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Americana-uk.com's Dan Wilkinson gave Black Top Road 9/10 Stars saying, ""Black
Top Road" is an essential album in a year of very few essential albums."
Jeff Kanzler offers a beautifully understated collection. Gently strummed acoustic
guitars, soft harmonica, muted trumpets, and brushed drums all contribute to the
mellow vibe. With a warm vocal style resembling Steve Forbert, Kanzler tells tails
of lost love and trying to do better next time. This album is delicate, but not
fragile as Kanzler allows the vocals and lyrical emotion to carry the show. --
Jeff Weiss, Miles of Music (self-released)
With
his Lee Hazelwood-esque vocal growl, an ear for melody, and a nod to 60s and 70s
roots-pop, Kaz Murphy has created eleven songs that tell tales of ordinary people
in sometimes extraordinary circumstances. Co-produced by Rich McCulley, Murphy
slowly brings you into his dysfunctional world. Regulars Brian Young, John Skibic,
Sully Sullivan and Jacqueline Grad are joined by McCulley, Amy Farris, Kip Boardman,
Duane Jarvis and John McDuffie. -- Jeff Weiss, Miles of Music (self-released)
The band name doesn't lie. The Psychedelic Cowboys are fine practitioners of the
rare art of Cosmic American Music. John Lefty Harlan's laid-back nasally vocals
provide a hint of a pharma-induced state. Citing The Byrds, Beatles, Love, The
Leaves, and Hearts and Flowers as influences, the Psychedelic Cowboys weave musical
magic track after track. Ten years after "Tragic Songs and Hop-A-Longs"
was released seems like a long time to wait for the follow-up. It will seem worth
every minute after hearing the groovy sounds of Jangle Waltz. -- Jeff Weiss, Miles
of Music (Taxim)
Patty Booker's second solo effort, Fire & Brimstone follows her critically
acclaimed debut, I Don't Need All That. She also teamed up with fellow Tres Pescadores
artist, Rick Shea, on Our Shangri-LA, a highly regarded CD of country duets released
in 2003. The new collection, produced by Patty, Walter Clevenger and Wyman Reese,
features some of Southern California's finest musicians. The twelve songs, eleven
written by Patty, explore true life themes reflecting Patty's life experiences
with themes of loss, wistfulness, anger and yearning filtered through Patty's
eternal optimism. This is a CD that is sure to astound and delight country fans
who are disillusioned with the current trend in countrified pop music. (Tres Pescadores)
Eliza Gilkyson delivers 14 songs full of the passion and humor that fans have
come to expect in her moving live performances. Although frequently requested
favorites like "Beauty Way" and "Requiem" are included, Your
Town Tonight is unique in its breadth, showcasing older originals like "Rose
of Sharon" and "Lights of Santa Fe," as well as covers of songs
by Bob Dylan ("Jokerman") and her father Terry Gilkyson ("Bare
Necessities" and "Green Fields"). Recorded predominantly at the
Cactus Cafe in her hometown of Austin, Texas, the album features a familiar cast
of characters that includes her long-time producer Mark Hallman and her award-winning
band--Mike Hardwick (electric guitar, dobro), Cisco Ryder (drums, vocals), Glenn
Fukunaga (bass), Jeff Plankenhorn (acoustic guitar, vocals) and Robert McEntee
(electric guitar, vocals). Also joining her is label-mate Ray Bonneville, adding
searing blues harmonica on "Angel and Delilah" and "Dark Side of
Town."
Jewell's oddly spelled first name rhymes with feelin'. And you can indeed hear
the heart in this Idaho-bred folkie's bluesy, sometimes swingin' originals and
well-selected covers. Sometimes as darkly damaged as Lucinda Williams, at others
as defiant and teasing as prime Peggy Lee and always authentically Americana in
the Gillian Welch tradition, Jewell knows just how much emotion to give..."
