Michael van Merwyk - Move On Down The Line (CD)
We will ship the CD before Christmas if orders are received here by December 15, 2025. The official release date is January 23, 2026.
A room full of guitars, two microphones – and a musician who needs nothing more than his voice, slide guitar, and feeling. For his new album "Move On Down The Line," Michael van Merwyk radically reduced the recording process, creating an intimate soundscape that could hardly be more direct.
The CD was recorded at Mainwwood Guitars in the Netherlands, a guitar shop specializing in resonator guitars. Only National Reso-Phonic guitars were used – from venerable vintage models from the 1930s to modern instruments. Van Merwyk also plays some tracks on his trusty companion "Heart," a Continental CS-N from the 1990s. Every song is a single take, without overdubs or studio tricks – so pure, it sounds as if he were playing live in his audience's living room.
For the recording, he used only two microphones from the renowned company Ear Trumpet Labs, prized for their pristine, warm sound in the field of acoustic music. The result: an album full of depth, intimacy, and authenticity.
The repertoire is evenly split: half Michael van Merwyk presents his own songs, the other half he interprets classics by Barbecue Bob, Hank Williams, Charley Patton, Sleepy John Estes, Norman Beaker, and Al Ferrier. The title song was written by Jesse Fuller. With each piece, he pays tribute to the tradition of the "songsters"—musicians like Mississippi John Hurt, Big Bill Broonzy, and Lead Belly, who transcended genre boundaries, playing what the audience wanted to hear.
This is what "Move On Down The Line" sounds like: honest, raw, soulful – a soundtrack for the here and now, deeply rooted in the history of American music and yet characterized by Michael van Merwyk's unmistakable "Euro Style".
01 Watch Out
02 You Don't Know My Mind
03 Singing Waterfall
04 Move On Down The Line
05 Raise Your Voice
06 Heavy Load
07 Only I Got What The Other Guys Want
08 Deep Spirit
09 Some Of These Days
10 Liquor Store Blues
11 Liars and Fools
12 Deep Blue Sea
13 Blues Stop Knocking
14 Smile and Walk
15 Will Love Find Me Again