Lore Review Archives
Mojo Man/Arkansas Rockpile
Review of: Ronnie Hawkins
Mojo Man/Arkansas Rockpile Ronnie Hawkins Collector’s Choice Music By James Calemine “He was the most read more...
Mudcrutch
Review of: Mudcrutch
Mudcrutch Mudcrutch Warner Brothers By James Calemine
Me and Pepper
Review of: Mel Tillis
Me and Pepper Mel Tillis Collectors' Choice By James Calemine Born in Tampa, Florida, during the Great Depression, Mel Tillis began stuttering at age three. However, when he sang Tillis did not stutter. His speech impediment made him a sort of hero to read more...
See You In A Hundred Years
Review of: Logan Ward
See You In A Hundred Years by Logan Ward Benbella Books Has the stess of today's world with instant communication (Internet, cell phones, and texting), long work hours, and hectic urban pacing made a life on a rural farm seem appealing? read more...
Third And A Mile
Review of: William C. Rhoden
Third And A Mile by William C. Rhoden ESPN Books Third and read more...
Runnin' Down A Dream
Review of: Peter Bogdanovich
Runnin’ Down A Dream Peter Bogdanovich Warner Brothers By James Calemine Born in Gainesville, Florida, Tom Petty became one of America’s read more...
Honey Songs
Review of: Jim Lauderdale & The Dream Players
Honey Songs Jim Lauderdale & The Dream Players Yep Roc Records By James Calemine North Carolina native Jim Lauderdale's new CD, Honey Songs, contains various musical styles indicative of Lauderdale's previous work. For Honey read more...
Warpaint
Review of: The Black Crowes
Warpaint The Black Crowes Silver Arrow Records By James Calemine Warpaint represents Atlanta, Georgia’s, The Black Crowes’ seventh studio album. Seven years have elapsed since the Crowes recorded an album of read more...
Vagabonds
Review of: Gary Louris
Vagabonds Gary Louris Rykodisc By James Calemine Gary Louris, co-founder of the Jayhawks, proves songwriting remains his strength. Louris, an outstanding guitarist, concentrates on the flowing word grams of his lyrics amid this read more...
Margie Joseph
Review of: Margie Joseph
Margie Joseph Margie Joseph Collector’s Choice Music By James Calemine This 1973 Atlantic Records self-titled debut brought high expectations of Margie Joseph, a Mississippi native whose voice reminded folks of her Atlantic read more...
Catch
Review of: William Tonks
Catch William Tonks Ghostmeat Records By James Calemine Recorded within a year at David Barbe's Chase Park Transductions Studio in Athens, read more...
Being Dead Is No Excuse
Review of: Gayden Metcalf and Charlotte Hays
Being Dead is No Excuse: The Official Southern Ladies Guide to Hosting The Perfect Funeral Hyperion Press, 2005 Reviewed by Penne J. Laubenthal Straight out of the Mississippi Delta,
Free Somehow
Review of: Widespread Panic
Free Somehow Widespread Panic Widespread Records By James Calemine The Athens, Georgia, band Widespread Panic’s last 22 years proved a formidable read more...
Brighter Than Creation's Dark
Review of: Drive By Truckers
Brighter Than Creation’s Dark Drive By Truckers New West Records By James Calemine “Trying to hold steady on the righteous read more...
Hernando
Review of: North Mississippi Allstars
Hernando North Mississippi Allstars Songs of the South By James Calemine Hernando is the town in Mississippi where legendary producer Jim Dickinson read more...
Conversations With Tom Petty
Review of: Paul Zollo
Conversations With Tom Petty Paul Zollo Omnibus Press By James Calemine Tom Petty writes in the foreword of this book about writer Paul Zollo: “We met many times in 2004 to 2005 for talks that came to necessitate my read more...
