It’s “just” a black-and-white film, not quite all in one take (although it feels like it), of a driver’s-eye view through the windshield of a car in almost non-stop traffic. But pretty much anyone who’s tried (and tried hard) to succeed at one art form or another may see in it an interior dialogue, too: between the self-pitying voice that says, I may as well give up, and the loving but sterner one that says, Who are you trying to kid? You haven’t started working yet! The visuals which accompany the song seem to encourage a non-literal understanding of what it’s about. But his mother’s simply not having it:īetter start acting like this here’s a race…Īs I say, the literal interpretation works just fine. The guy feels sorry for himself, how hard he works, how little reward he’s gotten for it all, and so on. “Hey Mama,” the single whose video I’ve featured here, can be interpreted literally - as a dialogue between a young man and his mother. (It doesn’t hurt that the label behind them is the legendary Stax Records, described by Wikipedia as “a major factor in the creation of Southern soul and Memphis soul music.”) But yeah: in the spirit of the music and the sense of the lyrics you’ll find plenty of soul. And the lead instrumental voices are those of rock, principally guitar, bass, and drums. Rateliff’s powerful voice won’t make you think Sam Cooke has been reincarnated. How to characterize their music…? The sound is country-ish, Americana-ish, sorta-kinda Southern rock, but the label which seems most often and most strikingly mentioned alongside the band’s name is soul. Suddenly they’re again on everyone’s radar - including mine, this time around - for the release of their second album, Tearing at the Seams. But that notion, apparently, makes sense only because I’d never paid attention to various email notifications I’d received about them in recent years. For more information on Georgia Comes Alive, or to donate to CivicGeorgia and Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda, visit .? I thought I’d never even heard of this band before this week. The marathon streaming event, powered by Nugs.TV and Plus 1, generated more than $160,000 in funds for organizations like CivicGeorgia and Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda that are putting in work on the ground to get Georgians out to the polls. Nathaniel Rateliff joined 50+ other performers and speakers as part of Georgia Comes Alive, presented by Live For Live Music in partnership with voter registration nonprofit HeadCount. Nathaniel Rateliff – Full Set – Georgia Comes Alive Subscribe to the Live For Live Music YouTube channel for more Georgia Comes Alive videos. If you enjoyed the show and have the means, consider donating to Georgia grassroots voter organizations via. Revisit Nathaniel Rateliff’s acoustic set from Georgia Comes Alive in the video below. More relevant lyrics abounded in “Hey Mama” as Rateliff sang, “I never beat you boy/Better start acting like/This here’s a race,” as the race is on in the state of Georgia. Despite Rateliff’s solo presence, the song still carried some of that booming, big-band sound that is indicative of his time with the Night Sweats. Related: Peter Yarrow Revives Protest Folk Spirit, Spotlights Parkland Shooting Survivors At Georgia Comes Alive įinally, Rateliff dug into his last album with the Night Sweats-2018’s Tearing at the Seams-and pulled out “Hey Mama”. As millions prepare to go to the polls today across the Peach State, this election cycle has already seen a record voter turnout and, regardless of the outcome, proves an important milestone in the history of the modern democratic process. Given the stakes of the Georgia Senate runoff election, Rateliff’s repeated refrain of “Don’t say it’s all or nothing, baby” is all the more prescient. Next in the singer-songwriter’s three-song set came “All or Nothing”, also found on And It’s Still Alright. From his cozy studio surrounded by a wall of amplifiers-somewhat ironic given his acoustic performance-Rateliff serenaded audiences with a snapshot of his new, folk-driven direction. Beginning with the title track to his solo endeavor, Rateliff quickly established the calming presence found throughout the record. One of the many chart-topping acts to participate in Georgia Comes Alive was Nathaniel Rateliff, who delivered a solo acoustic set of songs from his critically-acclaimed debut solo album, 2020’s And It’s Still Alright, as well as a throwback to his catalog with the Night Sweats. On Saturday, December 26th, 50+ artists and hundreds of thousands of viewers around the world came together for Georgia Comes Alive, a virtual music festival aimed at promoting voter participation in Georgia’s critical Senate runoff elections on January 5th, 2021.
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