Playlist week of September 12, 2015

2015-09-12

12th September 2015 – BBC Playlist

Sugarland - Hello | Album: Twice The Speed Of Life MP3  (Jennifer Nettles; Sept 12, 1974) BIRTHDAY

Malpass Brothers - Man In Black Is Wearing White | Album: Memory That Bad (2011) MP3

Helen Carter & Wiley Barkdull - He Made Me For You (Helen Myrl Carter; Sept 19, 1927 – June 2, 1998) BIRTHDATE

Laura Bell Bundy - Ring For Sale | Album: Another Piece Of Me MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com 

Luke Bryan - To The Moon & Back | Album: Kill The Lights New CD - MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com

Alecia Nugent - Just Another Alice | Album: Hillbilly Goddess (2009) CD 

Tim McGraw - Southern Voice | Album: 35 Biggest Hits (June 2015, Curb Records) MP3

Gary Perkins - Leadville Gambler | Album: Stranger In This Town (June 2015) MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com

Emma Jane - Born & Raised | Album: Workhorse (July 2014) MP3 – UK iTunes

George Jones - When The Last Curtain Falls | Album: Cold Hard Truth MP3 (Sept 12, 1931; died April 26, 2013 (aged 81)) BIRTHDATE

Valerie Smith - Where The Bluebells Grow | Album: No Summer Storm (2002) MP3

Mitchell Tenpenny - Love & Rock n Roll Hotdisc #200 August Single

No Grass Limit - Good Ole Days of Bill Monroe | Album: Originals MP3 - Amazon.com (Sept. 2014) (Bill Monroe; Sept 13, 1911; died: September 9, 1996 (aged 85)) BIRTHDATE

Bobbie Cryner - Too Many Tears Too Late | Album: Bobbie Cryner (1993) MP3

John Berry - Time To Be A Man | Album: (Sept 14, 1959) BIRTHDAY

Rainey Qualley - Turn Me On Like The Radio | Album: Turn Down the Lights CD - Amazon.com 

Steep Canyon Rangers – Radio | Album: Radio (Rounder) New (18 Sept. 2015) CD - Amazon.com

Railsplitters - Sweet Little Miss Blue Eyes | Album: The Faster It Goes New CD / MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com

Cam - Burning House | Album: Welcome to Cam Country (EP) UK iTunes - MP3 - Amazon.com 

Roy Acuff - Heartbreak Avenue | Album: We're Listening to Roy Acuff, Vol. MP3 (Sept 15, 1902; died Nov 23, 1992 (aged 89)) BIRTHDATE

Lisa Stanley - Silver Threads and Golden Needles | Album: Love Me A Little Bit Longer CD

Bellamy Brothers - Texas Girls | Album: 40 Years: The Album (Import) 2-CD CD - Amazon.com (David Bellamy Sept 16, 1950) BIRTHDAY

Aleyce Simmonds - It Finds Us Anyway | Album: Collector's Edition New ( Aug 2015) MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com

Hank Williams - Movin’ On Over (Sept 16, 1923; died January 1, 1953 (aged 29)) BIRTHDATE

Annette & Kim - A Mansion On The Hill | Album: Try A Little Kindness (2014) Website

Patty Loveless - Here I Am | Album: When Fallen Angels Fly (1994) MP3

Donna Ulisse - If I Were You | Album: The Songwriter in Me:The Demo Recordings MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com

New on The Show

No Grass Limit

“Good Ole Days of Bill Monroe” – “They remind me of New Blue and The Roys with that lovely soft bluegrass sound” - Marie Crichton BBC Radio Shropshire

Genre: Bluegrass, Americana, Folk, Singer-songwriter

Band Members: Chuck Millar, Sandi Millar, Mike Hedding, Clint Bitzer & Vaughn Asselstine

Home Town: West Metro Minneapolis

Record Label: Universe Unlimited, LLC

An all original Bluegrass / Newgrass / Country / Folk / Americana / Roots album produced by Grammy-Award winning Engineer/Producer Randy Korhs. This album is performed by some of the best bluegrass performers with songs that are both traditional and edgy for all tastes.

This 5-piece band were formed in June of 2011, and they were only 4 months into the process of playing together when they took 1st place at the MBOTMA (Minnesota Bluegrass and Old Time Music Association) Race for a Place band contest. Ranging from bluegrass, folk, Americana, gospel and traditional music No Grass Limit puts on an electric performance that you will not want to miss. 

