{"id":21192,"date":"2024-05-25T08:43:10","date_gmt":"2024-05-25T15:43:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/?p=21192"},"modified":"2024-05-29T08:18:32","modified_gmt":"2024-05-29T15:18:32","slug":"dana-cooper-video-premiere-the-ghost-of-tucumcari","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/2024\/05\/dana-cooper-video-premiere-the-ghost-of-tucumcari\/","title":{"rendered":"DANA COOPER Video Premiere &#8220;The Ghost of Tucumcari&#8221;"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><strong>VIDEO PREMIERE &amp; WEB-EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Musician:\u00a0 <strong>DANA COOPER<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Video Premiere:\u00a0 \u201c<strong>THE GHOST OF TUCUMCARI<\/strong>\u201d<\/h2>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0rYaoriNV_g?si=eEfg5BW_PmiBveza\" width=\"660\" height=\"440\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><br \/>\n<strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<h1><strong>DANA COOPER<\/strong><strong>\u2014<\/strong><strong>AMERICANA<\/strong><strong>\u2019<\/strong><strong>S COOL HAND LUKE RESURRECTS <em>THE GHOST OF TUCUMCARI<\/em><\/strong><\/h1>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>by Rodeo Marie Hanson<\/p>\n<p>Tucumcari is believed to have come from the Comanche word tukamukaru, which means to lie in wait for someone or something. Dana Cooper\u2019s visual imagery of \u201cThe Ghost of Tucumcari\u201d takes the listener back to the old ways of the Native Americans and the trail of tears that has been left in the shadows of a time that has unfortunately been long forgotten. Yet, the title track is an invitation to the rest of the album that serves to show us how his eyes were opened to his current realization.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-01.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-21196\" src=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-01.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"660\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-01.jpg 660w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-01-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-01-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Cooper is the ultimate non-conformist, the music world\u2019s version of a living, breathing, touring\u00a0Cool Hand Luke<em>,\u00a0<\/em>who much like the titular character played by Paul Newman refuses to yield to external forces or genuflect to authority\u2014choosing instead to make his own dogma along the way. To date, Cooper, the recipient of multiple artistic acknowledgments, including the Nashville Music Award Nomination Best Pop Album,\u00a0has released 32 studio efforts.\u00a0<em>The Ghost of Tucumcari<\/em>, Cooper\u2019s most recent offering,<em>\u00a0<\/em>is a collection of musical metaphors and snapshots of his influences during 50 years spent in the music business\u2014 featuring a supporting cast of artists, including Lyle Lovett, Hayes Carll, Susan Gibson, Mando Saenz, Darden Smith, Shake Russell, David Starr, Gillian Tuite and Libby Koch.<\/p>\n<p>Cooper\u2019s physical incarnation is somewhat deceptive\u2014his gentle exterior belies the peaks and valleys he has experienced in the music industry. Salt and pepper hair make a cameo-like appearance beneath a straw hat accentuated by a brown band providing the perfect canvas, as he flashes a genuine smile revealing pearly whites. Crisp white button-down shirt, dark denim jeans and well-worn mud-stained cowboy boots cling to his slender frame\u2014accouterments reflective of his troubadour lifestyle, far from the silver screen exploits of any rhinestone cowboy. Countless sun-faded stickers of the places he\u2019s performed adorn Cooper\u2019s guitar case\u2014a colorful collage representative of his career and many roads traveled.<\/p>\n<p>The self-confessed former introvert\u2019s persistent path to success is a story rich with redemption, starring all the usual suspects\u2014playing coffee houses, moving to Los Angeles in search of a big break, and sleeping on a friend\u2019s sofa\u2014culminating with a record deal with Elektra, and being booked by a then unknown Lyle Lovett at A&amp;M University in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>A battle-scarred stray cat served as Cooper\u2019s muse for this song. The lyrics speak to the plight of lost souls, animal and human, without a safe place to go or anyone to care for them. The song also speaks to an American dream once thriving, but now in ruins. Lyle Lovett\u2019s vocals whispered hauntingly, make the piece believable.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>After being in the music business for 50 years, Cooper explores the source of his perseverance and how he continues to remain passionate about creating music, \u201cWell, perseverance\u2014I look back at it all, and it just seems like it went by. I mean, it doesn\u2019t feel like I\u2019ve been doing this for 50 years. When I start thinking about it, I realize it has\u2014but I feel pretty much the same way now that I did when I started out. I have a few more aches and pains, but I\u2019ve held up pretty well\u2014physically and mentally. I\u2019ve been up and down so many times and the perseverance part of it\u2014I don\u2019t quite know where that comes from, honestly. I look back and wonder how I came out of some of the stages in life that I did. But, of course along the way, I\u2019ve had a lot of support from friends, loved ones and family\u2014people who believed in what I did. And there may not have been a whole bunch of them sometimes, but there\u2019s always a support system there of some kind\u2014that I could turn to\u2014which helps immensely.