MySpace a place for friends

Praise for "Western Tales & Trails":

“Brilliant album”- Rootsville

“Compelling stories from a gifted storyteller... Klein has found a rich vein of songwriting material and mined it with extraordinary skill... incredible stuff, a distillation of wide and tasteful influences that still manages to speak in its own compelling voice... recalling Paul Simon but imbued with the wide eyed spirit of Neil Young”- Americana UK

"[Klein’s] star is on the rise... This troubadour from Athens, Georgia, plays Americana, country, and folk rock once again set to beautiful lyrics, often much avowed and strikingly poetic. Townes Van Zandt, Mark Olson, Steve Earle and Josh Ritter come to mind spontaneously upon listening to Klein’s soul-moving performance." - CtrlAltCountry

“[S]urprisingly strong album by the young singer-songwriter from Athens, Georgia... Klein succeeds in leaving behind a great impression through finely detailed lyrics and an excellent accompanying band... Storytelling is an art which Klein masters”- Kindamuzik

“His songs... fall squarely in the storytelling tradition of such gifted writers as Townes Van Zandt and David Olney. Listening to the Athens, Georgia, artist's material is sometimes like stepping into a sepia-toned photograph, or through the swinging doors of a saloon.”- Russell Hall, No Depression

“Adam Klein serves up nicely-done, understated Americana... evokes prime Band and later-period Byrds”- Jeff Clark, Stomp & Stammer

“Klein’s got the grit of a seasoned pro as he pays homage to a time long past with impeccable charm and grace.”- Alec Wooden, Athens Blur Magazine

“Western Tales & Trails is a mix of dark lyrics, surrounded by an upbeat tempo, and Jim White vocal styling”- Lithium Radio

'Upon a wind-swept hilltop pueblo, a sluggish sun rises with no purpose. Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid are dead. A whispered name hangs in the air, faded. In a boomtown saloon, a driller longs for Ruby Darby, the finest dancing whore in the land. A shunned lover crosses the great west in search of his woman and her ranger beau. A shoot-out in a wasteland of purple sage.'

These are a few of the settings for the songs of "Western Tales & Trails", Athens, GA-based troubadour and singer/songwriter Adam Klein’s dynamic second record. A collection of southern and western-themed legends and story songs, here are timeless tales of longing, journeys, a search, and a hope for something better littered with characters who, despite their chances, are fighting through.

Backed by an all-star cast of players, including acclaimed musician/songwriter Randall Bramblett (Traffic, Allman Brothers, Robbie Robertson), pedal steel master John Neff (Drive-By Truckers), session player Phil Parlapiano (John Prine, ex-Grant Lee Buffalo) and fiddler Dave Blackmon (Widespread Panic), "Western Tales & Trails" stands out as a remarkably strong achievement and clear progression in Klein’s sound and songwriting. Yet it’s not the borrowed talents alone that distinguish the album. Klein delivers a work of art-- finely crafted songs, masterful storytelling, poetic lyricism and striking imagery channelled through his gentle yet penetrating voice. Think Steve Earle "Train A Comin’" meets Josh Ritter’s latest western romp, with Townes Van Zandt stopping by for a drink or two. Klein has marked himself as a true original, a significant new writer who must be heard.

"Western Tales & Trails" builds upon the rustic, country folk of Klein’s debut record, Distant Music, through its fuller sound and instrumentation as well as the varied character of each song. The twelve tracks feature touches of rustic folk, Americana, Texas swing, Sun Studios’ rockabilly, and straightforward folk-rock replete with shimmering guitars, AJ Adams’ untraditional steel stylings, and horns for good measure.

Klein channels the folklore of the American West with great precision, clarity, and effect. And his is a unique perspective, stemming from perhaps a most unlikely of places. “Like Distant Music, I feel this record owes a lot to my time in Mali. It seemed like the old West,” says Klein, “and I think much of the music I’ve been writing since then reflects that atmosphere.”

Drawing inspiration from his time as a Peace Corps Volunteer on the plains of Mali, West Africa, Klein felt a taste of the old West. There, in a West African village at the crossroads of age-old practices and modernity, where change can be slow and the traditional stands firm amidst a process of development, Klein began crafting songs colored by the mystique of the American West of yore. "Western Tales & Trails" captures that familiar aura and spins tales that will linger long beyond the latest listen.

