If the albums scheduled for release over the next few months are any indication, we’re in for a fine year of music. Here are just a few forthcoming long-players that we’re highly anticipating. MOUNT RENRAW by OTIS GIBBS (13 January on Wanamaker Recording Company) Otis Gibbs is one of the most thoughtful songwriters in Americana, […]
Bill’s Blues Based Best of 2016
2016 was a hard year. But it was a pretty good year for the blues, with some of the highest profile blues musicians releasing fantastic albums. Below is my inexpert summary of some of the most memorable blues releases from the year to forget. 1. Steve Dawson – Solid States & Loose Ends. A relative unknown, Dawson’s […]
Monday Morning Video – Celebrating the Boston Music Awards
For nearly 30 years, the Boston Music Awards have celebrated all the great music that emanates from, well, Boston. This year’s event was held last week and a number of Twangville faves walked out as winners. The Silks were selected blues artist of the year while Julie Rhodes took the best new artist crown. Old […]
Monday Morning Video – A Tough Music Year Keeps Getting Tougher
It’s been a tough year for music fans as we continue to lose a generation of greats. Here are a quartet of videos from three that we’ve lost in the past two weeks. We’re gonna miss the spirit and songs of Leon Russell, Leonard Cohen and Sharon Jones.
Big Dave McLean – Better the Devil You Know
There are bluesmen in Canada. Â Some damn good ones. Â Folks like Jim Byrnes, Amos Garrett, and David Wilcox (no relation), have been tearing it up for decades, and relative newcomers like Sue Foley, Colin James and JW-Jones have blazed their own trails to excellence. Â But through the years, one of the mainstays of Canadian blues […]
Monday Morning Video – Stevie Ray Vaughan
Sixteen years ago, almost to the day, we lost one of rock and roll’s guitar greats. Here are two classic Stevie Ray Vaughan performances captured at the Capitol Theatre in Passaic, NJ back in 1985. First up is the blistering “Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)” followed by the sweet and soulful “Live Without You.”
Jonah Tolchin – Thousand Mile Night
Jonah Tolchin has taken another step forward on his new release “Thousand Mile Nightâ€. The production of the album guides Tolchin to utilize a slightly different style on each song in order to evoke the mood that supports the lyrics. The album was recorded at Fame Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. However, it has only […]
Hymn for Her Talk the Tooth Fairy, a Maine Sea Shanty and Organic Indie Markets
Road warriors Hymn for Her share the first song that they ever wrote and reflect on the hazards of renting a clunker to tour Europe.
Doug MacLeod – Live in Europe
You may not have heard of Doug MacLeod yet, but he’s been kicking around the California blues scene for decades. And if you’re looking for excellent country blues, you can’t go wrong picking up one of “Dubb” MacLeod’s many releases. Born in New York City, raised in North Carolina and St. Louis, and spending a […]
Janiva Magness on Touring with a NutriBullet and a Memorable First Gig Singing with an Elvis Impersonator
Janiva Magness talks about hitting the road in a van with more than 237,000 miles (and counting), a rehearsal space that is funnier now then when she was using it and the changes that she has seen in the music business.