Train: Pat Monahan (vocals, percussion); Rob Hotchkiss (guitar, piano, bass, background vocals); Charlie Colin (guitar, bass, background vocals); Jimmy Stafford (guitar).
Additional personnel includes: Brendan O'Brien (guitar, piano, keyboards, organ, marxophone, percussion, background vocals); Soozie Tyrell (violin); Pam Goldsmith (viola); Larry Corbett, Jane Scarpantoni (cello).
Recorded at Southern Tracks Recording, Atlanta, Georgia.
"Calling All Angels" was nominated for the 2004 Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal and for Best Rock Song.
Personnel: Pat Monahan (vocals, percussion); Jimmy Stafford (guitar, mandolin, background vocals); Brendan O'Brien (guitar, piano, organ, keyboards, percussion, background vocals); Charlie Colin (guitar, background vocals); Pamela Goldsmith (viola); Larry Corbett (cello); Scott Underwood (piano, keyboards, drums, percussion, programming).
Audio Mixer: Brendan O'Brien .
Recording information: SOuthern Tracks Recording, Atlanta, GA.
After scoring a big hit with "Drops of Jupiter" in 2001, Train continues to shoot for the pop-rock brass ring on their 2003 follow-up. MY PRIVATE NATION is full of grandly unspooling major-key melodies, big guitars with grand-canyon reverb, and a widescreen production approach that simultaneously gets the maximum rock punch and pop appeal out of every song. Without incorporating any overt roots elements such as alt-country of folk-rock tropes, Train still manages to sound overwhelmingly American and rootsy. Stylistically, their affinity is seemingly more with Counting Crows or the Wallflowers than with Wilco or the Jayhawks, but you can still see amber waves of grain unfolding before your eyes as MY PRIVATE NATION spreads its sonic wings.