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Listen Up! Hear Sean Watkins and Fiona Apple Team Up For The Classic Murder Ballad ‘Banks of the Ohio’ ‘

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Sean Watkins and Fiona Apple

On March 31, 2015 Nickel Creek founder Sean Watkins will release a limited pressing split 7” featuring two songs – a lovely version of the classic murder ballad “Banks of the Ohio” featuring Fiona Apple (hear it below) and “Dead Flowers” with ex-member of Old Crow Medicine Show Willie Watson. Pre-orders currently available at Bandcamp and come with an immediate download of “Banks of the Ohio”. It will also be made available digitally on 3/31/15.

Of the Apple collaboration Watikns told Rolling Stone “Fiona and I met and started playing songs together,” he remembers. “(The L.A. listening room) Largo was still a small place back then, a place you could go try out new things and learn new songs, so we started finding some music we both could identify with. I learned some songs she had grown up singing — mostly jazz standards — and then she learned the equivalent for me, which was bluegrass songs and murder ballads.”

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Review: American Aquarium – ‘Wolves’

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American Aquarium

The risk in loving an independent band is facing the fact that one day they may achieve mainstream success.

On the face of it, this is naive and a stupid attitude for fan. What kind of a sadist wants grown people to spend the rest of their professional lives in a cramped van? But the concerns are from a deeper, worried place – Can a love a mainstream band when mainstream bands suck? How many ways can I sneer at new fans? What if they change their sound? Will I still be able to get tickets to their show? And so on…

American Aquarium fans may now be faced with such an existential dilemma. After years of paying blacktop and beer joint dues (and suffering the indignity of having Florida Georgia Line open for them just to watch them explode to mainstream country stardom) BJ Barham , guitarists Ryan Johnson and Colin Dimeo, bassist Bill Corbin, drummer Kevin McClain and Whit Wright on keyboard and pedal-steel guitar might have their breakthrough album on their calloused hands.

Those dues have become fertile source of inspiration resulting in 10 tightly wound roots-rock cuts. ‘Wolves’ shines brightest in it’s darkest corners. With his gravel baritone Barham frets over getting older, missed opportunities, family strife and yes life on that lonesome highway. On cuts like ‘Family Problems’ and ‘Man I’m Supposed to Be,’ the atmosphere builds, the pedal steel wails or the horns swell, the songs elevates into greatness.

BUt sometimes the arrangements on the jauntier cuts, like with ‘Southern Sadness’ and ‘Old North State,’ robs the songs of their emotional punch and the singer/music contrast doesn’t quite mesh. it’s as if Merle Haggard were fronting Pearl Jam, on their own they excel, but together…something gives.

And we can’t forget The Rocking. ‘Wichita Falls and ‘Losing Side of Twenty-Five’ are flat out stompers ripe for the stage and will be fan anthems for years to come.

Barham’s songwriting honors the Southern tradition of embodying and championing the stern struggle of the working poor as they strive to keep things together against the odds. ‘Wolves’ doesn’t offer any glib answers or obfuscate with party anthems. Barham’s world is more complicated, real. It brims of steely contemplation, guts and fighting through.

‘Wolves’ is an album that may not launch Barham and Co. onto Music City arena headliners anytime soon. But it does put them further along their path to being a band that matters.

iTunes | Amazon | Official Site

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Fantastic Negrito Wins NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert Series Contest

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Fantastic Negrito

While taking in a showcase at the 2008 South-By-Southwest creator and host of NPR’s “All Songs Considered” Bob Boilen, and his colleague Stephen Thompson, observed that the lack of intimacy (and often due respect) that the large show did not afford folk singer Laura Gibson to shine (or even be heard.)

Taking a page from the great listening rooms like Nashville’s Bluebird Cafe the Tiny Desk concert series was born. What started as a small filmed gathering around Boilen’s desk quickly grew in reputation and size. Boilen and Thompson’s vision has now become a plum gig prestige enough to pull in major talents like Steve Earle, Buddy Miller, Jim Lauderdale, Jackson Browne, and Lucinda Williams. but the buzz is just around the viral nature of the event not in the hushed, and respectful space itself.

Tiny Desk concert series held a contest to find new talent, and after thousands of videos assessed by Boilen, Robin Hilton, John Congleton, Valerie June, Reggie Watts and Thao Nguyen the winner was announced today.

Oakland-based Fantastic Negrito (Xavier Dphrepaulezz) was a great pick. The man is working through his second chance at his craft and at life. His first record never went anywhere and he became disillusioned with music and a near-deadly car accident left him in a coma followed by rehabilitation leading to recovery and marriage and the birth of his son.

Fantastic Negrito’s stories of the human condition blended of gospel, soul, funk and rock is extraordinary and performed with passion and flair. Even in a freight elevator as he does in the below video he submitted to the competition.

From the Tiny Desk concert series site:

As a young man, the Oakland singer taught himself to play just about every instrument he could get his hands on. But after making a record that failed to take off, he felt his confidence and artistry suffer; disenchanted with music, he simply quit. The years that followed brought major life changes: a near-deadly car accident and the resulting coma, intense rehabilitation, marriage and the birth of his son. Now, renewed creative energy has spawned the musical project that is Fantastic Negrito. He chose the name, he says, as “a celebration of blackness. The ‘Fantastic’ is self-explanatory; the ‘Negrito’ is a way to open blackness up to everyone, making it playful and international.” Judges Bob Boilen, Robin Hilton, John Congleton, Valerie June, Reggie Watts and Thao Nguyen agreed that this soulful, unbridled performance, captured at a makeshift desk in an Oakland freight elevator, stood out from the

An official Fantastic Negrito’s Tiny Desk Concert will be posted st at npr.org/music the week of March 9.

Rhiannon Giddens Performs “Waterboy” on The Late Show with David Letterman

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Rhiannon Giddens

David Letterman continued his ongoing support of great music by inviting founding member and lead vocalist of the Grammy Award winning band Carolina Chocolate Drops Rhiannon Giddens to perform on his stage.

Giddens turned in a stunning rendition of “Waterboy,” a song most famously associated with the late folk/blues legend Odetta.

Asa true fan of music Letterman was duly impressed.

“Odetta has been cited as a major influence by folks like Bob Dylan, Bernice Johnson Reagon, and Janis Joplin, among many others. She was a soulful force for good in both the folk world and the civil rights world, and it’s an honor to present her arrangement of this work song–inspired piece. We were both classically trained, and so it was great to be able to let my throat loose!” Giddens has stated.

Giddens is touring in support of her debut, T Bone Burnett produced, solo album ‘Tomorrow Is My Turn.’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHnh8_8Cx7E

57th Annual Grammy Awards – Showing Our Roots

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Brandy Clark & Dwight Yoakam 'Hold My Hand'

The cultural trade show known as the 57th Annual Grammy Awards is now history. 83 golden antiquated media playback device replicas were handed out to some of the most talented musicians in the world.

But the event is anything but antiquated. The Grammys have been pushing the boundaries of social and streaming media for some time, improving every year and rivaling events like The Oscars and The Superbowl for social activity. The Grammys know how to create, and amplify, buzz.

Though I did not take part in the excellent Grammy social program as I had the past 4 years, I was graciously asked by Entertainment Tonight to live blog the event for ETOnline.com. and I did cover the pre-telecast (rechristened the GRAMMY Awards Premiere Ceremony) at the Twang Nation twitter feed. That’s nearly 8 hours of tweeting, blogging, posting in all.

But this is not a social marketing site. Its about the music, and there was lot’s of it. Much of it great.

First , the winners.

The big winner in the Americana and roots category was Rosanne Cash. Cash, who had been an awards presenter earlier in the day, took home awards in all the categories she was nominated in. winning who won best American roots performance, American roots song for ‘A Feather’s Not A Bird’ and Americana album for “The River and The Thread.” “Reagan was president last time I won a Grammy,” Cash beamed, referring to her win for
“I just showed up for work for 35 years and this is what happened.” Cash’s last win was in 1985 for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for “I Don’t Know Why You Don’t Want Me.”

Other notable wins were Mike Farris’ first nomination turned into a win for win for Best Roots Gospel Album.

Bluegrass supergroup, The Earls Of Leicester – Jerry Douglas, Tim O’Brien, Shawn Camp, Johnny Warren, Charlie Cushman and Barry Bales – won for Best Bluegrass Album for The band’s self-titled release. “We’re very humbled by this,” Douglas said during his acceptance speech. “These guys worked with me — I’ve wanted to do an album like this since the first time I picked up a musical instrument … This is what it’s all about — Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs.” “Proud to bring Flatt & Scruggs to a new audience. I think we now have a mandate to do more.”

Nickel Creek and Punch Brother founder Chris Thile and bassist Edgar Meyer won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for their album, ‘Bass & Mandolin.’ The duo have been performing together sporadically for more than a decade. ‘Bass & Mandolin’ was also nominated for Best Instrumental Composition for the album track “Tarnation” and Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical.