- Bob Strauss, dailynews.com. (Signature Sounds)
Red Meat's fourth album is once again produced by Dave Alvin, and engineered by
Mark Linett (Brian Wilson, Red Hot Chili Peppers). 12 brand new honky tonk cuts
by one of the best country band in California. (Ranchero Records)
In approaching this material, Malo and his band--Robert Chevrier (piano), Jay
Weaver (bass), Tom Lewis (drums) and Jim Hoke (saxophone, clarinet and pedal steel)--drew
their inspiration from the classic Nashville productions of the era. "This
record definitely pays homage to the kind of country music Owen Bradley created,"
Malo acknowledges. "But the Ray Charles album Modern Sounds in Country &
Western Music was the specific inspiration for this one. Ray proved that country
music can be sophisticated and jazzy as well, and we wanted to do our take on
it." Track Listing: Welcome To My World (John Hathcock-Ray Winkler)/(Now
And Then There's) A Fool Such As I (William Trader)/For The Good Times (Kris Kristofferson)/Pocket
Of A Clown (Dwight Yoakam)/Crying Time (Buck Owens)/Cold, Cold Heart (Hank Williams)/You
Can Depend On Me (Charles Carpenter-Louis Dunlap-Earl Hines)/Husbands And Wives
(Roger Miller)/It Only Hurts Me When I Cry (Dwight Yoakam-Roger Miller)/Take These
Chains From My Heart (Hy Heath-Fred Rose).(New Door Recordings)
"When Barbara Manning's post-paisley combo 28th Day split circa 1987, few
might have predicted her subsequent reinvention as one of indie rock's most daring,
unique songwriters. But, with 1988's "Lately I Keep Scissors" (here
expanded to 42 tracks with assorted outtakes and radio tracks), she perfected
a beguiling, pensive, grey-day style, full of pithy musings on identity and personal
politics, with a musical canvas of jangly guitars. Hip, addictive songs like the
serpentine "Scissors", the turbulent "Straw Man", and the
creepy "Someone Wants You Dead" remain masterpieces-in-miniture nearly
two decades on. --Luke Torn, Uncut 
"It's kind of like a country-fried Barenaked Ladies, with witty southern
lyrics and infectious hummable melody lines...McLain is backed by a stellar cast
of musicians, including Brian Owings, Dave Pomeroy, Bobby Cochran and many others.
Special guests include Lindsey Buckingham from Fleetwood Mac, Tommy Smothers and
Bonnie Bramlett ...The songs are all great, from the trailer park anthem "Living
in Aluminum," to the rocking "The Devil Gets More Credit Than He Deserves."
"I Was Just Flipped Off By a Silver Haired Old Lady with a Honk if You Love
Jesus Sticker On The Bumper of her Car" is reminiscent of Shel Silverstein
and "KOA Refugee" would fit perfectly onto a Commander Cody album."
-Michael Buffalo Smith, www.swampland.com (DPR Records)
Teddy Thompson's self-produced Up Front & Down Low offers distinctive readings
of beloved country classics: George Jones' 'She Thinks I Still Care,' Ernest Tubb's
'Walking the Floor Over You' and Merle Haggard's '(My Friends Are Gonna Be) Strangers.'
Equally impressive, however, are such lesser-known songs such as Boudleaux Bryant's
regretful 'Change of Heart,' the yearning 'Touching Home,' Dolly Parton's bittersweet
'My Blue Tears,' the tongue-in-cheek Bob Luman hit 'Let's Think About Living'
and the Elvis Presley chestnut 'I'm Left, You're Right, She's Gone.' The album
also features a lone Thompson original, 'Down Low,' whose heart-on-sleeve lyrics
take on added resonance in this context. (Verve)
Whether it's tin pan blues or foot-stomping rock, Caleb Sweazy's music is full
of heart. From country to blues to rock, he's got plenty of twang, loads of soul
and is honest as the day is long. In 2005, Caleb self-released an EP under the
name Jitterbug Thompson that received notice from NPR as well as having one track
included. on the AMA's This is Americana Volume 2 CD. (Company Store Recordings)
Though best known as an actress, Minnie Driver defied critics' expectations and
established herself as a serious artist and musician with her well-received debut
album Everything I've Got in My Pocket. Her new Cd Seastories goes farther in
exploring new musical territory, from the rich sonic textures of "Beloved"
to the bluesy soul of "Cold Dark River" to the seductive minor key groove
of "Mockingbird" to the poetic chamber folk of "Lakewater Hair."
