Sentimental Garbage Neal Francis

• 1 Very Fine, Pts. 1 & 2 05:37
• 2 Don't Want You To Know 03:56
• 3 In Plain Sight 03:56
• 4 Strawberry Letter 23 04:13
• 5 Collage 03:05
• 6 I'm Watching 05:05
• 7 Can't Stop The Rain (Parsonage Mix) 04:17
• Total Runtime 30:09

Info for Sentimental Garbage

7 track tour EP with 4 tracks leftover from the "In Plain Sight" sessions, one of which was re-recorded "in a style closer to the demo, which was going for a Bill Withers/ Marvin Gaye “Here My Dear” aesthetic" per Neal Francis. The set also includes covers of James Gang and Shuggie Otis songs. Francis has spent 2022 touring the US playing festivals, headlining clubs and opening theater tours with Amos Lee and Marcus King.

We had four tracks left over from the In Plain Sight sessions we did at our DIY studio at St. Peter’s Church in Chicago. I thought these were all worthy of release, but I wanted to revisit one in particular, “Very Fine.” The original parsonage recording was very ‘rocked out’ and I wanted to re-record it with the band in a style closer to the demo, which was going for a Bill Withers/ Marvin Gaye “Here My Dear” aesthetic. We re cut the song to 8 track at Killion Sound in Los Angeles with our favorite producer Sergio Rios. The original intent was to release Very Fine b/w Don’t Want you To Know as a 45, but since we had such a surplus of material, that idea snowballed into a 12” EP release. I did some auxiliary recording for the covers, Strawberry Letter 23 and Collage as well as Very Fine with Elliot Bergman at his studio in Chicago.

“Sentimental Garbage” was the working title of our last LP, which includes the track of the same name. We ended up calling that record “In Plain Sight” while removing the title track from the sequence. When it was decided In Plain Sight would appear on this release I knew it was my last chance to slap “Sentimental Garbage” on a record jacket, the thought of which always brought me great joy. It also works because this record is compiled of bittersweet scraps. I guess we could have also titled the record “Burnt Ends.” (Neal Francis)

Neal Francis

Neal Francis
Neal's music is an intoxicating blend of funk, soul, and rock that evokes the glory days of the late 60s and 70s but is undeniably fresh. Francis has been making music at the piano since the age of four, sitting in with countless Chicago bands as a teenager before setting out on his own solo career. His 2019 debut album, Changes, swiftly drew lavish applause, hailed as “the reincarnation of Allen Toussaint” by BBC Radio 6 and lauded by KCRW, which raved, “What do Dr. John, Leon Russell and boogie woogie piano have in common? Neal Francis is the answer.”

Francis’s acclaimed second LP, In Plain Sight, followed in 2021. Highlighted by the top 5 Americana radio favorite, “Can’t Stop The Rain,” the album once again earned international praise from such publications as MOJO, which wrote, “Francis digs deep on guileless rock and soul with bold flourishes, a la Lowell George or Randy Newman.” A wide range of prestigious accolades also followed, including a 2022 Americana Music Honors & Awards nomination for “Emerging Act of the Year” as well as top Libera Awards nominations in both 2022 and 2024.

A remarkably gifted live performer, Francis has sold out headline shows across the globe, shared the stage with Wilco and members of The Meters, supported the likes of My Morning Jacket, Marcus King, and Black Pumas, appeared at major festivals such as Bonnaroo, Fuji Rock, Newport Folk, Bourbon & Beyond, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, and Lollapalooza, lit up CBS This Morning with an electrifying three-song “Saturday Sessions,” and even performed at historic venues like Carnegie Hall. The dazzling power of Francis’s energetic live performances was officially captured for posterity with 2023’s double live album and concert film, Francis Comes Alive, which GRAMMY.com noted “could’ve been cut in 1973 or 2023 — as if The Band, The Meters, Wings and Dr. John had become unstuck in time.”

This album contains no booklet.