Welch and Rawlings have collaborated on seven critically acclaimed albums, five released under her name, and two released under the name Dave Rawlings Machine. Her 1996 debut, Revival, and the 2001 release Time (The Revelator), received nominations for the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album. Her 2003 album, Soul Journey, introduced electric guitar, drums, and a more upbeat sound to their body of work. After a gap of eight years, she released a fifth studio album, The Harrow & The Harvest, in 2011, which was also nominated for a Grammy for Best Contemporary Folk Album.
Welch was an associate producer and performed on two songs of the soundtrack of the Coen brothers 2000 film O Brother, Where Art Thou?, a platinum album that won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 2002. She also appeared in the film attempting to buy a Soggy Bottom Boys record. Welch, while not one of the principal actors, did sing and provide additional lyrics to the Sirens song "Didn't Leave Nobody but the Baby." In 2018 she and Rawlings wrote the song "When a Cowboy Trades His Spurs for Wings" for the Coens' The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, for which they received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Welch has collaborated and recorded with Alison Krauss, Ryan Adams, Jay Farrar, Emmylou Harris, the Decemberists, Sam Phillips, Conor Oberst, Ani DiFranco, and Robyn Hitchcock.
Gillian Howard Welch was born on October 2, 1967 in New York City, and was adopted by Mitzie Welch (née Marilyn Cottle) and Ken Welch, comedy and music entertainers. Her biological mother was a freshman in college, and her father was a musician visiting New York City. Welch has speculated that her biological father could have been one of her favorite musicians, and she later discovered from her adoptive parents that he was a drummer. Alec Wilkinson of The New Yorker stated that "from an address they had been given, it appeared that her mother ... may have grown up in the mountains of North Carolina". When Welch was three, her adoptive parents moved to Los Angeles to write music for The Carol Burnett Show. They also appeared on The Tonight Show.
As a child, Welch was introduced to the music of American folk singers Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie, and the Carter Family. She performed folk songs with her peers at the Westland Elementary School in Los Angeles. Welch later attended Crossroads School, a high school in Santa Monica, California. While in high school, a local television program featured her as a student who "excelled at everything she did."
Welch and Rawlings incorporate elements of early twentieth century music such as old time, classic country, gospel and traditional bluegrass with modern elements of rhythm and blues, rock 'n' roll, jazz, and punk rock. The New Yorker's Alec Wilkinson maintained their musical style is "not easily classified—it is at once innovative and obliquely reminiscent of past rural forms".
The instrumentation on their songs is usually a simple arrangement, with Welch and Rawlings accompanying their own vocals with acoustic guitars, banjos, or a mandolin. Welch plays rhythm guitar with a 1956 Gibson J-50 (or banjo), while Rawlings plays lead on a 1935 Epiphone Olympic Guitar.The New Yorker's Wilkinson described Rawlings as a "strikingly inventive guitarist" who plays solos that are "daring melodic leaps". A review in No Depression by Andy Moore observed that Rawlings "squeezes, strokes, chokes and does just about everything but blow into" his guitar.
Many songs performed by Welch and Rawlings contain dark themes about social outcasts struggling against such elements as poverty, drug addiction, death, a disconnection from their family, and an unresponsive God. Despite Welch being the lead singer, several of these characters are male. Welch has commented, "To be commercial, everybody wants happy love songs. People would flat-out ask me, 'Don't you have any happy love songs?' Well, as a matter of fact, I don't. I've got songs about orphans and morphine addicts." To reflect these themes, Welch and Rawlings often employ a slow pace to their songs. Their tempo is compared to a "slow heartbeat", and Cowperthwait of Rolling Stone observed that their songs "can lull you into near-hypnosis and then make your jaw drop with one final revelation".
April the 14th Part I
Gillian Welch Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh, they must of known
God moves on the water
Like Casey Jones
So I walked downtown
On my telephone
And took a lazy turn
It was a five band bill
A two dollar show
I saw the van out in front
From Idaho
And the girl passed out
In the backseat trash
There was no way they'd make
Even a half a tank of gas
They looked sick and stoned
And strangely dressed
No one showed
From the local press
But I watched them walk
Through the bottom land
And I wished I played
In a rock and roll band
Hey
Hey
It was the fourteenth day of April
Well they closed it down
With the sail in rags
And I swept up the fags
And the local mags
I threw the plastic cups
Into plastic bags
And the cooks cleaned the kitchen
With the staggers and the jags
Ruination day
And the sky was red
I went back to work
And back to bed
And the iceberg broke
And the Okies fled
And the Great Emancipator
Took a bullet in the back of the head
The song "April the 14th Part 1" by Gillian Welch is a narrative about a day that was historically significant for many reasons. It talks about the tragic sinking of the Titanic, which hit an iceberg on April 14th, 1912. It is said that when the iceberg hit, the people onboard must have known, and the line "God moves on the water" suggests that the tragedy was a result of a divine act. The next line, "like Casey Jones," refers to the legendary railroad engineer who tried to save his train from a collision, sacrificing himself in the process. The line draws a comparison between Casey Jones and the crew on the Titanic, implying that they too had a sense of duty in their respective roles.
