I love hearing Heath just go. No need for a hook, it’s all bars, all day.

http://heathmcnease.bandcamp.com/track/hungry-hungry-hippos-let-me-spin-coach

This is a couple years old, but I just saw it this year. It’s a good kung fu movie, but is a bit more story driven than most. Plus, who doesn’t love Donnie Yen?

Version 1 dropped in May, then Version 2 (with extra intellectual rappers added) hit in July. The takeaway from both versions is the same: Aesop Rock uses a lot of words.

This one isn’t really a favorite, as I love this show, but it’s a pretty important event to me. Interested to see what his new show is like.

The Jordan River is being used a metaphor for crossing over from death into life. This is derived from the book of Joshua, which describes the Israelites' conquest of Canaan; a land promised to them by God earlier in the Bible. However, directly in their way stood the Jordan River, across which God provided a path:

And the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood firm on dry ground in the midst of Jordan, and all the Israelites passed over on dry ground, until all the people were passed clean over Jordan. – Joshua 3:17

In the song, Heaven is the promised land, and the Jordan is the last obstacle to reaching it. The songwriter can’t wait to reach this final destination, so he wants the river to get out of the way.

The chorus reflects the Statesmen’s belief that they would meet Jesus and gain entry into Heaven (“that city so fair”) upon death. There is always some inherent uncertainty surrounding death, but so long as they know that Jesus is waiting to greet them, that’s enough.

The Statesmen were known for their energetic performances that pushed the boundaries in Southern Gospel music. They incorporated choreography, hand clapping, and emotive expressions into their performances. Peer groups of the day were pretty reserved, and typically stood still while singing, as conventional wisdom held that hitting the notes properly was the most important aspect of a performance. The Statesmen were among the first to realize that showmanship played an important role as well.

Individual examples of this concept included:

• Hovie Lister, who played piano and acted as the group’s emcee, was known for standing up, showing his trademark red socks, and swinging his hair down into his face while playing. All of this predated Jerry Lee Lewis.

• Jim “Big Chief” Wetherington (bass) was known for shaking his legs while singing, as seen here on the far right. It is thought that this move served as an inspiration for a young Elvis Presley, who regularly attended Statesmen concerts in his youth:

• Jake Hess (lead) was known for his exaggerated facial expressions while singing.

The Ryman auditorium is a famous concert venue in Nashville, TN that has played host to most every country, gospel, and folk artist of note for the past hundred years or so. It is no longer the home of the Grand Ole Opry, as the GOO was moved to a larger capacity venue in 1974, but the Ryman still brings in big name artists. In addition to the The Statesmen, artists as diverse as Neil Young, Erasure, and Band of Horses have all recorded live albums at the Ryman.

This is exactly what it sounds like. These concerts would run from sundown until sunup and they were typically packed. They would feature a wide variety of singing groups, sometimes national acts (like The Statesmen), but most often just locals who wanted to get up on stage and sing.

Group Fly (stylized GRP FLY) is a clothing company based in Oklahoma City. They partnered with Man Bites Dog records to produce the official Gold Tips tee.