Many Colored Kite

If the powers that be ever decide to build the alt-country movement its own Hall of Fame there’s a good chance you’ll find a bust of Mark Olson in the museum’s foyer. With his pioneering Minneapolis band the Jayhawks, Olson and fellow singer/songwriter Gary Louris helped complete the house that Gram Parsons laid a foundation for decades earlier. In 1995, Olson walked away from his own band while they were arguably at the peak of their powers. While Louris and the remaining Hawks soldiered on through another decade filled with creative success and major label adversity, Olson and his then-wife Victoria Williams stole away to the California desert where they formed the Creekdippers. Ceding the spotlight to late in the game interlopers like Ryan Adams, Olson seemed content to hide out in the desert and record ramshackle bedroom folk when he was moved to do so. In 2005, however, the seeds of a fruitful new chapter in Olson’s career were planted when he split from Williams. Olson released his first proper solo album in 2007 and launched a series of well-received reunion tours with Louris which eventually yielded the duo’s first album of new material in 14 years. Olson’s hot streak continues with Many Colored Kite, a deceptively unassuming gem of an album that should satisfy old fans and new converts alike.

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