Here’s some old-timey goodness from Bird Dog called “Fare Thee Well,” from their forthcoming EP Bon Bon Voyage out this spring.
Vocal harmonies and a swayin’ in the breeze strummy accompaniment outline this sentimental tune.
Bird Dog’s Ben Chace shares,”’Fare Thee Well’ features the guitar work of Mark Dobbyn, comping on his Kay “Vinny Roberts” arch top with melodic embellishments on his Meteor Electric run through a Premier 88. Both guitars were restored by Dobbyn himself:
Bird Dog was founded in 2010 by Ben and Nathaniel Chace, Mark Dobbyn and Paul Defiglia. Ben and Paul, who were friends from NYU, were commissioned to record a song for visual artist Xaviera Simmons’ multimedia vinyl project, Thundersnow Road.
They put together a band to record the song “Wandering Through The Pines,” which appeared on Simmons’ compilation and was released on vinyl only by Merge with contributions from Yim Yames, Tunde Adebimpe among others. Bird Dog began performing soon afterwards around New York City playing songs written by Ben Chace, a filmmaker by day, whose debut feature, Wah Do Dem, was named one of the top 10 films of 2010 by ArtForum and featured appearances by Norah Jones, MGMT and Yeasayer.
Bird Dog dreams up strange versions of songs you’ve always loved, misremembering classic melodies and polyrhythms heard in passing. Brothers sing unison while Dogs harmonize on hot summer days in a country barn, blowing whiskey over pagan saints, playing ping pong and listening to Levon between takes. It's a dip in the icy swimming hole. A band of ramblers, storytellers, lute-makers and motorcycle repairmen, an encyclopedia of bad jokes recorded by the son of a cop from Worcester.
Acoustic Nation is written by Laura B. Whitmore, a music industry marketing veteran, music journalist and editor, who has contributed to Parade.com, Guitar World, and others. She has interviewed hundreds of musicians and hosts the She Rocks Podcast. As the founder of the Women’s International Music Network, she advocates for women in the music industry and produces the annual She Rocks Awards. She is the Senior Vice President of Marketing for Positive Grid, making the world safe for guitar exploration everywhere! A guitarist and singer/songwriter, Laura is currently co-writing an album of pop songs that empower and energize girls.
