Famed air pirate Dan Cooper (that’s the name he used when he purchased his ticket at Portland Airport from Northwest Orient Airlines 53 years ago) is believed by some true crime mavens to have died somewhere in southwestern Washington state after parachuting out of a hijacked jet November 24, 1971.
Not everyone believes this semi-official account.
Many East Portlanders believe he is alive and well (but really old) and living out his last possible days in a sleazy nursing home east of the Willamette River, higher than a passenger jet on cheap vodka and delicious fruit-flavored edibles. He is said to answer to either “Dan” or “Coop,” but never to both first and last name. If you want an autograph, the legend goes, bring two crisp $50s. He’ll keep one, sign the other and give it back to you. He is not believed to have much time left, but he will certainly enjoy the subtle tribute of this new song…
Goodnight, Texas are set to drop their latest single “The Ghost of D.B. Cooper” on May 22nd. This is the fourth single from the roots-rock duo’s forthcoming full-length LP Signals. Singer-songwriter Avi Vinocur says of this fascinating new track: “I find nothing more interesting than unbelievable stories from the past that seem unsolvable – and none are more wild than that of D.B. Cooper. I am always looking for ways to combine my love of researching history, writing lyrics and telling stories and this paired all three with this Violent Femmes-esque barnburner that had been in our back pocket for a while. Also, with ‘The Ghost of D.B. Cooper’ we are finally adding Seattle, Washington to the ever growing list of geographical locations featured in Goodnight, Texas songs.”
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Goodnight, Texas is a band you’ve almost certainly heard by accident somewhere. And now on second look, you’re deep in their catalog and they’re telling you stories about trapped coal miners and lovebird bank robbers. Banjos and mandolins twinkle. Now you’re seeing them live and they’re swelling to a fever pitch, suddenly singing quiet harmonies off-mic, and then rocking out again. You’re talking to them at the merch table for a good while and you’re legitimately excited about their new album Signals because, more than ever before, it captures the vast dynamic range of the show and blends it with their expansive and intricate songwriting.
Without doubt, the new album kicks. Lead single “RUNAWAYS” even features a blazing guest solo from none other than Metallica’s Kirk Hammett, who admired the band’s version of “Of Wolf and Man” on the 2022 covers album The Metallica Blacklist.
But beyond the memorable sock-you-in-the-face riffs, GN, TX is reaching its roots deeper in every direction on Signals. Their first album-sized trip into the studio expands their sonic range, thanks to Oakland’s Ian and Jay Pellicci (Deerhoof, Tune-Yards). Stories of the Americana of yore bleed into the near past and present via DB Cooper and North Dakota oil field workers. Electric guitars pound like hammers, but the mandolins still twinkle like stars. Is that song a little tongue in cheek? Are those strings?
Further googling reveals that NME, Rolling Stone, No Depression and Consequence of Sound have recently featured the band, and that in 2023 they appeared at SXSW, Red Wing Roots and Austin City Limits Festival. They’ve toured with Larkin Poe, Shakey Graves, Trampled by Turtles, The Brothers Comatose, Donavon Frankenreiter, and John Craigie. Back in 2020, their song “The Railroad” was the opening montage theme for Tiger King, which had 53 million streams in its first week. Maybe that’s where you heard them in the first place. Or maybe it was the Coors Banquet commercial with Sam Elliott. Wait a minute, they have a quarter of a billion streams across platforms. Maybe it was at a bar or in your friend’s car, who knows.
Still at the merch table at last call, you learn: Goodnight, Texas is a hamlet of 27 people and dozens of dogs, the exact mile-for-mile midpoint between co-founders Avi Vinocur and Patrick Dyer Wolf’s homes in San Francisco and Chapel Hill (as the van drives). The band is hoping to make it back and play another show for their friends there in the near future.
Goodnight, Texas’ new single “The Ghost of D.B. Cooper” is out May 22nd on all digital / streaming platforms, and their previous singles “The Money or the Time” and “Dry Heat” are out now. Click here to stream / purchase. Their new studio album Signals drops July 19th via 2 Cent Bank Check Records.
