The Great Escape

by Barbara Jean

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  • Digital Album

    Immediate download of 10-track album in your choice of high-quality MP3, FLAC, or just about any other format you could possibly desire.

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about

As stunning a recording debut as any Americana release in recent memory, "The Great Escape" is the fully-realized first album by captivating Grand Marais, MN multi-instrumentalist Barbara Jean. Featuring ten original compositions, Barbara Jean plays banjo, viola, and violin while singing her way through the center of heartache and change into the bright light of new beginnings. Produced by Bernie Larsen (El Rayo X, David Lindley) and recorded and engineered by Tom Fabjance (Low, Haley Bonar, Smashing Pumpkins) at the beautiful Sacred Heart Studios during a chilly Duluth winter, "The Great Escape" shines with all the softness, subtlety, and richness of a poignant songwriter at the outset of what promises to be a fabulous career.

Steeped in the waters of Lake Superior these songs deftly combine rich imagery from Barbara Jean’s rugged North Shore home with difficult choices poised in matters of the heart. From start to finish she delivers her narrative with skilled musicianship and a powerful yet vulnerable tone. From the title track ("The Great Escape") so full of longing, to songs of celebration and release ("Keep It Rockin", "Not What You Thought"), the record moves as a cohesive unit with honesty, compassion, and a burning desire to be understood. From dark, brooding contemplations like "Flesh and Bones" to the hopeful pop sensibility found in "Joy", the record brims with understated beauty and genuine song craft. Featuring stellar contributions from Larsen (guitars, bass, drums & backing vocals), Andy Dee (Blue Canvas Orchestra) on steel and slide guitar, David Huckfelt (The Pines) on finger-style guitar, and Boyd Blomberg (The Gooneybirds), "The Great Escape" lands somewhere between the early Appalachian roots of American country music and the best of the rising crop of indie-folk songwriters breathing new life into tradition.

credits

released 23 October 2012
Recorded at Sacred Heart Recording Studio and The Play Pen
Produced by Bernie Larsen
Engineered and mixed by Tom Fabjance
Mastered by HM Mastering
Artwork and layout by Noah Prinsen
Photo by Melissa Koch

All songs copyright Barbara Jean Music BMI
Lyrics, booking, contact info at:
barbarajeanmusic.com

Barbara Jean: vocals, banjo, fiddle, viola, handclaps
Bernie Larsen: drums, bass, backing vocals, wurlitzer, hammond organ, piano, percussion, acoustic guitar 1, 3, 4, 5-10
Andy Dee: pedal steel, ukulele, dobro, weissenborn
Boyd Blomberg: acoustic guitar 1-3, 6-8
David Huckfelt: fingerstyle guitar on Joy
Tom Fabjance: handclaps

Thank you to Tom Fabjance, Bernie Larsen, Andy Dee, Boyd Blomberg, David Huckfelt, Crystal Brinkman, Adam Hansen, Tim Nelson, Eric Swanson, Katy and Bob Meyers, Marinos and Sarah Glitsos, Stephan Hoglund Photography, Noah Prinsen, Noah Siegler, Sacred Heart Recording Studio, The Play Pen, Arrowhead Regional Arts Council, Spinout Records, Stagenorth, Melissa Koch, Kelly Schoenfelder, Rob and Mary Meyers, Anne and Scott Pollock, The Playlist, and The Park Point Carriage House. Barbara Jean is a fiscal year 2012 recipient of a Career Development grant from the Arrowhead Regional Arts Council, which is funded in part by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund and The McKinght Foundation.

tags

tags: americana folk banjo country-alt songwriter viola Minnesota

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about

Barbara Jean grew up immersed in a world of music and sound, honing her early gift for the violin, and a musical legacy passed from grandmother to mother to daughter, into a sharp eye for songwriting and a skilled hand as a multi-instrumentalist. An award-winning songwriter, she has shared bills with such notable acts as Trampled By Turtles, The Pines, Low, Jonathan Edwards, and Meg Hutchinson. ... more

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Track Name: The River
My life with you is over
Only see you in my dreams
It’s hard to know what matters
When your heart’s ripped at the seams

And the sky is turning
From blue to black
And the Road goes on without you
I only see you when I look back

Mysteries weave dark magic
And hide the truth from our eyes
I can’t see what’s coming
On this raft with water open-wide

And the sky is turning
From blue to black
And the Road goes on without you
I only see you when I look back

Heads or tails my friend?
Let’s break it down until the bitter end
Just play your hand
It’s not like I can’t guess, which way you’ll go
So come on and roll the dice
Your game is up

And the sky is turning
From blue to black
And the Road goes on without you
I only see you when I look back

