I couldn’t quite decide what to write about today. I’ve got a couple nice things in the queue but finally decided you can’t go wrong with a new song by one of Austin’s best kept secrets.
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The Band Of Heathens – “One Foot In The Ether” (September release)
Totally jazzed (as jazzed as a 41 year old folk fan can get) about the new record from Caroline Herring . Along with Diana Jones, Rachel Ries and Anais Mitchell I put her at the top of the female singer-songwriter ladder. Golden Apples of the Sun is out Oct 21 on Signature Sounds
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Caroline Herring – “Golden Apples of the Sun” (Signature Sounds, Oct. 21)
I’ve been on vacation, lethargic and then uninspired for the last few weeks. The Sam Baker post and subsequent CD sales of his new record “cotton” were encouraging though, as were the number of emails that supported the site and the rather odd stunt we pulled. A tweet by a fellow blogger on news of a new record by Kesang Marstand got my pulse racing again.
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Kesang Marstrand’s new record “Hello Night”
Pianist-composer-educator Hotep Idris Galeta Continuing on the path begun by our interview posting last week, the following is an essay by Hotep Idris Galeta on the development of jazz in South Africa. The richness of jazz expression by South African jazz musicians was no secret, however a trip several years ago to the Cape Town International Jazz Festival — including some furious crate digging in record shops in Cape Town, Jo’Burg, and Durban — proved to be a real revelation as
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The Development of Jazz in South Africa by Hotep Idris Galeta
The music industry is embracing another gem of an artist in the person of Pierre Sibille, a French R&B/jazz singer/instrumentalist who just released his first CD in North America. “Since I Ain’t Got You” is the title of Sibille’s first record that is currently garnering rave reviews from critics and fans alike. Sibille is a true child of art
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French jazz singer Pierre Sibille releases his first CD in North America
Planning a special event or party is difficult. There are lots of bases you have to cover to make sure that your guests can have a grand time. The tricky thing is that it would be very difficult to plan how to make the party lively. One of the best solutions is to provide live Jazz music during the party. A professional groupe Jazz band is the ensemble for your party. A Jazz trio or quartet can make the party livelier without being obtrusive. There are many advantages that you can get from
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Groupe Jazz: Why You Need One for Your Special Events
Alright I may or may not be back from my temporary hiatus. However I did want to thank everyone for retweeting, blogging about, emailing friends about, and generally supporting my campaign to get more attention for Sam Baker’s new CD cotton . We’re doing pretty well so far, but I still need your help in spreading the word
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Sam Baker Update and new music from Dayna Kurtz/Mamie Minch
I can’t pretend to be anything but a fanboy of Sam Baker . I’ve been anticipating this release since I first heard about it 6 months ago. I truly believe Sam Baker is a poetic soul who despite (or perhaps because of) impossible obstacles has become one of the greatest singer songwriters the country has ever seen
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{MP3} Sam Baker – “cotton” (Music Road Records, August 25)
I have no idea how the Brooklyn based band Maplewood would up on the German label Tapete Records . But based on my experience with the label it’s probably a good fit.
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Maplewood – “Yeti Boombox” (Tapete Records, August 4)
Corin Raymond is a Toronto based singer songwriter whose new record is atop the European Americana charts.
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Corin Raymond – “There Will Always Be A Small Time”
The new record from The Duke & The King may not be a full fledged concept album but it might as well be. The album is so full of songs about lies, recriminations, bad choices, lost loves, regrets and the joys and horrors of a misspent youth that you get the picture pretty quickly
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More from The Duke & The King
“Soul-searching-gospel-country-weirdo-rock.” -Sam Farzin (KUCI 88.9FM) I’m in good company with my love for the Virginian band The Great White Jenkins . They haven’t been given their fair share of blog love but the love they’ve gotten is from influential sites like Catbird Seat and Aquarium Drunkard (and to a lesser extent Songs:Illinois here ).
