Album Review – Tennessee Jet’s “Ranchero”
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The name will probably be familiar to independent country fans. Whether you’ve seen it ascribed as TJ McFarland, or his stage name Tennessee Jet, he’s a primary member of the Cody Jinks songwriting collective.
Aaron Lewis of Staind Misses Target w/ “Country Boy”
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I have no doubt that Aaron Lewis is a proud American, and that he is a “country boy” in the sense that he lives in the country. After all, he wouldn’t shut the hell up about it for the 5 minutes of this song. I have no doubt that he likes to dress up in camo and run around his land playing GI Joe, driving around in a boy toy surplus army truck like Sergent Slaughter. But none of this makes a rock song country.
Shooter Jennings Offers Free “Missed The Boat” Album
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For the birthday of baby Jesus, Shooter Jennings is offering up a free album Missed The Boat: A Collection of Demos and Rarities in exchange for your email addy. The album covers a wide swath of Shooter’s career, including demos as far back as 1998, a few remixes and leftovers from his recent Black Ribbons album, and a few live recordings as well.
Ruby Jane & Bob Schieffer Give Back for Christmas
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Yesterday I was sorting through all the amazing pictures on Ruby Jane’s new website, having my mind blown apart by all the big names that she has shared the stage with at one time or another (see some examples below) when lo and behold, a new video came down the pike from CBS News, featuring her sharing a stage with of all people, CBS’s main man in Washington, Bob Schieffer.
Amazon Offers 75 Country Albums for $5 thru January
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When Amazon.com offered up 50 country MP3 albums for only $5 in August, September, and October I was hoping that was a promotion that would continue on a monthly basis, but unfortunately November came with no new set. We are in luck now though, because Amazon has just put up 75 country albums that will be available for $5 all the way till the end of January, and there’s some real gooduns.
Trace Adkins’ Song “Brown Chicken Brown Cow”
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I hate predictability. I hate predictability in music, and I hate it in human activity. And so here we are. Trace Adkins has put out yet another dumb gimmick song. I guess then it is my job as a country music hardliner to harumpf and huff over how bad it is, but in the back of my mind I know that is what everyone is expecting, and what Trace & Co. are banking on. Stir the pot. Get people talking.
Album Review – Marty Stuart’s “Ghost Train”
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George Strait might have put out an album called Twang, but Ghost Train is the one that delivers it. This album is heavily guitar-driven from the start, turning the twang on the Telecasters to 10 and leaving it loud in the mix. Its the kind of twang that makes the hair stand up on the back of your neck. Then add some Ralph Mooney pedal steel on top and Ghost Train might be the freshest, funnest and truest traditional country album to come out of Nashville in years.
Ray Wylie Talks About Latest Album “A. Enlightenment”
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In the first part of my interview with Texas songwriting legend Ray Wylie Hubbard, we talked about how he wasn’t proud of the end result of the movie Last Rites of Ransom Pride of which he co-wrote. In the second part we turned out attention to more positive things, namely his latest album A. Enlightenment B. Endarkenment (Hint: There is no C) that is up for Saving Country Music’s Album of the Year.
The Undeniable Influence of Charlie Louvin
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On February 22, 1956, Elvis Presley played a concert at the City Auditorium in Waycross, GA. Opening for Elvis that night were two brothers, Charlie and Ira, a gospel duo called The Louvin Brothers. In the crowd was a 9-year-old boy, a native of Georgia, born and raised in Waycross. How that boy felt about Elvis that night is uncertain, but The Louvin Brothers left an indelible mark on him that he would carry for the rest of his life.
JB Beverley, Wayne Hancock, & Emo’s in Austin (A review)
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In 2004, a legendary underground punk band called The Murder Junkies made a whistle stop in Austin, TX at a venue called Emo’s. The Murder Junkies became the backing band for the most infamous man in rock n roll ever, Mr. GG Allin. GG died shortly after, and at the time of the Murder Junkies 2004 stop in Austin, filling in as frontman for GG was a man named JB Beverley. It was the first time The Murder Junkies had played Austin in 12 years.
Nominees for 2010 SCM Song of the Year
112 CommentsAs with the Albums of the Year, 2010 will go down as a high water mark for the amount of top quality songs released.
A Song of the Year can’t just be good, it has to touch you. You have to be a different person, in whatever small way, after listening to it. Points are rewarded for things like catchiness and accessibility, but you’ll have to get at least a little bit deep to makes this year’s list. Great songs speak to many people, but to each individual in different ways. We also saw a lot of songs this year with an epic approach, whose sheer vision and grand design deserves to be highlighted.
Just Say NO to Miley Cyrus & Disney! (A Rant)
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Indulge me here ladies and gentlemen, because I need to get something off my chest. I can’t in good conscience sit around tight lipped anymore as the youth of America are stultified and our young women exploited by these assholes over at The Disney Company.
Hank III Planning “The New Beginning” Post Curb
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Today is Hank Williams III’s birthday, but I’m sure it won’t be nearly as special as New Years, when he will finally be contractually free from Curb Records. In a few recent interviews, Hank III has been dropping hints of what’s to come, and the phrase he continues to utter is “The New Beginning,” like there is a concerted effort to wipe the slate clean and put a period after the long-winded, turbulent, run-on sentence that was the Curb Records era.