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-03-Lyle-Lovett.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-21198\" src=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-03-Lyle-Lovett.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"661\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-03-Lyle-Lovett.jpg 660w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-03-Lyle-Lovett-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-03-Lyle-Lovett-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cAlways Old Friends\u201d\u00a0\u2013 Friendship &amp; Creative Ally Lyle Lovett<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Being signed and dropped by Elektra Records in the early 1970s did not deter Cooper from chasing his dreams and ascending the creative ladder for success. Later that decade, Cooper found a friend in a then unknown Lyle Lovett, meeting the future country star while Lovett was a college student at A&amp;M in College Station, Texas booking the entertainment at the campus\u2019 coffee house. Lovett was a young musician himself booking acts and opening for them. He booked The Shake Russell\u2014Dana Cooper Band, who were very popular around that part of the world. Lovett booked them for two nights, but subsequently was fired from that job because he paid the band so much money. Going over budget cost Lovett his gig but he was allowed to continue opening for shows there.<\/p>\n<p>When Cooper first moved to Nashville, he ran into Lovett on the street\u2014he was leaving town. Like Cooper, Lovett had been turned down by every label there. Lovett gave Cooper a cassette of his album\u00a0<em>Pontiac\u00a0<\/em>(Lovett\u2019s 2nd studio album released in 1987), which Cooper still has, and shortly after that, Lovett got placed on the map with a deal from Curb Records. Cooper\u00a0has opened some concerts for Lyle Lovett and His Large Band, \u201cHe\u2019s always been super gracious to me. He would actually come out on stage and introduce me as the opening act and then he would come out and sing a song with me. So it\u2019s a long-running friendship. He sang with me on my\u00a0<em>Miracle Mile\u00a0<\/em>album (1997), adding harmony to \u2018Too Deep a Sorrow,\u2019 and I just could hear him singing on a couple of songs on this record (<em>The Ghost of Tucumcari<\/em>).\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Singer-songwriter Hayes Carll also makes an appearance on\u00a0<em>The Ghost of Tucumcari<\/em>. Cooper establishes the connection to other musicians featured on his newest album, \u201cI think opening for Shake and me was his first big gig. A concert when he was a very young guy starting out and we just thought he was super talented, a sweet person, very down to earth, and approachable. Susan Gibson, same thing. Susan and I were fast friends the first time we met. All these folks on this record: Darden Smith, Libby Koch, they\u2019re all people I\u2019ve admired and liked\u2014who have always been very supportive of what I do.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>It is only fitting that Dana Cooper\u2019s most recent offering, his 32nd studio album to date, be titled\u00a0<em>The Ghost of Tucumcari\u2014<\/em>named after a city in New Mexico with a humble origin story, which has enjoyed moments of glory. The town of Tucumcari, much like Dana Cooper, is resilient, holds many secrets, and is a thing of beauty that must be experienced on its own terms.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>\u201cI\u2019m Just Passing Through Here\u201d \u2013 Shyness Crumbles Under Perseverance<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A shy demeanor may not necessarily be conducive to an on-stage persona. Cooper struggled with shyness when he started out as a performer. Offering a glimpse into his psyche and how he conquered it, \u201cI was so shy when I started out. I couldn\u2019t get up and get off the bus, if there was anyone who could see me standing there, sitting behind me. So I\u2019d wait until everyone was gone behind where I was going to get up on the bus\u2014so no one would be looking at me. I\u2019d be on my way to get up on the stage, and I sort of had this realization\u00a0one day sitting on the bus. I guess it had been happening for a while but I just told myself, you have to get over this. You have to stand up and get off the bus, while people are looking at you\u2014as excruciating as it is. And you\u2019re on your way to get on the stage, where people are going to be staring at you. That little self-conversation there\u2014I\u2019ve had that many times over the years because my basic nature starting out certainly was very introverted and shy. I\u2019ve gotten to a point where I\u2019m not that way. I can be driven to that spot pretty easily. I get in front of an audience that\u2019s not accepting me or something, which doesn\u2019t happen often. But if it does, I can start to get pretty uncomfortable. But now I have the tools to know how to at least forge through it and act like it isn\u2019t bothering me. I\u2019ve known a lot of friends along the way who\u2019ve given up on music and I totally understand it. I\u2019ve been down and out in places where I just thought, \u2018Oh God, I don\u2019t have any career now. What am I going to do? I\u2019ve got to find a job. I\u2019ve got to find a way to start over.\u2019 And I just always did.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-04.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-21199\" src=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-04.