Now here’s an impressive line-up: Steve Earle, Loudon Wainwright III, Mike Scott of the Waterboys and host John Wesley Harding leading a cover of Bob Dylan’s “You Ain’t Going Nowhere.” The performance was captured at Harding’s eclectic “Cabinet of Wonders” series in New York City last month. more »

by Mayer Danzig

Normally a reissue of an old record isn’t such a big deal, but the December 2012 reissue of John Hartford’s Aereo Plain/Morning Bugle CD was a big deal for bluegrass fans because Aereo Plain, one of the most important records of the bluegrass – or “New Grass” – revival in the 1970s, had been almost impossible [...] more »

by Bill Wilcox

This One’s For Him , the all-star tribute to Guy Clark, continues to garner recognition. Fresh from its Album of the Year award at the Americana Music Awards, the collection has just been nominated for a Grammy in the Best Folk Album category. Here’s Clark performing the strikingly beautiful “My Favorite Picture of You.” The [...] more »

by Mayer Danzig

At some point in just about everyone’s life you meet someone, usually of the opposite sex, who you realize is just so sophisticated and charismatic that you have to readjust your scale for those qualities.  At that point the cold hard truth hits you that no matter how much you practice and work at your [...] more »

by Shawn Underwood

Bluesman Eric Bibb is the latest in a succession of American musicians to get his passport stamped in Mali since Ry Cooder and the late Ali Farka Toure won the Grammy for Best World Music Recording in 1994.  Bibb’s fine collaboration with Malian Habib Koite, Brothers in Bamako, stands up well next to Cooder and Toure’s Talking Timbuktu; [...] more »

by Bill Wilcox

Musicians have a long tradition of giving. Sure, they give to all of us with the music that they share. Yet they also have a penchant for supporting meaningful causes. Over the next few weeks we will highlight several releases that demonstrate this giving spirit. You’ve got to admire perseverance, especially in pursuit of a [...] more »

by Mayer Danzig

Musicians have a long tradition of giving. Sure, they give to all of us with the music that they share. Yet they also have a penchant for supporting meaningful causes. Over the next few weeks we will highlight several releases that demonstrate this giving spirit. Grooving Forward, Volume One is the brainchild of Jake Bush [...] more »

by Mayer Danzig

This song has quietly become a staple of the Boston music scene. It is no surprise, really, with the song’s achingly beautiful melody and emotionally charged lyrics. Judge for yourself by watching a performance by Ryan and friends from a few years back. more »

by Mayer Danzig

It’s been my experience that bands who do a Led Zeppelin cover in an album are walking a dangerous line.  As Yoda says, “do or do not, there is no try”.  Tackling an interpretation of Plant and Page requires not just sharp musical insight, but a lot of skill to then pull off the execution. [...] more »

by Shawn Underwood

If Americana music is defined as the mashup of musical styles that took root in various regions of the country, you could make an argument the recent release from Sara Watkins, Sun Midnight Sun, is the poster child for Americana.  With the exception of the opening track, The Foothills, which showcases the Celtic roots of [...] more »

by Shawn Underwood

Sometimes a record has such a clear vision and superior execution that a review just writes itself. That’s pretty much the case with Bill Evans newest project, In Good Company.  Long before he, literally, wrote the book on how to play the banjo, Evans was studying with the likes of J.D. Crowe and teaching music [...] more »

by Shawn Underwood

FEATURED ALBUM Riverboat, by Tim Gearan Tim Gearan has long been a mainstay on the Boston roots scene, with 2-3 weekly residencies and a tendency to show up to play at any number of other shows in a given week. His primary Friday night residency is a weekly party – there is no other way [...] more »

by Mayer Danzig

Decades ago, as part of my misspent youth, I listened to a band called the Good Rats.  The closest thing they had to a hit was called Tasty, about a guitar player that could play fast, but he couldn’t play “tasty”.  Let me just say that any of the musicians on Kathryn Caine’s latest release, [...] more »

by Shawn Underwood

I’ve seen it on his first two albums and after the first tune on “There’s No Leaving Now,” I thought maybe I’d heard the last of the Tallest Man and his guitar. “To Just Grow Away” is a subtle song with percussion and even some keys.   But I only had to wait until the [...] more »

by Jeff McMahon

You’ve got to love a year where this list is made up of so many young and emerging artists. Here, in no particular order, are some of my favorites from 2012. BARCHORDS, BAHAMAS Canadian singer-songwriter Afie Jurvanen unleashes a pop album that is simply sublime. The production has a textured feel anchored by the nuanced [...] more »

by Mayer Danzig