Into the Purple Valley is the second studio album by roots rock musician Ry Cooder, released in 1972.
The album's front cover is listed at number 12 on Rolling Stone'''s 100 Greatest Album Covers. It shows Cooder and his then wife, Susan Titelman, in a Buick convertible at the Warner Bros. film lot in Burbank, California.
Background The selection of songs focuses primarily on older American music, including covers of works by Lead Belly and Woody Guthrie, as well as calypso and gospel numbers such as "F.D.R. in Trinidad" and "Denomination Blues". "F.D.R. in Trinidad" was also covered on Discover America (1972), a solo album by Van Dyke Parks, who played keyboards on this album.
"Tear Drops Will Fall" is a cover of a song that became a hit single in 1959 for Dickey Doo & the Don'ts. However, Cooder himself has stated that he first became familiar with the song through Wilson Pickett's version.
Critical receptionRecord Collector'' wrote that the album "reached deep into tradition, unearthing neglected treasures from America’s past and reshaping them for the post-Woodstock generation."
Track listing
Side One "How Can You Keep On Moving (Unless You Migrate Too)" (Agnes "Sis" Cunningham) – 2:25 "Billy the Kid" (Traditional; arranged by Ry Cooder) – 3:45 "Money Honey" (Jesse Stone) – 3:28 "FDR in Trinidad" (Fitz McLean) – 3:01 "Teardrops Will Fall" (Gerry "Dickey Doo" Granahan, Marion Smith) – 3:03 "Denomination Blues" (George Washington Phillips) – 3:58
Side Two "On a Monday" (Lead Belly) – 2:52 "Hey Porter" (Johnny Cash) – 4:34 "Great Dream from Heaven" (instrumental) (Joseph Spence) – 1:53 "Taxes on the Farmer Feeds Us All" (Traditional; arranged by Ry Cooder) – 3:52 "Vigilante Man" (Woody Guthrie) – 4:15
(Note: "Taxes on the Farmer Feeds Us All" was actually composed by Fiddlin' John Carson.)
Personnel Ry Cooder – guitars, mandolin, vocals Van Dyke Parks – keyboards Gloria Jones – vocals Claudia Lennear – vocals George Bohanon – horns Jim Keltner – drums John Craviotto – drums Joe Lane Davis – horns Jim Dickinson – piano Chris Ethridge – bass Milt Holland – percussion Jerry Jumonville – saxophone Fritz Richmond – washtub bass Donna Washburn – vocals Donna Weiss – vocals Ike Williams – horns Technical Mike Salisbury – cover design Marty Evans – cover photography
Billboard charts Chart Peak Pop albums 113
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