In 2010, he recorded and toured as part of Robert Plant's "Band of Joy" project.
Scott has also collaborated with Steve Earle, Sam Bush, Emmylou Harris, John Cowan, Verlon Thompson, Guy Clark, Tim O'Brien, Kate Rusby, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, and many others. His unique music has attracted a growing fanbase, and he tours regularly with his own band.
Much of the commentary about Darrell Scott’s career has focused on the songs he’s written that have been recorded by famous names and voices – those known in music industry parlance as “artists.” But then there’s the actual word artist, whose definition has nothing to do with radio hits and red carpets. We refer of course to those who create artifacts of aesthetic and intellectual contemplation and wonder, built from experience, skill, reflection and emotional intent. That’s an artist. And that, at the end of the day, is Darrell Scott.
This is made abundantly clear on A Crooked Road, Scott’s sixth solo studio album. Recorded at home and entirely performed by Scott on a variety of instruments, A Crooked Road falls somewhere between a carefully crafted memoir and an arresting breach of privacy. From the deepest containers of memory, it recounts the bruises and blessings of 30 years of love relationships, stirring the heart with its intimacy and with the enthralling warmth and strength of Scott’s rare voice and musicianship. It is certainly the most introspective and intense project of Scott’s career, spilling over from one CD onto a second, and arranged as a journey with instrumental interludes and a sense of purpose that invites the listener to follow Scott along the crooked road of life, from romantic young man to drama king to lone poet.
Why this album, and why now? Scott says the proximate cause was the approach of his 50th birthday and a long process of adjusting to being single for the first time since first getting married at age 20. The songs were not written with the album in mind specifically, but upon looking at his output over a period of a few years, Scott saw a strong theme emerging. A sequence of songs presented themselves with the kind of clarity that rings an inner bell and signals ‘this is an album.’ Indeed, Scott shelved several other projects temporarily in order to focus on the recording of these 20 songs and pieces.
That recording took place in unusual isolation. Scott generally calls upon peers from the top ranks of roots and Americana music for his projects, but this seemed like the right time to realize a life-long aspiration of making an album by himself. When Darrell was 16, his father, a remarkable songwriter and singer in his own right, purchased a four-track, reel-to-reel recorder. Darrell virtually adopted it, spending many long nights in a shed, laying down parts and harmonizing with himself on a variety of instruments. It was a vital part of his musical schooling, as he figured out how instruments sound together and how to layer parts with grace and taste. While he did engage the help of his regular recording engineer Stephanie Hudacek at a console one floor below his living room “studio,” otherwise Scott worked alone. He would lay down a baseline performance of a song with the right backing instrument, whether guitar, piano or mandocello. Then he added parts, sometimes a single line and in some cases all the parts of a fleshed out band. It is perhaps no surprise that he dedicated the project to guitar pioneer Les Paul, the father of multi-track recording, who died while the album was being recorded at age 94.
As for the music itself, longtime fans of Scott will find a lot that is familiar here: that soul-saturated voice, somewhere between Lowell George and James Taylor, the dazzling instrumental chops and the unfailing judgment about what makes a song sturdy enough to stand up to the wind and weather of time. The album opens with the title track, a simple tune that throws back a bit to the folk-pop of the early 1970s. It lays out the geography of the album to come. “I will sing a lonesome song to anyone who’ll listen,” he says, invoking the muse and inviting the kind of active attention the album merits.
Highlight songs include “Long Wide Open Road,” wherein Darrell recounts his first love with wistful hindsight. “For Suzanne” burrows into the complex cocktail of guilt and anger that remain in the wake of a crashed relationship. “Colorado” finds Scott in lone contemplation on a spiritual road trip. And the passion and humor of a forest-fire romance are described in the rocking “Snow Queen and Drama Llama.” The last stage of the journey achieves new plateaus of insight and peace in songs like the lush and grand “This Time ‘Round” and the spare benediction of “This Beggar’s Heart.”
It’s a special album from a special time in the life of a special recording artist. Its hand-crafted feeling evokes the integrity and permanence of a well-made instrument or an expertly done painting. It may be more somber and vulnerable than Scott’s previous releases, but for that reason it has that much more emotional directness and power. It is truly a self-portrait of the artist as an older and wiser man.
