Perhaps nobody evokes geography in their music from the perspective of a songwriter better than John Baumann. This is one of the reasons he was drafted into the West Texas supergroup The Panhandlers.
In the embarrassment of riches that is the current country/Americana landscape, it’s an increasingly common issue where there are more new album releases on a given Friday than time to review or even listen to them in a timely manner. So to make sure you don’t miss anything…
The only thing more cool than your favorite country music performers is when your favorite country music performers come together to collaborate in a supergroup. Some of these collaborations have gone on to become just as legendary as the individual performers themselves.
Well it wasn’t just a lark apparently, and competing egos ended up not getting in the way, because the Texas supergroup epicentered around Lubbock called The Panhandlers have announced they’re ready to release their second official album called “Tough Country.”
The Saving Country Music Top 25 Playlist is built to keep you informed on all the best songs and albums coming out right here, right now in country and roots music. It’s available on most all streaming formats, or you can just use the song, artist, and album recommendations.
No ladies and gentlemen, the Panhandlers weren’t just a lark. The supergroup of Texans consisting of Josh Abbott, William Clark Green, songwriter John Baumann, and Cleto Cordero of Flatland Cavalry has just released a boot-stomping, hard country tune called “Where Cotton Is King.”
You can find a detailed list of all the confirmed album releases for the 2nd half of 2022 below, some specific albums from each release week that you should make sure to not overlook, and the always-exciting ‘Rumor Mill’ where intelligence is gathered on upcoming releases.
Active now for 15 years, with five records under his belt, and now 35 years old, the singer/songwriter and member of the Texas supergroup The Panhandlers is taking a more reflective and introspective approach to what will be his sixth record and his first in four years.
A Saving Country Music ‘Song of the Year’ nominee is not just your favorite ditty that gets stuck in your head. These are songs that have the power to change hearts and change lives, open you up new ideas or ways of thinking, or unlock memories or emotions you haven’t felt in years.
The Next Waltz project helmed by Bruce Robison will be issuing their 3rd compilation volume on November 27th. Featuring songs from Flatland Cavalry, The Panhandlers, Charley Crockett, Jack Ingram, and more, the volume comes on the heels of Vol. 2 reaching #1 on Americana radio.
With his new album ‘Country Shade,’ John Baumann fortifies his spot in Texas music and beyond as a songwriter. Sure, there’s a lot of artists who write songs in Texas music. But with John Baumann, writing songs is the singular and pure pursuit—to find the perfect sentiment, to put a notion to rhyme.
Not your standard and cliche-riddled country protest song, this more thoughtful, reflective, and hushed effort bemoans the passing away of important things in life—country music included—to the onslaught of progress and noise, while resisting the new favorite Americana pastime of laying blame.
The Saving Country Music Top 25 Playlist is built to keep you informed on all the best songs and albums coming out right here, right now in country and roots music. It’s available on most all streaming formats, or just use the song, artist, and album recommendations to find something new to listen to. New songs just added.
The Panhandlers aren’t just bound by their ties to the region. The geography and people of the upper portions of West Texas is what this music is all about. From falling water tables to failing farms, this is an account of an unforgiving land nobody would ever choose to call home. Yet people still do.
If you want to know just how much pent up appeal there is for the music of Evan Felker and his band the Turnpike Troubadours, here’s a pretty good sign. This week on the Americana Music Association’s Radio Albums Chart, the recently-released The Next Waltz – Volume 2 compilation produced by Bruce Robison has landed at #1.
“It really is a representation of what we’re trying to do here, which is connecting the greatest music in Austin with country music in a greater sense,” Bruce Robison says about the upcoming compilation. Though all the names and songs are worth getting excited over, it’s Turnpike Troubadours frontman Evan Felker that has many talking.