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***The aptly named Denver Gentlemen can take credit for spawning an entire scene and for what is increasingly being referred to as the "Denver Sound." Forget six degrees of separation; members of 16 Horsepower, Slim Cessna's Auto Club, Devotchka, Munly & the Lee Lewis Harlots, Woven Hand, Kalamath Brothers, and Tarantella all spent time in the Gentlemen's ranks. Although heavily influenced by traditional roots music, they tone down the twang of other Denver groups, opting for a gothic-cabaret sound full of piano, accordion, and glockenspiel. Original Gentlemen Jeffrey-Paul Norlander and David Eugene Edwards (aka Woven Hand) formed the band in 1988. When Edwards left the group in 1991 to form 16 Horsepower, Slim Cessna and Frank Hauser jr. joined up briefly, then split to form the Auto Club. Norlander, putting the Gents on hold, followed Edwards's lead and himself joined 16 Horsepower. Thus, five songs on 16HP's third album, Low Estate, were originally Denver Gentlemen songs. Two of these, "The Denver Grab" and "The Lord, He Speak To Me" appear here. Norlander eventually left 16HP (under unpleasant circumstances) and in 2001, reassembled the Gentlemen to celebrate the belated release of the group's first album, Introducing The Denver Gentlemen (recorded back in '95). They've continued performing and recording ever since and are currently working on their third album. 30-second MP3 excerpts: The Lord, He Speak To Me
The Blue Parrot
Mid-Day-Merry-Go-Round
Little Darlin'
W
The Denver Grab
The Potter's Field Special
Vulture Girl
The Legs of Polka
That Certain Kind of Song
Holiday
All My Lady's Women If you have a recent version of iTunes software on your computer, clicking on the link immediately below should open the iTunes application and take you to that album's iTunes page-- where you can listen to samples and buy this album, or individual tracks: go to iTunes to browse downloads for Denver Gentlemen "Introducing the Denver Gentlemen" (Smooch) For a complete listing of Midheaven exclusive albums available for download from the iTunes Music service and emusic.com, please visit the Midheaven Mailorder/Revolver USA Downloadables page. |
