Imagine if Patsy Cline took the stage at a smoky old jazz club, backed by a string band. Or better still, Diana Krall guesting on vocals with Heybale! at the Continental on a Sunday evening in Austin. That juxtaposition is a good way to think about the self-titled, debut album from Megg Farrell & Friends. […]
Old Settler’s Music Festival 2019 – The Music
Every year in mid-April I head to Austin for the Old Settler’s Music Festival. Â Here are some of the highlights for me of the 4 day line-up. Kickin’ It Off: Â The first night of music at OSMF is always in the campground and a nice welcome to get things started right. Â The first band was […]
Old Setter’s Music Festival 2019
Every year in mid April I head to Austin for the start of the outdoor music season. Â No, I’m not headed to SXSW, but rather to the Old Settler’s Music Festival. Â It’s become my favorite outdoor festival with a mix of good vibe and good music I haven’t found elsewhere. Let’s start with the music. […]
John Paul White – The Hurting Kind
Three years after the release of his first post Civil Wars album, John Paul White is giving us “The Hurting Kindâ€. His previous release “Beulah†was a dark although very beautiful record. This new release is more sonically diverse and expansive, drawing upon a talented cast of contributors. Ben Tanner of Alabama Shakes joined White […]
Manx Marriner Mainline – Hell Bound For Heaven
I heard Harry Manx a few years back and instantly dug his performance, which was concert footage from Australia. Manx’s rich slide guitar playing had a powerful enchantment. Steve Marriner, of the raucous swamp blues outfit MonkeyJunk, is a frequent Manx collaborator, and judging from Hell Bound for Heaven, the duo’s first album release, I […]
Tim Bluhm – Sorta Surviving
There’s nothing like going to the source of your inspiration to really understand its intricacies. Â Californian Tim Bluhm, of The Mother Hips, did just that when he decided to do a country music album. Â Sorta Surviving was recorded at Johnny Cash’s cabin-cum-studio, and features A-list players like Jesse Aycock on guitar and Elizabeth Cook on […]
Taylor Scott Band – All We Have
Taylor Scott is a relatively new artist who has already done some remarkable things. He, along with Warren Haynes, laid down guitar licks on Otis Taylor’s groundbreaking Hey Joe Opus: Red Meat, which wired a web of varying music pieces into a symphonic whole. That experience placed Denver-based Scott in good company. Perhaps a blues player […]
Todd Snider/Cash Cabin Sessions, Vol. 3
The third installment of Snider’s Cash Cabin Sessions, entitled Cash Cabin Sessions, Vol. 3, leaves out Vol. 1 and Vol. 2. Wait, what? Well, according to the liner notes included with this new release Snider had a demo recording session and a couple of sessions with Hard Working Americans already at the Cash Cabin, so […]
Melissa Ruth – Meteor
Starting a few miles north of the Golden Gate and lasting all the way to Canada, the coastal redwoods make their way to the very edge of the ocean. Â The climate that supports them cycles from the omnipresent fog in the summer to the waves of rain that blur the distinction between sea and land […]
Colin Linden & Luther Dickinson with the Tennessee Valentines – Amour
Once in awhile there’s a collaboration that turns the music word on its head. Stan Getz and Joao Gilberto was such a pairing when, in 1963, they popularized bossa nova jazz in the United States. Jan and Dean did much the same for surf music, and Brownie McGhee and Sonny Terry paired up for a […]