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A Simple Spell / The Yearlings live @ The Merry Muse March 18 2007
REVIEWED BY CHENOEH MILLER
On my way to the Merry Muse in Turner, I bravely walked through the cacophony of intense fast music and vile comments that permeated the boob-tubed and slick-haired crowd surrounding and filling All Bar Nun across the road. Sure I could have walked around for a while before the concert but having never been to All Bar Nun I thought this would be a good opportunity to check out the vibe. It's not good. Why? Why does it all have to be so fast? Have we completely forgotten the beauty of stillness? Of quiet? Of simplicity? Why so much distraction in such small time? In such small space? For goodness sake, for YOUR sake, slow down. Be quiet
"This is for you 'cause you believe in tomorow"- Golden Dove from The Yearlings debut self titled album 2003.
I first heard these lyrics at the launch of The Yearlings second album "Wind Already Blown". Launched at The Cat And Fiddle in Sydney 2005. I was sitting with my best friend and as with all good tunes, it was as if this song had been written for us. "This is for you 'cause you believe in tomorrow". Is there a greater reason to give love? I don't think so.
Adelaide band, The Yearlings (aka Chris Parkinson and Robyn Chalklen) stand on the shoulders of great musicians like Gillian Welch, Patty Griffin, Johnny Cash and Lucinda Williams. I am yet to see another Australian band or individual who can match this kind of musical magic.
On their current "Bless This House" tour, the Yearlings are accompanied by vocal goddess Suzannah Espie and harmonical genius Ian Collard. The two couples are nearing the end of touring lounge rooms and public venues across the nation.
Having listened to their CDs, seeing them live I am bound by the spell that this duo casts. And yet a spell seems to imply there is some kind of trickery at hand and that is not the case. What i love about The Yearlings is the effortless commitment to really giving and engaging with theie audience. They sing simple songs of love and loss and life accompanied by mad guitar and banjo. All of it combines to create an experience that penetrates the soul and changes your life- if you let it.
The Merry Muse is hosted by the White Eagle club in Turner. At least once a week the club turn off thier pokies (and apparently the kitchen) to open its doors to folk music lovers. On Sunday March 18, Canberra was graced with the presence of The Yearlings, although sadly it seems with the mass exodus of Canberrans to the South Coast that long weekend, few were in attendance.
Everything about this music and Robyn and Chris, is positive and who would have thought positivity could be so beautiful and so very definitely sexy? And why? Because life and so many of the little moments within it are sexy and that's what they sing about. Without the distractions of midrifts and greasy hair, we allow ourselves the time to appreciate things like thoughtful music to remind us of the magic of life and each other.
So make the time. Go see a gig at The Merry Muse and if possible go see The Yearlings. It will change your life - if you let it. - The Canberra Times
lone tony joe, 3dfm 2005
"Here's a duet in perfect balance with their original and personal songs. The Yearlings weave intimate lyrics & harmony around each other until songs gain altitude and float off powered with just a tickle of banjo, a brush of fiddle or a touch of piano. Once you embrace the simple, unpretentious pleasure of it all you can glide along with them in your own personal space. this is music meant for the gentler, kinder, more sensitive corners of your psyche. Playing the label game I'll run with... Adelaide Appalachian neo country folk grass blues! However don't be misled, there's a truly Ozmopolitan homespun world woven into this music.
'got my old Holden to drive
got a 12-foot cruisin' wagon to drive
...And the engine's worn and there's steel showing on the tyres' " - SA Blues and Roots
LAST Magazine
Jason Walker
THE YEARLINGS / WIND ALREADY BLOWN/SHOCK/MIXMASTERS RECORDS/9/10
In the treasure trove of acoustic rural-based music - not country music, not bluegrass or "alt.country" but its pre-World War One Appalachian antecedent - there is no subject matter that cannot be tackled. Since its earliest modern incarnation, singers (like the Yearlings' Robyn Chalklen and Chris Parkinson for example) have told of the hardships of the day; suicide, the drink, high infant mortality rate, adultery, the sinking of the Titanic and steel driving men - in short, nothing of import or relevance was left unaddressed. (I mean, you try writing a song about the internet. Go on - I dare you).
Yet it's not the instincts of folklorists or the preservation of some dying musical form that drives the Yearlings, it's that their muse, though she might initially sound somewhat advanced in years, is in fact the lissome beauty that AP Carter courted in 1920. She's well-traveled, sure, but think of her as the woman who gave birth to rock'n'roll, but who always kept her figure.
