Decades ago, as part of my misspent youth, I listened to a band called the Good Rats. Â 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”. Â Let me just say that any of the musicians on Kathryn Caine’s latest release, […]
Mayer's Picks: The Best of 2012, So Far (The Songs)
Jericho, John Fullbright (from the Blue Dirt Records release From The Ground Up) Fullbright’s is a welcome new voice on the singer-songwriter scene. He writes and sings with a voice that belies his 23-odd years, as evidenced by this stirring track. Throw your arrows and your slings And your other precious things Outside your gate […]
Tom’s Picks: Overlooked in 2011
There’s always a few late releases or ones that seem to pass me by every year. Here’s a few to file in the “better late than never” category: GARRETT J. BROWN, Priorities [★★★★/3.875] CASEY DONAHEW BAND, Double-Wide Dream [★★★★/3.600] These guys fill all voids that Reckless Kelly leave between records. This is Texas country the […]
Monday Morning Video: Lucero with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra
First it was the horns. Now horns and strings?! Damn, what I would have done to have been at this show. Hopefully we’ll get to see and hear the full show at some point.
Photos that ROCK! Gillian Welch & David Rawlings
Gillian Welch & David Rawlings The Music Hall, Portsmouth NH: December 2011 Post by Suzanne D. McMahon (Suzanne Davis Photography) It’s hard for me to begin trying to describe in words what this experience was like for me. I have been listening to Gill & Dave’s music for a long time and it has brought […]
Jerry Douglas – Traveler
Some albums infect you slowly, like some kind of happy virus, where you finally just wake up one morning and realize you got the fever. Â Others, like the latest release from Jerry Douglas, Traveler, are more like your kid brother hitting you up side the head with a baseball bat and then standing over you […]
Tallest Man on Earth – There’s No Leaving Now
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 […]
Mayer’s Picks: The Best of 2012, So Far (The Albums)
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 […]
Monday Morning Video: Whiskeytown
Ah Ryan, such a great songwriter and always so, um, soft-spoken. Here’s a gem from 1997.
The Nighthawks – Damn Good Time!
In their appropriately titled Damn Good Time!, veteran DC-based blues rockers the Nighthawks prove that after decades on the road, they can still serve up a toe-tapping set to satisfy their blues-roots following and make a few new friends in the process. Damn Good Time! follows up their Blues Music Award-winning Last Train to Bluesville (Acoustic Album […]