Cypress tress grow tall here
Arch angels of the shadowed lands
Close my eyes and hear you whisper
To reach out and take your hand

And the sky is turning
From blue to black
And the Road goes on without you
I only see you when I look back
Track Name: Joy
I see that look in your eyes
Those gracious eyes that look beyond the times
And when, when you laugh my day lights up
And sun shines in my windowpanes

And how have I come by it all, those things you do
And when can I give you a call, for those things you do
You fix me up when I’m down, with those things you do
And oh-ooo-oh-oh ooo-oh-oh

And I’ve been lost before
In an open house with all closed doors
And dark as it was I got out
Yeah, I survived both rain and drought

And how have I come by it all, those things you do
And when can I give you a call, for those things you do
You fix me up when I’m down, with those things you do
And oh-ooo-oh-oh ooo-oh-oh

Take me back to a time
Where love moves in unbent rhymes
And colors sing out like a song
In world that’s pure with righted wrongs

And how have I come by it all, those things you do
And when can I give you a call, for those things you do
You fix me up when I’m down, with those things you do
And oh-ooo-oh-oh ooo-oh-oh

Blue horizon, just beyond the fog.
You’ll be singing and I know it won’t be long
until time bends and we meet….

I see that look in your eyes
Those gracious eyes that look beyond the times
And when, when you laugh my day lights up
And sun shines in my windowpanes

And how have I come by it all, those things you do
And when can I give you a call, for those things you do
You fix me up when I’m down, with those things you do
And oh-ooo-oh-oh ooo-oh-oh
Track Name: Flesh and Bones
Sometimes gifts they come out in the night
When home lies around you and your spirit takes flight
All these words and a lonesome melody
Hollow stones and miracles can be

You’re a dark dark sider
Only the moon has grown wiser
And you carry me back to your room
I will go where the wind blows
Lost my footing on a back road
Lay me down all flesh and bones

In this big wild world I catch a cry
That draws me in and pulls me to the light
Though I try not to hear or see
The pulse, the thread—won’t let me be (Its takes hold deep and won’t let me be)

You’re a dark dark sider
Only the moon has grown wiser
And you carry me back to your room
I will go where the wind blows
Lost my footing on a back road
Lay me down all flesh and bones

When night ends and meets the day
And the wounds of life fade and decay
Take me out let me feel the sun’s fire
Let me dance, moan and shake—take me higher

And you’re a dark dark sider
Only the moon has grown wiser
And you carry me back to your room
I will go where the wind blows
Lost my footing on a back road
Lay me down all flesh and bones

Hollow minds and hollow hearts/Oh lay me down
Hollow minds and hollow hearts/Oh lay me down
Hollow minds and hollow hearts/Oh lay me down
Hollow minds and hollow hearts/Oh lay me down
Track Name: Snowfalls
Snow falls like little white pearls
That make a bed on the ground where my dreams unfurl

You sleep so softly next to me
With your eyes closed I wonder what you see

And in this small little moment when all seems well
My thoughts are fractured and my head, my head hurts like hell

There’s another life in my mind
Where the love of another is all that I can find

How do I put out a fire that’s burning when it feels so good?
I know I have to and I know I should…yeah I know I should

I don’t know how to figure out
How to be with you right with out a doubt

I can only promise you an honest and real effort
To make us both happy it’s going to take some real, some real hard work

There’s a glint on the horizon when day meets night
A moment full of hesitation that never feels quite right

I think you worry I won’t come back to you
I’ll leave you hanging and lost to the blues

I went inside my darkest shadow to find a key
To try and unlock the guarded secrets that lie inside of me

And snow falls like little white pearls
That make a bed on the ground where my dreams unfurl
Track Name: Keep It Rockin'
The moon is waning and the sun’s going down
Gonna stay up late and go out on the town

A force is rising out there in the night
Come on real quietly then takes flight

Let’s take it slowly honey, take your time
Come to me gently in perfect rhyme

The woodstove’s burning and the kettle’s on
Let’s keep it rockin’ till the break of dawn

A change is coming and it won’t be long
Let’s meet it head on with a brand new song

The birds are singing in the morning
Come back for summer don’t it feel just right

Pick your head up honey hold it high
We can change things if we try
Track Name: The Great Escape
I play this song to remind me
Of all the years I’ve spent with you
There was hurt and heartache
But there was joy in there too

And I don’t want to go too far alone
Cause’ times are hard and the way is long
With scattered pieces of the past around
This little heart, it just might break
It just might break

A quiet path lies out before me
A new road to take
A touch of fear, hope and longing
A chance to make my great escape

And I don’t want to go too far alone
Cause’ times are hard and the way is long
With scattered pieces of the past around
This little heart, it just might break
It just might break

