“Western AF” Remembers Luke Bell on His 35th Birthday
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Instead of focusing on Luke Bell’s death and the circumstances surrounding it, YouTube video channel/production company Western AF is focusing on his life with a new 50-minute extended feature.
Nominees For 2010 SCM Album of the Year
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2010 has been a bumper crop year for outstanding REAL/Outlaw/roots/underground/insurgent country to say the least. The result is some projects that may have been serious candidates for Saving Country Music’s Album of the Year in another calendar cycle will not appear, and the requirements must become even more rigorous. For an album to be considered this year, it must be a top-caliber project not just for this year, but for all-time.
Review – Wayne Hancock & Lucky Tubb on Thanksgiving
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For the last 6 years, Wayne “The Train” Hancock playing Austin, TX’s legendary Continental Club on Thanksgiving Night has slowly morphed into a full blown tradition. Though Wayne is based out of Austin, he plays in town maybe twice a year, keeping his A-Town appearances exclusive, and special. Opening this year was the greatness of Lucky Tubb with His Modern Day Troubadours.
Is Taylor Swift’s Song “Mean” About Me?
207 CommentsAlright. So when I first listened to Taylor Swift’s new album Speak Now over two weeks ago, and heard for the first time the song “Mean,” I have to admit that it crossed my mind that the song might be about me. And not me as one Taylor Swift critic among many, but me, The Triggerman, the benevolent dictator of Saving Country Music, specifically.
But then I laughed off the idea and let it die. To think a song on Taylor’s album specifically targeted me seemed the utmost of conceit, and I was a little embarrassed for even letting my brain go there. And moreover, the thought of asserting this idea publicly seemed like the mother of all ego strokes.
Review – Joseph Huber’s “Bury Me Where I Fall”
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It might be easy to gloss over just how good of a songwriter Joseph Huber is from his work with the .357 String Band. The break neck nature of their music tends to make your brain focus on the energy instead of the enigmatic lyricism and above average song structuring. But slow the songs down and you can see it, and that is exactly what Joe has done with Bury Me When I Fall.
‘Family Tradition-Three Generations of Hank Williams’ Book Coming
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Hal Leonard Publishing and Backbeat Books have announced the upcoming release of a new title: Family Tradition – The Three Generations of Hank Williams by Susan Masino. The book will be a 256-page hardcover, with a $24.99 asking price. At the moment it is scheduled to be released on May 3rd, 2011.
Interview With Ruby Jane
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Yesterday, fiddle phenom, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and singer Ruby Jane turned 16. Less and less it feels right to call her a “prodigy” as she grows older and her skins on the wall continue to grow as well, surpassing the accolades many musicians twice her age have amassed. Ruby Jane has deserved to be judged against musicians of any age for years, but as she reaches 16, her songwriting and singing have become even more refined.
Charlie Louvin Benefit Film Project Funded!
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I’m happy to announce that Charlie Louvin: Still Rattling The Devil’s Cage, a film project by Blake Judd and Keith Neltner has been fully funded through Kickstarter. The project was put together to develop a DVD whose proceeds will go to Charlie Louvin and his mounting medical bills associated with his ongoing battle with pancreatic cancer.
Lady Antebellum’s CMA Single Rips Off Alan Parsons?
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After the 2010 CMA’s some wanted to hang a “Mission Accomplished” banner for saving country music because folks like Brad Paisley and Miranda Lambert walked away with big awards while the usual cast of pop country performers got the razz. Little they know this is all theater to keep us purists from not getting to restless, and setting up Taylor Swift to sweep the awards in 2011.
Interview w/ Bob Wayne The Outlaw Carnie
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A couple of weeks ago, I caught up with Bob Wayne before his gig at Austin’s Hole in the Wall to discuss a few things, including the slight delay in the release of his new album Outlaw Carnie and his relationship with the traditionally heavy metal label Century Media, as well as the new band lineup, and how he lets Andy Gibson beat him at video games.
Album Review – Taylor Swift’s “Speak Now”
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I know some were insulted when they rolled up to their beloved Saving Country Music and merely saw the title of this article, and those people can feel free to navigate to the comments section and voice their displeasure. But the simple fact is that Taylor Swift’s Speak Now is already the biggest album in all of music in the last five years, and on its way to being the biggest in a decade whose album sales overall look like an inversion of The Price Is Right’s mountain climber game.
Joe Huber of .357 Releases “Bury Me Where I Fall”
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Joseph Huber, one of the primary songwriters and banjo/fiddle player for the high-octane bluegrass outfit The .357 String Band has released a solo album called Bury Me Where I Fall. This album marks a completely different direction from the punk-inspired string music Joe & .357 are known for, but not in the emphasis on top-notch songwriting. Joe takes a more poetic, Townes Van Zandt approach to the lyrics, and a more artistic approach to the music.
Even Jason Aldean & Rascal Flatts Know CMA’s Are Rigged
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Tonight is 2010’s installment of the CMA Awards, undoubtedly country music’s most important night, but one that is regularly marked by controversy. The kinky sex backroom deals that make mainstream country turn get exposed for all to see as awards are handed out as bribes and paybacks, with quality and talent being the least of criteria, if even a concern.