Buy The Ticket: Take The Ride: Hunter S. Thompson
Review of: Tom Thurman
Buy The Ticket, Take The Ride: Hunter S. Thompson on Film Starz Entertainment By James Calemine
Death Proof
Review of: Quentin Tarantino
Death Proof Quentin Tarantino Genius Productions By James Calemine Quentin Tarantino always gives a nod to the south in his films. Most folks are aware of Knoxville-native Tarantino films such as True Romance, Reservoir Dogs, read more...
Tom T. Hall Sings Miss Dixie & Tom T.
Review of: Tom T. Hall
Tom T. Hall Sings Miss Dixie & Tom T. Tom T. Hall Blue Circle Records By James Calemine These days Tom T. Hall lays relatively low. Known as a top-drawer songwriter and storyteller, Hall's latest release Tom T. Hall Sings Miss Dixie read more...
How Low Can You Go?
Review of: Anthology of the String Bass
How Low Can You Go? Anthology of the String Bass Various Artists Dust-To-Digital By James Calemine This 3 CD set explores the earliest recorded history of the string bass. These recordings include a scope of symphony read more...
Salvation On Sand Mountain
Review of: Dennis Covington
Salvation On Sand Mountain Dennis Covington Penguin Books By James Calemine “This descent into himself will, at the same time, be a descent into his region. It will be a descent through the darkness of the familiar into a world read more...
Desperate Man Blues
Review of: Joe Bussard
Desperate Man Blues: Discovering The Roots of American Music The Story of Joe Bussard Dust-To-Digital By James Calemine Desperate Man Blues tells the story of Fonotone read more...
I Belong To This Band
Review of: Sacred Harp Recordings
I Belong To This Band: Eighty-Five Years of Sacred Harp Recordings Various Artists Dust-To-Digital By James Calemine This 30-song collection serves as a companion to the film Awake, My Soul: The Story of Sacred Harp. Sacred Harp Singing read more...
Where Will You Be On Christmas Day?
Review of: Various Artists
Where Will You Be Christmas Day? Various Artists Dust To Digital By James Calemine These 24 songs were recorded from 1917-1959. This CD ranks as one of the most eclectic and powerful Christmas compilations of all time. The CD package read more...
The 25th Day of December
Review of: The Staple Singers
The 25th Day of December The Staple Singers Concord Music Group By James Calemine Recorded July 27th and 28th, 1962, The 25th Day of December remained out of print until now. These 12 songs should be played during the holiday read more...
Blues Sweet Blues
Review of: Music Maker Relief Foundation
Blues Sweet Blues Various Music Maker Artists Music Maker Series #91 & #92 By James Calemine Most of these songs (recorded from 1994-2006) on Blues Sweet Blues can be heard for the first time. Only Music Maker's stellar read more...
Dirt Farmer
Review of: Levon Helm
Dirt Farmer Levon Helm Dirt Farmer/Vanguard Music By James Calemine Turkey Scratch, Arkansas native, Levon Helm’s voice epitomizes the American music storyteller. Of course, Helm sang some of
The Woodstock Album
Review of: Muddy Waters
The Woodstock Album Muddy Waters Chess/MCA Records By James Calemine Recorded in two days at Levon Helm's studio in Woodstock, New York, during February 1975, this album marked Muddy Waters' last session for Chess Records after 27 years of read more...
Live At the Avalon Ballroom 1969
Review of: Gram Parsons With The Flying Burrito Brothers
Live At The Avalon Ballroom 1969 Gram Parsons with The Flying Burrito Brothers Amoeba Records By James Calemine If you're reading this review, chances are you've heard of
Song of America
Review of: Various Artists
Song of America Various Artists 31 Tigers Records By James Calemine This 50-song, 3 CD collection tells the story of America through songs from the year 1492 through modern times. Song of America contains a diverse line-up of artists read more...
