Once in a Very Blue Moon
Studio album by
Nanci Griffith
Released1985
RecordedJune 26 – July 2, 1984
StudioJack Clement's Cowboy Arms Hotel and Recording Spa, Nashville, Tennessee
GenreCountry
Length
  • LP (34:32)
  • CD (39:01)
LabelPhilo
ProducerJim Rooney, Nanci Griffith
Nanci Griffith chronology
Poet in My Window
(1982)		 Once in a Very Blue Moon
(1985)		 The Last of the True Believers
(1986)

Once in a Very Blue Moon is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Nanci Griffith, released in 1985.[1] The album had more of a country sound than her previous albums. Her first two albums were backed sparsely with instrumentation, but starting with this album, the whole complement of country-styled instrumentalists can be heard. Noted country musicians performing on the album include banjo player, Béla Fleck, champion fiddle player, Mark O'Connor, and pedal steel master, Lloyd Green. The title song was covered by Dolly Parton, who included her version on her Real Love album in 1985.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[3]

Vik Iyengar at AllMusic wrote, "Nanci Griffith finds her voice on her third studio album, Once in a Very Blue Moon. This is the album where she established her musical identity – she is at home in many genres (which perhaps explains why she never gets played on formatted radio stations), and seamlessly blends folk, bluegrass, and country with a group of stellar musicians, including guitarist Pat Alger and a young banjo player named Béla Fleck." He concluded the review with, "This album marks the emergence of a major talent."[2]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Nanci Griffith, unless otherwise noted

LP (Side one)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Ghost in the Music"
2:46
2."Love Is a Hard Waltz" 3:07
3."Roseville Fair"Bill Staines2:56
4."Mary and Omie" 4:27
5."Friend Out in the Madness" 2:39
6."Time Alone" 1:57
LP (Side two)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Ballad of Robin Winter-Smith"Richard Dobson3:12
2."Daddy Said" 2:32
3."Once in a Very Blue Moon"
2:31
4."I'm Not Drivin' These Wheels" 3:14
5."Year down in New Orleans" 2:26
6."Spin on a Red Brick Floor" 2:45
Total length:34:32
CD
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Ghost in the Music"
  • Nanci Griffith
  • Eric Taylor
2:48
2."Love Is a Hard Waltz" 3:10
3."Roseville Fair"Bill Staines2:59
4."Mary & Omie" 4:28
5."Friend Out in the Madness" 2:41
6."I'm Not Drivin' These Wheels" 3:17
7."Time Alone" 2:01
8."Ballad of Robin Winter-Smith"Richard Dobson3:14
9."Daddy Said" 2:35
10."Once in a Very Blue Moon"
  • Pat Alger
  • Eugene Levine
2:34
11."If I Were the Woman You Wanted"Lyle Lovett3:54
12."Year down in New Orleans" 2:28
13."Spin on a Red Brick Floor" 2:52
Total length:39:01

Personnel

  • Nanci Griffith – acoustic guitar, lead vocals, harmony vocals
  • Pat Alger – acoustic guitar, "Mark Howard's high-string guitar"
  • John Catchings – cello
  • Philip Donnelly – electric guitar, "sea gulls"
  • Stephen Doster – acoustic guitar, electric guitar
  • Béla Fleck – banjo
  • Denise Franke – harmony vocals
  • Lloyd Green – dobro, pedal steel
  • Mark Howard – acoustic rhythm guitar, high-strung guitar
  • Roy Huskey Jr. – upright bass
  • Lyle Lovett – harmony vocals[4]
  • Terry Mcmillan – harmonica
  • Kenny Malone – percussion
  • Mark O'Connor – piccolo mandolin, mandolin, fiddle, mandola
  • Ralph Vitello – piano, synthesizer
  • Jack and Gertie Miller – "the bottom line"

Production

  • Producer – Nanci Griffith
  • Cover Design – Nanci Griffith, Bill Narum
  • Cover Lettering – Bill Narum
  • Producer – Jim Rooney
  • Mastered by – Jim Lloyd
  • Executive Producer – Wayne R. Miller
  • Cover Photography – Daniel Schaefer, Wayne R. Miller
    • Front and back cover were shot at The Blue Moon Cafe, Austin, Texas
  • Back Cover Diners – Humphrey Brown, Sr., Jacqui Brown, Jason Brown, Humphrey Brown, Jr., Nanci Griffith
  • Graphics – Marlin D. Griffith, Josephine Gibson

Track listing and credits adapted from the album's liner notes.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Rolling Stone Magazine (1992). The Rolling Stone Album Guide (3rd ed.). Random House. pp. 191–192. ISBN 9780679737292.
  2. 1 2 Iyengar, Vik. AllMusic Review at AllMusic. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  3. ↑ The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. pp. 291–292.
  4. ↑ "The following year Nanci Griffith, whom Lyle had interviewed for a school paper while he was in college, recorded his “If I Were the Woman You Wanted” on her Once in a Very Blue Moon album. He also sang on the album as well as her 1985 record Last of the True Believers. " in Lyle Lovett, texassongwriters.com
  5. ↑ Once in a Very Blue Moon (liner notes). Nanci Griffith. Philo. 1985. Philo CD 1096.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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