The song then shifts to a different narrative, focusing on a five-band concert that the singer attended. The concert was a small and unconventional one, characterized by poor attendance and poorly dressed bands. The lyrics paint a vivid picture of a group of band members who were struggling to make ends meet, featuring a girl passed out in the back of a van, not enough money for gas, and the lack of press coverage. The singer relates to the band's struggle and wishes that she was a part of a rock and roll band as well.
Overall, the lyrics are seemingly unrelated but are creatively woven together to create a meaningful narrative. The song talks about moments of great triumph and tragedy while also recognizing the everyday struggles of ordinary people.
Line by Line Meaning
When the iceberg hit
Refers to the Titanic disaster and how the iceberg hit, indicating the beginning of a tragedy.
Oh, they must of known
Implies that someone knew what was about to happen but didn't prevent the disaster.
God moves on the water
A biblical reference to illustrate that God is present in every situation.
Like Casey Jones
A reference to a train engineer who was determined to deliver his cargo and passed away when he crashed his train, indicating the inevitable fate of those who remain determined to accomplish something.
So I walked downtown
The artist shifts focus to a personal experience of walking downtown.
On my telephone
The singer was presumably talking on the phone while walking.
And took a lazy turn
The singer's walk took a leisurely turn.
Through the red-eye zone
The artist could have been walking through a seedy area of town.
It was a five band bill
The show lineup featured five different musical acts.
A two dollar show
The show cost two dollars to attend.
I saw the van out in front
There was a van parked out in front, presumably belonging to one of the bands.
From Idaho
The van was from the state of Idaho.
And the girl passed out
A female passenger in the van was unconscious.
In the backseat trash
The girl was lying in the backseat amid garbage and debris.
There was no way they'd make
The band was in such bad shape that they wouldn't have enough money to make it to their next destination on tour.
Even a half a tank of gas
The band was so broke they couldn't even afford gas to get to their next tour stop.
They looked sick and stoned
The band members looked unwell and possibly high.
And strangely dressed
The members of the band were wearing unusual clothing.
No one showed
No one from the local media showed up to cover their performance at the show.
From the local press
The artist is referring to the lack of interest from the local press.
But I watched them walk
The artist observes the band as they walked through a marshy area.
Through the bottom land
The band members walked through a low-lying area near a river.
And I wished I played
The singer expresses a desire to play in a rock band.
In a rock and roll band
The artist specifically wanted to play in a rock band.
It was the fourteenth day of April
The singer references the date, almost as if it were a memorial to something significant.
Well they closed it down
The show ended.
With the sail in rags
The venue was in disrepair and the sail, which may have covered the stage or building, was torn.
And I swept up the fags
The artist was left to clean up the remnants of the concert, including cigarette butts.
And the local mags
The artist also collected local newspapers or magazines that were left behind.
I threw the plastic cups
The singer gathered up disposable cups thrown on the ground by attendees.
Into plastic bags
The singer put the cups in plastic bags for easy disposal.
And the cooks cleaned the kitchen
The people working in the kitchen cleaned up after the event as well.
With the staggers and the jags
The kitchen workers may have been stumbling or not fully aware of their surroundings, implying they were under the influence of something.
Ruination day
A reference to the historical date when President Lincoln was assassinated.
And the sky was red
The singer describes the sky as red, indicating an ominous atmosphere.
I went back to work
The artist went back to working their regular job.
And back to bed
After work, the singer went back to sleep.
And the iceberg broke
A reference back to the opening line about the Titanic and how tragedy struck.
And the Okies fled
A reference to the 1930s, where Okies were fleeing Oklahoma in search of work.
And the Great Emancipator
A reference to Abraham Lincoln and how he helped to free slaves during his presidency.
Took a bullet in the back of the head
Refers to the assassination of President Lincoln.
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Gillian Howard Welch, David Todd Rawlings
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind