Category Archives: Americana

Listen Up! Spencer Burton – “A Body Is All She Ever Let Me Hold” [PREMIERE]

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Spencer Burton
photo by Vanessa Heins

Spencer Burton first began tilling the folk and country music fields to great acclaim under the solo moniker of Grey Kingdom. On his upcoming new record “Don’t Let The World See Your Love” (September 16 / Dine Alone Records) Burton has decided to step from behind the pseudonym curtain and use his proper name. But the music suffers none in the transition.

“A Body Is All She Ever Let Me Hold” is a cut from that album, co-produced by Burton’s old Attack In Black bandmate and fellow roots-music traveler Daniel Romano.

The song’s a melancholy delicate yet taunt composition sheathed within a breezy style reminiscent of the moody pop-folk of Nick Drake. It’s a song that fits perfectly in a rainy day and a Summer drive.
Official site

See Spencer Burton at one of the upcoming live dates below:

July 19, 2014 London County Music Festival @ 4:30pm (Workshop with Bry Webb and Lynn Craven)
July 28, 2014 – The Spill, Peterborough, Ontario
July 29, 2014 – Wolfe Island Grill, Kingston, Ontario
July 30, 2014 – Raw Sugar, Ottawa, Ontario
July 31, 2014 – TBC, Fredericton, New Brunswick
August 1-3, 2014 – Sappy Music Fest, New Brunswick
August 4, 2014- House Show, Quebec City, Quebec
August 5, 2014- Calgibi, Montreal, Quebec

Ryan Adams Announces Release of Self-Titled Album

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adams

Ryan Adams announced today the release of a new, self-titled album on September 8.

‘Ryan Adams’ is the singer’s 14th solo album and was produced by Adams at his Pax Am Studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles, and follows 2011’s ‘Ashes & Fire.’ The album will feature recent single ‘Gimme Something Good.’

Pre-order at Amazon.

‘Ryan Adams’ track list:

‘Gimme Something Good’
‘Kim’
‘Trouble’
‘Am I Safe’
‘My Wrecking Ball’
‘Stay With Me’
‘Shadows’
‘Feels Like Fire’
‘I Just Might’
‘Tired Of Giving Up’
‘Let Go’

Ryan Adams debuts new track “Stay With Me” at a gig in Portland, Maine

Adams’ tour dates:

07/22/14 – Portland, ME – State Theatre
07/23/14 – Burlington, VT – Flynn Center For Performing Arts
07/25/14 – Newport, RI – Newport Folk Festival
07/26/14 – Camden, NJ – XPoNential Music Festival at Susquehanna Bank Center
08/05/14 – Aspen, CO – Belly Up Aspen (SOLD OUT)
08/07/14 – Boulder, CO – Fox Theater (SOLD OUT)
10/01/14 — Santa Barbara, CA — Arlington Theater *
10/05/14 — Portland, OR — Arlene Schnitzer Hall
10/06/14 — Seattle, WA — Paramount Ballroom
10/07/14 — Vancouver, BC — Orpheum Theater
10/09/14 — Edmonton, AB — Francis Winspear Theater
10/10/14 — Calgary, AB — Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
10/12/14 — Winnipeg, AB — Burton Cummings Theater
10/13/14 — Minneapolis, MN — Northrop at the University of Minnesota
10/14/14 — Milwaukee, WI — Riverside Theater
10/16/14 — Chicago, IL — Chicago Theater **
10/18/14 — Ames, IA — Stephens Auditorium @ Iowa State Center ***
10/19/14 — St. Louis, MO — Peabody Opera House

Listen Up! Levon Helm – “The Same Thing” from “The Midnight Ramble Sessions Volume 3”

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The Levon Helm Band

“The Midnight Ramble Sessions Volume 3” sessions represent last musical project with which the late drummer of The Band was involved. Helm personally hand-picked the album’s 13 songs from a five-year period of live Midnight Ramble recordings, 2006-2010 at the Barn, with his longtime band member and musical director, multi-instrumentalist Larry Campbell. The album features performances from the Levon Helm Band with special guests including the Black Crowes’ Chris Robinson, Jimmy Vivino, Elvis Costello and New Orleans legend Allen Toussaint, capturing the homespun spirit of those gatherings, a worthy posthumous tribute to Helm’s indomitable spirit and peerless musical abilities. Aside from listening to hours of tapes to come up with the final song selection, Helm also designed the cover art for the album.

Campbell explains that, after the Electric Dirt record, he and Levon began formulating what a third album might encompass. “He wanted it to be more representative of what this band was like at a live show, featuring all of the players,” says Campbell. “Levon was having health problems, so our plan was to go through the archives and pull out tunes that best showed what our lifestyle was like. That was his real, main motive, to showcase the band as best we could. And then he chose the tunes that he liked playing, and we edited it down to fit on a single CD. “There were probably 20 songs that he initially wanted us to include, but these were the ones we all finally decided were best.”

“The Same Thing” from the just-released “The Midnight Ramble Sessions Volume 3″ has Helm in excellent form as his characteristic dynamic drumming drives a Dixieland /rock/soul infused gumbo in front of a lucky audience. Of “The Same Thing” (recorded Feb. 14, 2009) Campbell says : We’d been doing that song for a while and it turned out to be a great show opener. When Levon’s singing was on, it was just magical. Jimmy Vivino is playing slide guitar on this, and Mike Merritt was on bass that night. The song always just set a great mood to start the evening, so we figured we’d start the record with it.”

Buy The Midnight Ramble Sessions, Vol. 3

Listen Up! Ryan Adams “Gimme Something Good”

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Ryan-Adams-Gimme-Something-Good

The last few years has seen Ryan Adams dabbling in computer music and metal with occasional forays into his singer/songwriter wheelhouse with Easy Tiger and Adams’ last studio album, Ashes & Fire.

Maybe it’s his love affair with Fender amps, but the latest offering from Adam’s takes a page from the Tom Petty bible of hook-laden rock- and-roll.

“Gimme Something Good,” his first release in two years, is a blast at us who wondered if a sober Ryan Adams was a soft Ryan Adams. Guitar stabs swirls of Hammond B3 Organ. this is classic rock made anew – big and bold and content to leave feelings aside for a spell. An acoustic does appear near the end of the track, but it’s added for flavor and doesn’t slow down the charge ahead.

I raise a Bic lighter high to “Gimme Something Good”

Watch Out! Hurray For The Riff Raff “The Body Electric” on David Letterman 6/26/14

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David Letterman - Hurray For The Riff Raff: "The Body Electric"

Dave Letterman is showing no sign of slowing down great Americana and roots music as he heads towards the exit door next year.

There is no better example than Hurray For The Riff Raff debuting their song “The Body Electric” on Letterman last night.

Alynda Lee Segarra, draped in angelic white, strums an acoustic guitar as the band swells and swirls around this classic murder ballad turned inside out from the woman’s point of view.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PURNz-8U_Ko

Listen Up! Lucero “Sweet Little Thing” [Live]

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Live from Atlanta

Her’s a taste of “Live from Atlanta” the first ever Lucero formal live release.

Below you can stream a live version of “Sweet Little Thing”, a classic ballad originally from the band’s sophomore effort Tennessee.

“Live from Atlanta” spans the roots-rock band’s career. Recorded over three nights in Atlanta’s Terminal West, it’s a collection of 32 cuts mixing folk, country, soul and punk rock.

About their live performance front man Ben Nichols says “We’re each playing in a completely different band. We’re on stage and each playing in our own Lucero. I’m not sure that’s how it works for other bands.”

Pour a whiskey neat and enjoy

Watch Out! Hard Working Americans “Blackland Farmer” [VIDEO]

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Working Americans - Blackland Farmer

“Blackland Farmer” is a wonderful reverb drenched stomp-blues rock number by Hard Working Americans featuring Todd Snider, Dave Schools (Widespread Panic), Neal Casal (Chris Robinson Brotherhood), Chad Staehly (Great American Taxi) and Duane Trucks. The roots-music supergroup’s self-titled debut has done well on Americana Radio and received high praise from no less than Rolling Stone, Huffington Post, Mother Jones, USA Today, Relix, Magnet, American Songwriter, NPR’s Fresh Air. The band has been also been nominated for the Americana Music Association’s 2014 Duo / Group of the Year award.

Not too shabby at all.

The new video for “Blackland Farmer” is a contemporary twist on Frankie Miller’s 1959 hit’s narrative about working-class perseverance. The debut video from award-winning rock photographer, journalist Andy Tennille vividly depicts a small farmer facing another grueling day providing for his family. Necessity begets ingenuity as the farmer takes a risk, reacts to changing attitudes and market directions, and pursues a fail-safe cash crop.

Hard Working Americans and Melvin Records will release a special limited edition 12 inch single for “Blackland Farmer.” Side A will feature the original album version of Frankie Miller’s 1959 hit, while Side B will feature a live concert recording of the song. The single package will contain a pack of custom Hard Working Americans rolling papers and a 25% off coupon towards a purchase at the LoDo Wellness Center in Denver, CO, a marijuana dispensary that is open to the public. The final item in the package will be a download card for the new video for “Blackland Farmer”.

The limited edition singles will only be available at the band’s shows this summer and here.

Americana Music Association Releases First Half of 15th Annual AmericanaFest Bill

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Americanafest

The Americana Music Association continues its tradition of showcasing some of the best in Americana and roots music by it’s partial roster of Americanfest performers released today.

Though the lineup doesn’t show any groundbreaking direction, I’m fine with that. There are lots of folks on the list that have been busting their hump for years and deserve this recognition rather then inserting acts to placate outsider accusations of one thing or another. Personally I’m happy to see Casa Twang favorites Howlin’ Brothers, Jamestown Revival, John Moreland, Lera Lynn, Marah and Ben Miller Band on the bill. And Texas is well-represented by Billy Joe Shaver, Sarah Jarosz, Jason Eady and Hayes Carll

The event is celebrating its 15th as the premier Americana event by welcoming 160 performers taking the stage at 11 venues including 3rd & Lindsley, The Basement, City Winery, High Watt, Cannery, Mercy Lounge, The Rutledge, Station Inn, Music City Roots, Downtown Presbyterian Church and Musicians Corner.

Three-time Americana Group of the Year, The Avett Brothers, will headline the event at Riverfront Parl on Saturday Sept. 20. Americana’s Music Festival & Conference registrations will have access. Tickets for the general public will go on sale Friday, June 27 at 10AMat www.ticketfly.com.

Check out THE Americanafest 2014 Spotify playlist.

The first half of Americanafest’s performing artist list includes:

Allison Moorer
Amy Ray
Angaleena Presley
The Avett Brothers
The Barefoot Movement
Ben Miller Band
Billy Joe Shaver
Black Prairie
Brennen Leigh and Noel McKay
Buddy Miller
The Cactus Blossoms
Carlene Carter
Caroline Rose
Chatham County Line
Chuck Mead
Danny & The Champions of the World
The Deadly Gentleman
Del Barber
The Deslondes
Doug Seegers
The Duhks
The Dustbowl Revival
Emily Barker & the Red Clay Halo
Ethan Johns
The Fairfield Four
The Grahams
Grant-Lee Phillips
Green River Ordinance
Greensky Bluegrass
Gregory Alan Isakov
Greyhounds
The Harpoonist & the Axe Murderer
Hayes Carll
Howlin’ Brothers
Immigrant Union
Israel Nash
Jamestown Revival
Jason Eady
JD Wilkes & the Dirt Daubers
Joe Henry
Joe Pug
Joe Purdy
John Moreland
Jonah Tolchin
Jonny Two Bags
Josh Ritter
Joshua James
Lake Street Dive
Lee Ann Womack
Leo Welch
Lera Lynn
Marah Presents: Mountain Minstrelsy
Marty Stuart
Matthew Ryan
McCrary Sisters
Nathaniel Rateliff
New Country Rehab
Oh Susanna
Otis Gibbs
Parker Millsap
Paul Thorn
Pete Molinari
Quebe Sisters Band
Rhett Miller
Robbie Fulks
Robyn Hitchcock
Rodney Crowell
Ruthie Foster
Ryan Montbleau
Sam Outlaw
Sarah Jarosz
Sean Rowe
Shakey Graves
Suzy Bogguss
Todd Snider & Friends
Tom Freund
Tony Joe White
Trigger Hippy (feat. Jackie Greene, Joan Osbourne, Steve Gorman, Tom Bukovac & Nick Govrik)
Whiskey Shivers
Willie Watson

The 15th annual Americana Music Festival & Conference occurs September 17-21, 2014 in Nashville, Tenn. The 13th annual Americana Honors & Awards Show on Sept. 17 at the historic Ryman Auditorium.

Watch Out! Sturgill Simpson, ‘The Promise’ [VIDEO]

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Sturgill Simpson, 'The Promise'

Sturgill Simpson’s latest video, is for his dour yet heartfelt of version of Manchester synth-pop band When In Rome’s 1988 hit “The Promise.” (also included below for reference)

Simpson sits singing looking directly at you. Aashed-out colors fill in the grey-tone frame. Colors swirl and wash until replaced by inky clouds claustrophobically closing in.

And then.. he’s gone.

“The Promise” is a cover but Simpson makes it his own and shapes one of the best songs on his excellent release “Metamodern Sounds in Country Music.”

Watch Out! Kacey Musgraves – “The Trailer Song” on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon [VIDEO]

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trailersong

Ladies and Gents great country music is alive and well and, yes, sometimes it still comes from Music Row.

GRAMMY-award winning singer/songwriter Kacey Musgraves has a response to self-rightous neighbors and it’s “The Trailer Song,” and it’s a honky-tonk delight (with an “awww haaawww’ for bonus points)

The song was written by Musgraves, and her usual partners in crime Brandy Clark and Shane McAnnally

Last week Musgraves performed “The Trailer Song” on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (see below.)

Purchase “The Trailer Song.” at Musgraves’ website.

Musgraves is currently on tour this summer with Willie Nelson and Alison Krauss as well as Katy Perry on her Prismatic World Tour.