTION: Wes Phillips, Select-O-Hits, wphillips@selectohits.com, (901) 388-1190

credits

released March 26, 2020

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Mike Mattison Atlanta, Georgia

contact / help

Contact Mike Mattison

Streaming and
Download help

Report this album or account

If you like Mike Mattison, you may also like: