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.
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Next year marks the 60th anniversary of the writing of the rock ‘n’ roll classic “Hey Baby” by Bruce Channel (who recorded it) and Margaret Cobb. Earlier this year, we had the chance to visit with Bruce on board Delbert McClinton’s Sandy Beaches Cruise and we heard the full story of the 1962 hit record, Delbert’s role and the song’s connection to the Beatles. It’s an entertaining tale from a true rock ‘n’ roll pioneer.
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Marcia Ball, the official 2018 Texas State Musician of the Year, has a just-released album called “Shine Bright,” her 12th. We caught up with her on board Delbert McClinton’s “Sandy Beaches Cruise” earlier this year. She talks about the new album and her colorful career on Episode 11 of the Americana Music News Podcast.
About Americana Music News: We’re in our seventh 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 23,000 Twitter followers to continue the conversation.
Americana Music News – Delbert McCinton’s 24th annual Sandy Beaches Cruise has come to a close after a full week of varied and outstanding musical performances, including shows by the Mavericks, Marc Broussard, Marcia Ball, Teresa James and the Rhythm Tramps, Band of Heathens, the Howlin’ Brothers, Paul Brady, the McCrary Sisters, Paul Brady, Danny Flowers, Wayne Toups and many more. We’ll be rolling out a new podcast this Spring that will feature interviews with many of the artists, but in the meantime, here’s a quick look at 10 of the moments that helped make the cruise special:
10. Bob and Etta Britt’s rambunctious cover of Leon Russell’s “Out in the Woods,” with Bob channeling Leon’s voice.
9. “Pianorama,” an annual jam/shoot-out on a boat full of top-notch keyboard players. Always dazzling.
8. Bob DiPiero’s game take on “Too Fat to Fly,” a warped Christmas song about Santa’s weight problem and the tension it causes with the reindeer. It was an audience request and DePiero seemed to be willing the lyrics to float to him from across the ether.
7. Aeronautics Professor and former NASA researcher Scott Hubbard spoke compellingly about our progress in exploring Mars. No, it’s not standard music cruise fare, but it works.
6. The transformation of world-class songwriter Gary Nicholson into white-suited bluesman Whitey Johnson, setting the stage for a raucous R&B party.
5. The mere presence of Spooner Oldham, Red Young and Bruce Channel.
4. Jaston Williams of “Greater Tuna” fame’s monologue about his boyhood infatuation with the Beatles, and his cowboy father’s stunned disapproval of the Fab Four.
3. The Mavericks’ note-perfect cover of the Bee Gees’ “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart?”
2. Al Anderson’s blazing solo sets, tapping into his NRBQ songlist, from “Riding In My Car” to “Never Take the Place of You. ”
1. “Delbert and Friends:” That’s how the Sandy Beaches Cruise is billed, and it’s also the key to the cruise’s charm. Virtually every artist has played a role somewhere in Delbert’s decades-long career, so they know and genuinely like each other, hopping on stage, sharing sets and sitting in. Other music cruises are festivals at sea, but this one is Delbert’s party and the guests are happy to mingle.
Do you have your own favorite moment from the Sandy Beaches Cruise? Please share in the comments section below.
Americana Music News – Sharon Vaughn, a fine songwriter we interviewed last January on the Sandy Beaches Cruise, is being honored at the Country Music Hall of Fame at 2 p.m. August 8th. Here’s the Hall’s announcement, along with our conversation with Sharon:
Sharon Vaughn’s first songwriting hit was a career maker: “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys.” It appeared in 1976 on country music’s first certified platinum album, Wanted! The Outlaws, sung by Waylon Jennings. Four years later, Willie Nelson’s version went to #1 when it was included in the soundtrack to the film The Electric Horseman. Vaughn hails from Orlando, Florida. She was discovered by fellow Floridian Mel Tillis and she moved to Nashville in 1969 to pursue a singing career. During the 1970s Vaughn released her own singles on several labels, including ABC/Dot, while juggling studio work as a vocalist. Vaughn’s songwriting credits include the Oak Ridge Boys’ breakthrough country hit, “Y’All Come Back Saloon,” Reba McEntire’s “I’m Not That Lonely Yet,” the Lorrie Morgan-Keith Whitley duet “’Til a Tear Becomes a Rose,” Patty Loveless’s “Lonely Too Long,” and Randy Travis’s “Out of My Bones.” Today, Vaughn splits time between Orlando and Stockholm, and she has had success writing for international pop stars. In 2009 her song “Release Me,” recorded by Swedish singer Agnes, reached #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play Chart. This interview and performance will be illustrated with vintage photos, film footage, and recordings.