Producer Marc "Doc" Dauer and guest musicians Ryan Adams and The Cardinals,
Liz Phair and Rami Jaffee (The Wallfowers) match but never overwhelm Driver's
vivid lyrics, soaring melodies and spirited performances on this thoroughly pleasing
collection of intelligent pop. (Zoe Records)
Space & Time takes the sound and style of their debut album and ups the ante.
Ex-Clone Defects Wes Kerstens and "Fast" Eddie Altesleben and recently
acquired bass player Eric Villa really put this band on the map, musically and
creatively. The songs have greater depth, timing, and inner frustration that extends
itself through Kerstens' lurid and devilishly delicate guitar strangulation, and
are balanced and anchored by an amazing rhythm section. Miss Alex's unstoppable
vocals, which seem to explode in every direction, keep the raw simplicity and
primal forces in focus. The influence of The Modern Lovers, The Jesus & Mary
Chain, '60s garage, and '70s punk are all evident here, yet the result is something
very original. (In The Red) 
2007 reissue of this double CD set recorded live in 1992 during the band's 25th
Anniversary celebration. Features a host of guest musicians and singers including
Robert Plant, Ralph Mctell, Julianne Regan (All About Eve) plus past members of
the band. This CD was limited mail order only at the time of release. Track Listing
Disc 1:Insult to Injury/I Wandered by a Brookside/Con Casey's/Tripping Up the
Stairs/It'll Take More Than the Blues/Close to the Wind/Girl from the North Country/Claudy
Banks/John Barleycorn/Deserter/Million Dollar Bash/Tam Lin/Crazy Man Michael/Sloth.
Disc 2:Poor Will and the Jolly Hangman/Bridge over the River Ash/Journeyman's
Grace/Hexamshire Lass/Rosie/Me with You/Polly on the Shore/Adieu, Adieu/Hiring
Fair/Red and Gold/Matty Groves/The Rutland Reel/Sack the Juggler/Si Tu Dois Partir.(Talking
Elephant)
"...sounds like Interpol were let loose in Arcade Fire's church/studio; the
band uses everything from strings to a chorus to handclaps in a daring attempt
to trick out their moody post-punk sound."
A cross between the Ramones and the Beach Boys, the Hawaii Mud Bombers are a Swedish
band that plays fun, energetic, surfy rock and roll. They have performed all over
Sweden for years, while building a sizable fan base in other territories like
Japan but 'Mondo Primo' will mark their
Since 1982, a few years before they released their 1987 debut, John Flansburgh
and John Linnell have been They Might Be Giants, an independent band named after
a 1971 George C. Scott movie who are, to echo their own description of their current
collaborators The Dust Brothers, pop musicians unto themselves. Their work provides,
in the prescient judgment of The SPIN Alternative Record Guide (1995) "a
fabulous example of just how far the concept of punk can stretch." In subsequent
years, They Might Be Giants have elongated things further, although never to the
breaking point. They have released twelve albums, of which The Else, a wildly
rocking and sturdy collection of thirteen unfailingly acute songs co-produced
by The Dust Brothers (Beck, Beastie Boys), is the latest. It includes a 23 song
bonus disc with the album's first edition and features Linnell (who sings and
plays keyboards, primarily) and Flansburgh (who sings and plays guitar, primarily)
working in tightest accord with their current band of guitarist Dan Solder Miller,
bassist Danny Weinkauf, and drummer Marty Beller. (Zoe)
After more than a decade apart, brothers Cris and Curt Kirkwood have reunited
to make their first record together since 1995's No Joke. Rise to Your Knees is
a dense, layered record that shows off the chops of a band who famously refused
to rehearse in their early days...oh how things change. The bulk of the CD rolls
