Leon Virgil Bowers Leads Star-Studded Cash Cabin Singalong
Leon Virgil Bowers, JD Wilkes (back to camera), Rico from Helbound, Amanda Isbell, Jason Isbell
In September of 2012, Blake Judd of JuddFilms brought a camera crew to the famous Cash Cabin Studio in Hendersonville, TN to shoot a pilot episode for a television series that has never been aired. Meant to be aired late at night, similar to the late-night musical variety show The Midnight Special that was broadcast on NBC from 1972 to 1981, the idea was to take well-known established artists, worthy undiscovered musicians and songwriters, and stick them all in Johnny Cash’s legendary cabin with an open bar, and set the camera’s rolling.
Developed by Shooter Jennings and JuddFilms, Shooter Jennings’ Midnight Special had little to no rules. Pickers and songwriters organically decided what they wanted to play, and people joined in if they wished. The idea was to capture collaborative magic, while using the names of larger artists to help expose smaller ones. The names assembled in the Cash Cabin include mainstream country artists like Kellie Pickler and John Anderson, Americana names like Jason Isbell and Leroy Powell, and underground artists such as Leon Virgil Bowers (formerly Leroy Virgil of Hellbound Glory), and Col. JD Wilkes of Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers.
In the below video obtained by Saving Country Music from Judd Films, it finds Leon Virgil Bowers leading the Cash Cabin in a rendition of Garth Brooks’ “Two of a Kind.” The woman blowing in Bowers’ ear in the early portion is Leon’s wife who is known to request the song whenever she sees Leon with a guitar in his hand. Joining Leon is a stupidly-dizzying amount of music talent, including Jason Isbell, Amanda Isbell (Shires), Col. JD Wilkes, Jessica Wilkes, Scott Icenogle on bass, Rico from Hellbound Glory on slide guitar, while Shooter Jennings, Sarah Gayle Meech, John Carter Cash, Leroy Powell, Joey Allcorn, some pretty girls, and who knows else sway along and offer harmony vocals. It’s a crazy roundtable of talent, while top notch video cameras and studio-quality sound capture the entire thing.
Even more interesting is there’s apparently much more from where this video came from, with footage being captured all day, and John Anderson, Kellie Pickler, and others joining in, including Kellie doing Kitty Wells’ “It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels” to be released on December 4th. No word on what ever happened to this series, but it is definitely interesting to see all this talent in one place.
November 20, 2014 @ 7:14 pm
Now THIS I would watch! Such an insane amount of talent and I would love to watch Kellie Pickler cover Kitty Wells.
November 20, 2014 @ 7:19 pm
Goodness! This is a brilliant idea that I really wish came to fruition. That video alone makes me want to watch hours and hours of footage like this.
November 20, 2014 @ 7:22 pm
Turn this into a documentary. A modern day Heartworn Highways. Please make it happen Blake
November 20, 2014 @ 7:53 pm
Jeez, even more proof of how close Leroy (Leon) was to breaking through. Its maddening that something went wrong, really wish Hellbound Glory would’ve turned the corner. Oh well, we still have the music and hopefully his new stuff is in line with HB.
November 20, 2014 @ 8:47 pm
Didn’t Shooter produce the last Hellbound Glory album?
November 20, 2014 @ 11:56 pm
From my last interview with Leon:
https://savingcountrymusic.com/leroy-virgil-of-hellbound-glory-talks-lv-ep-more
Every time I bring up Hellbound Glory, people ask me what”™s going on with those Shooter Jennings sessions that you did out in Nashville. Is it coming in the future, is it sort of in limbo?
“You know, I”™d say it will probably be out someday. To be honest with you, I didn”™t really bring it to the recording sessions. A lot of the songs I hadn”™t finished yet, I don”™t think. And we were just really limited on time. I”™ve heard them, and Shooter did a great job, it was just I didn”™t do that great of a job. We drove three days and showed up at noon and started playing. We really partied pretty hard. And you know, I don”™t regret doing it because it made the songs better. But I just wasn”™t too stoked about what got laid to tape. I love Shooter to death and I wish it would have worked out, but the songs weren”™t done yet. There were lyrics on it that were half cooked. I didn”™t sing all that great. But I”™m looking forward to working with Shooter again. We”™ve actually talked about getting back into this studio in Aberdeen.”