Blood Meridian Or the Evening Redness in the West
Review of: Cormac McCarthy
Blood Meridian Or the Evening Redness in the West Cormac McCarthy Vintage Books By James Calemine ...A classic volume of southern literature... Blood Meridian Or the Evening Redness in the West ranks as one of
Feast of Snakes
Review of: Harry Crews
Feast of Snakes Harry Crews Macmillan Publishing By James Calemine November in Mystic, Georgia, means it's time for the Feast of Snakes. This novel remains one of the Georgia writer
GONZO: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson
Review of: Jann S. Wenner & Corey Seymour
GONZO: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson Jann S. Wenner & Corey Seymour Little, Brown and Company By James read more...
Blues From The Gutter
Review of: Champion Jack Dupree
Blues From The Gutter Champion Jack Dupree Atlantic Records By James Calemine ...One from the vaults... Orphaned at an early age, Champion Jack Dupree grew up in New Orleans. Dupree spent most of his time in the mean streets and music joints read more...
Dreams To Remember: The Legacy of Otis Redding
Review of: Otis Redding
Dreams To Remember: The Legacy of Otis Redding Otis Redding STAX Records By James Calemine Dreams To Remember emerges as the first full-length Otis Redding DVD. December 10, 2007, represents the 40th Anniversary of Redding's death. This read more...
Hurricane Season
Review of: Neal Thompson
Hurricane Season by Neal Thompson Free Press Author Neal Thompson has tapped read more...
KELBRN
Review of: Carter Martin
KELBRN by Carter Martin Xlibris Press, 2007
I Don't Want No Trouble
Review of: Don Nix
I Don't Want No Trouble Don Nix Section Eight Productions By James Calemine Songwriter Don Nix's latest CD, I Don't Want No Trouble, should attract a wide audience of music fans. Nix, an obscure music hero, helped create 'The Memphis read more...
Mescalito
Review of: Ryan Bingham
Mescalito Ryan Bingham Lost Highway By James Calemine This CD ranks as one of the best releases in 2007. Recorded at Compound Studios in California, Ryan Bingham's Mescalito proves this young man is a musical force. Ex-
Killers From Space
Review of: James Luther Dickinson
Killers From Space James Luther Dickinson Memphis International Records By James Calemine Recorded at Zebra Ranch in Independence, Mississippi, during February and March of 2007, Killers From Space marks another interesting release by read more...
Runnin' With The Big Dogs
Review of: Mike Shropshire
Part of [beating Texas] is that old Okie inferiority complex. There’s no better cure for that than whipping Texas’s butt. -Barry Switzer, former Oklahoma coach In 1929 at the height of the Great Depression, the Texas-Oklahoma game was moved read more...
Coltrane:The Story of a Sound
Review of: Ben Ratliff
Coltrane: The Story of a Sound Ben Ratliff FSG Books By James Calemine Ben Ratliff wastes no words in this book of John Coltrane's life. Instead, Ratliff chooses to write read more...
Live at the Bohemian Caverns
Review of: Carla Thomas
Live at the Bohemian Caverns Carla Thomas Stax Records By James Calemine Recorded live at the Bohemian Caverns in Washington, D.C. on May 25, 1967, this new Carla Thomas CD serves as timeless testimony to her golden voice. Carla Thomas, daughter read more...
Whatever Remembers Us: An Anthology
Review of: Various Authors
Whatever Remembers Us: An Anthology of Alabama Poetry edited by Sue Brannan Walker and J. William Chambers Negative Capability Press, Mobile, Alabama Whatever Remembers Us: An Anthology of Alabama Poetry, edited by Sue read more...
Angel In Disguise
Review of: Leon Russell
Angel In Disguise Leon Russell MRI Records By James Calemine Angel In Disguise contains 11 new Leon Russell songs. Russell's prodigious discography proves his influence and talent since he left Lawton, Oklahoma, in his read more...
Atlantic Records: The House That Ahmet Built
Review of: Ahmet Ertegun
(Atlantic DVD) Let me tell you a story. According to The Rolling Stones and Led Zappelin, that is the way Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun began his conversations, almost every time. When Ahmet was 14, he read more...
