MP3 of the Week: Michael Tarbox, "Have You Been to the City?"

Best known for the stomping blues and Appalachia-tinged roots rock of his Tarbox Ramblers, MICHAEL TARBOX takes a bit of a detour with his new solo disc. A decidedly more acoustic affair — recorded in Nashville and filled out with the occasional piano, pedal steel, fiddle, and trumpet — My Primitive Joy puts Tarbox’s voice and acoustic fingerpicking front and center, along with his shapely, dark, fateful songwriting. Billed as a coming-of-age tale, “Have You Been to the City?” takes a left turn from the left turn, with its heavy bottom, sludgy electric guitar, and Tarbox’s Kinksy melodic turns and mordant delivery. He celebrates the release of My Primitive Joy this Saturday at 7 pm at Johnny D’s, with one set each of the new songs and the Ramblers. In the meantime, you can grab an MP3 of “Have You Been to the City?” below.

DOWNLOAD: Michael Tarbox, "Have You Been to the City?" (mp3)