Today’s episode of the Americana Music News Podcast features the Accidentals, a talented young trio that floored us with their dynamic performances at this year’s Americana Music Festival and WMOT showcase. And just in time for election day, we offer Vanessa Peters’ “Carnival Barker,’ a pointed and powerful song from her striking new album “Foxhole Prayers.”
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Annie Oakley is an impressive trio from Oklahoma with compelling songs and harmonies. We spent our Saturday listening with pleasure to their new “Words We Mean.”
Here’s the album opener:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CQXFcq2R00
By Ken Paulson
Two great ways to celebrate democracy:
1. Vote on Nov. 6.
2. Buy Will Hoge’s My American Dream.
At a time of intense polarization, surprisingly few artists have used their music to reflect their political beliefs. Will Hoge is the laudable exception to that, as evidenced by his compelling new collection of socially conscious songs. It’s no surprise; his earlier Modern American Protest Music was similarly striking.
This week’s edition of the Americana Music News Podcast features a conversation with Will about his music and the state of the Union.
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We learned hours ago that Tony Joe White had passed away. It was just weeks ago that we had the chance to sit down with him and discuss his new album “Bad Mouthin'” We’ve admired Tony Joe for decades, and he lived up to all expectations in both the interview and a brief set later high atop the BMI headquarters in Nashville. A classy and talented man.
Here’s our conversation.
By Paul T. Mueller
“I wanna go where I’ve never been,” singer-songwriter-bassist Scott Mulvahill declares on the title track of his new CD, Himalayas. “I gotta find out what I’m made of.” That impulse to self-discovery has produced some impressive results in the form of this collection, which embodies pop, jazz, blues and gospel, among other influences. A lot of musical ground, no doubt, but it’s nicely held together by Mulvahill’s strong, expressive vocals and his formidable skills as an acoustic bassist (he played that instrument for several years as a member of Ricky Skaggs’ Kentucky Thunder band).
Sunny themes mark many of the album’s 12 tracks, starting with “Begin Againers,” which celebrates persistence and fresh starts. “Top of the Stairs” is based on the idea that it’s the journey, not the destination, that really counts. “Move and Shake” features a lighthearted melody in the service of a serious message about changing what needs to be changed instead of waiting for someone else to do it. But Mulvahill isn’t afraid to confront darker ideas as well, such as regret over an unspecified transgression in the confessional “Indefensible” or dealing with the difficulties of relationships in “Fighting for the Wrong Side.”
Along with handling most of the vocals (harmony as well as lead), Mulvahill wrote or co-wrote most of Himalayas’ songs. A couple of covers are worth noting. “20/20 Vision,” an old bluegrass tune written by Joe Allison and Milton Estes, is remade here with a cool, jazzy-bluesy arrangement and powerful vocals. Similarly, “Homeless,” by Paul Simon and Joseph Shabalala, doesn’t sound much like the version on Simon’s Graceland, but is beautiful in its own way.
Several tracks feature Mulvahill’s bass and vocals only; contributing musicians on others include guitarist Jesse Isley, keyboardist Mike Hicks, dobroists Jason Mowery and Jerry Douglas, percussionist Josh Hunt, and former boss Skaggs on mandolin. Production is excellent, emphasizing – not surprisingly – Mulvahill’s bass. Good woofers are recommended. Mulvahill ‘s name is first in the list of producers, followed by Nashville notables Charlie Peacock, Gary Paczosa and Shani Gandhi.
We had the privilege of having Nashville songwriting great Gary Nicholson join us for the 20th anniversary of Freedom Sings, a fundraiser for First Amendment education at the Bluebird Cafe in Nashville. He shared this amazing new composition with us. It’s truly a song for our time.
Americana Music News – Webb Wilder’s new release “Powerful Stuff” is a real treat, a collection of long-lost and archived songs that capture Webb and the Beatnecks at their full-throttle best. In this edition of the Americana Music News Podcast, Webb Wilder talks about how this classic collection came to be. Rounding out the show is a First Person appearance by Cheryl Deserée talking about the charming “Sitting Duck” from her new Texas swing album “Dreamy,” featuring Ray Benson, Dale Watson and Riders in the Sky.
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Tony Joe White discusses his new album at BMI in Nashville.
We were a little puzzled when we heard some describe Tony Joe White’s new release as a “blues album.” What Tony Joe White record isn’t a blues album?
Since emerging in 1969 by recording “Polk Salad Annie” and writing the brilliant “Rainy Night in Georgia,” a hit in the hands of Brook Benton in 1970. White has turned out decades of soulful and bluesy recordings, all stamped with his signature sound.
Yet “Bad Mouthin'” is indeed a return to his roots. It’s stripped down and simple, distilling Tony Joe’s music to its essence. The title cut is also vintage, a long lost song from the very beginning of his songwriting efforts.
Tony Joe White explains how it all came about in this edition of the Americana Music News podcast.
