By Ken Paulson
Aubrie Sellers talks about her musical roots and how her music continues to evolve in this Americana One interview on WMOT Roots Radio. (Available for a limited time.)
We recently enjoyed a not-so-strange chat with the engaging Mandy Barnett about her new album Strange Conversation. The setting was WMOT’s 895 Fest on the fields of the Hop Spring Beer Park, a distinctly different venue than her upcoming “Nashville Songbook” concert at Feinstein’s/54 Below on Broadway on August 13.
But that’s no surprise. Mandy Barnett’s career has always been about versatility, balancing the classics and the contemporary, as you’ll hear in this week’s podcast:
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The High Divers will be all over Nashville tomorrow, Friday, June 28. Promoting their new album Ride with You, the Charleston, SC, band will be featured on WMOT’s “Finally Friday” show at 3rd and Lindsley (listen with the Roots Radio app) and then will play a full show at the Basement in the evening.
By Ken Paulson
Gary Nicholson, one of Nashville’s most respected songwriters and artists, is overachieving these days. On June 7, he’ll release not one, but two new albums, and both are pretty special.
Nicholson, like so many of us, is concerned about the state of our nation these days. His The Great Divide captures that in 11 compelling songs, opening with “God Help America” and a nod to Irving Berlin. It’s not an angry album; it’s a call to action.
Whitey Johnson is the Clark Kent to Gary Nicholson’s Superman, or maybe it’s the other way around. As Whitey, Nicholson delivers a playful groove throughout More Days Like This. It’s a soulful and often charming collection of rhythm and blues, with co-writes from Delbert McClinton, Seth Walker, Donnie Fritts, Tom Hambridge and the late Arthur Alexander. Nicholson doesn’t mess around.
In this edition of the Americana One podcast, we paired our preview of the new albums with a conversation we had with Gary last year on Delbert’s Sandy Beaches Cruise. He took us all the way back to the roots of his career and the highly successful years that followed.
Americana One is heard twice a week on WMOT Roots Radio and is available as a podcast on iTunes, Google Play and other prominent podcast platforms. Subscribe now.
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WMOT, the fast-growing Americana radio station based at Middle Tennessee State University outside of Nashville, is gearing up for its first festival at Hop Springs Park on May 31 and June 1.
It’s a remarkable line-up featuring legendary artists like Rodney Crowell and Delbert McClinton, as well as terrific newcomers like the War and Treaty and Liz Brasher. Overall, it’s a performer list that pretty much mirrors the station’s eclectic format. Details at 895fest.org.
Full disclosure: WMOT is Americana One’s radio home and we’re proud to say so. Here’s the line-up.
In this week’s Americana One podcast, Michael McDermott talks about his rich career, his personal struggles and his new “Orphans” album, an engaging collection of songs that didn’t quite fit elsewhere.
Americana One is a weekly radio show on the 100,000-watt WMOT Roots Radio station heard throughout Nashville and Middle Tennessee and streamed to a national audience via the Roots Radio App. The show is also a podcast available on iTunes, Google Play and all the leading podcast providers. Subscribe now.
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It seemed as though most of the WMOT members attending today’s Wired In concert at the City Winery were there to hear the impeccable harmonies of I’m With Her, but Yola (one name only) was a revelation.
Previewing her new album “Walk Through Fire’ – to be released tomorrow – Yola elicited quick comparisons to the ’70s soul of Dusty Springfield, no small accomplishment. Her sound isn’t retro, but it is reflective of an era in which vocal prowess and compelling melodies dominated the airwaves.
The new album was produced by Dan Auerbach in Nashville, and includes guest spots by Vince Gill and Dan Penn. Yola is special.
Justin Townes Earle knows how to pace himself. In a wide-ranging conversation at the 30A Songwriters Festival, Justin told us how he writes a new album: 12 songs written over the span of a year and astonishingly, in the exact order they show up on the finished collection. In this excerpt, he talks about how it all comes together.
The full interview will be available soon on the Americana Music News Podcast (find it on iTunes) and broadcast on WMOT Roots Radio.
We visited with Michael McDermott about his new collection “Orphans” at the 30A Songwriters Festival, but also spoke about his truthful songwriting and his penchant for performing the National Anthem. Here’s an excerpt:
The full interview will be available soon on the Americana Music News Podcast (find it on iTunes) and broadcast on WMOT Roots Radio.
The 30A Songwriters Festival is heading into its big weekend with shows featuring Jason Isbell, Rosanne Cash and dozens of other Americana, country and folk artists.
Yesterday’s shows didn’t disappoint, and it was a special treat to catch up with Livingston Taylor, who is celebrating 50 years as an artist. In his set last night at Bud and Alley’s, he showed how decades of experience translate into a wonderful mix of songs and deft engagement with the audience.
We had the chance to visit with him before the show, and he shared what he sees as his duty as an artist and entertainer.
The full interview will appear an an Americana Music News Podcast in coming weeks and broadcast on WMOT Roots Radio in greater Nashville. Our special thanks to Justin Eubanks and Fish Out of Water – a terrific restaurant in Santa Rosa Beach – for letting us turn their wine room into a recording studio.
Clare Dunn is a country artist and songwriter with a bright future and we spent some time with her at the 30A Songwriters Festival. We took for granted that like so many young singer-songwriters her path began playing acoustic guitar in her bedroom and singing for high school friends, but she quickly set us straight:
Clare Dunn may have had a late start, but you wouldn’t know it from her performances. Here she tackles Bob Dylan’s “Make You Feel My Love.”
Americana Music News – It’s been too long since a new Kathy Mattea album, but that’s been remedied with the release of “Pretty Bird,” a vibrant collection that includes outstanding versions of Mary Gauthier’s “Mercy Now” and Bobbie Gentry’s “Ode to Billie Joe.”
On this edition of the Americana Music Podcast, Kathy Mattea talks about the path to her new album and the vocal challenges she had to overcome to make it.
You can now subscribe to this podcast on iTunes and Stitcher.
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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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By Ken Paulson
It’s been a highlight-filled week at the 2017 Americana Music Festival, but we we’ll admit to a special fondness for a show produced by WMOT Roots Radio, where I also play a modest role.
The station celebrated its first birthday as an Americana station with performances by Paul Thorn, Reckless Kelly, Whitney Rose, the Secret Sisters,the Deep Dark Woods, the O’Connor Band, Lilly Hiatt, the Texas Gentlemen, Aaron Lee Tasjan, Katie Pruitt, the Vandoliers and Mike Farris.
Scenes from throughout the day:
By Ken Paulson
Suzy Bogguss was kind enough to join us a few weeks ago at the Country Music Hall of Fame for the re-launch of WMOT, Nashville’s new Americana radio station. We had the chance to talk briefly about Aces Redux, a revisiting of Aces, her breakthrough album of 25 years ago.
She said her goal was to record the same songs, but with a more organic feel. She’s succeeded.
You live and learn a lot in a quarter century and this new recording reflects both the strength of that original album and Bogguss’ growth as an artist.
Three songs on the album – “Outbound Plane,” “Aces” and “Letting Go” – soared into the country music Top 10 in 1991 and 1992, with “Someday Soon” nestled in at number 12. Still, the new release showcases the other charms on the collection, particularly “Save Yourself” and “Part of Me.”