There’s a tireless – arguably timeless – quality to Chris Smither’s work. The consistently impressive artist has released 18 albums over a half-century, but wasn’t satisfied with just a single album with his latest “Call Me Lucky.” No, he recorded it and then did it again from start to finish with different versions of all the songs in the same album. That’s either very inefficient or very cool. We’ll go with the latter.
Category: Americana Music
Show #7: Mary Gauthier on “Rifles and Rosary Beads”
Mary Gauthier has just released a truly special album of her performing songs she wrote with veterans and their families. “Rifles and Rosary Beads” is a moving collection, drawn from “Songwriting:withSoldiers” sessions. We had the pleasure of hearing more about this important project in a conversation with Mary at the Folk Alliance International conference in Kansas City.
New release: Jenny Van West’s “Happiness to Burn”
This week’s mail contained a pleasant surprise – the new Jenny Van West album “Happiness to Burn” due for release in April . We love this Maine-based artist’s voice and admire the sentiment of “Live in a New Way,” inspired by the protests surrounding the death of Freddie Gray.
Detroit bluegrass: Escaping Pavement at the Americana in Houston
Escaping Pavement – Emily Burns and guitarist-mandolinist Aaron Markovitz, – both veterans of what they described as a thriving Detroit bluegrass scene, were undeterred by the sparse turnout, playing three enthusiastic sets that showcased their strong vocals and instrumental skills.