Brent Best needs your help, and no, he’s not asking you to help him move or drive him to the airport, so you can keep reading and quit avoiding eye contact.

The quick version is this: Brent and the guys from Slobberbone are going to record another album soon, but first Brent needs to record some of the songs he’s written recently. Instead of going through the rigamarole with the button down blue shirts, Brent’s coming straight to you. All you have to do is pre-order your CD before he records it, and boom—you’re funding a great album. Just don’t ask for an executive producer credit… unless you’re willing to step up with more than 10 bucks… a lot more.

Here are the details from Brent:

So’s I’ve been ruminatin’ for a while now as to the status of a number of unreleased songs of mine, ’solo material’ as the suits might call it and and in light of our desire to return to creating new Slobberbone material in the near future I feel the time has come to put the hammer to the anvil and get these out. A few of these songs you might have heard me perform live the last few years, some I’ve never played outside my house and some have never left their hard drive. They’ve marinated long enough, methinks. With that in mind, I’ve decided they should be recorded all proper-like, in a real studio (I love my kitchen but it’s time to get out) and with a focus on craft and not brevity. Addititionally, I would like to eschew the traditional means of funding and distribution we’ve employed in the past and be able to deliver it straight to whoever may be interested upon completion. My only barriers to this end is the time needed away from work and other concerns, and the funding.

Here’s what I’m proposing: that you, or anyone who’d like to participate, become that avenue. I believe this can be fairly simple and that excites me enough to help allay some of the aggonizing I’ve had that this might seem basely oppurtunistic to some. It’s not. I’ve come to realise that the biggest gift over the last many years of doing what I do only starts from getting to share my work with those who would receive it, but more importantly, for me, becomes the relationships, and often all-out friendships, that so many have chosen to share with me in return. This is where my satisfaction comes from, not the spectre of throwing it out to the world at any cost and seeing what can be gained. I’ve already gained more than I ever imagined. It’s you guys I want to continue with.

So now I make this offer, to those and only those who would feel no weirdness about it: help me make this record. For a $10 contribution, you will receive a limited edition of this record, to be recorded later this summer, shipped to you upon completion, personalised and with your name on it. Whew… okay here’s how it can work: you participate either via Paypal or with a check or money order. Most important will be for you to provide your complete name and shipping information. Paypal provides for this but please make sure you enter it and it is correct, and update it if you should move. Same thing with a mailed check or money order: please enclose your full name and mailing info, along with phone and email if you’d like. This will facilitate me compiling a master list of all donors and to be able to keep you up to date on the production, and also provide you with access to some web-based extras that I’ll post along the way. For Paypal, send your donation to brentdbest@yahoo.com, for check or money order, mail your donation to Brent Best, 1901 Redwood Pl, Denton, TX, 76209. Upon receipt, I will send you a notification confirming your participation along with additional updates to follow.

I am excited and a little twitchy. Also a little gassy at the moment but that usually goes away. I look forward to looking forward. And when it’s all said and done, let’s all have a drink.

Verily and with big smoochies,

brent best

This method of funding an album has worked before. Really, it’s a win-win: you pay the same amount you would on iTunes or Amazon, and you get to be part of helping make something great happen, while also cutting out the Man. So, I guess it’s win-win-win, and let’s be honest, we’re all indebted to Brent and Slobberbone for all the music they’ve given us over the years, so go make it happen.

Check Slobberbone’s page for more info.

That’s the Cooley Bird logo by the Drive-by Truckers’ artist, and all around visual badass, Wes Freed. It’s the picture of the sticker you can order on their website, and no, I’m not good enough at Photoshop to clip the white parts out. Probably should take it off my resume.

The fine folks over at Blurt are reporting that DBT’s Mike Cooley will be releasing his first solo project this April. Holy shit! I just soiled my pants in two different places. A Cooley solo project? That’s like that first cigarette the morning after you quit: you didn’t even know it was coming, but damned if you didn’t need it.

In case you don’t know, Cooley is today’s preeminent dark poet. He’s like Edgar Allen Poe, if Poe had been a third degree black belt on guitar, had stayed off the junk, and didn’t dress like such a nancy.

Keep in mind, the Truckers are also releasing two new studio albums this year and full length documentary, and last year they released Patterson’s solo album, a studio album, a Grammy-winning album with Booker T, and a live CD and DVD. Jesus Christ, I’m lazy. You’re lazy. We’re all a bunch of good for nothing lazy turds next to these guys. Shit, even Tiger Woods looks like a card-carrying roustabout that doesn’t do anything or anyone next to the Truckers.

Cooley told Blurt:

“It’s not an album, it’s not a full-length record. It’s not even an EP,” he says. “There’s no way I can describe it. You’ll think I’m fucking with you if I start describing it. You’ll just have to see. The only thing I’ll tell you is this – it’s high art.”

High art? Well, as long as it’s not a Polaroid of his balls, I’ll be fucking stoked.