Revival
The debut: T Bone Burnett set Welch and Rawlings in a bare room, then added session players such as James Burton and Jim Keltner.
Gillian Welch, 1996
- Released
- 9 April 1996
- Studio
- Ocean Way, Sound Factory and Sunset Sound, Hollywood; Woodland, Nashville
- Label
- Almo Sounds
- Producer
- T Bone Burnett
Burnett wanted the record to sound like the duo on stage, and he agreed to stay as hands-off as he could. The first week was just the two of them with Burnett and an engineer; Welch remembered the result as very immediate. Later sessions brought in James Burton, Roy Huskey Jr., Jim Keltner and Buddy Harman. It opens with Orphan Girl, which Emmylou Harris had already recorded.
Reviews split. AllMusic called it a superb debut and No Depression praised its austere evocations of rural life, while Ann Powers in Rolling Stone heard manufactured emotion and Robert Christgau doubted the simulation came off. It was nominated for the 1997 Grammy for Best Contemporary Folk Album, and Paste later ranked it third among the best alt-country albums of all time. Acony reissued it after the label move.
Track listing
- Orphan Girl3:57
- Annabelle4:03
- Pass You By3:57
- Barroom Girls4:14
- One More Dollar4:34
- By the Mark3:40
- Paper Wings3:57
- Tear My Stillhouse Down4:32
- Acony Bell3:06
- Only One and Only5:33
Personnel
- Gillian Welch vocals, guitar
- David Rawlings guitar, vocals, bass, Optigan
- James Burton guitar, National steel
- Armando Campean bass
- Buddy Harman drums
- John Hughey pedal steel
- Roy Huskey Jr. bass
- Jay Joyce E-Bow, guitar
- Jim Keltner drums
- Greg Leisz Dobro, Weissenborn
- T Bone Burnett Optigan
More from Gillian Welch
Time (The Revelator) (2001)
Sources
- Revival (Gillian Welch album), Wikipedia
- 30 years ago, Revival was a beautiful, messy remedy to country music's identity crisis, Paste (2026-04-09)
- Revival, versions, Discogs