along with country-tinged, laid-back songs - some hopeful and some bleak. With
menace lurking at their edges, songs like "Vultures" start and end with
protracted bouts of static. Rise To Your Knees is more than just 15 tracks of
classic-style Meat Puppets. It's Cris Kirkwood's rebirth after decades of drug
abuse, legal problems, and jail time. And it's good to have him back. (Anodyne
Records)
Outside Austin, Texas, a 53-year-old man sleeps to the melody of four radios,
three televisions, two amps, a radio scanner, and a Casio keyboard, all screeching
at the same time. Loudly. He has three teeth and his hair is matted into one huge
dreadlock. This is the story of Roky Erickson: manic frontman for the legendary
band The 13th Floor Elevators, creators of psychedelic music and muse to Janis
Joplin. Known for his colossal heroin & LSD binges, struggles with schizophrenia,
and an unthinkable term at Rusk Hospital for the Criminally Insane, Roky went
missing from the world. You're Gonna Miss Me is a disturbingly intimate portrait
of an imploding family and the struggle between modernized medicine and religion
and reveals the shocking & triumphant truth behind one of Rock's great mysteries.
The cd features classic songs from the 13th Floor Elevators, Roky Erickson and
the Aliens, and gripping solo acoustic performances from Roky, available exclusively
on this soundtrack. (Palm Pictures)
The Dials, recent winners of The Fopp New Music Award, which recognizes the "best
in creative and innovative music happening in the UK today" owe as much to
Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd and Johnny Cash as they do to The Faces and Nick Drake.
Despite a huge range of influences, the band occupy a space that is all their
own and produce instant but sometimes strange pop classics.(Gear Disc)
On Beauty & Crime, Suzanne Vega's Blue Note Records debut, the Manhattan native
uses New York City as the backdrop for a collection of eleven new songs that juxtapose
acoustic guitar-driven melodies with coolly synthesized beats; intensely personal
lyrics with compelling, short story-like narratives; images of today's scarred
cityscape with memories of Vega's old Upper West Side 'hood and Lower East Side
haunts. The past commingles with the present, the public with the private, familiar
sounds with the utterly new, just like the city itself. Making her first new studio
album in six years, Vega says, "I feel like I really stretched my limits.
I pushed myself out of my comfort zone--to sing in keys I wouldn't have sung in
before, to work with different textures, to be unafraid of doing what ever sounded
good to me. I wanted to make a modern classic."(Blue Note Records)
4.5 stars- Those The Brokes is "a breathtaking follow-up" filled with
"homespun guitar pop that recalls the casual elegance of early R.E.M."
-- Spin
Stephen Stills found himself in a New York recording studio, laid down a few hundred
dollars, told the engineer to roll tape, and this collection of songs is what
came about. Finally remastered and released to the public, this album shows the
beginnings of Crosby, Still, and Nash. Track Listing: All I Know is What You Tell
Me/So Begins the Task/Change Partners/Know You Got To Run/The Doctor Will See
You Now/Black Queen/Bumblebee (Do You Need A Place to Hide?)/Judy/Dreaming of
Snakes/Suite: Judy Blue Eyes/Helplessly Hoping/Wooden Ships/Treetop Flyer.(Rhino)
"Compadre Tim Keegan on guitar and producers Jon Brion and Pat Collier come
up with the best work like the techno/folk "Dark Princess" and the acoustic,
Dylanesque "You've Got a Sweet Mouth on You, Baby." The jangling "Sally
Was a Legend" reunites Hitchcock with ex-Soft Boy Kimberly Rew on guitar.