Like fallen sand through my fingers
The days go by and still
The ones with you I remember
Morning sun and the autumn dew

And I don’t want to go too far alone
Cause’ times are hard and the way is long
With scattered pieces of the past around
This little heart, it just might break
It just might break

Now all the birds are leaving
Seeking sun on farther shores
Nights bleed into daytime
People shuttin’ their windows and closing doors

And I don’t want to go too far alone
Cause’ times are hard and the way is long
With scattered pieces of the past around
This little heart, it just might break
It just might break
Track Name: The Fog
Well I should feel good because you gave me the love that I wanted
But like an owl in the day, I’ve gone and lost my way
And I wonder what I dreamed last night

I wonder what I dreamed last night
With the cover of darkness to hide me
With all the stars in the sky and you by my side
I wonder what I dreamed last night

Buried deep down in the ground lie my thoughts, fears and feelings
And I have to dig down in because this time it’s sink or swim
And I wonder what I dreamed last night

I wonder what I dreamed last night
With the cover of darkness to hide me
With all the stars in the sky and you by my side
I wonder what I dreamed last night

Does the answer lie in the night, when my demons are out there roaming?
The goblins of my soul are taking their toll
And I wonder what I dreamed last night

I wonder what I dreamed last night
With the cover of darkness to hide me
With all the stars in the sky and you by my side
I wonder what I dreamed last night

Can you tell me the way to my heart, or am I the only one with that answer
I’m standing in the dark, just missing the mark
And I wonder what I dreamed last night

I wonder what I dreamed last night
With the cover of darkness to hide me
With all the stars in the sky and you by my side
I wonder what I dreamed last night

There’ve been things; it’s been hard to figure out
Like my life, my home and where my heart is
Stumbling blind into your arms, seduced by all your charms
I wonder what I dreamed last night

Yeah I wonder what I dreamed last night
With the cover of darkness to hide me
With all the stars in the sky and you by my side
I wonder what I dreamed last night
Track Name: Lost Heart
Can you tell me how it is?
And how it’s going to be?
Cause’ I can’t live like this
Darling can’t you see

Tell me how to go alone
To face all things on my own
Cause’ I can’t work it out
Not without a doubt

I took my heart down a path
With an end I couldn’t see
Promised to be yours
Said I’d be what I couldn’t be

Tell me how to go alone
To face all things on my own
Cause’ I can’t work it out
Not without a doubt

I’m my own worst enemy
Hard on myself when I’m in need
I can’t hold off and I can’t hold back
Just can’t follow the narrow path

Tell me how to go alone
To face all things on my own
Cause’ I can’t work it out
Not without a doubt

There’s still so much ahead
Wide streams that I must cross
Cause’ a heart without a home
Is a heart that’s lost

Tell me how to go alone
Cause I can’t do this my own
I can’t work it out
Not without a doubt
Track Name: Not What You Thought
When I took your ring and said I do
I promised to be yours
I promised to be true
Now I’m walking away and closing the gate
Get out now darling before it’s too late

I might be the girl that you wanted but I’m not what you thought
My hearts down in the gutter with all the demons that I fought
If I paint a pretty picture and tell a real good lie
It’s so you’ll hold my in the morning and ease the sounds of my cries

Time moves so fast when you’ve got somewhere to be
But when you’re rolling on alone and on empty
Things slow right down to leave you be
With all your regrets and all your unmet needs

I might be the girl that you wanted but I’m not what you thought
My hearts down in the gutter with all the demons that I fought
If I paint a pretty picture and tell a real good lie
It’s so you’ll hold my in the morning and ease the sounds of my cries

The older I get, the less I feel I know
It’s hard on a women who wrestles with her soul
I can’t accept who I am and where I’m supposed to go
Heaven help me to lean when my cups half full

I might be the girl that you wanted but I’m not what you thought
My hearts down in the gutter with all the demons that I fought
If I paint a pretty picture and tell a real good lie
It’s so you’ll hold my in the morning and ease the sounds of my cries
Track Name: Basket of Flowers
I’ve got a basket of flowers and a bucket of tears
And not a single dollar to buy me a beer
I wrote it down yesterday and said it all year
I can’t get away from my fears

Well an eagle flies high in the sky up above
But he’s as out of reach as what I’ve been dreaming of
Why won’t you give to me a little of your love
I want to be the one you dream sweet things of

My body is aching and my heart it feels the same
And the saddest thing of all
is that I’m the one to blame
There’s nobody else, in no one else’s name
I’m alone all alone in this way

The moon hangs in the sky
a crooked smile cocked to one side
And as I travel the road ahead
I leave the nasty things you said
Because my heart is marked
with an arrow and a dart
And I’m doing all I can, not to fall apart