Regardless of their provenance, the songs here seem to be more about the journey, be it a short one in the "twelve-foot" Holden of "Send All Your Kisses" or the finality of one person's three-score-and-ten years in "Shine Like Diamonds", or of the feelings that come back to haunt you when stumbling through a rambling graveyard ("Wind Already Blown"). Hearing these carefully drawn stories, complete with a history of generations, of love and loss, is a secret and melancholy pleasure, and this record can make you feel like a kid eating stolen cake in a cupboard.
Of equal delight are the new textures that Chalklen and Parkinson have brought to the recording this new album. Unlike their self-titled debut, which was entirely minimal with its ornamentation, Wind Already Blown has shivering piano, hungry scrapes of fiddle, some Hammond organ, bass and an oddly jaunty accordion all of which litter this album like leaves flung about in a wily-wily.
Given the hard road many musicians choose to take simply by making music their career, anyone who has tried it themselves should will most of them on to great success. Some will never make it, just because of the fickle nature of the music industry, while those who do make it have two different roads to travel - they can take the way that is smoothed by large advances and generous tour support, which can often end in tears. Or they may take the road that Robyn and Chris have chosen - the adventure of true musical beauty, love and exploration, of the open road and destinations unknown. I wish them journeying mercies.
Jason Walker - Last Magazine
readings
anthony paine
"The Self-titled debut CD for Adelaide's The Yearlings is a delight. Robyn Chalklen from country flavoured live favourites Problem Pony, and Chris Parkinson, guitar picking sideman to the likes of Jimmy Little and Paul Kelly take turns at singing lead and harmonising on each others original, lyrically fascinating tunes. The guitar playing throughout this all acoustic album is fluid and timeless. The one cover is their take on the traditional "Oh Susannah", played here with the sort of lazy confidence that makes their live performances such a pleasure." - Readings
jimmy little
"In a world full of hi-tech and overly charged electronic sound and commercialism, it's wonderful just to be able to relax and listen to the purity, the sweetness and the simplicity of natural voices gently accompanied by melodic sounding acoustic guitars. Together in unison and harmony The Yearlings express the lyrical truth of storylines about real life that poetically tug at the heartstrings. This new CD recording by The Yearlings is a prized possession of well-written originals by Chris and Robyn and are dually congratulated by me for their body of work and artistic efforts in this album. To "The Yearlings", I wish you every success for the future and thank you again for adding a little more peace, joy and inspiration to the world we live in. God Bless you." - quote
"The Yearlings took to the stage fresh from a recording stint in New York. Their well-blended voices and masterfully crafted songs such as Walk On and Sheets of the Night created a sense of ethereal gentleness. Sweet and atmospheric, this duo proved that you don't have to be from the US to capture the spirit of boundless Americana." - Donne Resio - Drum Media
"The Yearlings' previous albums have hinted at great things to come and Highway Dancing may just be it. From the opening title track, Robyn Chalklen's laid-back, fragile vocals effortlessly counterpoint partner Chris Parkinson, particularly when he takes the lead on tracks such as Will You Be Ready and Sheets of the Night. Impressive also is the songwriting, and Don't Feel Kind and Precious Time are standouts. The presence of guitarist Larry Campbell, fresh from producing Levon Helm's latest, Dirt Farmer, permeates the album, putting this Yearlings effort into another league. While the wider scope that additional musicians afford give The Yearlings a chance to spread their wings, the most obvious impression throughout Highway Dancing is the great time The Yearlings have had putting it together." 4 Stars - **** - Tom Jellett, The Weekend Australian
"The Yearlings have once again come up with a beautiful, tender album of original tunes from Robyn Chalklen and Chris Parkinson. Fitting somewhere in between Gillian Welch and the Cowboy Junkies, The Yearlings are in the best handful of country roots acts in the country and on this their third album they have produced another cracker of a record.” - Dave Clarke, Readings
Discography
The Yearlings - The Yearlings / 2002/ Reckless Records
The Yearlings - Wind Already Blown / 2004/ Mixmasters records
The Yearlings - Highway Dancing / 2008
Photos
Bio
Roots/alt. country duo The Yearlings combine warm harmonies with delicate flat-picking and sparse country blues to create songs that are at once haunting and soothing.