Craig Havighurst
Nashville 2010
Career Highlights:
American Songwriter Top 25 Songs from the last 25 Years - #6: "It's A Great Day To Be Alive" - 2009
Americana Award for Song of the Year - "Hank William's Ghost" 2007
4th Annual Independent Music Award for Album of the Year - Theatre of the Unheard - Jan 2005
Indie Acoustic Best CD Lyrics - 2004
#3 2004 Country Music Songwriter of the Year - (ranked by over 100 music critics)
Grammy Nomination for Best Country Song – "Long Time Gone" Dixie Chicks 2003
Rolling Stone Magazine 2003 Critics Top Albums - Theatre of the Unheard
IBMA Song of the Year Nominee - 2002, 2003
Village Voice Pazz & Jopp Poll - 2000, 2003
Founded Full Light Records - Apr 2003
ASCAP Songwriter of the Year - 2002
Grammy Nomination for Best Country Instrumental Performance – “The Second Mouse” 2001
NSAI Songwriter of the Year - 2001
Miracle of Living
Darrell Scott Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Determined to forget all of the faces he'd known
A little lonesome and a world of troubled mind
With a bed roll on his shoulder and a banjo on his knee
He would hitch a ride with truckers, he believed them to be free
Eighteen wheelers roll a little further down the line
His vision of the Southwest would be realized alone
Alone to wonder how his life had gone thus far
As he walked along the highway
He felt a power from inside
He found a miracle of living
In having nothing left to hide
He walked Carlsbad to White Sands
For forty days and nights
But it only took ten minutes for that man to realize
Lord, it's lonesome everywhere
Now he's living back in Boston, teaching English in high school
Glad to have bi weekly wages
Glad the kids all think he's cool
He's a man who has learned from where he's been
He keeps a bottle full of white sand on his table down the hall
And a worn map of New Mexico thumb tacked on the wall
Oh, you never know, he may need to go again
As he walks along the hallway
He feels that power swell up from inside
And finds a miracle of living
In having nothing left to hide
Oh, it's a miracle
The song "Miracle Of Living" by Darrell Scott, Danny Thompson & Kenny Malone tells the story of a man who leaves his home in Boston in December and travels to New Mexico, hoping to forget the troubles of his past. He carries a bed roll on his shoulder and a banjo on his knee, and hitchhikes with truckers who he believes are free. He is lonely and troubled, and hoping to find solace in the Southwest. But he does not find a girl in Richmond or San Antone, and eventually walks from Carlsbad to White Sands for forty days and nights.
Despite his loneliness and struggles, the man begins to feel a power from inside as he walks along the highway. He realizes that he has found a miracle of living in having nothing left to hide. He returns to Boston and becomes a high school English teacher, thankful for his biweekly wages and the respect of his students. He keeps a bottle of white sand on his table and a worn map of New Mexico on his wall, always ready to return to the Southwest if he needs to.
The song explores themes of loneliness, isolation, and the search for meaning and purpose in life. The man in the song is searching for something that he can't quite put into words, but he finds it in the simple act of walking and experiencing the world around him. The lyrics are rich in imagery and detail, painting a vivid picture of the man's journey and the landscapes he encounters.
Line by Line Meaning
He left Boston in December for New Mexico
He made the decision to leave his home in Boston during the month of December to live in New Mexico.
Determined to forget all of the faces he'd known
With a strong will and motivation, he planned to erase every memory of the people he knew before leaving Boston.
A little lonesome and a world of troubled mind
Feeling slightly lonely and suffering from a number of problems, he was not feeling his best when he left home.
With a bed roll on his shoulder and a banjo on his knee
Taking only a bedroll and his banjo, he set out on a journey to New Mexico.
He would hitch a ride with truckers, he believed them to be free
His method of transportation involved hitchhiking with truck drivers who he envied for their free lifestyle.
Eighteen wheelers roll a little further down the line
As he went down the road hitchhiking, he would watch eighteen-wheelers drive farther and farther down the highway.
He did not meet a girl in Richmond nor in old San Antone
During his travels, he had no luck meeting a girl in either Richmond or San Antonio.
His vision of the Southwest would be realized alone
He knew that he would only be able to imagine what the Southwest would be like on his own, without anyone else by his side.
Alone to wonder how his life had gone thus far
By himself and with plenty of time to think, he pondered how his life had gone up until this point.
As he walked along the highway
As he journeyed along the road to New Mexico on foot,
He felt a power from inside
He began to feel strong, confident, and self-assured.
He found a miracle of living
He discovered the wondrous and magnificent aspects of being alive.
In having nothing left to hide
By having no secrets, he was able to live more fully and openly.
He walked Carlsbad to White Sands
He embarked on a 40-day journey by foot from Carlsbad to White Sands National Park.
For forty days and nights
He devoted his time to this journey without faltering or stopping for a full 40 days and nights.
But it only took ten minutes for that man to realize
Surprisingly, it only took him ten minutes to come to an important realization.
Lord, it's lonesome everywhere
No matter where he went, he found that loneliness was a common feeling amongst all people he came across.
Now he's living back in Boston, teaching English in high school
He has since returned to Boston and is now employed as an English teacher at the local high school.
Glad to have bi weekly wages
He is grateful to have a steady income with bi-weekly paychecks from his teaching job.
Glad the kids all think he's cool
He is pleased that the students he teaches view him in a positive light and admire him.
He's a man who has learned from where he's been
Through his travels and experiences, he has gained valuable knowledge and wisdom.
He keeps a bottle full of white sand on his table down the hall
As a reminder of his journey, he keeps a bottle of white sand on display in his home.
And a worn map of New Mexico thumb tacked on the wall
He also has a well-worn map of New Mexico hanging on his wall with a thumb tack holding it up.
Oh, you never know, he may need to go again
He realizes that in the future he might feel compelled to embark on another journey like the one he took to New Mexico.
As he walks along the hallway
As he makes his way down the hallway of his home,
He feels that power swell up from inside
He feels a surge of strength and confidence welling up within him.
And finds a miracle of living
He rediscovers the awe-inspiring beauty and value of being alive.
In having nothing left to hide
By being completely honest and vulnerable, he is able to live a full and authentic life.
Oh, it's a miracle
He is overwhelmed by the wonder of it all and cannot help but admit that it all truly is a miracle.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, ME GUSTA MUSIC
Written by: DARRELL SCOTT, JAMES SCOTT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind