VIA PRESS RELEASE | Liberation Hall continues its reissue campaign of The Blasters’ catalog on September 20 with the 30th anniversary re-release of County Fair 2000, the second solo album from the band’s acclaimed frontman Phil Alvin.
Singer-songwriter-musicologist Alvin drew from the deep well of American blues, jazz (both hot and avant garde), R&B, gospel, and early 20th century popular song for the collection’s material. He is joined on the album by the 1994 edition of The Blasters and an illustrious lineup of guests: Cesar Rosas of Los Lobos, Chicago blues ace Billy Boy Arnold, New Orleans’ Dirty Dozen Brass Band, blues shouter Top Jimmy of Top Jimmy & the Rhythm Pigs, and L.A. street musician Jerome Bowman.
In addition to being available on CD and digital, County Fair 2000 will make its vinyl debut in a gatefold LP package; due to time limitations, the LP will omit four songs from the original tracklist. Those songs will, however, appear on CD and digital. The album will be distributed in all formats by MVD Entertainment Group. Pre-order at Bandcamp.
County Fair 2000 received a warm reception from media upon its 1994 release, even if it struggled to find commercial success. Trouser Press wrote that, “It’s a marvel to hear such musty chapters from music’s history books brought to robust modern life in the hands of such a well-versed scholar.” AllMusic agreed and attested, “County Fair 2000 leaves no doubt that Phil Alvin is a premier musicologist, preserving and staying true to what he loves.” NPR described the album as having “room in its melting pot for ragtime, doo-wop, country music, the blues, and lots more.”
Los Angeles music journalist Chris Morris—who contributed liner notes to last year’s inaugural entries in The Blasters’ reissue series, Mandatory: The Best of the Blasters and Phil Alvin’s debut solo album, Un ‘Sung Stories’—once again provides an essay detailing the recording of the album. His liner notes include observations from The Blasters’ James Intveld and John Bazz, band manager Greg Lewerke, plus the original album’s art director, Ed Boswell.
The Blasters appear on four tracks (“County Fair,” “The Blue Line,” “Keep In Touch,” and “Mr. Satellite Man”). In addition to Alvin, the lineup of the band at that time included guitarist James Intveld, bassist John Bazz, and drummer Jerry Angel. Two other Alvin-led musical combos appear, the Guada La Habrians and the ad hoc jazz group, the Faultline Syncopators. Various sessions for the album were recorded in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New Orleans.