The album was recorded over the course of one year by Athens’ mainstay/multi-instrumentalist AJ Adams (ex-Blueground Undergrass, Bloodkin) at his Troubadour Den studio in Athens.

Behind the strength of "Distant Music", Klein performed throughout the U.S. and toured in Ireland, the UK, and Netherlands. He was an official showcasing artist at the 2008 Folk Alliance conference, and has shared the stage with artists as diverse as Kevn Kinney, Okkervil River, Abigail Washburn & the Sparrow Quartet featuring Bela Fleck, Nels Andrews, Elvis Perkins, KaiserCartel, and Caroline Herring.

With "Western Tales & Trails" Klein demonstrates his already formidable skill at blending the finest elements of folk, Americana, and country in imaginative, engaging songs. Klein is here to stay, and with the soul and voice of a poet, he continues to emerge as a significant new writer and performer in American folk music.

Kind words from Gordon Lamb (Flagpole Magazine)

"Travelin’ Angel: Although ostensibly an Athens artist and singer-songwriter, Adam Klein has really become a citizen of the world. Easily the most enthusiastic and well-traveled person I know, he continues to take his music around the nation and garner impressive accolades worldwide. Currently working on his second album, Klein has been joined by A.J. Adams (Blueground Undergrass) on production duties. The list of players is highly impressive, including Carlton Owens (Bloodkin, M Coast, ex-John Mayer) on drums, Raphael McGregor (NationBeat) on guitar and lap steel, Phillip McArdle (Wydelles, ex-Star Room Boys) and Jess Franklin (Tishamingo) on guitar; John Neff (Drive-By Truckers) will add his gorgeous pedal steel sounds, and William Tonks (Barbara Cue, WE/RI) adds dobro to the mix. As they say, holy Toledo!"

Praise for "Distant Music":

"On Distant Music, Adam Klein plays his role of a singer-songwriter who isn’t quite folk, and isn’t quite alt.country, but rather nestled nicely between the two. With the sweet opener, “St. Paul,” he walks that fine line and ends up with a sound resembling Soul Asylum’s Dave Pirner. On the acoustic-laced “Restless Soul” and the barren “Dusty Rose” he works in the vein of Tim Easton or others of that fine ilk. Klein rarely ventures out of this comfort zone, instead nailing tunes like “Full Moon Night” out of the park with its subtle pedal steel accents. It’s the sort of music you’d hate to hear in a bar because people would be idiotically talking over tunes such as “Visions Of Faith” with its close, hushed feeling running throughout it. The same can be said for “Truck Stop Love,” the somewhat warm and folksy “Walkin’” that shines bright, and the Nebraska-ish album highight, “Bound To Roam.” Distant Music is a great album, but one that will sadly fall under most people’s radar."- Glide Magazine

"... an engaging debut that's as reliable and uncomplicated as a stout cup of coffee. It's a fun, unpretentious batch of originals that suits this decade as well as any of the previous four."- Flagpole Magazine

"Distant Music... holds enough quality to grow into a leading roll of its genre."- JacobVisser.nl

"What a beauty! With thirteen songs this newcomer is already keeping us for days in a spell of wonder... With closed eyes it is not difficult to picture exactly what the songwriter means to convey. Just imagine Klein, for the occasion accompanied by his acoustic guitar, sitting at dusk at the banks of the Niger, plucking away at his instrument and timidly breaking the silence with newly arranged tunes."- Ctrlaltcountry.be

“Beautiful, thrilling… sincere narratives. [Klein] brings a pure song with a rare sincerity and intensity seldom heard in today’s music”- Freddy Celis, Rootstime

"Klein is exploring standard themes common to most songwriters. However, the fact that his songs are so obviously well-crafted, and the fact that his presentation— an engaging voice and quiet, acoustic country meets early-Dylanesque folk arrangements— ensures that Klein rises above the pack."- Sing Out!

"Klein has a poet's soul“- Frank Gutch, Jr., Folk & Acoustic Music Exchange

".. an album steeped in the cosmic cowboy music of the late 1960s to early 1970s. Think Neil Young’s loping country beat from Harvest and the harmonies of The Band. You can hear familiar echoes of musicians like Woody Guthrie, Guy Clark and Bob Dylan… As with Dylan during his domestic period (1968-74), Klein’s songs reflect a life being lived... one part Planet Waves and one part Travels with Charlie."- Warren McQuiston, Southeast Performer Magazine

'WESTERN TALES & TRAILS'

'DISTANT MUSIC'