John Hiatt on Austin City Limits. JOHN HIATT, Same Old Man (New West)Official Site | MySpace | Preview Our favorite ‘Master of Disaster’ proves he’s still the ‘Same Old Man’ with his aptly titled new album. Rumor has it that Hiatt was intended to be the surprise artist at New West Records’ SXSW day party […]
Mayer’s Playlist for March/April, Part 2
ALBUMS OF THE MONTH: On a Clear Night, by Missy Higgins The first thing that you’ll notice about Australia’s Missy Higgins is her stunning voice, a magical blend of confidence and uneasiness. Opening track “Where I Stood” epitomizes this dichotomy. The song captures the moment where a woman realizes that, despite her emotional attachment to […]
Old Settler’s Music Festival Highlights
I’m from northern California where “layering” your clothing is a mantra more than a conscious thought. Sure came in handy this year for Old Settler’s Music Festival in Driftwood (Austin), Texas, where there was driving rain, freezing cold (at least it felt that way), and warm, late-spring sunshine. Oh, and lots of good music, which […]
Sean Costello, 1979-2008
It was only weeks ago that I added Sean Costello to my ‘Best of Winter ’08’ playlist. His blues-rock record ‘We Can Get Together’ (released in February of this year) is remarkable and truly sits near (if not at) the top of the list in its genre so far this year. Today we learned the […]
Widespread Panic + More, Releases 2/12/08
WIDESPREAD PANIC, Free Somehow Official Site | MySpace | Stream | MP3* | MP3** It seems like Athens-based Widespread Panic has been playing music forever (if you consider 20 years as being close to ‘forever’). Averaging a new record every two years, 2008 brings us their tenth studio album titled ‘Free Somehow’. This is another […]
Mayer’s Playlist for November/December, part 2
ALBUMS OF THE MONTH: The Scene of the Crime, by Bettye Lavette Detroit’s Bettye LaVette wastes no time in making a statement on her latest release. “I’ve been this way too long to change now,” she declares with a voice that leaves no room for negotiation, “you’re going to have to take me like I […]
Mayer’s Playlist for November/December, part 1
ALBUMS OF THE MONTH: The Cake Sale, by The Cake Sale When Brian Crosby and Paul Noonan of Ireland’s Bell X1 were inspired to create a benefit album for Oxfam’s Make Trade Fair campaign, they formed the collective known as The Cake Sale. Friends ranging from Nick Seymour (Crowded House) and Nina Persson (The Cardigans) […]
Roman Carter + More, Album Previews
Roman Carter, “Never Slow Down (Full CD) [MySpace] In a year that graced us with a new album from Bettye Lavette, now we get Roman Carter of the famed Carter Brothers (Albert, Jerry, Roman) bringing us some funked up blues. The album is a collaboration with LA producer Tom Rothrock (Beck, Elliott Smith, R.L. Burnside). […]
Bad to the Bone, 25 Years Later
I had forgotten how good George Thorogood and the Destroyers are. The commercial success of the song “Bad to the Bone” and several of the songs on the album of the same name numbed my perspective of their talent. We’ve heard songs like “Bad to the Bone”, “Nobody But Me” and “No Particular Place to […]
Grace Potter & The Nocturnals “This is Somewhere”, Reviewed
“Stop the bus and turn the radio up high!” wails Grace Potter on the second track of the band’s third full length album titled This is Somewhere. This is exactly what you’ll want to do when you hear this song playing in whatever your version of a bus is. Grace Potter & The Nocturnals hail […]