Dan Penn

And during Buddy's set, he was joined on stage by his fellow Band of Joy member, Robert Plant; in addition to being joined by Emmylou Harris, who is one of the many guests on this album, Buddy Miller, his first solo album in 15 years.

Those other guests include Shawn Colvin, Lee Ann Womack, Ashley Monroe, The War and Treaty, Jim Lauderdale, Elizabeth Cook, Dan Penn, Regina McCrary, Larry Campbell, and Teresa Williams.

It's an eclectic album, and Buddy himself is an affable and fascinating fellow, and I really enjoyed speaking with him a few weeks ago, shortly after the passing of Dolly Parton and Hayden Panettiere, both of whom worked very closely with Buddy.

So our conversation kinda opened there.

Some days high and some days low.

Folks say I'm stuck in a rut But there's not enough time to change

That, of course, is the song Not Enough Time to Change, written by Dan Penn, who also appears on the record, but on another song, which we'll talk about later, I hope.

Of course, Dan Penn, great songwriter.

You got that? Confusing.

Anyhow, Dan Penn recorded his version of I'm Your Puppet in 1965 on MGM Records.

But it wasn't until it was re- rerecorded by James and Bobby Purify in 1966 that it hit number six.

Let's hear that Dan Penn original now.

[singing] Pull a string and I'll wink at you.

I'm the puppet.

I'm your puppet

Ah, a great song no matter who sings it.

Now, if you watch, if you remember the movie The Commitments, uh, they depict and discuss this, uh, song, and that's set in Ireland.

Well, the song was written by a guy named Dan Penn and Chips Moman.

Decades later, on an album called Vanthology, Dan Penn is gonna take a track that Van Morrison has, had written in homage to Dark End of the Street, a track from him called Bright Side of the Road, and he's gonna cover that song.

Yeah.

Let's hear it right here on Pacific Street Blues.

And I remembered friends.

I remember the first name that came to mind was Dan Penn, who was one of the first guys I met when I moved to town, just by chance.

Yeah, I want to put a pin in that and hold that story for later.

That's great.

But I

thought, man, I could do a record of Dan Penn songs.

He's so deep, and I love him.

And then I thought, I love that place, that point of intersection with where country and R&B meet.

Started this hour with Bobby Bland, A Piece of Gold, 1968 on Duke.

Then one by The Drifters, co-written by Dan Penn.

It was Far From the Maddening Crowd.

Came out on the Atlantic label in 1965.

Yonks.

Teaming up, of course, most famously with Dan Penn.

To compose, if I may say.

To compose, yeah.

My sound is the cream of the crop.

I'm Dan.

So come again, my up, down, down, down.

World's greatest dope master, Dope Maddox.

Larry Campbell is here.

Leanne Womack is here.

Dan Penn is on this recording.

Jim Lauderdale, Sean Colvin.