Big Mama Thornton exuded uncompromising intensity. Her voice conveyed struggle and defiance, fury and hurt, like few others. She was a Black, gay multi-instrumentalist who refused to let a racist society or a rapacious industry confine her.
Rogers gave 'Alaska' the acoustic treatment, surrounded by a string quartet and slowing the song's tempo to folk-tinged crawl, providing a luxurious, introspective rendition.
Bailey's the real deal. He came in and wanted the best Guinness in Boston - and we were happy to deliver. Next thing you know he's taking photos with everyone, talking with the crowd, and picking up the entire tab. That's the kind of guy he is.
Taj Mahal looked out at his fans and stated the obvious: This is off the charts. Indeed, it was a very special night for the legendary Berkeley-based blues musician, who was being honored by an numerous high-profile musicians in concert at The Masonic in San Francisco on Saturday (Feb. 21). The role call featured a number of other Bay Area greats including Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Joan Baez and Van Morrison as well as many other notable artists
For Emmylou Harris, it's no cliche to say that every song is a story. The country legend has spent 50 years roaming between folk, bluegrass, rock'n'roll and Americana, curating her own songbook of deeply humanitarian music. On this first stop of her European farewell tour, she says goodbye to Scottish fans as part of the Celtic Connections festival, offering up a suitably career-spanning set-list accompanied by memories of Gram Parsons, Nanci Griffith, Bill Monroe, Townes Van Zandt and Willie Nelson, to name just a few.
I'm blessed to have T Bone in my life right now and working with me on these records. After we did the last record, which I love listening to, this one just sort of happened. I like to say sometimes I make the right moves, like you can go left or right at any point, and one of the right moves was hooking up with T Bone for Look Up, and now for this one, which I'm calling Long Long Road, because I've been on a long long road.
Jeff Hanna, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band founder and de facto leader, is tucked into a nondescript booth at El Palenque, a 30-years-plus local restaurant in a Nashville strip mall, talking about "Nashville Skyline," a pensive track from their EP, "Night After Night." The family-owned Mexican restaurant is the kind of place he's gravitated toward since starting a jug band with friends in Long Beach before migrating to Los Angeles' folk/rock scene.
49 Winchester will release their new album Change of Plans on May 15 via Lucille Records / MCA. It's their first record for a major label after two on New West, and they made it with producer Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, Sturgill Simpson). The album includes their cover of Black Sabbath's "Changes," which was released back in November, and the new single from the album is the anthemic rocker "Pardon Me." Watch the video below.
The idea for the Opalite music video crash landed into my imagination when I was doing promo for The Life of a Showgirl. I was a guest on one of my favorite shows, @TheGrahamNortonShowOfficial. For those of you who aren't familiar, it's a UK late night show where Graham Norton (the insanely charismatic and lovable host) invites a random group of actors, entertainers, musicians, etc to be on his show and we all sit there and chat like it's a dinner party.
Bruce Hornsby has unveiled the starry tracklist of new album Indigo Park. Ezra Koenig, Bonnie Raitt, Blake Mills, Pino Palladino, Chris Dave, and the late Grateful Dead legends Bob Weir and Robert Hunter are among the contributors joining the singer-songwriter and his longtime band the Noisemakers. The album is due April 3, via his own Zappo Productions and Thirty Tigers. The following week, Hornsby will take the Noisemakers on the road. Check out their itinerary and watch the video for the Indigo Park title track below.
Mitski debuted material from her new album Nothing's About to Happen to Me and broke out a couple of deep cuts at an intimate Nashville show on Sunday night. The Basement East holds 600 people, which is considerably smaller than the venues on her last tour or for her upcoming residency dates, and the show was announced on Friday afternoon, with tickets only sold in person on Saturday.
Alabama country singer Drayton Farley has announced a new album, A Heavy Duty Heart, due March 27 via One Riot Records ( pre-order). Like 2023's great Twenty On High, it was produced by Sadler Vaden (of Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit), and it was recorded live to tape in Nashville with Drayton's touring band. It's got 10 new songs, three of which are out now, and two of those actually recently premiered on TV shows.