November 20, 2014 @ 11:58 pm
It’s like “Country’s Family Reunion” on RFD-TV with people we civilians don’t know about. And it’s good also.I like it.
November 21, 2014 @ 6:52 am
Keep us posted on this project. I will definitely buy/tune it to this material. Badass stuff!
November 21, 2014 @ 6:58 am
I LOVE this guy’s voice and look forward to whatever he’s putting out next. Great, great songwriter, too. I’d watch that show every week.
November 21, 2014 @ 9:18 am
That is a Bobby Boyd song. Garth recorded it.
November 21, 2014 @ 1:15 pm
Wow…This is awesome!! I would love for this show to come out. What a great idea to use major artists to help push the lesser known artists.
Can we get a follow up on this as to whether this has been canned all together or if this may be a possibility. Even if this was not on tv, this would be a cool internet show.
November 21, 2014 @ 4:47 pm
I don’t want to speak out of turn because I don’t know all of the specifics, but from what I understand the chances at this point of this particular series moving forward are slim. That doesn’t mean there’s still not a possibility for it in the future or something similar.
Something everyone has to appreciate is just how big budget this was. That’s how they were able to get everyone in the same room and make something of such high quality. I think that’s why it would be difficult to do this online.
November 21, 2014 @ 2:45 pm
Wow, this is cool! A very nice rendition, and is that Jason Isbell in the back playing Johnny Cash’s balck Martin? If so, then this video is pure music porno :p
November 21, 2014 @ 5:58 pm
This is a great project, just brilliant. I almost expected Jamey Johnson to be there to given his relationships with a few of the people in that room.
And HEY Trigger brought up a Shooter Jennings related project. He is being mentioned again.
November 21, 2014 @ 8:00 pm
Best two and a half minutes of music I have heard in a long time. Awesome!
November 22, 2014 @ 1:05 am
This needs to be made available for purchase immediately.
November 22, 2014 @ 1:51 am
it looked like an audition tape for the real housewives of Nashville. i couldn’t finish watching it.
November 22, 2014 @ 8:18 am
The woman sitting on the back of my bass drum is my real wife, and we dont live in nashville. I asked her to be a part of this and I think she did a great job considering she’d rather be on the other side of the camera. Say what you want about me, but lay off her. Shes a star, please dont make me regret sharing her with you guys.
November 22, 2014 @ 10:55 am
I think this was one of the best live collaboration sessions that I’ve seen recently. Also, everyone looked like they were having a great time. I think I might need to look up more of your music, Leon. I really like what I’ve seen so far, and I appreciate your willingness to share. I’m a big fan of this type of music. Thank you!
November 22, 2014 @ 11:37 am
Yeah, this was cool. Haven’t listened to that song in forever… Kimberly, you should purchase the song “Streets of Aberdeen”. One of the year’s best, imo.
November 22, 2014 @ 12:45 pm
Shadegrown, thanks! I just bought the LV EP and I love it. There were a few albums on iTunes so I wasn’t quite sure where to start.
November 22, 2014 @ 3:31 pm
It seems like if you are going to do a down home organic music show like this it would be about the music. Those women dancing in the background distract from that significantly.
November 25, 2014 @ 9:56 pm
Even though you back tracked and made some lame excuse about your wife being flattered; it is juvenile that you you tried to intimidate Lunchbox. Grow up.
November 25, 2014 @ 10:31 pm
Didn’t see anywhere where Leon tried to “intimidate” Lunchbox whatsoever. I saw where he defended his wife in the video, as is his right, and something most every husband would do. I don’t appreciate the tone of your comment.
November 22, 2014 @ 12:33 pm
alright, apparently i crossed some kind of line here. my bad. LVB..don’t listen to me. i ain’t nobody important…
November 22, 2014 @ 1:28 pm
Nevermind. She read what u said and was flattered to be compared to tv stars. I told you, shes a natural! Take care.
November 22, 2014 @ 5:49 pm
The women on those so called reality housewives shows are not stars by a long shot. Not sure why your wife is flattered to be compared to them as she possesses so much more natural beauty than any of them.