Tin Pan South, the pre-emiment songwriters festival, has just released its line-up for the 2012 event scheduled for March 27-31. It’s a wide-ranging collection of talent, spead over ten venues. Attendees can pay cover at the door or buy a weeklong pass that offers preferred access. Many of this year’s performers are songwriters who have also had successful recording careers, including…
New on chart: Carolina Chocolate Drops, Joan Osborne,Sugar + the High-Lows
The top three positions on the Americana music airplay chart remain steady this week, with Darrell Scott’s Long Ride Home, the Guy Clark tribute This One’s For Him and the Little Willies’ For the Good Times remaining first through third. Lyle Lovett’s Release Me jumps into #4 in just its second week. It’s also one of the three most-added albums,…
Review: The Hobart Brothers with Lil’ Sis Hobart
By Ken Paulson — Crosby, Stills and Nash offered up a successful template, but the merger of singer-songwriters in a group can have widely varying results. Souther-Hillman-Furay fell short of their promise; Bryndle never took off; the Thorns (Pete Droge, Shawn Mullins and Matthew Sweet) sounded great together, but that’s apparently as far as the harmony went. And then there…
Sun209: The week in Tweets
Rolling Stones sax man Bobby Keys lets it bleed in new book | http://t.co/J2IG1EDc http://t.co/0oLtU45a # The @countrymusichof saluted Sonny Curtis, a rock pioneer, Cricket and successful songwriter today. http://t.co/wcF0Oj0G # Jay Farrar adapts Woody Guthrie's lyrics on New Multitudes http://t.co/GRoxUM86 # On @americanafest radio @darrellscott album "Long Ride Home" tops chart, @lylelovett has top debut http://t.co/3sT7pZXw # Lessons from…
The Leonard Cohen Economy
By Bruce Rosenstein Leave it to The Economist, and specifically the Schumpeter management column, to find the intersection between Leonard Cohen and entrepreneurship. The February 25th Enterprising Oldies explores, in a neat package, why all of us (no matter where we are chronologically in adulthood) may have to explore entrepreneurship and other forms of self-employment at some point in our…
Tommy Womack: Angst, art and rock ‘n’ roll
We’ve written about Nashville’s Tommy Womack’s inspired, irreverent and deeply personal music on Sun209 in the past, and Tommy has contributed to the site with a piece on his three favorite Kinks songs. Still, his unique style is tough to capture in words. Our friend Peter Cooper succeeded with a fine article in today’s Tennesseean. Cooper wrote about the reaction of…
Will Kimbrough’s Lick of the Day
This week: Fingerpicking basics.
Darrell Scott’s “Long Ride Home” hits #1, Lyle Lovett has top debut
Darrell Scott’s Long Ride Home moves into the top spot on the Americana music airplay chart this week, after a virtual three-way tie at the number one spot last week. The album is being played on 54 stations. Chart debuts this week include Lyle Lovett’s Release Me at #16, the Chieftains’ Voice of Ages at #24 and New Multitudes, an…
Sun209: The week in Tweets
Review: @somevelveteve's "No Law Against Talking" http://t.co/8AffuHGQ # Review of "Seed of a Pine:" Evocative new album by @davemcgrawmusic and Mandy Fer http://t.co/RIgRDS4r # Bonnaroo suspends ticket sales due to demand, technical difficulties | The Tennessean http://t.co/Eq5fiifH # Johnny Cash Museum unveiled in Nashville http://t.co/pS1GcrEp # Sun209 Review: @richiefuray band in concert http://t.co/XBORPiut # New on Americana chart: @Amoslee, @Elliottbrood,…
Sonny Curtis honored at the Country Music Hall of Fame
Sonny Curtis, a first-generation rocker and a highly successful songwriter, was saluted at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville as part of its “Poets and Prophets” series today. The program was a compelling reminder of the many talented contributors to contemporary music who are not household names, but should be. The warm and self-effacing Curtis has had an…
Will Kimbrough’s Lick of the Day
This week: Low B Tuning, Fingerstyle.
Charting: Amos Lee, Elliott Brood, Punch Brothers, Chuck Mead and Dunwells
They don’t make elections this close: The top 3 slots on this week’s Americana Music radio airplay chart include the Little Willies’ For the Good Times with 389 spins, Darrell Scott’s Long Ride Home, also with 389 spins, This One’s For Him, the Guy Clark tribute with 388. New to the chart this week: Amos Lee’s As the Crow Flies…
Review: Richie Furay Band live
by Terry Roland The Richie Furay Band’s brief February tour through Southern California was important for this veteran country-rock artist. His last time around was with his old bandmates Neil Young and Stephen Stills on their long-awaited Buffalo Springfield reunion tour. While most of the audiences who attended the Springfield shows in California were familiar with Stephen Stills of Crosby,…
Dave McGraw and Mandy Fer’s “Seed of a Pine”
By Joe Ross Singer/songwriters Dave McGraw and Mandy Fer have a knack for capturing the passionate beauty of original contemporary folk music. Evoking tranquility and reflection, their frank lyrics and life-affirming tales are woven around melodic lines that hold the fabric together. The set alternates with McGraw and Fer compositions, and this debut collaboration is a perfect showcase for their…
Some Velvet Evening’s “No Law Against Talking”
By Joe Ross Fans of classic country music should rejoice that new music is still being written in that style by artists like Carrie Shepard and John Holkeboer (aka John Holk). The Detroit duo refers to themselves as “Some Velvet Evening,” and No Law Against Talking was recorded over a three-year period with the instrumental assistance of Todd Glass (drums),…
Sun209: The week in Tweets
Most covered song on @Cayamo 2012 is "Love Hurts." # On @Cayamo , Loud and Rich reunite for first show in a year with covers of Marty Robbins and Bob Dylan. # Celebrating the Skeletons, Morells and the Symptoms http://t.co/HThH2wEV # Wow. 4 days ago, we saw @thecivilwars on @Cayamo http://t.co/rvnRZNqD. Tonight they're bridging Paul McCartney and Taylor Swift. #Grammys…
Leonard Cohen’s “Old Ideas”
by Terry Roland — Leonard Cohen’s latest album returns us to his dark ballroom of late night apocalyptic poetic waltzes, haikus and tongue-in-cheek pessimistic self-reflections. Old Ideas is built off of much the same musical landscape that Cohen has carefully laid for the last ten years with spare and lean cabaret instrumentation, Sharon Robinson’s gorgeous, simple and clear background vocal…
Will Kimbrough’s Lick of the Day
Special “Lick of the Day” guest: Jason Wilber of the John Prine band.
At the Bluebird: Peter Cooper, Karen Leipziger, Phil Lee, Dave Duncan
By Mary Sack Tonight I witnessed yet another, one-of-a-kind Nashville Moment. It wasn’t a Grammy moment. Could’ve been, in an alternate universe. Three days after The Grammy Awards were broadcast live from Los Angeles, I saw a bona fide 2012 Grammy Nominee (for “Best Children’s Album”) Peter Cooper, bona fide rapscallion Phil Lee, new-to-me Dave Duncan and the surprisingly soulful…
Merl Johnson’s “A Better Man”
By Joe Ross – Everyone’s heard of Merle Haggard and Merle Travis, and now it’s time to get acquainted with Merl Johnson. Growing up in Woodbridge, Va. about 20 miles southwest of Washington, D.C., the young musician accompanied his dad to many festivals, concerts, and jams. Merl took to music early on, appearing on his first radio show at age…