Black Snake Moan
Review of: Craig Brewer
Black Snake Moan Craig Brewer-Director Paramount Vantage By James read more...
Come Early Morning
Review of: Joey Lauren Adams
Come Early Morning Joey Lauren Adams-Director The Weinstein Company
Sirens Of The Ditch
Review of: Jason Isbell
(New West Records) Recorded several years ago at FAME studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, Sirens of the Ditch represents ex- Drive By Truckers Jason Isbell’s first solo CD. Mixed by Athens, Georgia, sound wizard David Barbe at Chase Park read more...
Brothers Of A Feather
Review of: Chris & Rich Robinson
Brothers Of A Feather Chris & Rich Robinson Eagle Records By James Calemine Recorded in April 2006, during a break from the Black Crowes tour, Atlanta’s Chris and Rich Robinson showcase 14 songs on Brothers Of A read more...
Southern Soul Barbecue
Review of:
Southern Soul Barbecue 318 Mallory Street Saint Simons Island, Georgia 31522 912-634-7516 www.southernsoulbbq.com By James Calemine James Calemine’s read more...
Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room-Savannah, Georgia
Review of:
Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room 107 West Jones Street Savannah, Georgia 31401 912-232-5997 James Calemine’s “Never Ending Soul Food Tour” includes documented visits to barbecue joints, catfish dens, chicken shacks and any read more...
Red Dirt Marijuana & Other Tastes
Review of: Terry Southern
Red Dirt Marijuana & Other Tastes Terry Southern Citadel Underground By read more...
Driving With The Devil
Review of: Neal Thompson
Driving With The Devil by Neal Thompson Crown Publishing “We read more...
Jesus Out To Sea
Review of: James Lee Burke
Jesus Out To Sea James Lee Burke Simon & Schuster By James read more...
Cigar City Mafia
Review of: Scott M. Deitche
Cigar City Mafia: A Complete History of The Tampa Underworld Scott M. Deitche
To Live's To Fly
Review of: John Kruth
To Live’s To Fly: The Ballad of The Late, Great Townes Van Zandt John Kruth
A Love Supreme
Review of: John Coltrane
A Love Supreme John Coltrane Impulse By James Calemine Born September read more...
The Getaway
Review of: Jim Thompson
The Getaway Jim Thompson Vintage Crime By James Calemine Jim read more...
The Complete Recordings
Review of: Robert Johnson
The Complete Recordings Robert Johnson Columbia Records By James read more...
40 Greatest Hits
Review of: Hank Williams
40 Greatest Hits Hank Williams Polydor By James read more...
Straight No Chaser
Review of: Thelonious Monk
Straight No Chaser Thelonious Monk Warner Brothers DVD By James read more...
Dislocation Blues
Review of: Chris Whitley & Jeff Lang
Dislocation Blues Chris Whitley & Jeff Lang Rounder Records By James read more...
Atlanta Twelve String
Review of: Blind Willie McTell
Atlanta Twelve String Blind Willie McTell Atlantic Records By James Calemine Perhaps the most gifted of all blues artists, Blind Willie McTell ranks as a seminal figure in American music. Born in Thomson, Georgia, in May of 1898 (some say 1901); McTell's read more...
Criss-Cross
Review of: Thelonious Monk
Criss-Cross Thelonious Monk Columbia Records By James Calemine Born October 10, 1917, in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, Thelonious Monk's family soon moved to New York City. Monk worked as a professional musician since his early teens as an organ player read more...
The Lost Crowes
Review of: The Black Crowes
The Lost Crowes The Black Crowes Rhino Entertainment Company By James Calemine The Lost Crowes comprises two Black Crowes recording sessions that remained buried a decade before their release. The first CD, Tall—an old read more...
New Lease On Life
Review of: William Bell
New Lease On Life William Bell Wilbe Records William Bell's music epitomizes the classic Stax/Volt sound. With Stax Records, Bell joined other musicians like Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, The Staple Singers, Eddie Floyd, Albert King, Issac Hayes, read more...
