Label: Merge
Released 10/27/2023
Jenny from Thebes began its life as many albums by the Mountain Goats do, with John Darnielle playing the piano until a lyric emerged. That lyric, “Jenny was a warrior / Jenny was a thief / Jenny hit the corner clinic begging for relief,” became “Jenny III,” a song which laid down a challenge he’d never taken up before: writing a sequel to one of his most beloved albums. Jenny from Thebes is the story of Jenny, her southwestern ranch style house, the people for whom that house is a place of safety, and the west Texas town that is uncomfortable with its existence. It is a story about the individual and society, about safety and shelter and those who choose to provide care when nobody else will.
Track listing:
- Clean Slate
- Ground Level
- Only One Way
- Fresh Tattoo
- Cleaning Crew
- Murder at the 18th St. Garage
- From the Nebraska Plant
- Same As Cash
- Water Tower
- Jenny III
- Going to Dallas
- Great Pirates