In Search of a Song

In Search of a Song was released amid Hall's first stint with Mercury Records (1969–1977), during which he released one or more albums each year (see Tom T. Hall discography). It is the first full album to result from one of Hall's "song-hunting" trips to Kentucky. Hall was known to make periodic visits to rural Kentucky. He didn't actually write songs on these trips so much as take notes and gather raw material that he would later write about. He typically traveled backroads by car, sometimes with a photographer, to find inspiration by observing and visiting with the common people of his home state. On this particular trip, Hall traveled with music journalist William "Bill" Neuel Littleton of Nashville, TN. Littleton took the photographs that appear on the album's front and back cover, subsequently writing the album's liner notes.^[4]

In a 1998 interview with online publication Perfect Sound Forever, Hall reflected on his songwriting approach: "I used to get into my car and drive out to an intersection and put my finger out the window and find out which way the wind was blowing. And I'd just take off in that direction. I'd just drive around for a couple of weeks stopping in small towns, beer joints, cafes, you know, road side motels. Nobody knew who I was. [...] So I did several albums. I did one great album. My best album is called In Search Of A Song."^[5]

All songs by Hall

1. "The Year That Clayton Delaney Died" – 2:42
2. "Who's Gonna Feed Them Hogs" – 2:35
3. "Trip to Hyden" – 2:52
4. "Tulsa Telephone Book" – 2:21
5. "It Sure Can Get Cold in Des Moines" – 2:53
6. "The Little Lady Preacher" – 2:53
7. "L.A. Blues" – 2:40
8. "Kentucky, February 27, 1971" – 3:16
9. "A Million Miles to the City" – 2:51
10. "Second Handed Flowers" – 2:55
11. "Ramona's Revenge" – 2:53