The White Elephant Sessions (2000)
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The White Elephant Sessions is a rarities and demo version album by the American rock band Jars of Clay, released on September 19, 2000 by Essential Records/Provident Music Group and Silvertone Records.
The White Elephant Sessions was released in conjunction with the band's third studio album If I Left the Zoo. Several of the tracks come straight from the demo recording sessions for If I Left The Zoo, entitled the Tweed Horse Sessions. The title is a play on the fact that a white elephant is a rarity, and the cover of If I Left the Zoo had a grey elephant on it. This album depicts a similar cover, except that the background is primarily red where If I Left the Zoo's background is predominantly
blue and the elephant on the cover of this album is white and not grey (and the elephant is facing the other direction).
This album is a collection of demos and outtakes from the band's recording sessions for If I Left The Zoo and Much Afraid. It also contains a few previously unreleased tracks, although these too are in their demo forms - "Headstrong" would later appear on the 2000 Roaring Lambs compilation album. A live version of "The Coffee Song" previously appeared on their 1999 enhanced CD titled Stringtown that created exclusively for members of their fan club and this version also appeared on the limited Seatbelt Tuba edition of Much Afraid. "Kaylos" was a jingle the band wrote for a restaurant of the same name they frequently visited while recording. "New Math" has never appeared on any other release, but is notable because it features Stephen Mason on drums, instead of his usual role on guitars. "Fly Farther" was intended for Much Afraid, but the band felt they had too many slow songs to chose from already. It, too, has only ever appeared on this release. The track features American country/bluegrass
musician Alison Krauss on guest vocals.
The band produced the rarities release, except for "Fly Farther," which was produced by Stephen Lipson. A YouTube link to listen to the album is post below this article.
Track listing
All songs written by Jars of Clay, except where noted.
1. Unforgetful You (remix) -3:28
2. Crazy Times (demo) (Dan Haseltine, Steve Mason, Mark Hudson, Greg Wells)
-3:39
3. Goodbye, Goodnight (demo) -2:38
4. River Constantine (partial demo) -2:03
5. Grace (Hudson & Wells demo) (Jars of Clay, Greg Wells, Mark Hudson) -3:53
6. Headstrong (IA demo) -4:05
7. The Coffee Song (from the Seatbelt Tuba edition of Much Afraid) -3:03
8. Can't Erase It (Tweed Horse Session demo) -3:12
9. Kaylos -0:43
10. New Math (Tweed Horse Session demo) -3:21
11. Fly Farther (guest vocals by Alison Krauss) -5:33
12. Collide (Tweed Horse Session demo) -4:17
13. Frail (instrumental demo) -4:05
Personnel
Jars of Clay:
Dan Haseltine, Charlie Lowell, Stephen Mason and Matt Odmark
Production credits
Jars of Clay -producers (tracks 1 -10, 12 and 13)
Stephen Lipson -producer (track 11)
Previous release: If I Left the Zoo (1999)
Next release: The Eleventh Hour (2002)
Listen to the rarities album The White Elephant Sessions here:
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