Kansas City

I recently came across a band that is a talented group of artists who call themselves, The New Basement Tapes. This unique band is a collaboration of artists including:  Jim James, Elvis Costello, Marcus Mumford, Taylor Goldsmith, and Rhiannon Giddens. The group formed in 2014, which was also the year they released their album called, Lost on the River: The New Basement Tapes. 

The unique story behind this group revolves around Bob Dylan and the dozens of  hidden “basement tape” songs he had written in the late 1960’s. In the basement of a small house is where Dylan collaborated alongside other artists to create a plethora of hidden lyrics. The album, Lost On The River: The New Basement Tapes, is a process that has been going on for 47 years and was finally released within the last year. This album is a huge celebration of never before heard Bob Dylan masterpieces that were never released to the public. The New Basement Tapes have created something magical that was built from a legendary artist who brings so much talent to the music world. He was generous enough to share his hidden lyrics with the five artists that make up The New Basement Tapes. 

The song Kansas City is one of my favourite songs on the album. This song is a dishevelled love story about a broken heart and having to “pay for what you break”. Marcus Mumford from Mumford and Sons is the lead vocalist for this song and is also backed up by a wide variety of artists and instrumentals. This is such a captivating song that takes you to a deep place of thought and can bring out many different emotions when you follow along with the lyrics.