After an ripping performance of 8 Dogs 8 Banjos on the Grammy Awards Premiere Ceremony stage, Old Crow Medicine Show encored with a win for Best Folk Album, for ‘Remedy.’

“We started our 18th year of making music together this year, and we want to thank Bob Dylan and Woody Guthrie for lighting the way,” singer/fiddler Ketch Secor said from the podium.

Glen Campbell won his sixth Grammy of his extraordinary career for Best Country Song. The ailing country legend won for “I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” the bittersweet song Campbell penned with Julian Raymond for the 2014 documentary ‘Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me,’ won against songs by Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Miranda Lambert and Tim McGraw with Faith Hill.

Best Historical Album went to the excellent Hank Williams The Garden Spot Programs, 1950. Colin Escott & Cheryl Pawelski, compilation producers; Michael Graves, mastering engineer.

One of the most talked about surprises of the evening was Beck’s win for Album of the Year for his 12th album ‘Morning Phase.’ Though I could quibble about Beck’s moody-folk/pop masterpiece
winning a Best Rock Album award earlier in the evening (rock?) there’s no arguing that Beck is a musician with an artistic vision, with little apparent care for the charts and industry. A rare vision richly deserving the honor of a high-profile award.

Apparently after the win twitter spiked with ‘Who is Beck?’ Supposedly by people genuinely unaware of the artist. The rest was Kanye West.

The stand out performance was Best New Artist nominee Brandy Clark sharing the stage with her idol and recent tour mate Dwight Yoakam. The two performed a lovely rendition of “Hold My Hand” from the Best Country Album nominated ’12 Stories.’ Perched on a round stage with no extravagant light show, two simple guitars and two warm voices. It was the most low-key performance of the 2015 Grammys and the one that best personified what most matters, and is often lost, in theses events.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zu9-3yC012g

Listen Up! The Ravenna Colt ‘Terminal Current’ [Exclusive Premier]

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the-ravenna-colt-publicity-photo

‘Terminal Current’ is the second full-length album from The Ravenna Colt (former My Morning Jacket guitarist/engineer Johnny Quaid) and it shimmers like Summer heat waves off a rural blacktop road. Here the full release below.

Kentucky-born musician Johnny Quaid filters his personal Americana dreamscape through The Ravenna Colt, traversing folk-rock territory while “creat(ing) Quaid’s vision of stories and soundscapes as told from the eyes and ears of a carpenter and troubadour.”

In 1998, Quaid joined Jim James on a project that would change their lives – My Morning Jacket. The group worked feverishly touring and recording and has not slowed down since. Quaid lends his guitar licks and engineering style to the first three albums, The Tennessee Fire, At Dawn and It Still Moves.

Quaid departed from the group amicably at the start of 2004. He left his native Kentucky, headed west to California and worked as a carpenter while keeping a writer’s pen at hand. After moving back east to Tennessee, Quaid released The Ravenna Colt’s debut album ‘Slight Spell’ in 2010.

Quaid has since relocated to Boise, where he pulled talent from the city’s fervent indie/roots music scene to assemble the latest incarnation of The Ravenna Colt. Terminal Current was recorded in Boise and Louisville, Ky., at Above the Cadillac and La La Land studios.

The video for “Absolute Contingency,” the lead single off The Ravenna Colt’s (former My Morning Jacket guitarist/engineer Johnny Quaid) forthcoming album Terminal Current (Removador/Karate Body), premiered today via The Alternate Root. Watch the Joe Baughman directed video.

“I take the art of making a record very seriously.” Says Quaid “I don’t rely on number of songs to constitute an album. I approach it more like making a film — I tell a story and create a feeling with the music. All my songs are very personal, despite the titles and themes. Music for me is really a means of therapy. With each album, I’ve really just captured the events that have lead up to it. I’ve had some major life changes between Terminal Current and Slight Spell, and I think you can hear/feel that.”

The Ravenna Colt will host a release party and performance 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 20, at Neurolux, 111 N. 11th St., Boise. Sleepy Seeds opens the show. Tickets are available in advance atticketweb.com or The Record Exchange, 1105 W. Idaho St., Boise.

The band also will perform on Radio Boise (89.9FM/93.5FM) during the Radio Boise Live Music Hour at 4 p.m. Feb. 20 and at an all-ages release party preview at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 19 at The Record Exchange.