Members include award winning duet, songwriters and owners of Lesson Pros, Chuck and Sandi Millar, 3 time MN Flatpicking Champion Clint Birtzer, Mike Hedding on banjo, and the gal that holds it all together on bass is Vaughn Asselstine.

On Sept 30, 2014 they releaesd a 12 track Christian & Gospel, Country, Pop tinged set album titled ORIGINALS (MP3 - Amazon.com)

Good Ole Days of Bill Monroe - was inspired by the Father of Bluegrass, Bill Monroe. Sandi took song titles that were either written and/or recorded by Bill Monroe then put them in story format. Dustin Benson and the band helped with the arrangement. The original version of this song was cut down from 46 song titles to 20 because we needed a shorter radio version. This song took well over 40 hours to write.

Chuck and Sandi Millar founders of No Grass Limit and Lesson Pros (a MN based music lessons program), started as performing artists, playing all over the United States at festivals, private & corporate parties, weddings, coffee houses & theaters.  Being played on radio stations all around the world their success has led them into the hearts of millions.  They have been featured in numerous newspapers articles, radio, television and magazines. 

They have won many competitions with their music, including countless 1st place titles in fiddling and trick fiddling (Chuck), plus took 2nd place in the MN State fair duet competition. 

Chuck and Sandi also had the honor of playing at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN.

Read about the Band Members here and Sample lyrics and clips here

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Annette & Kim

“A Mansion On The Hill” - “I particularly like what they’ve done to this one… traditional album reworks of old songs, thought they had done a nice version of that” - Marie Crichton BBC Radio Shropshire

Home Town: Whangarei, NZ

Annette Hawkins -Singer, Songwriter, Recording Artist, Entertainer . 2008 Norfolk Island Trans-Tasman Entertainer of the Year.

Kim Copedo - Singer, Songwriter, Recording Artist, Entertainer. 2011 NZCMA Songwriter of the Year.

They describe themselves as New Zealand's Premier Country Music Duo

Following on from their 2008 EUROPEAN COUNTRY MUSIC ASSOCIATION RADIO CHARTS TOP 100 No1 song, "Wake Up And Smell The Whiskey" success Annette (Annette Hawkins) & Kim (Kim Copedo) have been hard at work forging a career in the Australasian country music arena. Performing locally in their home town, Nationally around NZ and Internationally at the world renowned Norfolk Island and Barham Country Music Festivals.

7 years ago Annette teamed up with Kim Copedo to form a Duo Act for the Awards. They now work together as a two piece band working RSA and festivals etc.

Read Bios for Annette Hawkins and Kim Copedo

Released in 2014 TRY A LITTLE KINDNESS is the album to their highly successful debut album “Something Between Us” and is another mix of traditional and modern country music that all of our fans have been waiting for. Followers of Annette and Kim will be mesmerised by the exquisite harmonies and warmth of delivery on their new album. For the traditionalist there are covers of Gene Autry’s “ Silver Haired Daddy of Mine”, Hank Williams’ “Mansion On The Hill” and an outstanding and moving rendition of the Everly Brothers classic “Ebony Eyes”.. See more  

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Playlist week of September 5, 2015

5th September 2015 – BBCPlaylist

Marie Crichton BBC Radio Shropshire Show playlist September 5, 2015

Brand new music from Joe Nichols, Craig Morgan, Patty Griffin & Lynn Anderson. Plus classics from David Allan Coe and Michael Martin Murphey.

Sarah Johns - Big Love In A Small Town | Album: Big Love In A Small Town CD

Kip Moore - That Was Us | Album: Wild Ones CD - UK iTunes - Amazon.com

Kelly Lang - Down In Destin | Album: It’s About Time (2004)

Mark Chesnutt - The Man In The Mirror | Album: Rollin' With The Flow MP3 (Sept 6, 1963) BIRTHDAY

The Cains - Journey’s End | Album: The Cains (EP; July 2015) New Single Amazon UK - UK iTunes - Amazon.com

Mitchell Tenpenny - Cains Creek Hotdisc #200 August Single

Chloe Chadwick - Settle Your Heart | Album: Chloë Chadwick (EP) MP3 - UK iTunes 

Chris Raggatt - Crazy Over You

Daughters of Bluegrass - I Don’t Think I’m Going Back To Harlan | Album: Bluegrass Bouquet (2008) CD