The Queen Alone
Review of: Carla Thomas
Carla Thomas The Queen Alone Stax Records By James Calemine Carla Thomas--the great Rufus Thomas' daughter--experienced a first rate musical experience growing up in Memphis, Tennessee. The angelic Thomas was later dubbed the Queen of Soul and Stax read more...
Portraits and Songs From the Roots of America
Review of: Various Artists
Enclosed within the new Music Maker book titled Portraits and Songs From the Roots of America rests a CD featuring 22 different Music Maker artists. This collection reveals some of the country’s most neglected Southern musicians who remain pioneers and vital sources read more...
Fruit Tramp Ballads of the Great Northwest
Review of: Dave McGrew
Dave McGrew’s Fruit Tramp Ballads of the Great Northwest preserves a testimony to those hardworking folks who may never experience the elusive “American Dream”. Taj Mahal (bass, mandolin, harp), Cool John Ferguson (guitar, piano), and Tim Duffy assist read more...
Follow Your Heart's Desire
Review of: Pura Fe
Pura Fe is her birth name. In Spanish it translates, “Pure Faith”. Born in 1959, Pura Fe was named by her Puerto Rican father, and raised by her Tuscarora mother in a family of female singers. “We can count four generations of seven singing sisters in a row, read more...
Toot Blues
Review of: Guitar Gabriel
Guitar Gabriel’s Toot Blues originally existed as a cassette in 1991. That same year, Tim Duffy discovered Gabe, one of the original Music Maker recipients, who served as a cornerstone to the organization’s provenance. Gabe died in 1996 just as read more...
Etta Baker with Taj Mahal
Review of: Etta Baker
Etta Baker was born in 1913 amid the hills of Morganton, North Carolina. She began playing guitar at age four. Baker remains the premiere female Piedmont blues guitar instrumentalist in the country. Taj Mahal, tireless Music Maker consultant, elucidated on read more...
High Steppin' Mama
Review of: Clyde Langford
Clyde Langford learned guitar from Texas blues great Sam “Lightning” Hopkins’ older brother Joe “Thunder” Hopkins. Born in Centralville, Texas, Langford worked in cotton fields, joined the Army, and dug wells for a living, but never stopped playing read more...
The Feelings Of Beverly "Guitar" Watkins
Review of: Beverley "Guitar" Watkins
Recorded at Cleantracks Studio in Vinemont, Alabama, these ten songs illustrate the true guitar mastery of Beverly Watkins. Born in Atlanta, Georgia, on April 6, 1939, Watkins played guitar for the legendary Piano Red when she was a teenager. This new release read more...
Chicken Raid
Review of: Frank Edwards
The quiet droning sound of Frank Edwards’ Chicken Raid resembles a blues mantra from a man who dedicated his 90-year old life to music. Edwards actively played the blues for nearly 80 years, from 1923 until 2002. Frank Edwards ranks as one of Atlanta’s greatest read more...
Raw Sugar
Review of: Cootie Stark
Raw Sugar provides 71 minutes of old-time music enhanced by a warm, clear sound quality. Cootie Stark, a Greenville, South Carolina native, survives as one of the last authentic Piedmont blues guitarist/singer alive. Stark played on the streets of Knoxville, Greensboro, read more...
Sisters of the South
Review of: Various Artists
Sisters of the South contains 13 songs performed by 12 different female Music Maker artists. Every song on this amazing compilations pays for the price of purchase—a tax deduction. The Branchette’s “I Know I’ve Been Changed” read more...
Born In Newton County
Review of: Cora Mae Bryant
Cora Mae Bryant is the daughter of Georgia guitar legend Curly Weaver. She grew up on the countryside outside Atlanta. As a girl, Cora Mae attended house parties with Curly Weaver and Blind Willie McTell. On Cora’s latest soulful release, Born in Newton read more...
