Twang Tuesday Part II – Jupiter Coyote

Ok so maybe they’re not that twangy but they do have a banjo and fiddle and that’s close enough for me. Anyway the band that I listened to the longest and liked the most on the first listen yesterday was Jupiter Coyote and their album Waxing Moon and as usual these guys have been around forever, well at least 20 years and I’ve never heard of them! But then I just started listening to bands like Widespread Panic and New Monsoon so here’s some background from their website: Read More

Twangy Tuesday – Another Mixed Up Day

So today I put a bunch of different music on the mp3 player. I didn’t really check any charts and maybe that was a mistake! Anyway the first album the I listened to was The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band and their just released (today)album The Wages . I will admit to only listening to the first couple of songs and while the music was interesting and sounded different. The vocals on the first listen just turned me off! Now having said that I know as I listen to this a couple of times I may find the vocals bearable! Anyway I quickly moved on to the next album Read More

Book 18 – Nothing Sacred – Lewis Black

So Book 18 is Lewis Black’s book Nothing Sacred. Even though it’s a short book it’s taken me a while to get through, mainly because I only read it while I’m waiting for the computer in the back room to either boot up or load a webpage something that may take a long time and I need a laugh, and Lewis Black makes me laugh! Whenever I see him on TV either on The Daily Show or his own Comedy Specials, he makes me laugh. I could hear the same stories over and over and I’ll still laugh. Whether he’s talking about halftime at the Super Bowl with Britney Spears and Aerosmith or a Starbucks across from a Starbucks I’m laughing, And while some of the stories in this book I’ve heard before the book I’m still laughing out load. In very short chapters he tells his life story (which makes it convenient to read while you’re waiting for a computer) from his early years, through college and the start of his stand-up career!  So now I have to go find his next book Me of Little Faith because while the computer is working ok now I know it won’t last and I’ll need some good laughs! Read More

Kate Burkart – Faith to Fall

Her influences are Lucinda Williams, Lisa Germano, and Emmylou Harris and on her debut album Faith to Fall San Francisco’s Kate Burkart has done them proud. I’ve been listening to this album for a while now and after the second time through I said “Hey this woman writes some great songs! As I listened last night I realized that this album wasn’t about the music even though producer Jerry Becker (Train) brought in some of the best musicians in the San Francisco area to play on the album. No even though the instrumentation includes an array of vintage acoustic and electric guitars, Wurlitzer and Hammond keyboards, Mellotron, cello, pedal steel and Taurus bass pedals, this album is not about the picking, it’s about Kate’s songwriting and Kate’s vocals! Kate’s music is rooted in the Americana, country, folk and singer-songwriter genres and her songs explore themes of love, faith and loss. I enjoy Kate’s voice and the music backs up and adds to the songs rather than overpowering them and that’s the way Kate designed it! This is what she says about what she tried to accomplish: Read More

Americana Favorite – Chris Knight

When I started this blog one of my goals was to introduce readers to some of the artists that I listen to and don’t think a lot of folks know about! One of those artist is Chris Knight! I have been a fan since I heard the opening track ” It Ain’t Easy Being Me” on his self-titled debut album. A couple of years ago on a trip to Virginia to visit colleges I put the song on as we drove along and my wife heard the lyrics: Read More

The Blues Wednesday Rolls On……Dave Fields

So the other night I was looking through music at emusic.com and I came across an artist Dave Fields and his 2007 release Time’s a Wastin’. I listened to the first track “Let’s Get Shakin'” the other night and it was a really great jump blues track with some great guitar work so I put the whole album on the mp3 player today and gave it a listen. I will be moving on to listen to his newest album All Wound Up soon ’nuff said!Here’s what some other say about Dave’s guitar playing: Read More

Blues Wednesday and an Excursion Down Memory Lane

Ok so, it’s Blues Wednesday and I started by listening to Jonny Lang’s album Live at the Ryman. The last Live at the Ryman album I listened to was Robert Earl Keen so somehow to me blues at the Ryman  just isn’t the way I think of the venue. Anyway the album and Jonny’s guitar wizardry was good!   There were some tracks that really caught my attention but I’ll listen again and write more later. Read More