Hermann Lammers Myers & Sandra Carroll - Nashville Blues | Album: Nashville Is Rough On the Living (2010) MP3

Rachael Turner - I Don’t Love You New Single

David Allan Coe - Tennessee Whiskey | Album: Tennessee Whiskey MP3 (Sept 6, 1939) BIRTHDAY

Craig Morgan - When I’m Gone New Single

Hungrytown - Highway Song | Album: Further West MP3

Trisha Yearwood - Melancholy Blue | Album: Inside Out (2001) MP3 (writer Harlan Howard Sept 8, 1927; died March 3, 2002 (aged 74)) BIRTHDATE

Michael McDaniel - Louisiana Saturday Night | Album: I'm Countryfied MP3

Dolly Parton - Love Is Like A Butterfly | Album: The Very Best Of CD

Ricky Gunn - Livin’ Like Me | Album: Livin' like Me MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com Hotdisc #200 August Single

Andrea Zonn - Crazy If You Let It | Album: Rise New (out 25 Sept; Compass Records) CD - MP3 - Amazon.com

Blue Wheel Drive - Blueridge Mountain Haze | Album: Blue Wheel Drive New MP3 - Amazon.com

Lynn Anderson - The Bridge | Album: Bridges MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com 

Michael Ray - Real Men Love Jesus | Album: Michael Ray New Single CD - MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com

Patty Griffin - Shine A Different Way | Album: Servant of Love New CD - Amazon.com 

Joey & Rory - I’ll Sing For You | Album: CD - MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com  (Joey Martin Feek; Sept 9, 1975) BIRTHDAY

Billy Yates - Famous For Being Your Fool | Album: Bill's Barber Shop (2009) MP3 Hotdisc #200 Classic track

The Stetson Family – Billy | Album: True North CD - UK iTunes - Amazon.com

Terri Clark - I Just Called To Say Goodbye | Album: Pain to Kill  CD

New on The Show

Mitchell Tenpenny

“Cains Creek” - This one really did strike me…nice sound to that, really rootsy feel, lovely ending, really nice sound” - Marie Crichton BBC Radio Shropshire

Mitchell Tenpenny is a rare combination. Not only is he a lifelong Nashville native, he is also one of Nashville’s top emerging songwriters known for his extensive musical talent. He has played the guitar since the age of 13, and his talent and dedication to his craft has expanded his repertoire to include many other stringed instruments, the organ, and the drums. 

He also sings both lead and back-up vocals, and his unique voice lends credence and believability to a diverse array of genres ranging from rock to country and blues to pop.

As a twenty-five year old musician and graduate of Middle Tennessee State University, Mitchell has grown up in and around the music business. His grandmother was the late Donna Hilley, who for years ran Sony/Tree Music Publishing and exposed him to singers like Brooks & Dunn and Blake Shelton as well as some of the best artists, songwriters, producers, and engineers in the business. The advice gleaned from these industry experts as well as his own broad musical interests have laid the groundwork he needed to develop the distinct style for which he is known today.

A few of the artists who can claim the greatest influence on his career are Brooks & Dunn, Vince Gill, John Mayer, Justin Timberlake and Michael Jackson. A life spent learning from the best country music has to offer combined with his own R&B and pop interests has produced the artist that Mitchell Tenpenny is today. His songs are eclectic, powerful, and memorable, and both on the stage and in the recording studio, he always gives the audience more and more of himself through his music.

The fabulous “Cains Creek” (>> Official video; co-written with Brad Clawson) was promoted in Europe on the promotional Hotdisc (#200 August 2015). It made a debut at No.18 and has so far reached #9. I love the outdoors and hunting and fishing, and sometimes you just have to realize where you’re at,” Mitchell explained. “I was at a really pretty place that I found one time and I honestly thought, ‘Man, this is great. I want to thank God for another day to wake up and find a place like this.’ I went home and picked up a guitar. I don’t play much bluegrass, but I wanted it to kinda be like that and it just worked out. Me and my buddy Brad fish at the Caney Fork River a lot and I pulled ‘Cane’s Creek’ out of that.”

The toe-tapping tune is riddled with simple, down-home country imagery, but the arrangements are deliciously embellished by The SteelDrivers.

His new video "Love & Rock N' Roll" was published on Aug 27, 2015 and the single is also included on the special 3CD commemorative Hotdisc#200 and so far reached No.35 on Hotdisc Top 40

He previously visited the Hotdisc chart with “Black Crow” (HD193; Jan 2015; #39 debut) which gained an eight week #28 highest rank.

