Before Allison Krauss Robert Plant went to Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers for his Americana fix. I absolutely just love these maniacs!

Stay Thirsty Media has a great interview with the Legendary Shack Shakers front man Colonel JD Wilkes. It it the Colonel dicusses his new movie Seven Signs, and the latest LSS release “Swamp Blood.” A sample:

Do you feel like you are becoming more popular in the mainstream media?

JD: Yeah, I feel like we’re sort of maintaining. We’re sort of a staple on the scene that people can rely on. You know we never got a major label deal, so we couldn’t really coast on that momentum. We had to build our own momentum by creating the legend that’s in our name. We have to toot out own horn more. We have to work harder, tour harder, scream louder because we don’t have big bucks behind us. We just have a lot of road miles and blood and guts and sweat invested in this , that’s what drives us. That’s what makes us more authentic . That’s what gives us more credibility than some flash in the pan, you know, emo band that here today gone tomorrow . We plan to age with this thing as we go and it will morph into who knows what the next record, cause it’s a living, breathing thing, like the Constitution of the United States. It’s a living document. It’s alive!

Still waiting for the resurrection.

The sounds of fury, dust and passion fly from New York’s punk-roots band Sixgun Republic. A rockabilly soul and a country heart defines the sound of this bad-ass band. Check ‘em out.

Yeah those weasels at the CMJ denied yours truly a press pass to attend their precious conference (don’t they know that tens of people worldwide read this blog?!) but who cares there’s only one show I want to  go to anyway and it’s open to the public and CHEAP! from the label:

BLOODSHOT 11th annual CMJ BBQ
Saturday, November 4th @ Union Pool in Brooklyn (Williamsburg)
Sponsored by KDHX, eMusic, and Oskar Blues Brewery.

Tickets $10 or $7 with a CMJ badge.
Public welcomed and encouraged.  No invite needed!!!
Beer, BBQ and goodies provided
Doors at noon, music PROMPTLY AT NOON!!

Scotland Yard Gospel Choir (Chicago IL) (chamber folk punk)
Mark Pickerel (Seattle WA)
The Silos (NYC)  New CD in Feb 2007
Deadstring Brothers   (Detroit MI)
Scott H Biram   (Austin TX) (That dirty ‘ol one-man band-Twang)
Bobby Bare Jr  (Nashville TN) 
THE MEAT PURVEYORS  (Austin TX)   LAST SHOW EVER!!!!!(RIP dammit-Twang)

Coming to a city built on attitude and pretense Wayne “the Train” Hancock would have none of it. Instead he won over the packed and adoring crowd at the Rodeo Bar with his signature brand of straight-up hillbilly swing in support of his current Bloodshot Records release “Tulsa.” Wayne Hancock is the real deal. No attitude, image consultation or arrogant disdain for his fans. Wayne was a genuine gentleman when I introduced myself and shook his hand (as was his smoking band - Eddie Biebel on lead guitar and the rhythm slappin’ Jake Erwin on Doghouse Bass.)

Rebellion by way of tradition is part of the typical Hancock MO. A tough ex-Marine, Hancock has likened himself to a stab wound in the Nashville fabric of country music. Playing his standard 2 1/2 hr plus show and good-naturedly hamming it up with his band and taking shouted requests from the refreshingly rowdy Manhattan crowd (Yeeehaw booooeeey!) Hancock and his band tore up the stage with a Texas-sized attitude. Hancock covered most of his career, burning through versions of “That’s What Daddy Wants”, ” Highway 54″, “Flatland Boogie” All songs done without a net , no set list, songs called out on the fly or taken from the audience. Near the break Mr. Mark O’connor joined the band onstage for a few songs and a killer version of the fiddle classic “Orange Blossom Special.”

Wayne’s voice has some of the same characteristics as Hank Williams, grandson Hank III likes to say that Hancock sounds more like Hank than Hank did, but Hancock is far too modest to take that compliment to heart. Wayne said in a recent interview: “I always say that’s a nice compliment, when people say that, but could you keep your voice down a little bit?” he says, laughing. “That’s kind of a silly thing to say. How can you sound better than the person who sang it? You can’t. It’s a nice compliment, but it’s like, ‘Geez, man, get a life. Is there a bull’s-eye on me or what?’”

But the sound and style are there, there’s no doubting it. For some of the best in no-bullshit Texas honky-tonk music done with style, passion and grace you can’t do any better than Mr. Wayne “the Train” Hancock.

Neo-traditionalist and purveyor of honky-tonk, western swing, blues, Texas rockabilly and Juke Joint Swing, Wayne “the Train” Hancock is bringing his tour in support of his Bloodshot Records latest “Tulsa ” to the
Big Apple. October 26th at the Rodeo Bar.

Sure it’s not as cool as having one of your CDs taken aboard a space shuttle, but it is pretty great!

See ya’ll there!

Yep Roc recording artists Big Sandy and his Fly-Rite Boys are brinnging their brand of western rockabilly swing from out of their base in Anaheim, CA clear on over to the East Coast. This stretch will also feature ex-BR549er Chris Scruggs on the steel. Check out these cats if you get the chance.

Wed Oct 4 Music Mill Indianapolis, IN
Thu Oct 5 Cowboy Monkey Champaign, IL
Fri Oct 6 The Abbey Pub Chicago, IL
Sat Oct 7 Tall Stacks Music Festival Cincinnati, OH
Tue Oct 10 Cafe Nine New Haven, CT
Wed Oct 11 Iron Horse Northampton, MA
Thu Oct 12 Maxwell’s Hoboken, NJ
Fri Oct 13 North By Northwest Philadelphia, PA
Sat Oct 14 IOTA Club & Cafe Arlington, VA
Sun Oct 15 Taphouse Norfolk, VA
Tue Oct 17 Gravity Lounge Charlottesville, VA
Wed Oct 18 Cat’s Cradle Carrboro, NC
ThuOct 19 Grey Eagle Asheville, NC
Fri Oct 20 The Earl Atlanta, GA
Sat Oct 21 Private Nashville, TN
Sun Oct 22 Automatic Slims Memphis, TN

I’m in such a great mood from my Nashville trip I decided to give you, loyal reader, two for the money on this MySpace Showcase Tuesday.

The first band is the Lonesome Spurs. I liked these folks the first time I heard their song come streaming from their page and like ‘em even more after making their acquaintance in Nashville and seeing them live. Lynda Kay & Danny B. Harvey make music as though it were a spawn from Patsy Cline and Merle Travis, but kidnapped from the crib and raised up in a West Texas trailer park by Wanda Jackson. Sold hillbilly sound and snappy dressers to boot!

The second band is a new one for me. Backyard Tire Fire has a smooth groove as if Leon Russell fronted Uncle Tupelo. The twang is there fused with funk and the harmonious folk of C.S.N.Y.

Both are killer. Check ‘em out!