Donna The Buffalo is back on November 9th, as the Americana dance band is set to release Dance in the Street, their first new album in five years, capturing the dynamic energy that has earned the band the love and respect of their fans, “the Herd”, for thirty years. Today, the band dropped the title track as the first single which can be heard below..
Donna The Buffalo is well known for their lyrics about human potential and community. ThroughoutDance in the Street, Jeb Puryear and Tara Nevins, the band’s co-founders, share songs of social commentary and self-empowerment. “We feel the album provides an enjoyable ride between the general and the personal, from both male and female perspectives,” says Puryear.
Puryear took it upon himself to write a topical song after a friend slyly commented, “We could use some songs like you used to write.” That off-handed remark led directly to “Dance in the Street,” which falls somewhere between Bob Dylan and Bob Marley, with lyrics:
For change of rule, we had better stand,
Before there’s nowhere left to land,
Doomed to histories repeat,
It’s time to dance in the street.
Nevins adapted the imagery in the lyrics from “Dance in the Street” to create the globally-inspired album cover.
“My songs on this record are about letting go,” says Nevins. “Whether it be the attachment of love lost, the past, or the particular blue funk you’re coming out of.” Nevins in particular adds an interesting twist of “creating future” in “Motor,” the inspired second cut of the album with the chorus:
You’ll be dancing under the moon before too long,
You’ll be flying high as a kite when the wind gets blowing,
You’ll be right back where you started,
You’ll be holding tight to the motor that gets you going.
Donna The Buffalo joined forces with legendary Producer/ Engineer Rob Fraboni to record Dance in the Street at Sonic Ranch Studio in El Paso, Texas. Best known as producer of The Last Waltz soundtrack, Fraboni is also acclaimed for his work with Bob Dylan, The Band, Eric Clapton, and The Rolling Stones. Fraboni set out to capture the essence of Donna The Buffalo’s live performances on a studio record. He had the band record in a circle directly to tape. Dance in the Street is a fully analog recording all the way to vinyl. The track list alternates in his-and-hers fashion; even so, Nevins believes the album makes a cohesive statement. “We think of it as painting a picture and I like the picture that we’ve painted with this record,” she says.
Nevins and Puryear have nurtured a close friendship after meeting at an old-time fiddle convention years ago. In 1989 they landed their first gig in a Trumansburg, NY restaurant setting Puryear and Nevins on their musical path. During that time, Puryear took note of Nevins’ songwriting ability – “the first person I met that wrote songs that sounded like you could hear them on the radio”. While they mostly write separately, their music is often on the same wavelength.“ Our history is so long and very successful musically,” he says. “She’s my best friend – we’ve done this forever. It’s a big part of what makes it still interesting to do. We definitely have a good, rough-and-tumble, super-longstanding respect and love.”
Tour dates:
Oct. 4-7 — Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival — Pittsboro, NC
Oct. 12-14 — Suwannee Roots Festival — Live Oak, FL
Oct. 18 — Stage One — Fairfield, CT
Oct. 19 — Hawks & Reed Performing Arts Center — Greenfield, MA
Oct. 20 — City Winery — Boston, MA
Nov. 2 — The Caribou Room — Nederland, CO
Nov. 3 — The State Room — Salt Lake City, UT
Nov 4 — Musical Instrument Museum — Phoenix, AZ
Nov. 5 — 191 Toole — Tucson, AZ
Nov. 6 — Winston’s Beach Club — San Diego, CA
Nov. 7 — Mozambique — Laguna Beach, CA
Nov. 8 — Hopmonk — Sebastopol, CA
Nov. 9 — Slim’s — San Francisco, CA
Nov. 10 — Mississippi Studios — Portland, OR
Nov. 11 — Tractor Tavern — Seattle, WA
Nov. 12 — Live From The Divide — Bozeman, MT
Nov. 14 — CSPS Hall — Cedar Rapids, IA
Nov. 15 — The Metro — Eau Claire, WI
Nov. 16 — Elevation @ The Intersection — Grand Rapids, MI
Nov. 17 — Live at the Ludlow Garage — Cincinnati, OH
Nov. 30 — Songbirds South — Chattanooga, TN
Dec. 1 — Shelby, NC — Don Gibson Theater
Dec. 6 — New Hope Winery — New Hope, PA
Dec. 7 — The Westcott Theater — Syracuse, NY
Dec. 8 — Anthology — Rochester, NY
Dec. 14 — Cohoes Music Hall — Cohoes, NY
Dec. 15 — Chandler Center for the Arts — Randolph, VT
Dec. 28 — City Winery — Atlanta, GA
Dec. 29 — Ponte Vedra Concert Hall — Ponte Vedra Beach, FL
Dec. 30 & 31 — Tampa, FL — Skippers Smokehouse
Jan. 2 — Green Parrot — Key West, FL
Jan. 3 — Riverwalk Stage — Stuart, FL
Jan. 4 — Haw River Ballroom — Saxapahaw, NC
Jan. 5 — City Winery — Nashville, TN
Jan. 18 — Music Box Supper Club — Cleveland, OH
Jan. 19 — Rex Theater — Pittsburgh, PA
Jan. 23 — City Winery — New York, NY
Jan. 24 — The Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center
Jan. 25 — Ransom Steele Tavern — Apalachin, NY
Jan. 26 — Tralf Music Hall — Buffalo, NY
Feb. 1 — Neighborhood Theatre — Charlotte, NY
Feb. 2 — The Jefferson Theater — Charlottesville, VA