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Chloe Chadwick

“Settle Your Heart” - I’ve never had as many requests for this song, such a buzz about her music..very professional sound - Marie Crichton BBC Radio Shropshire

Chloe has been writing for as long as she can remember. When aged 9 she had her first acoustic guitar and started writing from the age of 10.

Growing up she wrote songs listening to The Beatles and Hansen.

Originally from Cheshire Chloe Chadwick was born in Staffordshire, England, before moving to the French Alps as an 18 year old solo performer, and then on to the Spanish Balearic Islands.

Chadwick moved back to England to continue her musical journey in 2007 and settled in Sunderland, Northern England, UK.

The result is an intriguing mix of influences that encompass the likes of country, folk, alt. pop and soft rock, a sound that has been captivating audiences across the UK at major festivals including the Country to Country (C2C) 2015 Festival performing on Sunday March 8th on the Big Entrance pop-up stage within the O2 Arena complex.  As one of the most well-travelled acts on the bill, her musical prowess clearly showed in the enthusiastically-gathered crowd, despite her slot being situated right towards the end of the C2C festival.

Additionally Chloe has supported the likes of Diana Vickers (X Factor semi-finalist in 2008), The Beautiful South and The Christians on tour, bringing her music to the masses.

She recorded a new self-titled EP, released on 23rd May 2015 which was led by debut solo single "Settle Your Heart" which dropped on 28th February 2015.

It’s a catchy little tune, one that begins quite stripped-back before kicking in with a bouncy beat and an intriguing, winding melody that defies convention. Chloe moves from a delicate, feminine delivery to a more passionate, fiery and soulful style when the track requires it, showing some of the range of her capabilities as a songstress. A simple, emotional track about begging for balance in a rollercoaster relationship, it’s one that is sure to garner her plenty of attention in the months going forward " - For The Country Record Single Review.

Following the release of second single "Feels Like Home", on May 15, 2015 Chloe launched her long-awaited self-titled EP a week later at The Central Bar in Gateshead, with "Never Change" and "Don’t Be Shy" adding to the first two singles to make up a quartet of distinctive tracks.

Watch her official YouTube videos for >> "Settle Your Heart" and the sophomore EP single >> "Feels Like Home"  (published on 2 July 2015) available on iTunes

CONNECT with Chloe Chadwick:

Rachael Turner

“I Don’t Love You” - Really like what I’ve heard so far -  Marie Crichton BBC Radio Shropshire

Genre: Country

Home Town: Sugar Land, TX

Record Label: Rustic Records

Current Location: Nashville, TN

Influences: Martina McBride, Reba, Shania Twain, and Carrie Underwood.

Rachael Turner is a breath of fresh air to country music. The Texas native burst on the scene in 2012, upon signing a deal with the long-standing Rustic Records. She sets to utilize her dynamic vocals and unique traditional take on modern country music to both establish herself as a legitimate artist, and break the gap in today’s male driven format.

Though new to the country music scene, Rachael is no stranger to the stage. The dynamic female vocalist has had over 10 years of singing experience, has placed in numerous local talent competitions, and was a contestant on season 10 of American Idol.

Rachael is currently hard at work in the studio putting together her debut EP, set for release this fall.

In Feb, 2014 she released single “Meet Me in the Middle” (Rustic Records) on iTunes and on Jan 6, 2015 dropped track "Matches and Moonshine" available on CD Baby and iTunes

Her new single "I Don’t Love You" was sent to radio Aug 31, 2015 with a Sept 1st impact date. Description: With dynamic vocals and gut wrenching emotion, Rachael Turner releases her newest single, The sultry country ballad tells a story of heartbreak, touching the listener with a dose of true feelings. It’s a must hear for anyone who has ever lost in the game of love.

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Hungrytown

Genre: Folk/Pop

Home Town: West Townshend, VT

After more than a decade of world-wide touring and three album releases, Rebecca Hall and Ken Anderson--otherwise known as the folk duo Hungrytown--have earned a reputation for the quality and authenticity of their songwriting: “It’s great to hear an act eschew sentimentality in favor of honesty and to prove that you don’t have to go raiding the memory of others to find the stuff that really good songs are made of,” writes Jedd Beaudoin of Popmatters.

