Leftover Salmon’s Andy Thorn Releases ‘Songs of the Sunrise Fox’ Today 9/16

Leftover Salmon’s Andy Thorn Releases Songs of the Sunrise Fox Today 9/16

Available Now: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/andythorn/songs-of-the-sunrise-fox

“Just a Banjo Player Serenading a Wild Fox” —The A.V. Club

BOULDER, CO — Leftover Salmon banjo player Andy Thorn never expected to go viral. But in 2021, he was in his backyard, playing an improvised banjo tune to a wild fox, when his wife caught the whole thing on video. The video made headlines around the world. Soon, Andy was interviewed on the Kelly Clarkson Show, The Dodo, and A & E’s Neighborhood Wars. Even Political Gabfest discussed the video. A New York Times writer, Ferris Jabr, called it “a moment plucked from Aesop.” 

Andy was stunned by the publicity, and by how many people kept asking him about the song. He finally recorded it (“Aesop Mountain”), along with 14 other banjo instrumentals. The resulting album, Songs of the Sunrise Fox, stands in contrast to the music Andy normally plays with Leftover Salmon. This new album isn’t about the flashy banjo picking favored by jam bands. Instead, it’s the banjo melodies Andy would play for his friend “Foxy” at sunrise. The stripped-down band also features Erik Deutsch [Black Crowes] on piano, Greg Garrison [Leftover Salmon] on bass, and Windfield champ Tyler Grant on guitar. 

Andy Thorn
Photo by Molly McCormick

The first single, “Aesop Mountain,” was released last month asd has already garnered nearly 100,000 listens on Spotify. This is the song from the viral video that started all the Foxy craze (that now has 3.8 million views). Thorn says, “I really enjoyed turning it into a full band tune and Erik Deutsch’s piano brought it all together.” The album also includes an acoustic solo version of the song as the closing track.

Other songs include the upbeat solo banjo tune, “Barry’s Bounce,” which was written right around the time Thorn’s baby boy Barry started bouncing around, while the solo clawhammer number “Stork Bite” was written right after his birth. “Red Sun Salutation” commemorates a wintery sunrise and “Dawn is Coming” feels like the winter storm that it was written about with the addition of Garrison and Grant adding  to the mood. “Monarch Morning” is a relaxing duet with Deutsch on piano; Andy wrote this tune in his backyard while butterflies were swirling around. 

As you keep listening you will hear more of the songs that were first performed for Foxy during the morning light, sun pillars, and sundown as his furry little friend sat down and listened and then trotted along…  Foxy even has kids of her own now. “In a world full of crazy, this brought joy to my soul. Thank you,” Eve S. wrote on YouTube. Andy is thrilled to release Songs of the Sunrise Fox and hopes it sends some joy your way as well.

Andy Thorn: Songs of the Sunrise Fox Track Listing:

1. Aesop Mountain (3:28)
2. Barry’s Bounce (1:40)
3. Red Sun Salutation (2:44)
4. Dawn is Coming (3:42)
5. Stork Bite (2:22)
6. Monarch Morning (3:39)
7. The Morning Light (1:25)
8. Whisker Twitchin’ (1:02)
9. Fox’s Fancy (3:06)
10. Fabled Way (3:45)
11. Trot Along (1:37)
12. Fox Trail (3:05)
13. Sun Pillar (1:54)
14. Silver Thorn (3:24)
15. Aesop Mountain (2:20)

Songs of the Sunrise Fox is available at  https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/andythorn/songs-of-the-sunrise-fox.
Vinyl records are  available to purchase at the website www.andythornmusic.com/shop. 

More information at www.andythornmusic.com, facebook.com/andythornmusic.com, instagram.com/_thornpipe_, and youtube: Andy Thorn – Thornhub.

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We Have Lift Off: Amy McCarley’s MECO Out Today Ft. Pat Alger, Kenny Vaughan, George Bradfute

Amy McCarley Launches MECO, Her 3rd Album, February 8, 2019
Co-produced by Kenny Vaughan & George Bradfute

Kenny Vaughan & Chris Scruggs Join McCarley on the Entire Album
Featuring special guests:
Pat Alger, Marty Stuart, Kenny Lovelace, Harry Stinson, and George Bradfute

Available Now To Stream & Purchase→  http://radi.al/MECOAmyMcCarley

HUNTSVILLE, AL —  With poignant and thought provoking lyrics, Amy McCarley finds balance in a new perspective with the launch of MECO, her 3rd studio album, out February 8, 2019. After collaborating in writing new songs with Bluebird Cafe round-mate and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer, Pat Alger, McCarley returned to the studio with esteemed colleagues, co-producers Kenny Vaughan & George Bradfute to work on MECO, her highly anticipated follow up to 2014’s Jet Engines. MECO was recorded and mixed by Bradfute in his Tone Chaparral Studios in Madison, Tennessee and mastered by Jim DeMain at Yes Master Studios in Nashville.

