Americana Music News – Willie Nelson’s Heroes moves into the top position on this week’s Americana Music Association radio chart, edging out JD McPherson’s Signs and Signifiers and Paul Thorn’s What the Hell Is Goin’ On? New to the chart this week are O’ Be Joyful by Shovels and Rope at #29, Chris Smither’s Hundred Dollar Valentine at #34 and…
Category: Reviews
Review: J.D. McPherson’s “Signs and Signifiers”
By Ken Paulson –JD McPherson’s Signs and Signifiers has topped the Americana music airplay chart for the past two weeks, and for good reason. It’s a refreshing collection of first generation rock ‘n’ roll and rhythm and blues that sounds like it could have been recorded at Sun studios in 1957. Like the early Blasters records, this taps into rock’s…
Review: Jack Saunders with Robbie Saunders
By Paul T. Mueller –In the beginning, at least, the atmosphere in the Old Quarter Acoustic Café in Galveston on the evening of June 15 wasn’t exactly the quiet, attentive ambience you might expect at a CD release show by a respected artist. Far from it – Jack Saunders’ show had more the feel of a rowdy Friday night in…
Richard Thompson, Booker T. Jones to be honored at Americana music festival
Americana Music News –Richard Thompson and Booker T. Jones will be honored with lifetime achievement awards from the Americana Music Association at its 11th Annual Honors and Awards ceremony on Sept. 12 at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, the organization announced. Jones and Thompson will be honored in the instrumentalist and songwriting categories, respectively, and will join Bonnie Raitt, previously…
New to chart: John Fullbright, Brandi Carlile
Americana Music News – The top two slots in this week’s Americana Music Association radio chart hold steady, with JD McPherson’s Signs and Signifiers and Willie Nelson’s Heroes running 1-2. New to the chart this week are John Fullbright’s From the Ground Up at #33 and Brandi Carlile’s Bear Creek at #40. Most added this week to Americana music radio:…
Review: Steve and Jubal Lee Young in concert
By Paul T. Mueller –Any family is lucky to count one fine singer-songwriter among its members. Rarer still is the family with two, and lucky is the audience that gets to see them play, separately and together, in the same show. Such was the happy fate of the fortunate few dozen in attendance at Heights Presbyterian Church in Houston when…
Film review: Troubadour Blues
By Paul T. Mueller If you’re looking for revelations, Troubadour Blues may leave you disappointed. There’s not too much in the way of new truths in Tom Weber’s independent documentary about singer-songwriters. Most of it comes down to (A) these folks do what they do because they love it, not for money or fame, and (B) what really counts is…
Review: Chris Richards’ Goldenwest
By Ken Paulson — It’s not a surprise that a songwriter who’s logged time in Wisconsin, Nashville and now LA would travel throughout his new album Goldenwest, beginning with “Rubblefields,” a reassuring tale of a road trip gone right. Richards writes smart, compelling narratives and delivers them with a voice and cadence that may bring Gordon Lightfoot and an earlier…
2012 Americana Music Awards nominees announced
The 2012 Americana Honors and Awards nominees were announced today in Los Angeles. They’ll be presented at the Ryman Auditorium on September 12 during the Americana Music Festival in Nashville. The nominees: ALBUM OF THE YEAR Here We Rest – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit I’ll Never Get Out of This World Alive – Steve Earle The Harrow &…
Punch Brothers join bluegrass music cruise
The inaugural Mountain Song at Sea, a bluegrass festival on the ocean, just added the Punch Brothers to a line-up that already includes the David Grisman Sextet, Del McCoury Band, Steep Canyon Rangers, Tim O’Brien and Bryan Sutton, the Kruger Brothers, Peter Rowan, Larry Keel and Natural Bridge, The Travelin’ McCourys, Shannon Whitworth, Della Mae and Town Mountain. The cruise…
Review: Rick Nelson’s “Complete Epic Recordings”
By Ken Paulson — Rick Nelson was best known as a teen idol whose family starred in The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, one of the most popular television shows of its era. But he was also one of those rare artists whose best work actually came after his hit-making and television star years. His early hits hold up well…
Interview: Kevin Gordon and “Gloryland”
By Ken Paulson —Kevin Gordon is one of the most respected singer-songwriters in Nashville, which is saying something. Gloryland, his latest album, elicited rave reviews in the New York Times, USA Today and the Tennessean. Here he talks about the album and “Colfax,” a song about both his school marching band and courage in the face of adversity: listen to…
Sara Watkins, O’Brien Party of 7 enter Americana music chart
Justin Townes Earle continues to dominate Americana radio with yet another week at #1 with Nothing’s Gonna Change the Way You Feel About Me Now, followed by Ray Wylie Hubbard’s Grifter’s Hymnal. New to the Americana music chart: Sara Watkins’ Sun Midnight Sun at #30 and the O’Brien Party of 7’s Reincarnation: The Songs of Roger Miller at #35. Most…
Review: Todd Snider times two
By Ken Paulson –Todd Snider’s new album Agnostic Hymns and Stoner Fables may put you a little on edge, but thankfully, he’s also provided the antidote. Agnostic Hymns could well be the original cast album for the Occupy Movement, with a fair share of contemporary protest songs and attitude. The opening track “In the Beginning” makes the case that religion…
Review: Bonnie Raitt in concert at Nashville’s Ryman
By Ken Paulson –Bonnie Raitt’s show at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville last night was as loose as they come and every bit as entertaining. Whether explaining that she hadn’t found time to do a set list, calling former band member Rick Vito to the stage or saluting Nashville’s songwriters, Raitt was casual, comfortable and in command. She drew heavily…
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…
Review: Paul Thorn’s “What the Hell is Goin’ On?”
By Ken Paulson –What the Hell is Goin’ On? is one of the rarest of cover albums, with song selections so right that they don’t sound like covers at all. Thorn’s albums – including the recent Pimps and Preachers – are filled with colorful characters and unlikely adventures, and the songs he’s selected for this project come from the same…
Review: The reunited dB’s’ “Falling Off the Sky”
By Bill Lloyd –When certain bands reunite, that re-bonding of friendships and talents can do much more than simply echo the past. These musical projects can often have a sense of purpose and pride that creates songs and sounds even stronger than their earlier work. Everything you ever loved about the music to begin with will still be there and…
Review: Bill Lloyd’s “Boy King of Tokyo”
By Ken Paulson –Bill Lloyd’s new album Boy King of Tokyo is a vibrant and hook-laden collection, rivaling the earlier and excellent Set to Pop and Standing on the Shoulders of Giants. Lloyd took a cue from musical heroes Todd Rundgren and Paul McCartney by playing every instrument on the album. The high-octane title track was inspired by Lloyd’s early…
Review: Ray Wylie Hubbard’s “Grifter’s Hymnal”
By Paul T. Mueller –If music reviews included credit for style points, Ray Wylie Hubbard’s latest effort would earn plenty of them for its title alone. The Grifter’s Hymnal? Who but “the Wylie Lama” could have even imagined such a thing, much less fill it up with a batch of cool songs? Great title aside, this Hymnal has a lot…