Lyricist Rebecca Hall is credited with compositions “that sound as timeless as any traditional songs” (Northern Sky, UK) while producer/multi-instrumentalist/husband Ken Anderson is lauded for his “remarkable affinity for instrumental embellishment” (No Depression) and for crafting Hungrytown’s “gorgeous vocal harmonies” (Folk and Roots, UK).

Hall and Anderson met in New York City, where they had already been performing regularly--Hall as a jazz singer, and Anderson as a drummer for a variety of garage bands. Their introduction to folk music came later, when a close friend--who died young due to a tragic misdiagnosis--entrusted to them her collection of 1960s folk albums and her guitar (which has since been featured on all of their albums).

They released their first CD, Hungrytown, in 2008; Any Forgotten Thing in 2011; and Further West in 2015. The couple continue to spend more than half of each year on the road, especially roads in North America, Europe and New Zealand.  Hungrytown's music has received extensive radio airplay worldwide and has appeared on several television shows, including the Independent Film Channel's hit series, Portlandia.

They are currently on a September/ October UK Tour and played live on BBC Radio Wiltshire (Sue Davies show) see their dates

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Ricky Gunn

“Livin’ Like Me” – “I really do like the style of this” - Marie Crichton BBC Radio Shropshire

Born Oct 11, 1975 and raised outside of Columbus, Georgia, Ricky Gunn grew up like many southern boys, spending his time fishing, hunting, chasing girls and speeding down dirt roads. During visits to his grandfather’s house, though, he also discovered a love of country music, especially the old-school songwriting of Hank Williams, Conway Twitty and Waylon Jennings. Those artists told stories. They cast moods. They packed a punch. 

Later, when his grandfather gave him an acoustic guitar and taught him three basic chords, the teenaged Gunn transformed himself into a songwriter virtually overnight, finishing his first tune by the end of the week.

KING OF THIS TOWN, his full-length debut album, mixed those old-school country influences with modern-day firepower, creating a sound that twangs and rocks in equal measure. Filled with pedal steel guitar riffs and the sound of Gunn’s award-winning voice (which won back-to-back trophies from the Georgia Music Awards in 2011 and 2012), it’s a biographical record about Gunn’s life.

Before he began opening shows for country stars like Travis Tritt, Tyler Farr and Gary Allan, Gunn earned a reputation as one of the hardest-working showmen in Georgia, performing nightly bar gigs that lasted as long as five hours.

Recorded at the world-famous Blackbird Studio in Nashville, Tennessee, King of this Town is modern country music with old roots, anchored by a love for the classics and a blue-collar mentality.

13 track album LIVIN’ LIKE ME was released July 17, 2015 which was described as:  a record of several shades, but it feels 100% authentic to Ricky’s own experiences and influences, is a lot of fun, and has plenty of heart and soul too. It’s also well-produced, easy to digest, and will do well on radio in the right promotional hands. I don’t suspect it’ll be too long before we start hearing the name Ricky Gunn a lot more. (For The Country Record )

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Blue Wheel Drive

“Blueridge Mountain Haze” -  “mostly originals with tight harmonies” - Marie Crichton BBC Radio Shropshire

Genre: Bluegrass

Band Members: Rob Sine, Andrew Blythe, Rob Parks, Rudi Ekstein

Blue Wheel Drive is a high energy, hard driving bluegrass band that is based out of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Asheville, North Carolina. The band is keeping the future of bluegrass music alive with hot instrumental playing and tight harmony singing inspired by the traditional music stylings of Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, Jimmy Martin, Charlie Moore,and the Stanley Brothers.

Formed around the vibrant Asheville music scene, Blue Wheel Drive's lineup consists of the heartfelt singer Rob Sine playing guitar,  CMH Records recording artist Rudi Ekstein playing mandolin and singing baritone, and Mills River, NC native, Andrew Blythe with his powerful vocals playing the 5-string Banjo, and phenomenal upright bass player and Singer, Robert Parks.

Their new CD recording, features all original songs with hot instrumentals, and tight harmony singing, all faithfully inspired by the traditional music stylings of Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, Jimmy Martin, and the Stanley Brothers.

After a 2 year stint working for bluegrass fiddle legend, Bobby Hicks, Blue Wheel Drive moved on to their own style of bluegrass, showcasing memorable melodies, dynamics and punch. Blue Wheel Drive is emerging as one of the best new CD releases with all original songs written by band members from real life experiences.