An acronym borrowed from the Space Shuttle program that stands for Main Engine Cut Off, MECO occurred for the shuttle when onboard propulsion systems were disengaged at an altitude where velocity could be maintained by the power of an innate force at work in the universe with periodic adjustments from the vehicle. The album traces McCarley’s experience of what it’s been like leaving life as a NASA contractor to pursue a career in music.

Featuring two of Marty Stuart’s Fabulous Superlatives on the entire album including Vaughan on guitar and multi-instrumentalist Chris Scruggs on drums, percussion, bass, and steel guitar; it is only fitting that Harry Stinson joins in on backing vocals on a track and Stuart himself plays mandolin on “Never Can Tell.”

The ten tracks of all original material feature McCarley’s yearning vocals, acoustic guitar, and harmonica. Alger, who co-wrote half of the songs on MECO says of McCarley, “Super, super intense guitar style. And I was so fascinated by it. Everything she did was real. Super intense. She’s just a different kind of performer.”  Alger describes the series of events leading to a co-writing partnership that yielded half the songs on MECO in this video clip → https://youtu.be/oY3V2ZZwTXU

Uniquely relatable, this northern Alabama native’s music is embraced by Americana fans across the country and abroad. Vaughan says, “I think all of her songs come from a personal experience. Each song is about something she’s gone through, which is good because it gives her a little edge on the delivery. The emotional content kinda comes through in there.”

What Folks Are Saying:

“MECO demonstrates beyond doubt that Amy McCarley has established a clear flightpath in Americana music with her blend of country rock sung with a world weariness that immediately brings to mind Lucinda Williams… in MECO she has reached an elevation that deserves a wider acclaim to propel her musical voyage.”
—Americana Music Show, Lyndon Bolton,
Listen in to Lyndon Bolton’s podcast interview with McCarley on Americana Music Show

“Not only can McCarley write songs, sing them and play a mean acoustic guitar, she has an astute sense for musical support…. this is a can’t miss effort.”
—Country Standard Time, Jim Hynes

“With any luck, the record should propel McCarley into the big time at least as quickly as a NASA rocket launches a capsule into space. It combines mainstream accessibility with the sort of authenticity and depth you’d associate with artists like Lucinda Williams.”
—The Morton Report, Jeff Burger

“Marshall Chapman, Lucinda Williams, and (delightfully) Linda McRae come to mind as McCarley utilizes various aspects of her lithe voice, the result entirely her own with soulful shades of her Alabama roots apparent.” 
––Fervor Coulee, Donald Teplyske

“It is superb… She possesses a strong and expressive voice that can display presentiment and positivity equally… Vaughan and Bradfute’s production is spot on, never overwhelming the vocal or getting in the way of the song.” 
—Lonesome Highway, Stephen Rapid

“… there’s a reflective spirit and emotional honesty that’s very transparent on the listen, as each song is carefully crafted and delivered with a pensive, gorgeous timelessness.”
—Take Effect Reviews, Tom Haugen

More About MECO:

With Scruggs’ wild driving rhythm and Vaughan’s insane blazing solo, the album opens with  “A Clue,” a determined revelatory song started in McCarley’s days at NASA. A song of finding strength in perseverance, “Clarksdale Blues” features Bradfute on slide guitar and gives a sense of those wide open blue skies in the Mississippi Delta, the location of the song’s inspiration.

Jerry Lee Lewis band leader, Kenny Lovelace, plays fiddle on the upbeat and breezy tune “Ain’t Life Funny” which muses about how life can tell a joke, “Just when we think that things are humming… Ain’t it funny how it all goes up in smoke.” McCarley says, “He cranks it all up to where either a square dance or hippie jig seem equally appropriate to me.”

Triumphant and joyful, “High Wire” is about survival. McCarley says, “Kenny and Chris brought the emotion in ‘High Wire’ to full impact during the instrumental break right after I sing ‘A little bird perched on a limb / In a wild storm in the wind / I will sway I will bend / With eyes wide open / And drink it in.” Other songs demonstrate a cathartic release in a new perspective such as “Everything Changed,” “Happy,” and “Farewell Paradise.”

