Americana Music News – This year was another extraordinary Americana Music Festival, with an overflowing slate of talent. Here’s a sampling of images that only hint at the range of artists: [cincopa AoMAQ-K1Ruvf] Photos copyright 2012 by Ken Paulson. Follow Americana Music News on Twitter at Sun209com.
Category: Nashville music
Kim Richey, Amy Cook, Howling Brothers at Grimey’s
One of the highlights of Americana Music Festival week in Nashville is Americanarama, sort of the ultimate in-store, but held outside in the parking lot of beloved record store Grimey’s. We dropped by to watch impressive sets by the Howling Brothers, Amy Cook and Kim Richey, who recently moved back to Nashville and has been recording a new album. We…
Americana Music Festival 2012 line-up
Americana Music News — The Americana Music Festival returns to Nashville this week. It’s a world-class music festival at a very economical price. For $50, you have access to shows by an amazing array of artists over four nights. Details here. The 2012 Americana Music Festival line-up: WEDNESDAY SEPT. 12 THE BASEMENT 10:00 Sallie Ford & the Sound Outside 11:00 Blue…
At the Bluebird Cafe: Kathy Mattea’s “Calling Me Home”
By Ken Paulson –Kathy Mattea revisited her roots on multiple levels tonight at the Bluebird Café in Nashville. She reminisced about appearing at the Bluebird 30 years ago and the performance that led to her first recording contract. But she also explored far deeper roots at this album release show for Calling Me Home, a collection of Appalachia-infused music, building on…
Corb Lund to play Americana Music Festival Sept. 12
Americana Music News — One of the most anticipated acts at this year’s Americana Music Festival in Nashville is Corb Lund, whose new album Cabin Fever broke into the Americana Music airplay chart this week at # 24. Lund will play at the Mercy Lounge at 10 p.m. on Sept. 12, opening night of the festival. If you can’t attend…
Review: Natasha Borzilova’s “Out of My Hands”
By Paul T. Mueller –It’s hard enough to write a CD’s worth of intelligent, engaging songs in one’s native language. To do so in one’s second language, as Russia-born singer-songwriter Natasha Borzilova has with Out of My Hands, is a pretty impressive achievement. On her third solo release (she’s a former member of Bering Strait, a country band she started…
Radney Foster’s “Del Rio, Texas, Revisited: Unplugged and Lonesome”
Americana Music News: Out today: Radney Foster’s Del Rio, Texas, Revisited: Unplugged and Lonesome, a revisiting of his debut solo album 20 years ago. Foster, then fresh off his collaboration with Bill Lloyd in Foster and Lloyd, quickly established himself with the energetic and impressive Del Rio, Texas, lauching his solo career with classic songs like “Just Call Me Lonesome”…
Reissue: Clover’s first two albums
By Ken Paulson I find myself flipping through albums at used record stores out of habit. I’ve bought pretty much everything I’ve wanted on vinyl, and most of the scarce stuff is now available as a CD or download. Still, there are some elusive albums I’ve always wanted to hear. Over the past forty years, I’ve never stumbled across the…
Tom Smith’s “Live from the Loft”
Americana Music News: In recent mail, we received a nice note from Tom Smith, fellow occupant of Old Hickory, TN , a commmunity outside Nashville where Sun209: Americana Music News is based. The correspondence from Tom Smith included his album Live from the Loft, an impressive and often riveting showcase of acoustic guitar and fingerpicking. His very cool website includes…
Americana Music Festival releases 2012 line-up
Americana Music News – The Americana Music Association has announced an impressive line-up for the Americana Music Festival & Conference September 12-15 in Nashville , with more performers to be named later. As usual, the roster includes a good mix of accomplished veterans and emerging artists. Among the biggest names: Billy Joe Shaver, the Punch Brothers, Brandi Carlile, Richard Thompson, Sara Watkins,…
Music Producers Institute brings artists, fans together in the studio
One of the more innovative ventures in Nashville’s music community offers a chance for fans and prospective producers to sit in on the recording sessions of some of their favorite bands. Music Producers Institute, directed by Grammy-award winning producer Steve Fishell, gives artists a chance to defray recording costs by inviting in paid guests, and attendees get a rich musical…
Free Americana music shows at CMA Festival
Chuck Mead and his Grassy Knoll Boys, Kenny Vaughan and Trent Summar and the New Row Mob are among the Americana artists who will appear at the free BMI tailgate party during the CMA Music Festival June 7-10 in Nashville. Shows begin at 4:30. Mead is performing in support of his new album Back at the Quonset Hut, recorded at…
Kenny Rogers at the Country Music Hall of Fame
Kenny Rogers concluded his two-night run as artist-in-residence at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville tonight with an intimate set and guest appearances by Kim Carnes and songwriter Don Schlitz. Fans accustomed to seeing Rogers in arena had to be thrilled to catch him in the 213-seat Ford’s Theater at the museum. He said he was going to…
Grammy Block Party 2012
[cincopa AEEAn6qM8Eq_] The annual Grammy Block Party in Nashville once again featured outstanding Music City-based performers, including the reunited Mavericks, Wynonna, Luke Bryan and Keb’ Mo’. (photos by Ken Paulson) Follow us on Facebook and Twitter (sun209com).
Long Players salute Neil Young’s Harvest
The Long Players, a loose aggregation of talented Nashville performers with a very tight band at its core, is a Music City institution – and for good reason. The band, founded by Bill Lloyd, impeccably re-creates the greatest rock and soul albums of the past 60 years in a concert setting. Tomorrow night, the Long Players tackle Neil Young’s Harvest at…
Tin Pan South Festival: Jimmy Webb, Jack Tempchin and Felix Cavaliere
By Ken Paulson –Tin Pan South is a weeklong festival in Nashville featuring fine songwriters and engaging songs, but there was no question that the event’s epicenter was at 3rd and Lindsley tonight, as pop and rock songwriting royalty performed. Felix Cavaliere of the Rascals took the stage first, and he remains in astonishingly fine voice. He began with “It’s…
Tin Pan South: Peter Yarrow, Roger Cook, Larry Weiss, Michael McDermott
One of the opening shows on opening night of Tin Pan South in Nashville featured three songwriters with some of the best copyrights in popular music. Roger Cook, Peter Yarrow, Larry Weiss and Michael McDermott showcased their catalogs at the Listening Room Café. McDermott acknowledged that he was the poorest of the four and the only one without a monster…
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…
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…
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…