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Playlist week of August 29, 2015

2015-08-29

29th August 2015 – BBC Playlist

Aaron Watson - Getaway Truck | Album: The Underdog CD - MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com New Single

Teea Goans - Stranger Things Have Happened | Album: Memories To Burn MP3 -  UK iTunes - Amazon.com  (Aug 23) BIRTHDAY

Shawn Camp - Little Bit of Love | Album: Shawn Camp MP3 (Aug 29, 1966) BIRTHDAY

The Waifs - Black Dirt Track | Album: Beautiful You New MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com - Compass Records

Gord Bamford - When Your Lips Are So Close | Album: Country Junkie (2013) CD - MP3 New Single

Don Henley & Dolly Parton - When I Stop Dreaming | Album: Cass Country (out Sept 25, 2015)  UK iTunes New Single

Blackheart - Any Shade of Blue | Album: Songs from a Satellite (Oct 2013) MP3

Legends of Country - Talk About Country | Album: Talk About Country CD - MP3 - UK iTunes - Bandcamp (Jof Owen; August 28) BIRTHDAY

Kitty Wells & Red Foley - As Long As I Live | Album: Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy - Red Foley MP3 (Kitty Wells; Aug 30, 1919; died July 16, 2012 (aged 92))  BIRTHDATE

Amanda Watkins & Jamey Johnson - If I Was Over You | Album: New Single (released April 23, 2015) MP3 – Amazon.com

The Lonesome River Band - Missed It By A Mile | Album: Window Of Time (2005) MP3

Melonie Cannon - Whiskey Lullabye | Album: Melonie Cannon (2004) CD

Boxcar Willie - Divorce Me C.O.D | Album: Boxcar Willie, the Very Best Of MP3 / Coming Soon: Truckers, Kickers, Cowboy Angels Volume 5, 6, 7 boxset (Bear Family Records)

Dianna Corcoran - God Did Good New Single

Will Hoge - Middle Of America | Album: Small Town Dreams CD - MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com

Daughters of Bluegrass - Leaving Here For Nashville | Album: Bluegrass Bouquet (2008) CD

Conway Twitty - She Needs Someone To Hold Her When She Cries | Album: Conway Twitty at His Best MP3 (Sept 1, 1933 died June 5, 1993 (aged 59) BIRTHDATE 

Rebecca Hosking - No Reason | Album: A Few Broken Pieces CD - MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com Hotdisc #200 August Single

Kip Moore - Girl Of The Summer | Album: Wild Ones CD - UK iTunes - Amazon.com

Rosanne Cash - The Winding Stream | Album: The Winding Stream - Original Soundtrack Website

Hank Thompson - Hangover Tavern | Album: (Sept 1, 1931; died April 12, 1999 (aged 67) BIRTHDATE

Brandy Clark – Hungover | Album: 12 Stories CD - MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com   

Alan Jackson - Mexico Tequila & Me | Album: Angels and Alcohol CD - MP3 - Amazon.com

Joni Harms - Belle Starr | Album: Cowgirl Dreams MP3

Jimmy Lafave - Journey Through The Past | Album: The Night Tribe CD - MP3 - Amazon.com

Ashley Monroe - I’m Good At Leavin’| Album: The Blade CD - Amazon.com  

New on The Show

Legends of Country

“Talk About Country” – “Really nice feel to it , for fans of Johnny Cash, that to me sounds like a good conversation and Tanya Tucker got a mention as well..lovely little album” -  Marie Crichton BBC Radio Shropshire

Home Town: Muswell Hill

Legends Of Country are an English Alt-country band formed by Jof Owen from indiepop group The Boy Least Likely To with longtime friends Adam Chetwood and Rob Jones. Inspired by a long standing love of country music and memories of growing up watching Pebble Mill and listening to Johnny Cash and George Hamilton IV, their songs combine a classic old country sound with an honest and unmistakeable English indiepop charm.

TALK ABOUT COUNTRY is the debut album from Legends Of Country, an English Alt-country band formed by Jof Owen from The Boy Least Likely To with Adam Chetwood and Rob Jones. Inspired by a long standing love of country music and memories of growing up watching Pebble Mill and listening to Johnny Cash and George Hamilton IV, their songs combine a classic old country sound with an honest and unmistakeable English indiepop charm. Heartfelt and uplifting with a truckload of chicken pickin' and country swagger thrown in.