Listen Up! The Lowest Pair – ‘In The During Of A Moment’

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lowest pair

Respected and accomplished solo performers in their own right, when Arkansas-born Kendl Winter and Minneapolis-born Palmer T. Lee joined to form The Lowest Pair the result is greater than the sum of their considerable parts. The couple’s deep-reverb bluegrass-inspired sound, and urban-rustic appearance, and make the a perfect symbol for the Dust Bowl aesthetic ready made for listening rooms everywhere.

An early 2013 led to discussions of collaborating and soon after concept became reality as they hit the road together. A few months after the duet formed they teamed up with Dave Simonette of Trampled By Turtles to record their debut record “36¢” released on Team Love Records.

‘In The During Of A Moment’ is from the duo’s upcoming sophomore effort ‘The Sacred Heart Sessions.’ Banjo and guitar dapple against one another as Winter’s breathy keen dips and soars. The chorus Lee lends his rugged croon as a perfect contrast on this lovely study on the nature transience.

‘The Sacred Heart Sessions’ will be out Feb 24, on Team Love records.

Rhiannon Giddens and Iron & Wine Perform Bob Dylan’s “Forever Young”

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rhiannon-giddens-iron-and-wine-forever-young-nbc-parenthood-450

Founding member of the Grammy Award-winning Carolina Chocolate Drops, singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Rhiannon Giddens joined Iron & Wine , the nom de plume for singer, songwriter Sam Beam, for a performance of Bob Dylan’s “Forever Young” on the series finale of NBC’s Parenthood, “May God Bless and Keep You Always.”

Dylan’s recording, from the 1974 album Planet Waves, has been the show’s theme song since it first aired in 2010. The new version by Giddens and Beam, which they played at the show’s Luncheonette recording studio during the episode and was produced by Joe Henry, is available digitally from Nonesuch Records on iTunes and in the Nonesuch Store. You can hear it below.

Watch Out! Robert Chaney – ‘Patch It Up’ [VIDEO]

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Robert Chaney - 'Patch It Up'

The new cut from American-born, London-based singer/songwriter Robert Chaney evokes an earlier time when the line between folk and blues were blurred.

Sparse guitar dances around Chaney’s nasal,high-lonesome delivery as a crumbling home serves as a metaphor for a failing relationship.

The video mirrors the theme well as Chaney frets, pines and sings among the ruins. Vintage clips of disaster and destruction furthers the mood as external forces drive toward doom as he futilely pleads for reconciliation.

“Come back inside, we’ll retire all this spite, rectify the excitement, we’ll stay up all night and, then you and I will try and patch it up”

Chaney recalls the moments that lead to recording:
“The record almost didn’t happen,” recalls Robert. “After moving from Florida to London, I didn’t know anyone. I thought I was going to have to get into the open mic grind. So I went to one and showed up late and they put me on last.” But it was on the strength of this performance that Robert was approached by producer Ken Brake (The Clientele, Louis Philippe), and the two started working in Ken’s London studio, recording dozens of songs over a number of months. Most of the songs on the final record are first or second takes.

‘Patch It Up’ if from Robert Chaney’s debut album ‘Cracked Picture Frames’ out digitally Feb 15 and on CD April 26th.

Find out more at his official site

Listen Up! Chris Smither – ‘Drive You Home Again’ From ‘Signature Sounds 20th Anniversary Collection: Favorite and Rarities from the Second Decade’

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20th-SIGSOUNDS-COMPILATION-300x300

Signature Sounds Recordings is an well-repected independent label specializing in singer-songwriter, Americana, and modern folk music. Jim Olsen and Mark Thayer founded the label in 1995 to promote the acoustic artists playing in the Northampton, Massachusetts music scene. The label has grown slowly to signing just 1-2 artists a year and developing them over years. This approach has worked well as the label has served as a home for Lake Street Dive and Zoe Muth and provided a career launching pad for the likes of Josh Ritter, Erin McKeown, Mary Gauthier & Lori McKenna.

On March 3, Signature Sounds will celebrate its 20 years of cultivating great talent with a special compilation ‘Signature Sounds 20th Anniversary Collection: Rarities From The Second Decade.’ The album will feature thirteen unreleased tracks plus eighteen songs in total from Crooked Still, Eilen Jewell, Lake Street Dive, Chris Smither and others.

‘Drive You Home Again,’ a Chris Smither’s unreleased track from the collection, exudes a timeless ramshackle and moody darkness that well reflects Signature Sounds spirit of quality.