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"445\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-04.jpg 660w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-04-300x202.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cI Can Face the Truth\u201d \u2013 Objectivity As A Co-Producer<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Speaking of the challenges of artists who self-produce, Cooper offers his insight on how he maintains objectivity when working with a co-producer, \u201cI\u2019ve done so many records and been doing it so long, I know who to work with and who I can trust. Their objectivity and their creative input, it\u2019s really important. I work with other musicians that I find exciting and creative, and I allow them to bring their thing to it. I can always intervene and say, well that doesn\u2019t work\u2014I hear it more this way. But I try not to guide people too much, and I love co-producing with people. I like to be flexible and open to changes. So there\u2019s always something on a recording or a song or two, where my co-producer might suggest a different approach to things that I really like pursuing\u2014and it\u2019s fun to do that. Dave Coleman and I worked together on\u00a0<em>I Can Face the Truth<\/em> CD (2022), and I really enjoyed working with him. He\u2019s one of the few people I\u2019ve worked with as a producer who\u2019s really open to letting me try some different things.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The Woody Guthrie classic features Cooper\u2019s friends on vocals\u2014a beautiful example of how people can come together. It\u2019s a message not only for America but the world\u2014during such turbulent and uncertain times. This track is pure Americana.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>\u201cMy America\u201d \u2013 Cooper Continues The Legacy Of Woody Guthrie<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis Land is Your Land\u201d written by Woody Guthrie is probably the most popular folk song ever written, but despite the general consensus it\u2019s far from a happy song celebrating America. It was written in response to Irving Berlin\u2019s \u201cGod Bless America,\u201d as a more cynical and critical response to social and financial inequity. Embracing the subversive nature of \u201cThis Land is Your Land,\u201d Cooper shares an unflinching assessment of what is currently going on in America, \u201cI\u2019m daunted by it. I am very concerned about it. That\u2019s what drove me to record that song. When I started out and discovered folk music in the late 50s, early 60s, Woody Guthrie came up on my radar. \u201cThis Land is your Land\u201d really resonated with me. I\u2019d always heard abbreviated versions of it and just thought it was such a profound song, It seems so pertinent to our time because it breaks everything down into this commonality, and the different corners that we\u2019re driven to. So I think it as part of my job to try to bring people together in some small way, and that\u2019s why I wanted to do this song. A couple of my friends said, \u2018Oh, that\u2019s like a patriotic song.\u2019 And I said, \u2018Well, maybe in a true sense of the word. I don\u2019t look at it that way.\u2019 It just breaks it all down into such simple terms. This country belongs to all of us. I love that verse, \u2018on one side, the sign said no trespassing; and on the other, it didn\u2019t say nothing\u2014and that side was made for you and me.\u2019 Everyone who sings on this song doesn\u2019t share all the same political views that I do, and yet that song speaks to all of them, too. So, that was a great indicator to me that it was a good thing to do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-05.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-21200\" src=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-05.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"658\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-05.jpg 660w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-05-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-05-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cI Am\u201d \u2013 <\/strong><strong>Americana<\/strong><strong>\u2019s Definition &amp; Its Enduring Appeal<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Associated with Americana, Cooper takes on the task of trying to define the elusive genre that defies definition and why it appeals to him, \u201cIt\u2019s really a diverse genre. I was quite impressed by that at a couple of Americana Festivals I went to in Nashville\u2014how so much is included\u2014R&amp;B, blues, gospel, country and folk. I like the fact that it\u2019s a catch-all for a lot of outsider music. It\u2019s stuff more on the periphery, not really mainstream. That\u2019s how I view it. People ask me what I do and I say, well it\u2019s called Americana. I\u2019ve always tried to be diverse in what I do. I like a lot of different kinds of things\u2014I like to rock, I like more pop stuff, blues and country. I try to incorporate all of that in what I write, and I think Americana is a genre that will accept that.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Dana Cooper\u2019s visual imagery of \u201cThe Ghost of Tucumcari\u201d takes the listener back to the old ways of the Native Americans and the trail of tears that has been left in the shadows of a time that has unfortunately been long forgotten.