THE LONG RYDERS – STATE OF OUR UNION LP – Nr MINT A1/B1 UK 1985 ALT COUNTRY ROCK

The Long Ryders – State Of Our Union
(Island Records  1985  ILPS9802)
Matrix No’s: A1/B1 – UK Pressing

Vinyl in Nr MINT condition
(there are 1 or 2 light surface marks visible on the vinyl when held up to the light but they don’t affect the sound quality)

Sleeve in Nr MINT condition

The Long Ryders are an American alternative country and Paisley Underground band, principally active between 1983 and 1987, and which reformed in 2004 to do a reunion tour. They have only performed three times since 2004, but hope to play some reunion shows in summer 2013.

History

The Long Ryders were originally formed by several American musicians who were each multi-instrumentalists, influenced by Gram Parsons and The Byrds, with country and punk rock influences. They were named after the Walter Hill film, The Long Riders. The band featured Sid Griffin, on guitar, autoharp, and bugle, Stephen McCarthy, guitar, steel guitar, mandolin, and banjo, Des Brewer, as bassist, (later replaced by Tom Stevens) and Greg Sowders, playing drums and percussion. Although two members were transplants from the American South, they became a popular rock band, forming in Los Angeles in the early 1980s and originally associated with a movement called the Paisley Underground. With a sound reminiscent of Gram Parsons, Buffalo Springfield and The Flying Burrito Brothers, but with a harder edge, they anticipated the alternative country music of the 1990s by a decade. Their early work contained influences of both punk (largely attributed to confirmed anglophile Griffin), and old school country (ironically championed by Englishman Brewer). Former Byrd Gene Clark added vocals to the song “Ivory Tower,” on the 1984 Native Sons.

The Long Ryders formed from the ashes of the Los Angeles band The Unclaimed. Their initial studio release the “10-5-60” EP consisted of Griffin, Brewer, McCarthy, and Sowders. Brewer left after the release of “10-5-60”. He was replaced by Tom Stevens and that line-up remained in place until their eventual demise.

The group disbanded in 1987, but reunited in 2004 for a brief European tour, including a performance at the Glastonbury Festival. After another long separation, the band reunited again playing their first Long Ryders live dates in the U.S. in nearly twenty two years beginning on January 9 and 10, 2009 at The Earl in Atlanta, Georgia. The Long Ryders are not reformed, since 2004’s reunion tour they have only played three times. A live album was released from the 2004 reunion tour but no new studio material has appeared from them since 1987.

McCarthy appeared on the 1990 multi-artist album True Voices duetting with Carla Olson on the Tom Jans song Loving Arms.

Apart from occasional Long Ryders activity, Griffin, who relocated to London, has kept busy as a solo artist and bandleader (The Coal Porters, Western Electric), and as a music journalist and author. His latest book was Million Dollar Bash: Bob Dylan, The Band & the Basement Tapes (Jawbone Press, UK/U.S., 2007). McCarthy, after a stint leading his own band, Walker Stories, returned home to Richmond, Virginia; he played in the indie supergroup Gutterball with Steve Wynn and fellow Richmondites Bryan Harvey and Johnny Hott of House of Freaks, and in 2003 began playing with The Jayhawks. Stevens returned to his native Indiana, earned a degree in computer science and continues to release solo albums. Additionally Sowders, who was married for a time to singer Lucinda Williams, went to work in music publishing. Brewer continued to play the Los Angeles circuit, first accompanying various female singer-songwriters, and then moving on to the old school country band, the Misbegotten Cowboys.

State of Our Union is the second studio album by American band the Long Ryders, released in September 1985 by Island Records. It was a success at college and alternative radio stations in the US and reached number 66 on the UK Albums Chart as well as number 2 on the UK Country Chart. The single “Looking for Lewis and Clark” peaked at number 59 on the UK Singles Chart but was never released commercially in the US.

Tracklist

Personnel

The Long Ryders

• Sid Griffin – vocals, guitar, harmonica, autoharp
• Stephen McCarthy – vocals, guitar, banjo, lap steel guitar
• Tom Stevens – vocals, electric and acoustic bass
• Greg Sowders – drums, percussion, keyboards

Technical

• Will Birch – producer
• Neill King – engineer
• Mike Prior – front cover photography
• Dorothea Lange – back cover photography