Cover It Up: The Bean Pickers Union “John Brown” (Jimmy Ryan)

The Bean Pickers Union is a Camber-ville institution in my eyes. An ever evolving and revolving cast of characters around the voice and songs of Chuck Melchin…or in this case, mutual friends of the amorphous band covering mandolin magician Jimmy Ryan.

Playing this song, hearing others play it. It always gets me. This time the lo-fi recording with the air of the room filling out the din. It just feels like the way this song should be heard. In the moment. In the basement red lit bar on Mass Ave around a table and a condenser mic. With a pint of something hoppy or a low ball of some burning brown liquid. Or in someone’s living room swapping favorite songs our pals wrote with our other pals.

As always, Melchin’s voice is vulnerable and the ache of it all. There is an understated beauty in his voice that truly gets me, every single time I get to see him live or pop on one of these demo playlists or records from the band and this songwriter.

While this cover lives in an April 2013 album on Bandcamp, I am not sure where its from or when it was recorded. I am just glad it exists. Enjoy folks.