Album Notes

[Louis Ledford’s] land is the “Old Weird America” Greil Marcus wrote so emotively about. His stories seldom end with a hero on the proverbial mountaintop. His narratives are typically told by the losers, those close to the edge, in the grandest sense. This latest record puts him in front of a microphone, sans accompaniment, where he pours out live-sounding interpretations of his own music, which while not your Daddy’s folk, has one foot planted firmly either side of Cripple Creek. Adios King represents Ledford’s most accomplished work, which at it’s peak stands shoulder to shoulder with that of modern luminaries as Gillian Welch, Patty Griffin, and the like. - J. Holgren, 9X Magazine.

The album’s title refers to a eulogy reputedly spoken by writer Jack Kerouac when informed of the death of Neal Cassady. Ledford discovered the quote in a Rolling Stone magazine he found while cleaning out the cottage he would call home in New Orleans after the hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

The album's 13 original songs, 10 by Ledford and 2 by Louisiana artist/songwriter Gina Phillips ( Free at Last, Little Red Britches ) range in subjects, including Mortality (Everything is Clear, Porchlight ) Lust ( I Never Said ) Love ( Evangeline, When You Fall), Optimism ( Cup of Strong Black Coffee ) Doubt ( Treebranch and Moonlight, Stockcar Angels) and Fear ( So Long ) The recording sessions were engineered and produced very coolly by Bob Rupe, a founding member of the influential roots rock band the Silos and whose work with Cracker, Sparklehorse, Steve Wynn among others is well known. Available on Waterbug Records May of 2007.

Louis Ledford was born in Richmond, Virginia of parents whose lineage reaches back to rural Southwestern Virginia and the Smokey Mountains in North Carolina. His musical education began with a few chords taught to him on a guitar by his country music loving stepfather and has continued as a life long fascination of matching words to those chords, plus a few others. Ledford first won notice as front man for Used Carlotta, a band that was part of the Mid-Atlantic alt-country music scene that included Whiskey Town (Ryan Adams) Six String Drag (Kenny Roby), and the V-Roys (Scott Miller). Used Carlotta released two albums, Wasted Words and Reckless Wheels. Both sold modestly but were acknowledged by critics and fans as very fine records. Many believe Used Carlotta was best represented on stage and is remembered as one of the better bands of that era.