XL Cover Story

A Gourds discography

'Dem's Good Beeble' (1997)

Although quintessentially South Austin, the Gourds took root in Jimmy Smith's North Austin abode, where scribbling on the walls whatever came to mind sprouted an assured debut of 16 original ditties that evolved out of Uncle Tupelo's alt-country. On "Caledonia," Smith kept it simple with goofy nonsequiturs: "Lump o' gold the size of your head/A little bramble in your bed/Happy day in a boat/Trade a heifer for a goat.' Meanwhile, Kevin Russell, the Jay Farrar (mentor) to Smith's Jeff Tweedy (protégé), drawled out singalongs about living forever but not having enough money to pay for it with the authenticity of Ryman Auditorium's royalty. And Claude Bernard's faithful accordion wheezed on.

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The Gourds, ripened with age

'Stadium Blitzer' (1998)

The front-porch atmospheric of crickets chirping opens this album that almost wasn't (the band's label was embroiled in bankruptcy proceedings). Eventually, a banjo and mandolin appear in support of Russell's rationalization of Christianity on "Lament," a "Walkin' Boss"-copped bluegrass number about a preacher who hides his vices. By now, the band is confident and anxious to defy categorization. Their mission statement involves stretching hipster hillbilly to include the junkyard polka of 'LGO' and the Tex-Mex ska of "I Ate the Haggis." Even Jon Dee Graham couldn't resist this brain-dropping session, lending lap steel on closer "I Like Drinking" before the crickets return for a finale.

'Ghosts of Hallelujah' (1999)

Trading drummer Charlie Llewellin for the Damnations' timekeeper, Keith Langford, and adding Uncle Tupelo and Wilco multi-instrumentalist Max Johnston didn't introduce instant innovation as much as it tightened the nuts and bolts — albeit to the detriment of the previous album's unabashed rawness. Still, Russell goes where few if any in country have, showing his non-colors on "Gangsta Lean," a plea cribbed from William DeVaughn's "Be Thankful For What You Got" to end senseless killing. Listen closely to "Bean Bowl" and "My Time, Yer Time" for the plastic toy organ that Richard Buckner tossed in a trash can behind the old Electric Lounge.

'Bolsa de Agua' (2000)

This album marks a number of firsts, including furnished lyrics, which makes literary what at times is audible gibberish; a new label, venerable roots-based Sugar Hill Records; and Johnston stepping up to the mike with equally righteous "Jesus Christ with Signs Following" and "O Rings." Playing originals that sound convincingly traditional suggests the new lineup had found their voice, and Doug Sahm, to whom the album is dedicated, obviously influences it. What some band members haven't found, though, is athleticism, as evidenced by the football sequences in the CD's video of "El Paso." One last first: a cover song in the form of Federico Garcia Lorca's poem "Flamenco Cabaret."

'Shinebox' (2001)

Career-long advocacy of booze, pot and whatnot reached a crescendo with Russell's rendition of Snoop Dogg's "Gin and Juice." While it's the band's most celebrated cover — having thrust them briefly into the mainstream, even though many Napsterphiles thought they were Phish — Smith's play on David Bowie's "Ziggy Stardust" is what taking a song and making it your own is all about (thanks, of course, to Russell's frenetic mandolin). Covers of cuts by Townes Van Zandt, Billy Joe Shaver and Nils Lofgren help fill up this EP-cum-LP along with a couple live versions of Stadium Blitzer classics to appease those fans who hang on the band's every word like their aquatic counterparts' followers.

'Cow Fish Fowl or Pig' (2002)

Halfway through this ostensible concept album (it's divided into two parts and has an intermission), there's a field recording of a man outside Juanita's Cantina in Little Rock, Ark., who identifies himself simply as "the short guy from Chi-Town," and raps about spiritual enlightenment: "Didn't care/Didn't even fear God/Now I know/How things go/When God says go, and I flow." The Devil he discardeth is the one to whom Russell selleth his soul on the double dose of confoundingly poetic "Roll & Tumble" and maniacally declaratory "Ants on the Melon." The banter on the hidden track is priceless.

'Growin' a Beard: The Soundtrack' (2003)

If Shane McGowan sat in with David Grisman and Jerry Garcia, it might have sounded like opener "Lion's Mane" — immaculate leprechaun music with a wee bit of punk. It's St. Patrick's Day, and the men of Shamrock, Texas, are participating in the town's annual beard-growing contest. Except these aren't just any beards — they're Donegal beards! (Think Abraham Lincoln.) Smith, in his best brogue, elaborates on its merits: "And as for snot and boogers, they bloody can't be seen/You need a bald upper lip to maintain one's hygiene." Five of the 12 songs here are doubled as alternate takes, but the accompanying DVD of the documentary makes up for the shortcoming.

'Blood of the Ram' (2004)

Modernists should jump into the discography here. A new label, new manager, autonomy in the studio — all spell Big League push. Bernard shows why he's the band's spinal cord. (And it has nothing to do with the fine artwork he's contributed to the CDs' booklets since the band's inception.) His accordion weaves subtly yet efficiently, like a preying snake. On "Lower 48," it lends credence to Russell's impersonation of Bruce Springsteen had he come from Louisiana instead of Jersey. Likewise, on "TTT Gas," his organ channels Duane Allman. P.S. It wouldn't be farfetched to postulate that Russell's 'Escalade' coaxed Al Green off the pulpit and back into the studio.

'Heavy Ornamentals' (2006)

This is the diamond at the bottom of the mine. Slick and polished, its success will test whether the Gourds' reign as Austin's exemplar for the past decade means anything outside the city limits. It should. Nevertheless, Smith, like any ambitious student, has eclipsed the gap posed by his teacher, Russell, in terms of lyrical spontaneity (on "New Roommate," he describes his title character as such: "Always late on the rent/Couldn't buy a bag of farts") and vocal arranging ("Collection's Getting" whispers and moans with the weight of the poor life). But by no means has Russell slacked. Oh, no. Give 'em riches or give 'em fame or expect 'em to get fed up with each other and call it a day.