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New song (7″) from The Great White Jenkins
If it weren’t for Ethyl & the Regulars and their new record Fill ‘er Up I would have had to scrape the bottom of my drafts folder for something to post. Fortunately for you the band’s label, Cow Island Music , serves up some of the best honky-tonk on the East Coast. They’ll continue that trend when they release Fill `er Up on August 11.
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Ethyl & the Regulars – “Fill `er Up” (Cow Island Music, Aug 11)
Dan Bryk is a tinkerer. His Facebook page describes various technical endeavors including this recent one: “rewiring the TV/DVD/itunes-through-airport extreme/old-mac-running-boxee/stereo”. At the moment he’s working on reinventing the wheel
I honestly don’t know where I’ve been on the new Owen Temple record. His criteria for appearance on Songs:Illinois are many (”the force is strong with this one”): he’s an Austin singer songwriter with debts to Guy Clark, Steve Earle and Townes Van Zandt, he is #1 on the Euro Americana chart, and he’s net savvy enough to give away his new record for free.
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Honky-Tonk Friday – Owen Temple “Dollars and Dimes” (Self-released, June 9)
As I sit here listening to Allen Toussaint’s excellent new record The Bright Mississippi I realize I’ve selected the only jazzy song from the new Peter Mulvey record to share with you. Perhaps I was influenced by the New Orleans vibe of Toussaint. Or perhaps I needed a pick me up
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{MP3} Peter Mulvey – “Letter From a Flying Machine” (Signature Sounds, Aug 18)
At this point, after being in the music blog racket for a number of years, I don’t have any misconceptions about my role. I have a small blog that will never break out traffic wise because I choose not to write about the band of the minute. But I’ve really taken this approach a step too far lately by purposefully trying to write about bands that stump Elbo.ws and Hype Machine
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Ian Williams – “Bible Black Heart” EP (Adventure Club Records)
I’ve been waiting on a couple big releases. Amazingly two of the three that I’ve been drooling over have a connection to the small label Ramseur Records
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{MP3} Paul Burch – “Still Your Man” (Ramseur Records, Aug. 18)
I’ve flirted with a “Bluegrass Tuesday” and toyed with a “Honky-Tonk Friday” (even if it doesn’t always end up on a Friday). So it shouldn’t come as complete surprise tha I’m considering a “Blue Monday”
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Blue Monday – Harmonica Shah – “IF All You Have Is a Hammer, Everything Looks Like A Nail” (Electro-Fi, Aug. 18)
Rick Shea’s brand of meta-physical roots music is apparent in the title track of his new record “Shelter Valley Blues”.
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Rick Shea – “Shelter Valley Blues” (Self-released, July 21)(RIYL Townes, Prine, Haggard)
Probably despite his best efforts eveything Loudon Wainwright III touches of late turns to gold. Examples include his children’s success (Rufus and Martha), his soundtrack work, his solo stuff, and even his acting (he was pretty great in a short cameo as a an OBGYN in Knocked Up). Loudon Wainwright latest undertaking is tackling the Charlie Poole ( Trailer ) story.
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{MP3} Loudon Wainwright’s Charlie Poole Project – “High, Wide & Lonesome” (2nd Story Records, Aug 25)
The problem with the majority of modern jazz singers, in my opinion, is there is a basic lack of soul. Sure, all the notes are in the right places, but whether it be a tired rehashing of some old musical warhorse for the masses, an over-polished delivery, an inability to sell the lyrics, or arrangements that sound canned, today’s vocal jazz seriously lacks what Frank Sinatra, Julie London and the like brought to the table. What you wind up with is background music, ideal for playing when you aren’t really listening
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Gardot thrills
I’ve said it before but it bears repeating. Brooklyn is the home of some pretty kick ass alt-country/honky-tonk bands.
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Honky-Tonk Friday (1 Day Early) – Brooklyn’s I’ll Be John Brown
Well this week has turned folksy in a hurry. But that’s the way things play out sometimes. It took me a couple of weeks to get permission to share this song from Drew Nelson since he was on tour in UK.
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{MP3} Drew Nelson – Dusty Road To Beulah Land (Waterbug Records, March `09)