Last year I had the fortune to discover Rachel Baiman. Â I noted at the time she had a knack for subtly inserting parables in her snap-your-fingers or turn-around-the-dance-floor bluegrass numbers. Â She’s at it again with Thanksgiving, a just released EP. Â Tent City is an upbeat tune with lots of great banjo and guitar picking. Â It’s a tale of homelessness straight from the 30’s with the bank to blame, but set in modern Nashville. Â On Madison, Tennessee, Baiman and guitar phenom Molly Tuttle trade licks on a John Hartford song about getting back home. Â So if you can’t think of anything to be thankful for before the big meal, here are some musical reminders.
Erinn Peet Lukes‘ first solo effort, Take Back Your Angels, landed on my desk out of the blue a month ago. Â I liked it the first time I heard it, and kept going back to it. Â It’s classic singer-songwriter stuff with Lukes strumming her guitar and singing all the songs. Â What sets it apart is Lukes’ songwriting and her backup musicians. Â Small Town Hero is a reminder that not everyone wants the same thing and sometimes the pond you’re in is just the right size. Â And that pond has produced several artists that contributed to the record from her Colorado musical community. Â They add a nice rhythm section and richness on tunes like the title track and a sweet little murder ballad, John Lee.
Daniel Champagne is a guitarist from Australia with incredible picking and percussive talents. Â He just put out an EP, a 3 song sampler called Satellite City. Â The title track and Great Dividing Range feature Champagne on guitar and vocals. Â The last track, Indigo, is a sub-two-minute instrumental piece that you have to hear to believe. Â Mad skills, mad.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.