It's a bold new age of information. YouTube represents an archive of millions of hidden or long-forgotten documentations of some of the greatest performers in music, free and at the tips of our fingers. This week an Idaho farmboy shows us how they do it out West.
It's doubtful you've ever met anyone nicer than Josh Ritter. It's as if the boy next door learned how to play the guitar, string lyrics together and strapped on a permanent smile. The 30-year-old singer/songwriter glows with energy, as does his music. After many shows he even comes out into the audience to talk to fans - bear hug included. If you missed Ritter's performance at Penn's own World Caf‚ Live last week, his "Lillian, Egypt" music video provides a glimpse into his playful antics. Ritter celebrates his Western roots (he grew up in Moscow, Idaho) with a video shot as a silent movie in the Old West, caption stills and all. The song itself reads like a short story, and Ritter's video perfectly puts that story on screen. In the video (shot completely in black and white) Ritter and his new flame Lillian head west only to have her stolen by a hotshot silent movie producer. The quick, upbeat melody meshes perfectly with the Old West theme - and the styled captions (it's a silent movie, remember) and overly emotional expressions make it a true throwback... for all of you who grew up in the 1920s. Ritter, for sure, won't stay off the radar for much longer - his music is just too good. He's been called a young Bob Dylan or Bruce Springsteen, and a number of music columnists have named his most recent album The Animal Years the best of 2006. Check out his video before everyone else on the block has.
