Too tough for folk and too blues-influenced for country, Lynne Hanson’s brand of porch music with a little red dirt can turn on a dime from a sunshine, blue-sky ballad to a full-on thunderstorm of gritty Americana swamp from one song to the next. Her hard-living music has garnered her the nickname “Canada’s own Queen of Americana.” And while her deep, bluesy croon has drawn comparisons to Lucinda Williams and Gillian Welch, it’s the poetry of her lyrics that really sets her apart.
Hanson has released nine studio albums along with two books of poetry over her 18-year solo career. Along the way, she’s won two Canadian Folk Music Awards, as well as the Colleen Peterson Songwriting Award. She’s known for her high-energy, roots guitar-driven live performances, whether playing solo or with her band, the Good Intentions, and has an uncanny way of connecting with her audience with an authenticity that is as entertaining as it is disarming.
Just A Poet is the tenth studio album from Ottawa, Canada-based songwriter and is due out May 24th via Panda Cave Records.
“Just a poet lost for words, springtime without the birds, adrift at sea with just a single oar,” Hanson sings in the title track off her latest album Just A Poet. The award-winning songwriter has again teamed up with producer Jim Bryson, who produced her 2020 release, Just Words, and the result is an album of sounds and songs with a distinctly indie flavor, tied together by well-crafted lyrics and her trademark whiskey-soaked alto.
After almost 20 years of touring and releasing music, the songs and sounds on Just a Poet are as authentic as they come, delivered with a splash of grit and the confidence of an artist who knows who she is.
Today Glide is excited to premiere the standout track “Just A Little Bit,” a twist on your classic break-up song that finds Hanson laying out smart lyrics that capture the downward spiral of a relationship while presenting them in a way that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Her cool vocal delivery meshes wonderfully with a steady good, a slight guitar twang, and gorgeous chorus harmonies that leave this song lingering in your mind long after listening. It’s refreshing to hear the way Hanson marries Americana and country blues with just a touch of R&B groove and a slight pop sensibility in the classical kind of way to make for the kind of song that is sure to grab the attention of listeners well beyond the Canadian border.
Listen to the track and read our interview with Hanson below…
What is the story behind this song? How did it come together? What is it about?
This song is a co-write with my guitar player, Blair Michael Hogan. He sent me an instrumental demo and tasked me with developing a vocal melody and lyrics for the track. He felt the song sounded a little like Bahamas, but I heard more of a Bonnie Raitt influence, so I really pushed it to have a bluesier feel. The song is definitely a break-up song, but with more of a “These Boots Are Made for Walkin’” vibe as opposed to “I Will Always Love You.” The main character in the song is mostly fed up with how things are going in the relationship, and while they know it’s going to hurt a little, they are ready for the end.
Are there any lyric lines that you really love or that really speak to you? What do you feel makes them resonate?
I used a fair bit of imagery when I was writing the lyrics for this song, so there are a few lines that are a lot more show than tell. For example, I sing, “All the words you say feel a little purple / tired of this story gotta skip out on this call.” It’s just a fancy way of saying I think you’re full of sh**, and it’s time to stop believing all your lies and break up with you. I think the song is ultimately relatable because most of us have been at that point in a relationship we knew it was over but our heart wasn’t quite ready to let go. This song is really a pep talk to just bite the bullet and end it because, “Heartbreak hurts but it never killed anyone.”
If listeners can take away one thing from having heard this song, what do you hope that is?
Breakups aren’t fun, and I think most of us at one point in our lives have delayed a break up to avoid the hurt that comes with ending it. Whether you’re the one doing the leaving, or the one being left, it’s never fun to call it a day. But new beginnings start with endings, so holding onto a relationship beyond its expiry date is just a waste of time. Ultimately, I hope that listeners feel empowered listening to this song and can relate to the strength that’s needed to free themselves from an unhealthy situation. At the same time, I hope a few of the lines generate a smile or two, as the song doesn’t take itself too seriously.
How does this song fit in among the others on the forthcoming album? How is it similar or different?
On my last album, I ventured into some fairly quirky territory, both in terms of the songwriting as well as the production. On this forthcoming record, I really wanted to return to my Americana roots and create songs that people could see themselves in. And while the overall sound of the album is cohesive thanks to the production approach we took, there’s a fair amount of variety as far as the songs themselves, running the gamut from blues to country to folk. This song definitely leans a little heavier towards country-blues compared to some of the other songs. That being said, I’ve been a huge fan of songwriters like Patty Griffin and Jason Isbell over the years, and the use of imagery and clever prose, or at least the attempt at it, is what makes this song consistent with the rest of the album.
If you could use only three words to describe your music, what would they be and why?
Three words that capture the essence of my music would be “authentic red dirt,” because I think there’s a real grittiness to my songs, both in terms of the lyrical content as well as the way I approach my sound. It’s about chasing “capital T truth” and not shying away from real emotions, and packaging that up in sound that’s rooted in simplicity rather than being over-produced.
The post SONG PREMIERE: Lynne Hanson Balances Smart Break-Up Lyrics with Cool Country-Blues On “Just A Little Bit” appeared first on Glide Magazine.