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By Ken Paulson
September is a very good month for Nashville area music fans, with the Pilgrimage Festival coming this weekend on the heels of the Americana Music Festival.
Boxcutters at 2017 Pilgrimage Festival
The Pilgrimage Festival in Franklin has been a welcome addition to the mid-South music scene, offering a happy medium between the massive Bonnaroo and the generally small venues of the sprawling Americana Music Festival.
There are big names here – Jack White and Chris Stapleton among them – but the Pilgrimage Music Festival offers both intimacy and a sense of community. The sound and sight lines are good and the stages are reasonably close to each other.
The full list of artists are here, but we’re particularly looking forward to sets by Aaron Lee Tasjan (he was great here last year) The Record Company. Amos Lee, Madisen Ward and The Mama Bear, Elle King and Valerie June.
It’s a very civilized and family-friendly festival, with things winding down around 8 p.m. Tickets are still available at the festival’s website.
By Paul T. Mueller
Kevin Welch saves the best for last on his latest effort, Dust Devil. The closing track, which shares its title with the 10-song CD, is a masterpiece of subtle wordcraft. It is at once the first-person narrative of an atmospheric event (dust devils are mini-tornadoes often seen in Oklahoma, where Welch grew up) and a very human description of a restless and reckless life. ”I was a panhandle dancer, never knew where I belonged,” Welch sings in a voice that’s aged like good whiskey. “I’d show up in the summer, come the wintertime I’d be gone.” He sums it up at the end: “All I ever wanted was to settle on some hallowed ground. I’m an old dust devil, waitin’ on the wind to die down.” The wistful words are backed by restrained but beautiful instrumentation that includes guitar, banjo and French horn.
There’s plenty to like about the rest of the album as well. Opener “Blue Lonesome” features Old Testament imagery and a jazzy vibe; “Just Because It Was a Dream,” “The Girl in the Seashell,” “Dandelion Girl” and “True Morning” all look at lost love, from various angles; the narrator of “A Flower” is a teenage girl dealing with more hardship than she deserves, with more grace than might be expected. “Brother John” is a heartfelt lament for an old friend who came home broken from an unnamed battlefield, while John Hadley’s “High Heeled Shoes,” one of two covers, is the richly detailed story of a mysterious lady seemingly caught between two worlds.
Welch did a fine job producing the album, and he had plenty to work with aside from his own contributions. The cast of first-call players includes Glenn Worf on bass, Harry Stinson on drums, Kenny Vaughan on electric guitar, Matt Rollings on piano and organ, and Fats Kaplin on a variety of stringed instruments, plus accordion. Welch’s son Dustin Welch provides banjo, resonator guitar and backing vocals; other singers include daughter Savannah Welch, Eliza Gilkyson and Beth Hooker.
It’s been more than a quarter of a century since Welch’s “next big thing” days in Nashville, as the face of what the marketers dubbed “Western Beat.” Dust Devil, scheduled for release Oct. 15, needs no such label. It’s an excellent example of skilled songwriting brought to life by sensitive performers. Highly recommended.
John Prine at Americanafest 2017
Americana Music News – We’re just 2 days away from the launch of the Americana Music Conference and Festival on Tuesday in Nashville, the number one musical event in a city devoted to them. Of course, we have a bias toward all things Americana, but you would be hard-pressed to name another festival anywhere with the same depth and breadth of talent.
John Prine, Candi Staton, Buddy Miller, Brandy Clark, John Hiatt, Jerry Douglas, Jim Lauderdale, K.D. Lang, Kathy Mattea, Kim Richey, Lori McKenna, Old Crow Medicine Show, Richard Thompson, Lera Lynn, Rosanne Cash and Alejandro Escovedo are among the top artists at Americanafest 2018. The full list is here.
The $75 wristband is a tremendous bargain, and some are still available at the Americana Music Association site.
By Ken Paulson
Seven months ago, we posted this podcast featuring Gordy Quist of the Band of Heathens talking about the band re-recording in its entirety Ray Charles’ 1972 album “A Message for the People.” Gordy was excited about it, but it was one of those projects that we figured might never see the light of day.
After all, the album is little-known today and wouldn’t loom as a likely release from a vibrant Americana band in 2018.
Until now. This month the Band of Heathens will in fact release “A Message from the People Revisited.” And it’s very good.
In 1972, America was badly divided over the Vietnam War and there were the first stirrings of Watergate. Charles’ album compiled songs of patriotism, faith and social awareness, including “America the Beautiful” and covers of John Denver’s “Country Roads” and the Stevie Wonder hit “Heaven Help Us All.”
The Band of Heathens treat the material respectfully and thoughtfully, though they can’t help camping up Melanie’s “Look What They Done to My Song, Ma.”
The entire album is well done, a breath of fresh air at a cynical time.
