Taking place in the rural decay of North Georgia, Pony Bradshaw’s 2021 classic Calico Jim chronicles the lives and stories of a myriad of eccentric characters existing on the outskirts of society– sixth generation hillbillies, snakeskin-boot wearing rich men, crystal meth-addicted Mennonites, and everything in between. These are stories that exist in 21st Century America, but despite our unprecedented access to information in the modern day, these are also stories that are largely distilled into caricatures before they are summarily ignored.
And here’s the thing that makes Calico Jim such a treasure of an album– each of these characters are treated with care and respect, their stories told without an air of judgement. Bradshaw covers Southern tropes like an investigative journalist would, seeing past the surface-level story to find a meaning that is deeper than what can be defined in a single phrase or headline. He is simply here to chronicle the day-to-day movement of these faceless citizens, giving air to lungs that haven’t had the time to breathe deep enough or long enough to muster the air to sing themselves. These are stories told with love and respect, an acknowledgement of the wisdom found in the holler, a celebration of the human spirit that exists in all of us.
Bradshaw doesn’t do it alone. The band backing him, which includes Cody Ray (guitar), Aaron Moehler (bass), Paddy Ryan (percussion), Philippe Bronchtein (pedal steel/organ), and Casey Collis (fiddle/banjo), all handle the responsibility of storytelling with a steady grip. There is no finer example of the band’s collective energy than the steady march “Dope Mountain” makes for four and a half minutes towards its nearly biblical finale.
Pony Bradshaw has produced one of the finest examples of songwriting I’ve heard this year, which is honestly really saying something considering we’re about 159 straight days into listening to one album per day. From the opening stanza to its final fade, Calico Jim firmly drops you into a world that feels as vibrant and tangible as if you were staring at it with your own two eyes. And I feel like a better man for making that journey with him as my guide.
Standout Songs: “Dope Mountain”, “Bodark”, “Hilbilly Possessed”, “Let Us Breathe”, “Foxfire”
