Chattanooga singer/songwriter Dalton Mills loves a good murder ballad – a subgenre of old time traditional songs that deal with murder and the macabre.
In some ways his new song "Margaret Allen" follows in the footsteps of classic murder ballads like Omie Wise, Tom Dooley, and Wild Bill Jones. But in a couple of key ways, it’s uniquely his own.
“Other than murder these songs have an eerie, spooky mood,” he explained. “As for the murderers, they aren’t usually remorseful and they usually get caught right away.”
That’s not the case with Margaret Allen, where the murder is left unsolved and the killer escapes. “I have plans to write a sequel for the next record,” he laughed.
According to Dalton Mills many great murder ballads have evolved over time. As a song spread through various geographic regions, different singers would add verses or change lyrics to connect with local audiences. “A lot of these songs have a million verses, all regional,” he laughed.
He tried to play with this idea in his new song Margaret Allen. “It’s the only time I’ll ever let myself sprawl out and write a song that long,” he said. “It was neat to write a murder ballad that theoretically had all these verses to where it’s one long story, but it all took place in one spot.”
The music helps heighten the sense of suspense over the song’s nearly six minute build. Like the rest of the album, Margaret Allen features performances from J. Tom Hnatow, Chloe Edmonstone, and John Clay – who are also members of John R. Miller’s Band.
The album’s songwriting spans years in the life of Dalton Mills, but the music itself was tracked over an eight month period. The album was produced by multi-instrumentalist J. Tom Hnatow, who Dalton recalled meeting at a music festival in Louisville. “We really hit it off talking about the Replacements,” he laughed.
The finished album entitled ‘No Place to Hide’ was released on March first. This summer he plans to embark on a short tour, playing a handful of dates on his way to Tulsa Oklahoma and back. Until then, Chattanooga audiences will have the exclusive privilege of enjoying his live shows.
If you want to hear Margaret Allen, Redbird, Fadin’ or any other of Dalton Mills’ haunting story songs, he will appear at the Woodshop Listening Room this Thursday April 11th along with Lon Eldridge and Alex the Band. Doors open at 7, and music starts at 8. There is no cover charge.