The ironically understated and reflective lyrics take on the absurdities of modern life and middle age, the depressing reality of ageing and the frustrating responsibilities of adulthood. Colloquial and quintessentially English - full of references to A roads and seaside towns, little chefs and Benson and Hedges - it's an album about small town success and the failure that sometimes follows, about finding love late in life and looking back on what might have been.

The album was produced and mixed by Rob Jones (Sweet Baboo, The School, Rozi Plain) and includes the singles Talk About Country, It's A Long Way Back From A Dream and Jelly And Jam. With Duane Eddy style guitar, pedal steel and mariachi trumpets blasting away, the title track is a role call of "country" icons from Dolly Parton, Waylon Jennings and Loretta Lynn to darts player Jocky Wilson and the beat writer Carolyn Cassady. It features Liz from The School on vocals. From the playful Tex-Mex of As Country As They Come to the zydeco infused shuffle of If I Knew What I Was Doing I'd Be Dangerous, the album passionately embraces a host of country styles peppering them with a hint of jangly C86 derived indiepop. The stark Americana of The Saturday Dads is a poignant reflection on absent fathers and rainy afternoons in the park.

Aside from the tongue-in-cheek band name, the only real hint of irony here derives from the fact that one of the most exciting country records of the year has come out of North London, not Nashville.

They played the Maverick Festival 2015  at Easton Farm Park in Suffolk.
(Left)

Their track "Talk About Country" is included on the Sept/Oct Maverick Magazine FREE sampler CD Vol 17 Issue 134.

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Amanda Watkins 
“If I Was Over You” - Brand new name to me really like her voice..I like it because I’d call it stone-cold country, just as I like it….that’s my kind of country,....just great, really great music you can hear every word and they sing it like they mean it” -  Marie Crichton BBC Radio Shropshire

Home Town: Huntington, WVA and Tampa Bay, FLA

Meet Amanda Watkins; born in the wild and wonderful state of West Virginia, and raised in sunny Florida.Amanda is the quintessential “American Woman” who holds dear a deep-rooted love of family:

“Singing, songwriting, cooking, eating amazing food, fighting for this great country we live in, and an All American Woman is who I am. I believe in working hard and playing hard” she shared.

When she’s not writing songs or touring, you’ll find Amanda partaking of her other passions - cooking and eating down home cuisine.

She was drawn to music at an early age, and it’s been a major part of her life ever since. From singing in church at the age of five, to standing on the hallowed stage before a packed house in Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, Amanda has always delivered powerful performances with her strong voice and gifted melodies and lyrics. One of the proudest moments of her young career was when she became the first unsigned artist to ever play network late night TV, and then share co-write honors on a major Big & Rich single at country radio.

Performing LIVE for audiences is Amanda’s first love. She’s been privileged to open for major artists like Dierks Bentley, Brad Paisley, Jamey Johnson and Frankie Ballard, and to perform at major music festivals like BamaJam and WEfest, as well as earning the distinction by American Songwriter magazine as delivering one of the top 5 best performances at Bonnaroo.

Amanda has just finished recording a new full length album in Nashville’s historic RCA Studio A that includes the single “If I Was Over You," featuring Jamey Johnson and co-written by her with Rivers Rutherford. The new album and single is slated for release in 2015. The single was sent to country radio on August 17, 2015 with an Impact date of September 8, 2015.

Miss Willie Brown
Amanda (L)

When Amanda Watkins, former member of the country duo Miss Willie Brown, set out on her solo career, she struck up a friendship with Jamey Johnson, who took her on tour as his opening act. During her nightly performance of her song "If I Was Over You," Johnson would often amble onstage to harmonize on the chorus. 
The pair captured the heartbreaking song in the studio — as a duet. The idea was all Johnson's, according to Watkins, who says the independent Alabama singer tinkered with her finished track after hours in the studio, adding his unmistakable baritone.

After receiving a late night text to come to RCA Studio A, where she recorded her upcoming debut album and where Johnson has his Nashville office, Watkins says she was surprised with the finished song. "Jamey said, 'I did some changes. I hope you are OK with them.' They took the band out of the first two verses, so it is just acoustic guitar. When Jamey came in, I realized he had made it a duet and I started crying," Watkins said in a statement.

Written by Watkins and Rivers Rutherford, "If I Was Over You" begins with a single guitar and Watkins' dusky voice, before Johnson comes in with a verse of his own: " Read more: Rollingstone.com

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