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>\u201cStanding in My Own Way\u201d \u2013 A Romance With The Music Business<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Well acquainted with both the bliss and heartache that accompany a romance of pursuing a career in the music business, Cooper highlights his thoughts on music education and advises the next generation on how to pursue their music dreams, \u201cI think that if you\u2019re going to be an artist, you have to find a way to factor all that technical knowledge into the creative part of it, which is still a great mystery to me. I\u2019ve known a lot of well-trained and accomplished musicians who weren\u2019t necessarily terribly creative\u2014I don\u2019t think you have to go to music school to learn how to play music, and I don\u2019t know where one goes to learn how to be creative. I recently did a live recording, <em>Live from Caffe Lena. <\/em>They have a school of music there, and my agreement with them was a portion of the sales will go back to their music school\u2014because I do want to nurture anyone who has that curiosity and wants to find a way to pursue the arts in any way. I think it\u2019s important to support that.<\/p>\n<p>The environment now with music or the music business has changed so much from when I started out. I\u2019ve had to adapt along the way. For someone starting out now, I would recommend to educate themselves to all the different avenues of self-promotion\u2014all the business aspects of publishing, of how to place your music, how to license music\u2014all those things are important. But I would also recommend that if they want to be a performer\u2014to get out and find every opportunity you can to play music in front of people, and to let that be your guide as to how what you\u2019re doing resonates with people. If you\u2019re just going to publishers or record companies, those people are going to give you completely different feedback than a real live audience will, and that\u2019s always been my gauge. I would definitely try to play in front of a live audience as much as possible, to develop your show as a performer, and see how the music you\u2019re creating resonates with people and how to refine that, perfect that.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019d also suggest that people not take the business part of it too seriously\u2014it\u2019s really finding out why you want to do it. Why do you want to play music? Why do you want to write songs? What\u2019s your objective? Is it to be a big hit songwriter of a certain genre? Then you need to learn everything you can about that genre and pursue that. That\u2019s never been my driving force\u2014or it\u2019s rarely been my driving force. So I\u2019ve always wanted to write songs that reach people and touch people. Seems like a simple goal but I definitely would also recommend finding someone objective, someone whose opinion you trust, who will pay attention to what you\u2019re doing and give you objective feedback.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-02-Album-Cover-Art.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-21197\" src=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-02-Album-Cover-Art.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"615\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-02-Album-Cover-Art.jpg 660w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-02-Album-Cover-Art-300x280.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/digital-delivery-services.lnk.to\/WD4ChZK4EM\"><strong>https:\/\/digital-delivery-services.lnk.to\/WD4ChZK4EM<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong><br \/>\nALBUM REVIEW \u2013\u00a0<em>The Ghost of Tucumcari<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It is only fitting that Dana Cooper\u2019s most recent offering, his 32nd studio album to date, be titled\u00a0<em>The Ghost of Tucumcari\u2014<\/em>named after a city in New Mexico with a humble origin story, which has enjoyed moments of glory. The town of Tucumcari, much like Dana Cooper, is resilient, holds many secrets, and is a thing of beauty that must be experienced on its own terms.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cStart the World Again\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Inspired by the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, this track captures the isolation associated with the lockdown and the basic human need for physical touch and emotional interaction. Libby Koch\u2019s\u00a0angelic voice gently insists that society return to where it was before COVID became a household term. The musical accompaniment makes the listener wonder\u2014was the lockdown all a dream, an alternate universe, and how did humanity manage to rise above it?<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cThe Ghost of Tucumcari\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 A battle-scarred stray cat served as Cooper\u2019s muse for this song. The lyrics speak to the plight of lost souls, animal and human, without a safe place to go or anyone to care for them. The song also speaks to an American dream once thriving, but now in ruins. Lyle Lovett\u2019s vocals whispered hauntingly, make the piece believable.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cChildren of a Common Mother\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 The inception of this song goes back to 1976, and is upbeat, poppy and has \u201csingle\u201d stamped all over it. Cooper deconstructs the things that divide us\u2014like politics and religion, replacing them with infectious guitar chords and a message for positive social change. Libby Koch and Shake Russell help out with\u00a0harmony vocals.