H & H Restaurant, Macon, GA
Review of:
H & H Restaurant Macon, Georgia by Michael Buffalo Smith How many times have we heard the old adage, "don't judge a book by it's cover?" Never has that statement held more truth than in the case of The H & H read more...
Edgar Winter Group - Live at The Galaxy
Review of: Edgar Winter
Edgar Winter Group Live At The Galaxy (Classic Pictures) Edgar Winter’s rockin’ just as hard these days as he did back in 1973, and his new group sounds great. Yeah, I will always have fond memories of White Trash read more...
Gram Parsons - Fallen Angel
Review of: Gram Parsons
Gram Parsons Fallen Angel A Film By Gandulf Hennig (Rhino) Gram Parsons was one of a kind, a pretty-boy with a trust fund and a whole lot of musical genius. He brought country music into the Byrds, performed with Paul Suratt in the read more...
A Salute to Hee Haw - Collector's Edition
Review of:
A Salute To Hee Haw Collector’s Edition (Time Life) This 5-disc DVD is jam packed with all the downright corny jokes and excellent musical performances that made Hee Haw a multi-generational success story. Hosted read more...
Country Music Changed My Life
Review of:
Country Music Changed My Life by Ken Burke (Chicago Review Press) My first exposure to Ken Burke was through his writings in Goldmine Magazine. His articles and reviews were always well written, and when Country Music read more...
Sing My Way Home: Voices of the New American Roots
Review of:
Sing My Way Home Voices of the New American Roots Rock by Keith and Kent Zimmerman (Backbeat Books) The Zimmerman brothers have really done their homework, and our libraries are just a little bit richer because of it. read more...
Honky Tonk Hero by Billy Joe Shaver
Review of: Billy Joe Shaver
Honky Tonk Hero by Billy Joe Shaver (University of Texas Press) Billy Joe Shaver had lead a very interesting life, to say the least. We have all been privy to certain chapters of the Texas singer/songwriter’s life by read more...
No Saints, No Saviors
Review of: The Allman Brothers Band
No Saints, No Saviors My Years With The Allman Brothers Band by Willie Perkins (Mercer University Press) Between the years of 1970 and 1989, Willie Perkins worked for the Allman Brother’s Band and as read more...
Between Rock And A Hard Place: Chuck Leavell
Review of: Chuck Leavell
Between Rock And A Hard Place Chuck Leavell with J. Marshall Craig (Mercer University Press) Chuck Leavell is a musician that has been around to see a lot of music history, and has been a big part of music history. In his new read more...
Lovesick Blues: The Life of Hank Williams
Review of: Hank Williams
Lovesick Blues: The Life Of Hank Williams by Paul Hemphill (Viking) So much has been written about Hank Williams Sr., arguably the greatest figure in country music, that it comes as a shock to find that a biography could be produced read more...
Skydog: The Duane Allman Story
Review of: The Allman Brothers Band
Skydog The Duane Allman Story by Randy Poe (Backbeat Books) I have been waiting on this book for years, and to coin a cliche, it was well worth the wait. Randy Poe has gone deep, digging through source material with read more...
John D. Wyker & Eddie Hinton - Johnny Wyker Video
Review of: John D. Wyker & Eddie Hinton
(MFOV) Once in a very blue moon, something crosses my desk that is absolutely, without a doubt, totally unique. Well sir, they don’t come any more unique than my buddy John D. Wyker. But more than just being cool and unique “John Wyker Volume 1” is read more...
Sweetheart of the Rodeo
Review of: The Byrds
The Byrds’ classic country record, 1968’s Sweetheart of the Rodeo, has been reissued with unreleased Gram Parsons vocal tracks. This new two-CD release proves worth the price for just the unheard Parsons versions. In a contract dispute, record read more...
