White Mansions
White Mansions | ||||
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Studio album by Paul Kennerley | ||||
Released | June 1978 | |||
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Label | A&M | |||
Producer | Glyn Johns | |||
Paul Kennerley chronology | ||||
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White Mansions is a 1978 concept album written by English singer-songwriter Paul Kennerley which imagines the lives of American Southerners in the Confederacy during the Civil War. The songs were performed by country singers, each portraying different characters in an attempt to show the Confederacy and the concept of "Southern pride" through their eyes. The album's vocalists included Waylon Jennings, Jessi Colter, John Dillon and Steve Cash. Eric Clapton played guitar on several tracks. The album charted at #38 on the Country Billboard chart and #181 on the Billboard 200.
In his autobiography, Waylon Jennings claims Kennerley was inspired to compose the songs after hearing "Let’s All Help the Cowboys (Sing the Blues)" on London radio, which had appeared on Jennings 1975 LP Dreaming My Dreams, and declared, "White Mansions is a lovely record, and it touched me in a deeply personal way, as a man whose house is built on a Civil War battlefield and a Southerner. Though it probably went over the heads of its intended audience, making the album was one of my most enjoyable experiences."[1]
The album was re-released in 1999 in a two-for-one package with The Legend of Jesse James, a 1980 concept album conceived by Kennerley.
Characters
The four main characters portrayed in the album are:
- Matthew J. Fuller (played by John Dillon) – The 23-year-old son of a Southern cotton planter, he received a full education in college and military academy. When the Civil War begins, he joins the Confederate Army infantry regiment as a captain.
- Polly Ann Stafford (played by Jessi Colter) – Matthew's significant other; at the start of the war, she begins working in a hospital, tending to wounded and dying soldiers.
- Caleb Stone (played by Steve Cash) – Representing the stereotype of "white trash", Caleb is a man who possesses neither a permanent job nor his own property or land, opting instead for accepting random jobs requiring little skill. He detests the powerful plantation owners of the South and fights against the Union to "preserve his superiority over the blacks".
- The Drifter (played by Waylon Jennings) – The Drifter is the album's narrator. His real name is not known, but the listener is told that he was wounded fighting for Texas in the U.S.-Mexican War; during the Civil War, he doesn't participate in the fighting, traveling from town to town and commenting on the events that unfold instead.
In addition, a single brief track is performed by Rodena Preston's Voices of Deliverance credited as The Slaves; this, as is explained in the liner notes, is symbolic, in that, "despite the fact that they represented over a third of the population of the South, their voice was seldom heard".
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Track listing
All songs written or co-written by Paul Kennerley; "White Trash" co-written by Bernie Leadon.
- "Story to Tell (The Preface)" – 2:52
- Performed by Polly
- "Dixie, Hold On" – 3:14
- Performed by The Drifter
- "Join Around the Flag" – 2:16
- Performed by Matthew
- "White Trash" – 3:55
- Performed by Caleb
- "Last Dance and the Kentucky Racehorse" – 5:26
- Performed by Matthew and Polly
- "Southern Boys" – 2:58
- Performed by Caleb
- "Union Mare and the Confederate Grey" – 3:53
- Performed by The Drifter
- "No One Would Believe a Summer Could Be So Cold" – 2:59
- Performed by Matthew
- "The Southland's Bleeding" – 4:12
- Performed by The Drifter
- "Bring Up the Twelve Pounders" – 0:26
- Performed by Matthew
- "They Laid Waste to Our Land" – 2:33
- Performed by Caleb, Matthew and The Drifter
- "Praise the Lord" – 1:09
- Performed by the Slaves
- "The King Has Called Me Home" – 3:13
- Performed by Caleb
- "Bad Man" – 3:04
- Performed by Matthew
- "Dixie, Now You're Done" – 3:13
- Performed by The Drifter
References
- ^ Jennings, Waylon; Kaye, Lenny (1996). Waylon: An Autobiography. Warner Brooks. pp. 264–265. ISBN 978-0-446-51865-9.
- v
- t
- e
- Waylon at JD's
- Folk-Country
- Leavin' Town
- Nashville Rebel
- Waylon Sings Ol' Harlan
- Love of the Common People
- The One and Only
- Hangin' On
- Only the Greatest
- Jewels
- Just to Satisfy You
- Waylon
- Singer of Sad Songs
- The Taker/Tulsa
- Cedartown, Georgia
- Good Hearted Woman
- Ladies Love Outlaws
- Lonesome, On'ry and Mean
- Honky Tonk Heroes
- This Time
- The Ramblin' Man
- Dreaming My Dreams
- Are You Ready for the Country
- Ol' Waylon
- I've Always Been Crazy
- What Goes Around Comes Around
- Music Man
- Black on Black
- It's Only Rock + Roll
- Waylon and Company
- Never Could Toe the Mark
- Turn the Page
- Sweet Mother Texas
- Will the Wolf Survive
- Hangin' Tough
- A Man Called Hoss
- Full Circle
- The Eagle
- Too Dumb for New York City, Too Ugly for L.A.
- Ol' Waylon Sings Ol' Hank
- Cowboys, Sisters, Rascals & Dirt
- Waymore's Blues (Part II)
- Right for the Time
- Closing In on the Fire
- Waylon Forever
- Goin' Down Rockin': The Last Recordings
- Waylon Live
- Never Say Die: Live
- Live from Austin, TX
- Never Say Die: The Final Concert
- "Stop the World (And Let Me Off)"
- "The Chokin' Kind"
- "Only Daddy That'll Walk the Line"
- "The Days of Sand and Shovels"
- "Brown Eyed Handsome Man"
- "Under Your Spell Again" with Jessi Colter
- "Good Hearted Woman"
- "Sweet Dream Woman"
- "You Can Have Her"
- "We Had It All"
- "You Ask Me To"
- "This Time"
- "I'm a Ramblin' Man"
- "Rainy Day Woman"
- "Dreaming My Dreams with You"
- "Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way"
- "Bob Wills Is Still the King"
- "Can't You See"
- "Are You Ready for the Country"
- "Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love)"
- "I've Always Been Crazy"
- "Don't You Think This Outlaw Bit's Done Got Out of Hand"
- "Amanda"
- "Come With Me"
- "I Ain't Living Long Like This"
- "Clyde"
- "Good Ol' Boys"
- "Shine"
- "Just to Satisfy You" with Willie Nelson
- "Women Do Know How to Carry On"
- "Lucille (You Won't Do Your Daddy's Will)"
- "Hold On, I'm Comin'" with Jerry Reed
- "The Conversation" with Hank Williams Jr.
- "I May Be Used (But Baby I Ain't Used Up)"
- "Never Could Toe the Mark"
- "America"
- "Waltz Me to Heaven"
- "Drinkin' and Dreamin'"
- "Working Without a Net"
- "Will the Wolf Survive"
- "What You'll Do When I'm Gone"
- "The Broken Promise Land"
- "Rose in Paradise"
- "My Rough and Rowdy Days"
- "If Ole Hank Could Only See Us Now"
- "How Much Is It Worth to Live in L.A."
- "Which Way Do I Go (Now That I'm Gone)"
- "Wrong"
- "Where Corn Don't Grow"
- "The Eagle"
Waylon & Willie | |
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Other collaborations | |
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Collaboration singles | |
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- The Best of Waylon Jennings
- Don't Think Twice
- Heartaches by the Number
- Greatest Hits
- Waylon's Greatest Hits, Vol. 2
- The Best of Waylon
- 20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection: The Best of Waylon Jennings
- RCA Country Legends
- Ultimate Waylon Jennings
- 16 Biggest Hits
- Nashville Rebel