Yet the ramshackle inanity of "Viva! Sea Tac" and "Elizabeth Jade,"
provided by Peter Buck, three-fourths of the Young Fresh Fellows, and a recording
crew in Seattle, are silly self-parody. Conversely, the gentle "I Feel Beautiful"
with Grant Lee Phillips on harmony and the bonus song, "Don't Talk to Me
About Gene Hackman," are the kinds of spare composition at which Hitchcock
has come to master." -- Denise Sullivan, allmusic.com (Noble Rot) 
"Copperopolis is arguably the hardest Grant Lee Buffalo album to get into,
perhaps because the music is more understated and heavily textured. However, if
you`re willing to put in the effort there are hooks buried beneath the layers
that will sink into your musical memory and won`t let go." --bbc.co.uk (Noble
Rot)
"While Grant Lee Phillips' songwriting is quite impressive, what makes the
band's debut album, Fuzzy, memorable is its muscular folk-rock. Equally adept
at propulsive rock & roll and haunting ballads, the band turns Phillips' best
songs into rough gems, as "Jupiter and Teardrop" and "Fuzzy"
prove." -- allmusic.com (Noble Rot)
Track Listing: Gypsy Cowboy/Whiskey/Groupie/Sutter's Mill/Death And Destruction/
Linda/On My Way Back Home/Superman/She's No Angel/Long Black Veil/ Sailin'. Bonus
tracks: Groupie (live version)/Sutter's Mill (live version)/ Superman (live version)/She's
No Angel (live version). (Wounded Bird)
Track Listings: I`m On Fire/Could Be Love/Feeling In The Dark/You Were So Warm/I`m
Losing You/Sincerely/Tv/Release Me/Three Persons/Baby Let`s Cruise/England/Just
Like The Sun/Here She Comes/Looking For The Magic/That I Remember/Rock And Roll
`47/Trying To Find My Baby/ Twilley Don`t Mind/Sleeping/Chance To Get Away/Invasion/I
Don`t Know My Name (Bonus Track)/Shark (In The Dark) (Bonus Track)/Didn`t You
Say (Bonus Track)/You Never Listen To My Music (Bonus Track). (Raven)
Sweet Georgia Brown/Canadian Sunset/Nit Pickin'/Walkin' With Danny/Harlem Nocturne/Soul
Sauce/Danny's Blues/Fingers On Fire/Bonus Track: Rumble / Harlem Nocturne/Bonus
Track: Sweet Georgia Brown. (Powerhouse)
Cuts include: Ain't That The Way/Talkin To The Blues, Son Of The South/59 Cadillac,
'57 Crazy/Heaven Only Knows/Storms Never Last/Weakness/Nothin' To Love/Time Off
For Bad Behavior/When I Was A Young Man/If That Ain't Country/Lay My Money Down/Will
You Remember Me/Long Haired Redneck/Take This Job And Shove It/Drank My Wife Away/The
Rose, Face My Mind/Follow Me/You Never Even Called Me By My Name. (Smith Music
Group)
The two-piece, comprised of Jake Hyer and Josh Wenck, take their cues from the
venerable music of the mountains. The beautiful and poignant voices of West Virginia
ex-patriot Hyer (Fiddle, Mandolin, and Vocals) and Minnesota native Wenck (Guitar
and Vocals) melt together in the tradition of the Louvin Brothers. This is old-timey
rooted in the music`s history without trying to sound like the recordings are
100 years old. Fans of high harmonies, good picking, and dark subjects will absolutely
enjoy Trouble In Mind. An added plus is the simple, but elegant letter-pressed
packaging of the disc. -- Jeff Weiss, Miles of Music (Mercy Recordings)
In the summer of 1996 inside a sweltering singlewide trailer outside a small Kentucky
mining town, an unknown singer-songwriter named Chris Knight recorded an unofficial
batch of tracks prior to the release of his major label debut album. Over the
next decade, through a combination of leaks, bootlegs and legend, those sessions
would become something much more. "People have been talking about these tapes
ever since I recorded them," Chris Knight says. "To me, they were rough
and stark and I never thought theyd see the light of day." Ten years and
four acclaimed albums later, The Trailer Tapes remain a remarkable moment in time
less captured than cornered, a portrait of the artist as a ferociously talented
young man. And for the artist The New York Times would soon call "the last
of a dying breed -- a hard-nosed iconoclast with an acoustic guitar and a college
degree," The Trailer Tapes have now arrived as the long missing first chapter
of one of the most uncompromising careers in music today. Track Listings: Backwater
Blues/ Something Changed/Rita`s Only Fault/Spike Drivin` Blues/Move On/Hard Edges/Here
Comes The Rain/Leaving Souvenirs/House And 90 Acres/If I Were You/My Only Prayer.