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It’s a double feature today featuring two talented artists that need to be known by a lot more people. First up is Stephen Kellogg, who’s just wrapping up the recording of a new album in Nashville, and then Ruby Boots, an Australian artist set to tour Great Britain in September behind her striking 2018 album “Don’t Talk About It.” We caught up with both at the Folk Alliance International Conference.
Please subscribe to the Americana Music News Podcast on iTunes.
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The Black Lillies have a vibrant new album called “Stranger To Me” set for release on Sept. 18, but Nashville fans can get a sneak preview at the band’s show at the City Winery on August 29th.
A new song from the album:
By Paul T. Mueller
If Kiefer Sutherland’s August 11 performance in Houston is any guide, the actor/musician’s forthcoming second album is likely to be a little more upbeat than his 2016 debut, Down In a Hole. Backed by a capable four-piece band, Sutherland treated a near-capacity audience at Miller Outdoor Theatre to about 90 minutes’ worth of songs, including several new ones and a few covers, and some stories about his recent turn to musical performance after years of songwriting.
The music might best be described as pop/rock with some twang, given a little more edge by the band’s two guitarists and taking on an even harder tone during a mid-set stretch when Sutherland put down his acoustic guitar in favor of a Telecaster. Some of the singer’s wardrobe choices (white sport coat and matching Panama hat) and stage mannerisms might have seemed more at home on a Broadway stage than in a honky-tonk, but his guitar skills were up to the task and his gravelly voice was well suited to his material.
Song titles weren’t always announced, but Sutherland introduced one that might have been “Something You Love” by explaining its theme as “Life’s too short to spend doing things you don’t love.” He described “Reckless and Me” as either a reference to the name of his horse during his rodeo days or a description of his personality (apparently the new album will be titled Reckless). He acknowledged being surprised at realizing how many songs in his catalog dealt with drinking; several showed up in the set, including “This Is How It’s Done,” “Agave” and “Tonight the Bottle Let Me Down,” delivered as a tribute to Merle Haggard. The theme was underscored by the bottle of Scotch that was more than an onstage prop. Sutherland also sang a nice rendition of “Open Road,” a highway ballad by singer-songwriter Jude Cole, a friend and frequent co-writer.
The show was a free one, part of the venue’s annual concert series, and it’s a fair guess that many in attendance were there out of familiarity with Sutherland’s acting career rather than as fans of his music. Still, at several points he expressed his gratitude that people had come out to hear him perform music they probably weren’t familiar with. He and the band were rewarded with a standing ovation when they wrapped up. They returned after a few minutes; Sutherland told some entertaining stories from his and his twin sister’s childhood with their dad, actor Donald Sutherland, and the band closed with a fine take on Dylan’s “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door.”
Footage from an earlier show on the tour:
The wildly entertaining “Wild! Wild! Wild” collaboration between Robbie Fulks and Linda Gail Lewis was released on Bloodshot Records yesterday, but the news gets even better. They’ll perform in Nashville on Sept. 11 at American Legion Post 82.
There are fresh voices galore on this episode of Americana Music News. First, we’ll hear from the much-heralded duo The War and Treaty, followed by a First Person segment featuring the Madison, Wisconsin-based trio Gin, Chocolate and Bottle Rockets.
About Americana Music News: We’re in our eighth year covering Americana, roots, country and folk music from our base in Nashville. Please subscribe to the Americana Music News podcast, available free of charge through all the leading podcast providers, including iTunes, Stitcher and Google Play Music. And please join our 24,000 Twitter followers to continue the conversation.
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We caught up with the Milk Carton Kids minutes after they hosted this year’s announcement of the Americana Music Association’s 2018 nominees at the Country Music Hall of Fame.
In this episode of the Americana Music News Podcast, Joey Ryan and Kenneth Pattengale talk about their shared career, the mixed blessing of being compared to Simon and Garfunkel and their rich new album “All the Things That I Did and All the Things That I Didn’t Do.”
In “First Person,” we hear from Seth Timbs, the talented Nashville singer-songwriter, about his engaging new album “Record and Pause.”
About Americana Music News: We’re in our eighth year covering Americana, roots, country and folk music from our base in Nashville. We’ve just launched a new Americana Music News podcast, available free of charge through all the leading podcast providers, including iTunes, Stitcher and Google Play Music. And please join our 24,000 Twitter followers to continue the conversation.
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Americana Music News – The new American Aquarium album “Things Change” moves to #12 on the 
Americana Music Association’s album charts this week and with good reason. It may well be the most thought-provoking and rewarding album of the year.
There are inevitably going to be comparisons to Bruce Springsteen because of BJ Barham’s vocals, but the more critical similarity is to well-crafted songs about the kind of world we live in.
“The world Is On Fire” is the stunner, a extraordinary song about election night 2016 and the next morning’s reckoning:
“When did The Land of the Free become The Home of the Afraid?
Afraid of the world, afraid of the truth
Afraid of each other”