Sitting on the patio of Hendershot’s sipping a latte on one of those anticipatory not-quite-fall days, multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter Randall Bramblett gives a warm hello to the owner, his good friend and drummer of 15 years Seth Hendershot. Bramblett begins his interview with many praises of Hendershot and his brick-and-mortar, and in fact, he goes on to express admiration and thankfulness for his friends and colleagues in Athens from beginning to end.
Now in his 70s reflecting on a long career as a solo artist, session player and touring musician, Bramblett defines success as “just doing what I’m doing the best I can, and having these great people around me.” Over the decades he’s worked with acclaimed musicians like Steve Winwood, Gregg Allman, Widespread Panic, Chuck Leavell and Marc Cohn, in addition to writing for singers like Bonnie Raitt, but the worldly writer has an adoring appreciation for the comforts and people of his Athens home.
Rolling Stone calls Bramblett “one of the South’s most lyrical and literate songwriters,” and his recently released 13th solo album, Paradise Breakdown, is a shining poetic example. Within its eclectic rootsy soundscape, the album is a reflection of the balance and mysteries of life—turning inexplicable contradictions into crafted juxtapositions. After moving away from “chemicals” to fuel his writing in the early ‘80s, Bramblett says he writes from an authentic and grounded place, leaning into feelings of sadness and anger while still focusing on the world’s beauty.
“Lately I’ve been writing from things that I hear, stories that I hear people tell sometimes. ‘Throw My Cane Away’ was told to me years ago when I was playing with Winwood. A guy that was in the band opening for us from New Orleans, he was good friends with Dr. John, and they got sober and clean, and they ran into each other in New York, just by accident,” says Bramblett. “I kept that for, like, 20 years. It helps to have a true story to work from. I love to just hear things and people having spiritual awakenings… [In the song] one of the guys overdosed, but the joy of their recovery, even if it was just a small time, was just beautiful.”
“Throw My Cane Away” has become Bramblett’s favorite track on the album as a funky song that was able to capture a realness and sadness while being uplifting, too. “It just excites me,” he says, sharing that when he listened to the mix it almost brought him to tears. “The Circus” is a slower-paced song about fall fading into winter that’s also dear to Bramblett, and coincidentally a perfect fit for the season. Reflecting on the themes and sounds of the album in the moment, it struck Bramblett that although he originally had hoped to release this album earlier, the feelings of longing and yearning have found the perfect season for listening.
Released through Strolling Bones Records, half of the album was tracked in East Nashville while the other half was tracked in Athens, downtown at Tweed Recording. Although Bramblett has worked in Nashville for decades with New West Records, this time he says they went to the legendary country capital for one musician: Tom Bukovac.
“He guided these songs on the new record. We let him. I said, ‘I just want you to go do what you want.’ And so he led us through a lot of these things,” says Bramblett.
At the Nashville studio it was a very collaborative experience, including musicians Steve Mackey and Nick Johnson alongside producer/drummer Gerry Hansen. Bramblett says it was nice to be in a different place, but he was “anxious to get back to Athens to play with my guys.” Longtime musical partners Hendershot, Johnson, A.J. Adams and Tom Ryan stepped in, and the result was an album described as built for roadhouse dance floors and dark, lonely corners.
Bramblett’s tight-knit group of musicians, and friends, that he’s worked with over the last decade or two in Athens has elevated his personal recordings because they know each other so well, he explains. As a songwriter, he’s been evolving for a long time, and together this group has evolved with each other.
When Bramblett first started writing songs out of college, he was inspired by James Taylor, then Charles Lloyd’s jazz album Forest Flower took him in a “funky” direction. Listening to early avant-garde musicians sparked an interest in utilizing unusual sounds, and Beck’s Mellow Gold album influenced his use of atmosphere and drum loops. When mentioning artists who changed his life, Bramblett throws out names like Bob Dylan, Miles Davis and Kendrick Lamar. He says of Lamar, “That To Pimp a Butterfly, that is so creative and so risk-taking. It is just amazing.”
Songwriters naturally influence one another, and one of the biggest compliments and validations in the songwriter world is for another well-known musician to cover your song. Blues legend Bettye LaVette took that a step further by creating a full-length album covering 11 of Bramblett’s songs. The album, LaVette!, was nominated for a 2024 Grammy Award. When LaVette told Bramblett she wanted to record this album, he said, “Good luck selling that.” But the result has left him feeling honored and confident.
In his continued musical journey Bramblett says that George Fontaine of New West and Strolling Bones has been his biggest musical supporter and he “probably wouldn’t be able to do this” without him. With the release of Paradise Breakdown through local Strolling Bones, Bramblett says it’s been great to just walk right in to check in or grab some CDs and LPs.
“The main message is, it’s great to be able to play good music that some people are really appreciative of,” says Bramblett.
WHO: Randall Bramblett Album Release Show
WHEN: Friday, Oct. 18, 6 p.m. (doors)
WHERE: The Foundry
HOW MUCH: $20 (adv.), $25
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