To Tulsa and Back
Review of: JJ Cale
To Tulsa and Back serves as J.J. Cale’s first studio album in eight years. Cale returned to Tulsa, his hometown, and recruited some old friends to play on the record. It’s common knowledge that Eric Clapton, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Allman Brothers, Johnny Cash, the read more...
Another Joyous Occasion
Review of: Widespread Panic
“For train days get me back to New Orleans,” are the opening lines on Widespread Panic’s new live release, Another Joyous Occasion. The eleven song recording is Panic’s debut CD on their new label, Widespread Records. The Athens, read more...
The Man, His World, His Music
Review of: Johnny Cash
(Sanctuary) Watching this DVD is a little like looking at home movies. Actually, a lot of it is old home movies. And the fact that many of us children of the sixties and seventies felt like Johnny Cash was a part of our family, causes it all to make sense. read more...
The Legends, Live in 1971
Review of: Ike & Tina Turner
Ike and Tina Turner The Legends - Live in 1971 (Eagle Vision) Red hot, smokin’, funky, get down, Soul Train, sexy, sweaty, rhythm and blues soul, delivered by the masters. Filmed at the pinnacle read more...
Live From The Garden State
Review of: Marshall Tucker Band
The Marshall Tucker Band Live From The Garden State 1981 (Shout! Factory) During it’s very first year on television, MTV brought us real music, everything from punk to new wave, pop to Southern rock. It was during that read more...
Tom Dowd & The Language of Music
Review of: Tom Dowd
(Palm Pictures) thelanguageofmusic.com The documentary Rolling Stone calls “brilliant” and rock critic Dave Marsh cites as “ a truly beautiful picture,” pays read more...
Heartworn Highways
Review of: Various Artists
(Catfish Entertainment/Snapper Music) In the early 1970’s outlaw country music came onto the scene to clear the air. The mainstream country music ideology of the day was known as the Nashville Sound, but folks like Willie and Waylon chose to do it read more...
There Will Be A Light
Review of: Ben Harper & The Blind Boys of Alabama
Ben Harper & The Blind Boys of Alabama There Will Be A Light (Virgin Records) Ben Harper produced There Will Be A Light, which transcends the same tiresome self-indulgent music, and emerges as a classic gospel album. Recorded in two sessions read more...
One Ruined Life of a Bronze Tourist
Review of: Col. Bruce Hampton
One Ruined Life of a Bronze Tourist was originally recorded in 1978 for Atlanta’s Pine Tree Records. Terminus Records has now re-released the album, complete with three bonus tracks. Colonel Bruce is a rare breed—he abides by no conventions or read more...
In The Beginning
Review of: Townes Van Zandt
Ten undiscovered Townes Van Zandt songs demoed for an early Nashville publishing contract in 1966 remained unheard for thirty-seven years until now. A new CD titled In The Beginning emerges as a revealing prelude to his future work. For those unfamiliar with Van read more...
Ragged Old Flag
Review of: Johnny Cash
Originally released on Columbia Records in April 1974, Ragged Old Flag consists of twelve original Johnny Cash compositions. In the liner notes, Cash revealed, “I got so excited writing the songs in this album that you’d think I just started in read more...
Southscape
Review of: Chuck Leavell
Chuck Leavell commands respect in the music world. He’s played piano with the Rolling Stones (for half the band’s history), Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Dr. John, The Allman Brothers, Sea Level, The Black Crowes and many others. Leavell’s read more...
Arkansas
Review of: Col. Bruce Hampton
Colonel Bruce Hampton’s album Arkansas, like his 1978 One Ruined Life of A Bronze Tourist, has been recently re-released on Atlanta’s Terminus Records. Arkansas was originally recorded in 1987 and released on Landslide Records. Arkansas certainly read more...
If I Could Only Fly
Review of: Merle Haggard
The name Merle Haggard carries a heavy weight in country music. Haggard remains a maverick who stared into the face of decadence during peaks and valleys of his legendary music career—thirty-nine number #1 country hits, IRS troubles, addictions, prestigious accolades, extreme read more...
