Nobody Knows What You Do

Background

After recording the minimalist Mark Twang, Hartford returned to the studio with a band. The new material leaned more toward country-rock than bluegrass, which he would continue with 1977's Dillard Hartford Dillard collaboration and All in the Name of Love. The instrumental "John McLaughlin" is a tribute to the jazz/fusion guitarist.

For the CD release (Flying Fish FF70028), the track "Joseph's Dream" has been replaced by a recording of the song "Get No Better". This recording is an alternative version to the one released on the Dillard Hartford Dillard release Glitter-Grass from the Nashwood Hollyville Strings. There has been no definitive explanation for this substitution. Thus, this studio version of "Joseph's Dream" remains unreleased on CD. It was, however, released as a digital download.

Reception

Writing for Allmusic, critic Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr. called the album "highly eccentric" and wrote "Hartford's approach on Nobody Knows What You Do is just about as far out as Hartford ever ventured... [it] shouldn't be the first choice for a new Hartford devotee. It may not even appeal to fans of his more recent work. But for those who can't get enough of those heady days of the early- to mid-'70s when an artist could still go into the studio and make an album like this, Nobody Knows What You Do will speak to the inner hippie-hillbilly."

Track listing

All tracks composed by John Hartford; except where indicated

1. "You Don't Have to Do That" – 1:30
2. "Didn't Want to Be Forgotten" – 2:13
3. "In Tall Buildings" – 4:18
4. "John McLaughlin" – 1:35
5. "Granny Wontcha Smoke Some Marijuana" – 1:49
6. "The False Hearted Tenor Waltz" – 2:58
7. "Joseph's Dream" * – 3:57
8. "Down" – 2:00
9. "The Golden Globe Award" – 4:15
10. "Sly Feel" – 4:27
11. "Somewhere, My Love-We'll Meet Again Sweetheart" (Lester Flatt, Maurice Jarre, Earl Scruggs) – 2:35
12. "Nobody Knows What You Do" – 3:53

Personnel

Production