Denzel Irwin, a.k.a Santa of Santa’s Pub, Has Died
20 Comments
He was Nashville’s ever-present and year-long version of Santa Claus, and his haunt Santa’s Pub is like the North Pole of the South. His real name was Elmer Denzel Irwin.
.357 String Band Reissues Landmark Album “Fire & Hail”
18 Comments
the loss of .357 String Band may go down as underground country’s greatest tragedy. I can think of no other project that was so ripe for becoming a success story of authentic American underground roots. They were brilliant, but accessible at the same time. It is a great sin of American music. They have re-issued their landmark 2008 album “Fire & Hail” on vinyl.
ABC’s “Nashville” Cast’s Real Life Counterparts
42 Comments
Like most fictional characters in popular culture, the characters of ABC’s new drama Nashville are probably based more on stereotypes than real-life folks. But for fun, let’s see if we can’t match up who the real-life inspiration is for the principals of the Nashville cast, and through the experiment see if the show really does represent all aspects of the Nashville music scene.
Jamey Johnson’s “Living for a Song / Tribute to Hank Cochran”
69 Comments
Jamey Johnson’s Living For a Song is a tribute to his musical hero; a man he met in 2008 when Cochran was already suffering from pancreatic cancer. I’ve always had great respect for Jamey Johnson the man, and his dedication and desire to see this project through elevates him yet another notch. But shoot me that I like my pulse raised when I put on an album.
Mumford & Sons Take Roots Music Mainstream w/ “Babel”
31 Comments
By all accounts, I should hate these dudes, and this album by proxy. t was announced that Babel was the best-selling debut so far in 2012, selling 600,000 copies and outpacing folks like Justin Bieber. Really? Has the “roots” revolution reached such a point that it is the most popular, mainstream thing going in music these days? How am I supposed to be okay with that, and where is this leading?
How Billboard’s New Chart Rules Affect YOU
68 Comments
When Billboard announced new rules on how the songs on their “Hot 100” country chart would be tabulated, it caused a tizzy amongst folks who pay attention to these sorts of things. But the average Joe fans out there may have a little trouble understanding why the issue is something they should care about, and how it could negatively effect the music they enjoy.
Sturgill Simpson’s “Life Ain’t Fair & The World Is Mean”
24 Comments
The magic of “Life Ain’t Fair” is the way it trivializes all the issues it raises by simply pointing out the obvious: that life’s unfairness is inherent, and complaining about it or using it as an excuse to not pursue your dreams is foolish. It’s cynical and inspirational all at the same time, and that feat of acrobatics can’t be performed without some acute dexterity and prowess with the pen.
Billboard Changes Country Chart Rules, Boosts “Crossover” Songs
79 Comments
This morning the country music world was turned on its head when Billboard, the longest-running and most respected publisher of music charts, decided it was making sweeping changes to the way singles are judged in country. If Billboard’s rules stay in place,the effects could be somewhere between dramatic and historic.
Sarah Gayle Meech & “One Good Thing” Revitalize Honky Tonk
12 Comments
Lower Broadway in Nashville has a new songstress haunting the streets, and she’s a good one. If you want to know how to put out one badass independent/underground country album in Nashville, you could use One Good Thing as a template. With impeccable country taste and instincts, Sarah assembles 12 original and authentic honky-tonk hard country songs for your listening enjoyment.
ABC’s “Nashville” Makes Good Money Off Of Bad Music Drama
32 Comments
Is it compelling? Sure. Is it right? Of course not. Will it result in either the increased exposure of good music, or the greater awareness of the issues plaguing mainstream country? Well have to see. But I remain skeptical. I would rather see Nashville attempt to fix their problems as opposed to try and make money off the drama they create. But of course, that doesn’t make for compelling television.
Producer T Bone Burnett Has Scathing Words for Nashville
19 Comments
Big shot producer T Bone Burnett whose in charge of the music for the new ABC drama Nashville premiering tonight (10-10) had some pretty scathing words about the state of music in Music City when talking to The New Orleans Times-Picayune about the upcoming television series. “These days, (country) radio is essentially a guy in his room with a computer,” T Bone told the paper.
Song Review – Kacey Musgraves “Merry Go Round”
24 Comments
The most powerful gift of music might not be its ability to console you in pain, but to pierce your reality bubble and let the wisdom of enhanced perspective guide you to your true self. As immature and judgmental as “Merry Go Round” might seem in places, this altruistic aim is its objective, and its outcome.
EXCLUSIVE: Rosie Flores “Working Girl’s Guitar” Full Album Stream
5 Comments
Rosie Flores is rockabilly royalty. You can draw a direct line from Rose Maddox, to Wanda Jackson, to Rosie Flores, and she takes her role as the “Rockabilly Filly” seriously. Here she is releasing her 11th full length album “Working Girl’s Guitar” through Bloodshot Records on October 16th, a raucous and rebellious collection of songs.