(Drifters Church)
This is the 7th studio release in as many years for family trio The Stone Coyotes.
Fronted by Barbara Keith (vocals, guitars, keys), with her husband Doug Tibbles
on drums (the two met around the time of Keith`s `71 self-titled LP on Reprise)
and their son John Tibbles on bass, the band`s bare-bones rock combines rootsy
soul and hard rock vigor. Back-to-back examples are the breezy country folk tune
"Johnny Rock`s Cantina" and it successor "Back To New York",
with its AC/DC-like guitar riff. Many songs find a suitable point in between.
And at times there are hints of Lucinda Williams and Melissa Etheridge in Keith`s
bold delivery, and songs on par with the aforementioned as well. Not unthinkable
from a woman whose early work has been recorded by the likes of Delaney &
Bonnie, Barbara Streisand, Valerie Carter, and Neal Casal! -- Robinson, Miles
Of Music (Red Cat Records)
The original 1988 album has been remastered under the band's supervision. The
bonus platters begin with previously unreleased live performances from the Daydream
Nation Tour. Culled from performances at CBGB in New York, The Paradiso in Amsterdam,
and several other primo venues, "Live Daydream" includes live versions
of every song on the original album. Added to that are four studio bonuses: `Within
You, Without You` (a Beatles cover from the NME-sponsored charity Beatles tribute
album Sgt. Pepper Knew My Father), `Computer Age,` from the Neil Young tribute
album The Bridge, `Electricity` from the Captain Beefheart tribute album Fast
And Bulbous, and a cover of Mudhoney's `Touch Me, I'm Sick,` originally released
as a Sub Pop 7-inch single. Lee Ranaldo's original demo of `Eric's Trip` concludes
the album. Includes a 16-page booklet with liner notes and unpublished photos.
(Goofin)
This is the true story of David Bowie. Follow him through his many incarnations
as we talk to the people who knew him best. A 72 page book features track by track
analysis of Bowie's music with full color photos from throughout his career.(Hurricane
International)
Journey with The Chieftains to the special places and people of the home counties
that formed the band's musical soul. Derek Bell, Kevin Conneff, Martin Fay, Sean
Keane, Matt Molloy, and Paddy Moloney tell the tales of their earliest memories
of Irish music. Their thoughtful and often amusing stories capture the emotion
behind the scenes of every performance. Track Listing: Bean An Fhir Rua/The Kilfenora
Set/The May Morning Dew/The Galician Set/Dusty Miller/Live From Matt Molloy's
Pub/First House of Connaught/Guadalupe/An Poc Ar Buile/The Dingle Set/Planxty
George Brabazon/The Donegal Set/The Star Of the County Down. (Eagle Vision)
Experience first hand the visceral power and presence of the greatest Grunge band
ever to storm out of Seattle! Featuring rare performance footage from around the
world, their on-stage genius is here condensed to a single DVD and deluxe full
color book.(Hurricane)| Alt Country | Americana Music | Bluegrass Music | Country Bluegrass | Folk Music Folk Rock | Roots Rock | Singer Songwriter | Sitemap |