Charley Crockett “Run Horse Run” (2020)
September 17, 2020
Through a Texan drawl and a magnificent set of choppers, Charley Crockett sings of the old west in contemporary style. … More Charley Crockett “Run Horse Run” (2020)
Category: Roots/Americana
Whitney Rose “In A Rut” (2020)
July 8, 2020
“Don’t ask me how I got this way / Oh, that’s asking too much” cries Whitney Rose amidst the whirlwind chorus as she rattles off the title line ‘I’m In A Rut’ an appropriately repetitive 28 total times. Only her delivery is so rapid-fire, gaps collapsed between the few words and syllables.. … More Whitney Rose “In A Rut” (2020)
Rookie “I Can’t Have You But I Want You” (2020)
March 17, 2020
It’s just a moment, lasting but a second or two. The verse has come to a clipped end, the band pauses, as if taking a deep inhale on the precipice of something big, and then…the chorus blasts in! I really love that moment … More Rookie “I Can’t Have You But I Want You” (2020)
Tyler Childers “Ever Lovin’ Hand” (2019)
January 31, 2020
“Seinfeld” had a whole episode (“The Contest”) about a certain solitary pursuit, so, I guess, why not a pop song. The Divinyls’ sultry 1990 hit ‘I Touch Myself’ certainly addressed the subject most directly, but many more only slightly less obvious allusions have existed than one might expect: ‘Dancing With Myself’ … More Tyler Childers “Ever Lovin’ Hand” (2019)
Alejandro Escovedo “Faith” (2010)
December 13, 2019
To date, my musings in this blog have only covered music, and at times my personal relationship to it. I hope any readers may abide me a momentary detour, however, if for no other reason than that it eventually ties to a fantastic song by Alejandro Escovedo on which Bruce Springsteen also prominently appears. … More Alejandro Escovedo “Faith” (2010)
Little Steven & The Disciples Of Soul “Superfly Terraplane” (2019)
November 11, 2019
Little Steven, very much contrary to his most identifiable nickname, has always done everything big. Music, activism, television, radio, education…Never mind that old gray beard in the famous Dos Equis beer campaign, I’d be willing to say that Steven Van Zandt is, in fact, “The Most Interesting Man In The World.” … More Little Steven & The Disciples Of Soul “Superfly Terraplane” (2019)
Marcus King Band “Where I’m Headed” (2018)
October 17, 2019
Occasionally I come upon a new artist whose musical capacity – let’s say, whose musical beauty – is almost literally staggering, so as to challenge finding a proper description or appreciation. I felt this way a few years ago when I first discovered a heretofore unknown 20-year-old named Marcus King. … More Marcus King Band “Where I’m Headed” (2018)
American Aquarium “The World Is On Fire” (2018)
October 9, 2019
While a fan-favorite standard-bearer of the Americana and Outlaw Country scene, American Aquarium isn’t the kind of band you’re likely to see on a Grammy stage or to receive much mainstream notoriety. Nevertheless, I suggest this as being a song for our times, our difficult and confusing times … More American Aquarium “The World Is On Fire” (2018)
Chris Stapleton “Midnight Train To Memphis” (2017)
August 11, 2019
I got back to the garden. Not MSG, not that garden, but the one about which Joni Mitchell wrote and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young most famously sang: at the erstwhile home of Yasgur’s Farm, the mythical “garden” of Woodstock. This summer (this week, in fact) is exactly 50 years since “The Summer Of Love” … More Chris Stapleton “Midnight Train To Memphis” (2017)
Chris Shiflett “Sticks & Stones” (2017)
August 6, 2019
Chris Shiflett has, for around 20 years, been the guitarist in two different bands, with two vastly different levels of notoriety: Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, the greatest punk rock cover band ever (seriously, they are), and another one you’re more likely to have heard of, the Foo Fighters. Most recently, he’s set off … More Chris Shiflett “Sticks & Stones” (2017)