This program takes place in the Museum’s Ford Theater.
After the program Vaughn will sign commemorative Hatch Show Print posters. Ford Theater. Included with museum admission.
As Marcia Ball wrapped up her first song to polite applause, she seemed a little nonplussed.
“I thought there was a dance floor here,” she said, as she kicked off Delbert McClinton’s Sandy Beaches Cruise 2016. The crowd took the hint, and the rest of the evening – and the week – was one non-stop dance floor.
That sets this music cruise apart from others, where headliners and reserved seats are the norm. The Sandy Beaches crowd listens respectfully, but they move to the music.
That’s probably the influence of McClinton himself, who is a low-key and welcoming presence thoughout the cruise. It’s as though you were invited to Delbert’s house – one with a very large pool – with his musical friends on a Saturday night.
And if this is your first visit to Delbert’s, you won’t feel like a newcomer for long.
“This is your cherry and we’re here to bust it, “ Ball declared, launching into a high-velocity set of rhythm and blues, including the week’s first performance of “Sea Cruise.’ “A lot of nerve, “ she laughed.
“All Night Long” with the Mavericks
Raul Malo and Jerry Dale McFadden of the Mavericks
The Mavericks headlined the pool deck stage three times and the energy never flagged. Since reuniting in 2012, the band has been on a roll, culminating in their Grammy nominations for the song “All Night Long” and their Mono album, and being named group of the year in the Americana Music Association awards. When a band with more than two decades of experience hits a new career high, it shows on stage. In their final set of the week, they even played a danceable “Okie from Muskogee.”
The McCrary Sisters Let It Go
The McCrary Sisters delivered their first set on Sunday, appropriately so for this hard-rocking gospel quartet. Regina McCrary spoke of God’s capacity for healing and offered to pray for anyone in need. If you have a burden, you should “Let It Go,” they sang. No, not the song from “Frozen.”
Regina McCrary of the McCrary Sisters on Sandy Beaches Cruise 2016
Later in the day, Roger Blevins Jr. and Mingo Fishtrap announced they were going to echo the McCrarys’ advice to “let it go, “though their version would be “more profane.”
It wasn’t all church for the McCrarys . The sisters did the Family Stone proud with an inspired version of “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin.)”
Sandy Beaches Cruise 2016 songwriters
The songwriter sessions were uniformly impressive, giving artists the chance to showcase their writing in an acoustic performance. Sharon Vaughn told the story of how she pitched her classic My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys” to Waylon Jennings, who refused to believe she wrote it. Spooner Oldham played songs he co-wrote with Dan Penn, including James and Bobby Purify’s hit “I’m Your Puppet.”
Delbert McClinton joined the songwriters mid-week to showcase songs from a new album due this spring.
The World Famous Headliners
Al Anderson, Shawn Camp and Pat McLaughlin of the World Famous Headliners
Former NRBQ member Al Anderson has been on the last 18 cruises, but this time he brought his bandmates from the World Famous Headliners . It’s a tongue-in-cheek name, but Anderson, Shawn Camp and Pat McLaughlin make up a potent front three, with stellar guitar work and tight harmonies. The band – deep in writing talent – showcased songs from their new album, including “Hitchike Home,” “The Whoa Whoa Song” and “Fried Chicken,” a song that mashes up Memphis music and the Bee Gees.
The Headliners know no barriers. “We’d like to apologize for these songs,’ McLaughlin told the audience, shortly before Anderson sang “Stick It Where the Sun Don’t Ever Shine.”
The band brings Little Village to mind. That was the storied band featuring Nick Lowe, Ry Cooder, John Hiatt and Jim Keltner, an amazing line-up of players and songwriters that never seemed to gel as a group.
The Headliners gel. They even have their own theme song, which they played at both the beginning and close of their set. “We’re the World Famous Headliners…”
Keb’ Mo’ and the return of Lee Roy Parnell
Among other highlights of Sandy Beaches Cruise 2016:
Keb’ Mo’ drew big and appreciative crowds poolside with impeccable sets of blues and soul, including his fresh take on the O’Jays’ “Love Train.”
