Jeff Barbra and Sarah Pirkle
Barb Hollow Sessions
Barb Hollow Music
By Al Kunz
 Over the years I've
slowly become a grey-haired cynic rapidly approaching full-fledged
curmudgeon status. But twenty-five years ago I was the stereotypical
young newlywed, idealistic enough to believe that love could
conquer all. A tiny apartment furnished with a hand-me-down
couch, orange crate bookshelves, and a wire-spool coffee table
was the norm for young couples then. Those with a little extra
money invested it in a nicer stereo. Kids don't realize how
easy they've got it these days.
Of course I don't really have a clue what it's like for a
young couple setting up housekeeping for the first time today.
(We budding curmudgeons don't need a clue to make definitive
pronouncements.) Just a few years removed from this experience,
Jeff Barbra and Sarah Pirkle are more in touch than I am. Based
on the picture they paint in "Love Can Do A Lot With A Little"
the experience may not have changed that much.
A taped up couch your momma gave to you
A coffee table held together by Elmer's glue
An old washing machine made before our time
Some electric wire we use as laundry line
And what we've got ain't much to see
But anything we've got together is good enough for you and me
We'll never be rich, but we'll never be poor
We'll always have enough in the middle
'Cus love can do a lot with a little
Past winners of the Chris Austin Songwriting Contest held
each year at Merlefest, Barbra and Pirkle are also the former
producer-hosts of the "Behind the Barn" concert series
on WDVX radio (one of the country's premier Americana stations,
famous for its beginning transmitting from a little camper in
the mountains of East Tennessee). Musically they blend bluegrass,
folk, and old-time. Lyrically they often stick with what they
know from experience (as in "Love Can Do A Lot With A Little")
and the universal such as "Thank You Father For My Dad,"
Barbra's co-write with John Pennell (a former bassist with Alison
Krauss, Pennell's prior writing credits include a slew of songs
for Krauss including the title track of her Every Time You
Say Goodbye disc). "Thank You Father" is a prayer
thanking a spiritual father for an earthly one while on "Prayer
For My Friends" (covered by Terri Hendrix on The Ring)
Barbra and Pirkle show their appreciation for their entire support
system.
I'm taking a moment to pray for my friends
A handful of people on who I depend
Our pathways are different but I love them no less
I'm hoping their sorrows will mend
Oh tonight, I pray for my friends
The old saw says "write what you know." While good
advice it's rather limiting and, like a lot of rules, should
sometimes be broken. If through observation of others, imagination,
and creativity a songwriter can successfully put them self into
an alien situation, it not only sharpens their writing chops
but can be one of their top efforts. Two cuts from Barb Hollow
Sessions standout for having done just that. The first of
these, "My Baby Rocks the Cradle and Cries," is sung
from the standpoint of a mother observing her teenage daughter
and newborn grandchild.
Tiny angel, newborn baby
Sweet as you've ever seen
He's momma's little darlin'
She just turned sixteen
My daughter, my own darlin'
I used to hold her that way
If I could go back, I'd hold tighter
Safe in my arms she'd stay
Oh my baby rocks the cradle and cries
She can't keep the tears from her eyes
Though she's just a little girl she brought another into this
world
And my baby rocks the cradle and cries
Actually it's presumptuous of me to assume that "My Baby
" isn't based on personal experience. Whether from experience
or not it perfectly captures the ambiguous feelings of a grandparent
who loves their new grandchild, yet is concerned for their own
child who is finally realizing the seriousness of the situation
they're in.
Bluegrass and country music have a long history of songs about
murderers written from almost every imaginable angle. For example
from Johnny Cash's Murder disc we hear about the innocent
who's been put to death ("Long Black Veil") the cold-blooded
("I shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die") in
"Folsom Prison Blues," and murder as the ultimate reaction
to a less-than-perfect partner ("Delia's Gone" and
"Cocaine Blues"). Jeff Barbra's "Only Home I've
Had" comes at a murderer's story from the new direction
of an institutionalized prisoner who is unexpectedly granted
parole after serving forty years.
Well I ain't never cried a day of my life
'til the day when he said I was free
Now I'm lying awake, my last night here
Hoping that the lord will hear me
Oh lord don't let 'em make me leave
I can't live alone outside
This life is all I've ever known
And these bars, they hold me at night
I won't venture a guess as to the genesis of the depression-suffering
lover in "Today It Don't Look Like Rain" or the love-hardened
man who's slowly softening in "Welcome to My Heart."
Ultimately what matters is the duo's songs ring clear and true
whatever their source.
www.jeffandsarahonline.com
Contact Al Kunz at kunz-at-rockzilla.net
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