New Earth Mud
Review of: Chris Robinson
New Earth Mud sounds like a man surviving his worst professional fear…in this case Chris Robinson facing the breakup of his band, the Black Crowes. These twelve songs evoke a quiet, laid back mood as if subdued sounds reconcile a faded past with an unknown future. read more...
Lee Gates and the Alabama Cotton Kings
Review of: Lee Gates
Born in Pontotoc, Mississippi in 1937, Lee Gates moved to Milwaukee as a teenager where he’s been playing juke joints for over fifty years. Blues legend Albert Collins is his first cousin. After several rotations of this CD, its evident Gates’ playing evokes a genetic read more...
Guitar Heaven
Review of: Cool John Ferguson
Cool John Ferguson’s Guitar Heaven stands as his second Music Maker album. Born on Saint Helena Island, South Carolina, in 1953, the son of Gullah people, Ferguson began playing guitar at the age of three. He played church music professionally by the read more...
I'll Be Young Once Too
Review of: Mudcat
I’ll Be Young Once Too serves as a mighty fine musical lubricant… Danny “Mudcat” Dudeck recorded and mixed this new release, his fifth, in three days during August 2004 at Cabbagetown Studios in Atlanta, Georgia. An inveterate road read more...
Hard Luck Guy
Review of: Eddie Hinton
Eddie Hinton, the Muscle Shoals singer/songwriter, did not live to complete the 1999 Capricorn release Hard Luck Guy. In July 1995, Hinton died of a heart attack during the sessions. Hard Luck Guy should be a contender for soul album of the year.
Classic Southern Gospel
Review of: Various Artists
Various Artists Classic Southern Gospel (Smithsonian Folkways) Sixty minutes of gospel hymns delivered by classic bluegrass artists like Bill Monroe, Red Allen, The Watson Family, The Country Gentlemen, and The Indian Bottom Association read more...
Friends Of Old Time Music
Review of: Various Artists
Friends Of Old Time Music The Folk Arrival 1961-1965 (Smithsonian Folkways) Between 1961 and 1965, New York’s Friends of Old Time Music presented 14 concerts that introduced dozens of traditional musicians to city folk for the very read more...
You're Gonna Need That Pure Religion
Review of: Reverend Pearly Brown
Born August 18, 1915 in Abbeville, Georgia, Reverend Pearly Brown lived his life preaching and singing about the word of God to common folk in the streets. Rev. Brown spoke of his childhood: “I was born blind so I have never seen the world. My mother died when I was quite read more...
Killers and Stars
Review of: Patterson Hood
"When they thaw out Uncle Disney, gonna be some changes made/Pointing fingers, asking questions/forty years of decisions made" appear as the opening lines of Patterson Hood's debut solo album. Best known for his leading role in the hard-driving Drive-By read more...
The Hard Way
Review of: Tinsley Ellis
The Hard Way represents Tinsley Ellis' ninth solo album where for the first time he serves as the read more...
The Heroines
Review of: Tony Joe White
Tony Joe White's work inspired many great musicians like Ray Charles, Brook Benton, Elvis Presley, Tina Turner, Dusty Springfield, Joe Cocker, John Mayall, Waylon Jennings, and many others to cover his songs. Just tunes like "Polk Salad Annie", "Rainy Night in read more...
Lonesome In Black - The Legendary Sun Recordings
Review of: Johnny Cash
This definitive collection features Johnny Cash's recordings for the Sun Records label from 1955-1958. These stark classics serve as a strong foundation to Cash's undeniable legacy. Born in Kingsland, Arkansas, John R. Cash joined the air force and spent his early years read more...
The Road To Escondido
Review of: Eric Clapton and J.J. Cale
Some of Eric Clapton's biggest hits ("After Midnight" and "Cocaine") were J.J. Cale songs, so it's only fitting the two guitar slingers finally recorded an album together.