Mix-tape masters make their own music

There’s a subtle sense of satisfaction that comes with constructing the perfect mix-tape. Some would say it’s an art form in itself. Many of us have poured countless hours of sincere thought into making one.

There’s the musical selections themselves, dissecting how the flow from one piece to the next can change mood and emotions, how the lyrics and context all blend together with the melodies into a unifying message—one that the receiver will hopefully enjoy and understand as much as the architect of the mix did when making it. A properly made mix-tape should be much like a story, with a beginning, middle, and conclusion.

{module Share this!|none}North Carolina’s Shannon Whitworth and Barrett Smith have made their own version of a mix-tape, an album of covers that was recorded with passion and earnest admiration for the songwriters who have influenced them over the years. “Bring It On Home” is an album adorned with carefully arranged production, spiced up with the duo’s own embellishments. The end result is a fitting tribute to the original composers as well as a tip of the hat to Whitworth and Smith, who have been steadily making a name for themselves in Western North Carolina and beyond over the past few years.

The idea was one that neither of the North Carolina songwriters expected to embark upon at this point in their careers, but on one particular tour a couple of summers ago, the duo began the early stages of envisioning such a project.

“Barrett and I were traveling through Canada on a tour opening for Chris Isaak,” Whitworth said. “The drives between shows were quite lengthy, so we had hours and hours to talk, dream, and plan. During one of those talks we decided it would be great fun to record a project of some of our favorite songs by some of our favorite artists. The inspiration really was just the songs themselves.”

The pair continued discussing their ultimate song choices. “Somewhere around hour seven of the drive, we start compiling our perfect co-created mix-tape,” Smith said. “Then the idea came to stop into the studio with some friends and have some fun messing around with all these great songs. Before we knew it, we’d put together enough material to make a whole album.”

The album is an inspiring compilation of songs that feels wistfully eloquent and ultimately timeless; “Bring It On Home” is one finely crafted record. The musicianship is convincing and enthusiastically ornamented with attentive precision while allowing a mellow vibe to float among the twelve outstanding tracks, and it is as much a highlight as Whitworth and Smith’s shared lead vocals. “Bring It On Home” features artists like Van Morrison, Sam Cooke, James Taylor, Leonard Cohen, among others. From the soulful “Bring It On Home to Me” to the deliciously chill take on “Moonglow” to the incredibly sultry “I Get Ideas,” the artists back one another with complimenting harmonies and accompaniments throughout the record. “Bring It On Home” is without a doubt one of the best records to emerge from any Western North Carolina artist in 2012.

Q&A with Barrett Smith

SML: Do you remember the first mix-tape you made for someone? What artists/songs were on it?

Smith: I’m picturing a mix-tape from my past. For the cover, I used a glue stick to attach a cool photo of a man climbing Mount Rushmore. He was hanging off one of the presidents’ noses. I think it was Jefferson. There was some Paul Simon on it, “Duncan” I think, which we ended up putting on Bring It On Home, “Trouble” by Cat Stevens, but a version recorded from a VHS tape of the movie, “Harold and Maude,” so there were some interesting sound effects in the background, “Pink Thing” by XTC, “Pigs on the Wing” by Pink Floyd, “Leader of the Band” by Dan Fogelberg… Pretty weird, I guess. I wonder where that tape is now.

How were you able to choose only twelve songs to record?

Somehow, it came pretty natural. The twelve songs on the album are pretty much the first twelve we considered doing. There are definitely some that we wish we could have included, but now we just say we’ll save those for a “Volume 2” someday. Shannon sings “As Time Goes By” from “Casablanca” really well. We’ve got a good version of “Shine On You Crazy Diamond.”

On your album, there’s a great version of a Van Morrison song, “I’ll Be Your Lover, Too.” He also played “Bring It On Home To Me” in concert. Is Van one of your musical influences?

Yeah, definitely, as a singer and a songwriter and band leader, and I’ve deeply admired him as a dancer after seeing his purple jumpsuit performance in “The Last Waltz.” Unbelievable. I usually put “Astral Weeks” on when I have company. I should probably get it on vinyl.

Western North Carolina is filled with incredible musicians and artistic talents. Does living here influence your writing and musical styles?

Definitely. I couldn’t be more proud of the music scene in Western North Carolina, especially right here in Asheville. From the old-time community to the electronic music scene, and everything in between—Indie rock, bluegrass, avant garde jazz, folky singer-songwriter, hiphop, Celtic—there are just a ton of musicians in the area. It’s a very musical place. I love it. That’s why I moved here. And it’s bigger and more impressive than anyone here even really knows. I feel really honored to be a part of it.

There are some impressive musicians backing you up on the album. Was the recording process more spontaneous or carefully arranged?

A lot of both. There was a ton of structure and planning that went into it. But all of that went right out the window if some inspiration took us in a different direction. There are so many great musicians in Asheville, not to mention the musician friends who just happened to be touring through town while we were recording. Having access to so much musical talent is a real blessing, and it’s one of the main reasons we live where we do. Mike Ashworth and Jeff Sipe were there throughout most of the recording. A ton of other friends and musicians passed through during the process.

Echo Mountain Recording studio has produced several outstanding projects over the years. What’s the secret to their success?

The atmosphere is great, the spaces are really special, and the people are cool. Their in-house engineer, Julian Dreyer, was a huge part of the project. We spent hours and hours together trying to make it just right and enjoyed every minute of it. Can’t speak highly enough about the facilities and the people behind Echo Mountain.

What other projects are you currently involved with?

My main project right now is playing and singing in Shannon’s band, which is sounding great these days, but I keep other bands going. Mike Guggino and Nicky Sanders (Steep Canyon Rangers) and I play regularly as the Guggino Trio. It’s all traditional Italian string music, which is weird and beautiful and fun. Cosmic Possums is a great experimental bluegrass band out of Columbia, S.C., that I play with quite a bit, and I do shows under my own name pretty regularly these days, which is probably my favorite thing to do.