The Trailer Tapes (Drifter's Church, 2007)

This is where it all began. In 1996, Chris Knight sat down in his rural Kentucky trailer with friend Frank Liddell, played his guitar and sang his songs. Tapes rolled that day, providing this great bare bones CD.

Only 3 of the 11 songs here were released on his prior studio records - acoustic versions of "Something Changed," his brilliant "House and 90 Acres" and the straight shooting "If I Were You".

Knight displays his keen ability to tell stories, creating imagery that makes it seem like he is living the song. From the opening growls in the first song "Backwater Blues," "Where the hells the sun, think its rained for days," Knight shows his rough edges along the way. Knight sings of hard relationships in "Rita's Only Fault" and standing one's ground in a bar with "Move On" as Knight states "I've got a pistol, all you've gots a knife, so you better move on, if it ain't worth your life." Only in the final song "My Only Prayer," does Knight wind down and takes listeners back safely to our sweet Kentucky home.

This is an essential addition to any listener who likes hard-nosed bare boned folk/country music.