Description
Side 3 – EP
Released: 2012
THE STORY BEHIND SIDE 3
The recording sessions for Beautiful Empty produced too much music for one album. So the band decided to release a followup companion piece named Side 3. It’s a continuation of the ideas, feelings, musicians, instruments, and rooms that created Beautiful Empty. Side 3 isn’t a b-sides record – it’s the third side of Beautiful Empty. With 6 songs and a run time of over 24 minutes, it packs more punch than a typical EP. But John Common is a notoriously prolific writer, so it’s no surprise.
Take a sip from each song and see what you think:
“The Dreamers” looks at those days when “we were smart and young” through the lens of experience that may or may not be wiser.
“Good Heart” is a gorgeous ballad sung by John and Jess with nothing but piano as accompaniment. It sounds like the lost song to Breakfast At Tiffany’s.
“Clap Hands” is a reinterpretation of Tom Waits’ original song from his seminal album, Rain Dogs. This one is filled with lo-fi trashy grooves and field hollers.
“Don’t Follow Virginia” proves that JC&BFoL aren’t afraid of a waltz. Only, this waltz has a gypsy circus driving through the middle and an ending that soars out above the river.
“Do You Know My Name” in 7 words: Dark and epic — a painfully honest appeal.
“Thinking ‘Bout God” is what happens when you escape the gravitational pull of Southern Baptist bible camp and ask unsettling questions late at night.
PRESS FOR SIDE 3
“John Common makes sure that he leaves nothing unturned when he writes. He makes naked people. Or, he turns them naked. He disrobes them.” — Daytrotter
“This critically acclaimed Colorado native brings significantly more lyrical punch and all-around heft than is normally found in the pop singer/songwriter genre.” — Music Beat
“Common makes maturity sound like a condition that thrives on the distance between us all — and that may be the point.” — Nashville Scene, Editors’ Pick
LINER NOTES FOR SIDE 3
SIDE 3 by JOHN COMMON AND BLINDING FLASHES OF LIGHT
John Common :: voice, guitars, piano, rhodes, banjo, mandolin, toy piano
Jess DeNicola :: voice
Daren Hahn :: drums, percussion
Casey Sidwell :: bass
Carl Sorensen :: drums, percussion
Jimmy Stofer :: bass, voice
Jon Wirtz :: rhodes, piano, organ, glockenspiel
Scott McCormick :: accordion
Wesley Michaels :: cello, saxophones, mandolin
Adam Revell :: wurlitzer, rhodes, organ, glockenspiel
Produced by John Common and Blinding Flashes of Light
Engineered by John Macy and Nick Sullivan
Recorded at Macy Sound Studios, Cello Hill and Emmasaurus Studios
Mixed by John Macy
Mastered by Randy LeRoy at Airshow Mastering
Design by Scott McCormick
Photography by Scott McCormick and Kelly Kievit
All songs written by John Common except ‘Can You Hear Me’, lyrics by John Common and Jess DeNicola
Copyright John Common Music / BMI. All Rights Reserved. Worldwide.