Robyn Chalklen and Chris Parkinson have wasted no time in getting down to the business of making music since meeting at the Tamworth Country Music Festival in 2000. Their successful self-titled debut album (released on Reckless Records in 2003) was recorded live in 8 hours and long-listed for an ARIA nomination.
The Yearlings joined the ranks of the great duos of alt. country/roots music with the release of their second album “Wind Already Blown” (Mixmasters Records) and their trademark skeletally sweet harmonies and sparse, but alive, playing style. Two tracks from this album were chosen for Claudia Karvan’s award-winning television series, ‘Love My Way’.
With the release of their third full-length recording, “Highway Dancing”, including eleven new songs The Yearlings have created an album of outstanding beauty. It breathes.
Highway Dancing is a departure from The Yearlings’ stripped back, acoustic approach to recording. Using their weaving guitars and seductive harmonies as a base, this album has the backing of a band – giving full favour to The Yearlings’ music.
The Yearlings performed at the prestigious New York Guitar Festival in February 2008 sharing the bill with Teddy Thompson, Jim Lauderdale and Ollabelle. After which they stayed on in New York to make their third album.
Recorded in Brooklyn, New York over four days during the American winter of February 2008, the album was produced by David Spelman (founding director of the New York Guitar Festival and Adelaide Guitar Festival), who saw The Yearlings playing a gig in Adelaide and felt he just had to work with them.
Inspired, David herded the musicians together at Excello studios - three members of New York roots band “Ollabelle”: Tony Leone (drums), Byron Isaacs (bass), Glenn Patscha (keyboards) plus multi–instrumentalist Larry Campbell (pedal steel, dobro, mandolin, fiddle). Larry has worked as a sideman for Bob Dylan, Emmylou Harris and Willie Nelson among others and recently won a Grammy award for producing Levon Helm’s latest record Dirt Farmer.
All songs were arranged and captured in four days live, on-the-fly, as it happened. Recorded onto 2-inch tape, this old-school style has left the record breathing a life often trampled by modern technology.
Robyn’s voice demands attention - smooth, breathy and fragile, you listen to each syllable pass you by as you lean in, turn it up and immerse yourself in a story told by a fine songwriter devoid of pretence. Her beautiful, ethereal and mysterious songs are the perfect counterpoint to Chris’s earthy compositions, while his “hang-on-every-note” guitar playing remains as compelling as ever.
The Yearlings continue to garner praise for their mesmerising live performances and won a SAMI award for the AWESAM ‘Most Popular Australiana Act 2005’, and have been nominated for a Golden Guitar Award (Australia’s country music holy grail). They have continued to tour nationally to sell-out crowds and performing at festivals, including Port Fairy, the National Folk Festival, Queenscliff, FUSE, Nannup and Apollo Bay.
The Yearlings songs rock, sad and slow . . . like a chair on an old wooden porch.
REVIEWS
"The Yearlings' previous albums have hinted at great things to come and Highway Dancing may just be it. From the opening title track, Robyn Chalklen's laid-back, fragile vocals effortlessly counterpoint partner Chris Parkinson, particularly when he takes the lead on tracks such as Will You Be Ready and Sheets of the Night. Impressive also is the songwriting, and Don't Feel Kind and Precious Time are standouts. The presence of guitarist Larry Campbell, fresh from producing Levon Helm's latest, Dirt Farmer, permeates the album, putting this Yearlings effort into another league. While the wider scope that additional musicians afford give The Yearlings a chance to spread their wings, the most obvious impression throughout Highway Dancing is the great time The Yearlings have had putting it together." 4 Stars - ****
Tom Jellett, The Weekend Australian
"The Yearlings took to the stage fresh from a recording stint in New York. Their well-blended voices and masterfully crafted songs such as Walk On and Sheets of the Night created a sense of ethereal gentleness. Sweet and atmospheric, this duo proved that you don't have to be from the US to capture the spirit of boundless Americana."
Donne Resio - Drum Media
"The Yearlings have once again come up with a beautiful, tender album of original tunes from Robyn Chalklen and Chris Parkinson. Fitting somewhere in between Gillian Welch and the Cowboy Junkies, The Yearlings are in the best handful of country roots acts in the country and on this their third album they have produced another cracker of a record.”
Dave Clarke, Readings
“The Yearlings express the lyrical t
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