Lee Roy Parnell on Sandy Beaches Cruise 2016
Mingo Fishtrap rallied the audience on the final day, with Blevins Jr. saying that although everyone would have to disembark the next morning, now was the time to “self-lobotomize.” The band then launched into a blistering medley of classic James Brown songs.
Lee Roy Parnell, on the Sandy Beaches Cruise since its inception 22 years ago, was back after a year away. He saluted the late Allen Toussaint with a spirited take on his “Holy Cow.” Lari White joined him for a duet of a song she and Parnell had written, and Etta Britt delivered a powerful “People Get Ready.”
The annual “Pianorama,” with Marcia Ball as ringleader, convened virtually every keyboardist on the cruise for a piano jam. Five players at a time took the stage, trading off parts on songs like “Iko Iko,” “Nothing from Nothing” and Drinkin’ Wine Spo-de-o-dee.”
The Quebe Sisters Band
The Quebe Sisters were a revelation. Their harmonies were gorgeous – in 1940 they would have been the Andrews Sisters –and all three play fiddle beautifully. They draw on a big songbook, but Western Swing is a specialty.
Doyle and Debbie, the lampooning country music revue, doesn’t change and doesn’t need to. It remains fresh and funny.
Alyssa Bonagura was joined onstage by her parents Kathie Baillie and Michael Bonagura, aka “Baillie and the Boys ,” who revisited their musical past, including an impressive “Blue Bayou.” It’s that rare family where the daughter can plug her parents’ CDs at the merch table.
Bruce Channel and Delbert McClinton perform “Hey Baby” on Sandy Beaches Cruise 2016.
Bruce Channel joined Delbert to perform his big 1962 hit “Hey Baby,” a record on which McClinton played harmonica. I’m sure they’ve performed it together dozens of times, but it’s still a joyous performance.
The Howlin’ Brothers – Ian Craft, JT Huskey and Jared Green impressed audiences with both a reverence for folk, blues and bluegrass classics and their ability to craft new songs that continue the tradition.
Americana Music News – A sampling of scenes from Sixthman/Delbert McClinton’s 2015 Sandy Beaches Cruise:
Delbert McClinton and Gary Nicholson
Delbert McClinton played with pretty much everybody on the Sandy Beaches cruise, but was clearly in his element as Gary Nicholson accompanied him in a stellar guitar pull.
Bruce Channel
That guitar pull included Bruce Channel, who performed a number of his country hits, along with a fine rendition of his 1962 hit “Hey! Baby,” accompanied by McClinton on harmonica. McCinton played on the original record.
McCrary Sisters
The McCrary Sisters previewed their upcoming album (produced by Buddy Miller) with outstanding performances throughout the ship. Particularly memorable were covers of the Staples Singers’ “I’ll Take You There” and an unexpected medley of “Oh Happy Day/Happy.”
Danny Flowers
Danny Flowers’ next album features the McCrary Sisters throughout, and the women could be seen quietly singing along in the audience at one of his songwriter sessions. He began one of the shows with what he described as his worst song (“East Batcave”), and opened another with “Tulsa Time,” one of his best.
Al Anderson
Sitting next to Flowers at the first songwriters session was Al Anderson, a highly successful songwriter and founding member of NRBQ.
Jill Sobule
Jill Sobule rocked the atrium with an energetic (and very entertaining) set, backed by members of Paul Thorn’s band. She’s a remarkable songwriter, but there was also real joy in her cover of the Mott the Hoople hit “All the Young Dudes.”
The Mavericks
Along with Lyle Lovett, the Mavericks were the biggest draw on the cruise, previewing songs from their new album Mono in sets at the Stardust Theater and outside on the deck.
Lari White and Delbert McClinton
You knew it was going to be a great set (from a confident performer) when Nashville’s Lari White opened up her Stardust Theatre set with “Amazing Grace.” Lari also did a great show in the Atrium, and teamed with husband Chuck Cannon to lead the renewal of marriage vows on the ship.
Etta Britt
Etta Britt, another fine Nashville artist, did her own soulful sets throughout the cruise, including a memorable show in the Atrium.
Jimmy Hall
Jimmy Hall, yet another performer from Nashville, closed his show with “Keep On Smilin'” a Top 10 record in 1974, when he was lead singer of Wet Willie. One of the final shows on the cruise was also one of the best. Teresa James delivered a stirring set in the Stardust Theater, with a guest spot from Marcia Ball and a multi-performer finale that channeled Aretha.
