Unlimited Streaming
Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps
Start my trial period and start listening to this albumEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
SubscribeEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
Digital Download
Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.
New Orleans musician Chris Thomas King lost both a home and a recording studio when Hurricane Katrina had landfall at the close of summer in 2005, and it's hardly startling that his album Rise takes Katrina and the devastating aftermath of the storm as a central theme. The result is a tremendously elegiac outing, and even when King goes up-tempo, as he does on a cover of Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi," the song itself is all about incalculable loss and the incredible indifference of contemporary America to its own personal history. Things are drowning and washing away in song after song on Rise, and King isn't afraid to name names. In "Faith," the song's narrator clings to a rooftop as bodies float by and he realizes that President Bush is in a plane over New Orleans in the same instant, and it is a powerful moment that literally defines the notion of differing perspectives. Does he really care, the narrator wonders. Rise deals with loss, death and the hope for rebirth in mostly hushed tones, and while many still think of King as primarily a blues artist, the album is really closer to a kind of pop gospel outing, only stripped of much of the certainty and joy that gospel usually conveys. Rise is King's personal revaluation of America, and the truths he examines are unclear, as perhaps they have always been. Although it works as one long and mostly melancholy suite, a few of Rise's songs do stand out, like the ominous and ultimately resigned "Flow Mississippi Flow," a lightly rewritten version of "St. James Infirmary" (certainly one of the most death-haunted songs in the whole history of American music) and the elegant "'Tis the Last Rose of Summer," which is dedicated to King's mother, who passed in December of 2005. King didn't record this album to further his career so much as a way to stumble towards an understanding of America in the 21st century, using Katrina as a necessary lens. Again, he doesn't come up with answers, but sometimes it's the questions that matter most, although asking why, King suggests, isn't particularly useful when everything has been washed away. What now, is the real question, and the answer to that question is still up in the air. The nature of modern media is to move on to the next thing. King and others whose lives were forever changed by Katrina and its aftermath don't have that option.
© Steve Leggett /TiVo
You are currently listening to samples.
Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.
Listen to this playlist and more than 100 million songs with our unlimited streaming plans.
From kr133.33/month
Chris Thomas King, Artist, MainArtist - Chris Thomas King and Gary Nicholson, Composer - Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI), MusicPublisher
2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI) 2006 21st Century Blues Records
Chris Thomas King, Composer, Artist, MainArtist - Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI), MusicPublisher
2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI) 2006 21st Century Blues Records
Chris Thomas King, Composer, Artist, MainArtist - Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI), MusicPublisher
2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI) 2006 21st Century Blues Records
Chris Thomas King, Composer, Artist, MainArtist - Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI), MusicPublisher
2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI) 2006 21st Century Blues Records
Chris Thomas King, Artist, MainArtist - Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI), MusicPublisher - Traditional arr. Chris Thomas King, Composer
2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI) 2006 21st Century Blues Records
Chris Thomas King, Composer, Artist, MainArtist - Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI), MusicPublisher
2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI) 2006 21st Century Blues Records
Chris Thomas King, Artist, MainArtist - Joni Mitchell arr. Chris Thomas King, Composer - Siquomb Publishing Corp. (BMI), MusicPublisher
2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI) 2006 21st Century Blues Records
Chris Thomas King, Composer, Artist, MainArtist - Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI), MusicPublisher
2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI) 2006 21st Century Blues Records
Chris Thomas King, Composer, Artist, MainArtist - Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI), MusicPublisher
2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI) 2006 21st Century Blues Records
Chris Thomas King, Artist, MainArtist - Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI), MusicPublisher - Traditional arr. Chris Thomas King, Composer
2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI) 2006 21st Century Blues Records
Chris Thomas King, Artist, MainArtist - George Weiss and Bob Thiele / Arr. Chirs Thomas King, Composer - Abilene Music Inc. (ASCAP) / Range Road Music Inc. (ASCAP) / Quartet Music, Inc., MusicPublisher
2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI) 2006 21st Century Blues Records
Album review
New Orleans musician Chris Thomas King lost both a home and a recording studio when Hurricane Katrina had landfall at the close of summer in 2005, and it's hardly startling that his album Rise takes Katrina and the devastating aftermath of the storm as a central theme. The result is a tremendously elegiac outing, and even when King goes up-tempo, as he does on a cover of Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi," the song itself is all about incalculable loss and the incredible indifference of contemporary America to its own personal history. Things are drowning and washing away in song after song on Rise, and King isn't afraid to name names. In "Faith," the song's narrator clings to a rooftop as bodies float by and he realizes that President Bush is in a plane over New Orleans in the same instant, and it is a powerful moment that literally defines the notion of differing perspectives. Does he really care, the narrator wonders. Rise deals with loss, death and the hope for rebirth in mostly hushed tones, and while many still think of King as primarily a blues artist, the album is really closer to a kind of pop gospel outing, only stripped of much of the certainty and joy that gospel usually conveys. Rise is King's personal revaluation of America, and the truths he examines are unclear, as perhaps they have always been. Although it works as one long and mostly melancholy suite, a few of Rise's songs do stand out, like the ominous and ultimately resigned "Flow Mississippi Flow," a lightly rewritten version of "St. James Infirmary" (certainly one of the most death-haunted songs in the whole history of American music) and the elegant "'Tis the Last Rose of Summer," which is dedicated to King's mother, who passed in December of 2005. King didn't record this album to further his career so much as a way to stumble towards an understanding of America in the 21st century, using Katrina as a necessary lens. Again, he doesn't come up with answers, but sometimes it's the questions that matter most, although asking why, King suggests, isn't particularly useful when everything has been washed away. What now, is the real question, and the answer to that question is still up in the air. The nature of modern media is to move on to the next thing. King and others whose lives were forever changed by Katrina and its aftermath don't have that option.
© Steve Leggett /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 11 track(s)
- Total length: 00:46:44
- Main artists: Chris Thomas King
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: 21st Century Blues Records
- Genre: Pop/Rock Pop
2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI) 2006 Young Blues Rebel Music, LLC (BMI)
Improve album informationWhy buy on Qobuz...
-
Stream or download your music
Buy an album or an individual track. Or listen to our entire catalogue with our high-quality unlimited streaming subscriptions.
-
Zero DRM
The downloaded files belong to you, without any usage limit. You can download them as many times as you like.
-
Choose the format best suited for you
Download your purchases in a wide variety of formats (FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF...) depending on your needs.
-
Listen to your purchases on our apps
Download the Qobuz apps for smartphones, tablets and computers, and listen to your purchases wherever you go.