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cWhat is Love Waiting For\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Posing a philosophical question, Cooper asks, if love can conquer hate, what is love waiting for? Cooper chose a simple melody, possibly to accentuate the significance of such a heavy question\u2014going the way of simplicity leaves nowhere to hide from such a poignant conversation.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cSong for Myself\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Co-written with Cooper\u2019s longtime songwriter friend Tom Prasada-Rao, this song is a conversation with one\u2019s self. It addresses the search for happiness and fulfillment in the face of an uncertain future. Irish singer-songwriter, Gillian Tuite adds a poignant harmony.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cFalling Star\u201d\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 Written in 1974, Cooper\u2019s songwriting shines on this composition\u2014he paints characters with the expertise of an auteur. This song could have made an appearance on the Eagles\u2019\u00a0<em>On the Border.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cGoin\u2019 Down Judah\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Could serve as a companion piece to Led Zeppelin\u2019s \u201cWhen the Levee Breaks.\u201d Cooper references spirituality including the father, the son and the holy ghost. A pure, uncompromising slice of the blues.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cRocked in a Country Cradle\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Cooper\u2019s autobiography, written with Josh Leo, traces his musical influences, juxtaposed with those of his parents. Cooper invokes Bill Haley and The Beatles, while his parents were more country music inclined. Interestingly enough, the song has crossover appeal and some elements of rockabilly.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cBeauty and Ruin\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 This could be about a relationship where physical attraction leads to demise or the inevitable effects of time on human beings. The empty spaces make the listener swim in the lyrics in order to decipher them.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cThis Land is Your Land\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 The Woody Guthrie classic features Cooper\u2019s friends on vocals: Lyle Lovett, Hayes Carll, Susan Gibson, Mando Saenz, Darden Smith, Shake Russell and Libby Koch. A beautiful example of how people can come together. It\u2019s a message not only for America but the world\u2014during such turbulent and uncertain times. This track is pure Americana.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cNeedless to Say\u201d\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 Written in the 1970s and featuring a guest vocal by Lyle Lovett, lyrics of this song could have been printed on the pages of any great American novel. Thematic elements include a romantic relationship and yearning to have one\u2019s innocence restored\u2014punctuated by delicious wordplay.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-06.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-21195\" src=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-06.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"660\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-06.jpg 660w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-06-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Dana-Cooper-06-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.danacoopermusic.com\/\">https:\/\/www.danacoopermusic.com\/<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/people\/Dana-Cooper-Music\/100071047601833\/\">https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/people\/Dana-Cooper-Music\/100071047601833\/<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/danacoopermusic\/\">https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/danacoopermusic\/<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.patreon.com\/join\/danacooper\">https:\/\/www.patreon.com\/join\/danacooper<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>VIDEO PREMIERE &amp; WEB-EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW &nbsp; Musician:\u00a0 DANA COOPER &nbsp; Video Premiere:\u00a0 \u201cTHE GHOST OF TUCUMCARI\u201d &nbsp; \ufeff \u00a0 DANA COOPER\u2014AMERICANA\u2019S COOL HAND LUKE RESURRECTS THE GHOST OF TUCUMCARI &nbsp; by Rodeo Marie Hanson Tucumcari is believed to have come from the Comanche word tukamukaru, which means to lie in wait for someone or something. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":21215,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7725],"tags":[14836,13518,14837,14838,13510,4369,11199,24,9883,14839,3592,14840,14841,14842,13522,13523,1451,13524,14843,14844,2744,14845,1628,13555,13556,3886,3278,3724,4338,1525,13530,8590,13563,13564,13568,14846,4315,14847,14848,14849,14850,3121,11789,7566,6996,14851,14852,4341,3010,13571,14853,7978,14854,8601,14855,14856,14857,14858,3263,14859,14310,6544,14860,12572,14861,14474,14862,13580,12482,3818,14863,14864,13582,14865,10630,14866,7730,14867,3643,14868,3656],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21192"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21192"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21192\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21216,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21192\/revisions\/21216"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21215"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21192"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21192"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21192"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}