Sorrow and gratitude go hand in hand on the dream-like “Days” which features McCarley’s co-writer Pat Alger playing lead acoustic guitar and recalls treasured moments with loved ones which can go by so quickly. “Never Can Tell” is a song about finding meaning amidst uncertainty and “How You Do” is more plaintive in nature.

McCarley’s trajectory is defined by her personal strength as an artist and her ability to learn through the enormous collaborative power of connecting with other stellar talents. She says, “It has taken everything I have plus the guiding unseen hands of time and chance together with support from some incredibly talented generous souls in order for this album to be made and on its way to listeners.”

MECO Track Listing & Credits:
1. A Clue (4:41)*
2. Clarksdale Blues (4:18)*
3. Everything Changed (5:28)
4. High Wire (4:20)
5. Days (3:13)*
6. Never Can Tell (2:39)
7. How You Do (4:32)
8. Happy (4:12)*
9. Ain’t Life Funny (3:04)*
10. Farewell Paradise (3:57)

Amy McCarley — vocals, acoustic guitar (all), harmonica (7)
Kenny Vaughan — electric guitar, acoustic guitar (all)
Chris Scruggs — drums, percussion, and bass (all), steel guitar (5,10), backing vocals (10)
George Bradfute — slide guitar (2), fiddle (6), viola and cello (7), fiddle and mandolin (8)
Pat Alger — acoustic guitar (5)
Marty Stuart — mandolin (6)
Kenny Lovelace — fiddle (9)
Harry Stinson — backing vocals (10)

Producers — Kenny Vaughan & George Bradfute
Audio & mix engineer — George Bradfute (Tone Chaparral)
Mastering engineer — Jim DeMain (Yes Master Studios)

*Indicates a song written by Amy McCarley & Pat Alger

© 2019 McCarley Publishing (BMI) & Algerhythms (ASCAP)
All other songs written by Amy McCarley © 2019 McCarley Publishing

For more information, please visit  www.amymccarley.com, www.facebook.com/amymccarleymusic, www.twitter.com/amy_mccarley,  www.instagram.com/amymccarleymusic.

 

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OUT TODAY: Reed Foehl Releases ‘Lucky Enough’ Recorded w/ Band of Heathens

Reed Foehl Releases 5th Studio Album, Lucky Enough, Feb 1, 2019

Recorded in Austin, TX with The Band of Heathens
Co-Produced by Reed Foehl with Gordy Quist and Ed Jurdi

Available Now On All Outlets to Stream and Purchase → http://hyperurl.co/3xm6td

POWNAL, VT — With the Feb. 1, 2019, release of Reed Foehl’s fifth solo album, Lucky Enough, fans will get a dose of powerful medicine, a cathartic collection of 10 songs that Foehl recorded with help from a mighty musical force, The Band of Heathens, at their Finishing School studio in Austin, Texas. It’s an album that will undoubtedly solidify his standing as one of the most compelling and vital Americana artists around.

On Lucky Enough, Foehl touches on a range of Americana styles, all with emotionally charged lyrics and can’t-get-out-of-your-head choruses, from somber folk elegies and gospel-tinged tunes to barroom country singalongs and jaunty calypso-flavored, country-infused pop. These are deeply personal songs for Foehl, and while they were written during some dark days, there’s a sense of optimism and gratitude, an overriding feeling that the hope outshines the heartbreak.

Lucky Enough is dedicated to the memory of Foehl’s mother — “the Queen of Everything” — and a keen sense of loss flavors the album. But there’s also a sense of hope, of forward momentum, change and a celebration of love, including not just the romantic variety but the kind a guy has for the oldest of old friends. For Foehl, creating Lucky Enough with The Band of Heathens has been a cathartic process. “If I can help myself, maybe I can help others,” he says. “You’ve got to keep moving forward. I think that’s the important thing. Live to fight another day.”

What People Are Saying:

“Certain songwriters have an innate gift for infectious songs that just linger for days on end. Reed Foehl is one of them. Each song on his fifth album, Lucky Enough, tells a story in his quietly understated way that somehow results in powerful imagery and emotions… This is as good as songwriting gets. Foehl’s lyrics are often astonishing and his relaxed, comforting approach works wonders.” —Glide, Jim Hynes

“His voice—smooth, companionable, and flavoured with a touch of palatable wisdom—is the first thing one is likely to notice. But the songs are masterfully constructed, some poetic and symbolic, most situational explorations brought to fruition with elegantly nuanced instrumentation… ‘Stealing Starlight’ and ‘American Miles’—both expansive, grandly produced three-minute epics, worthy entertainment for listeners who appreciate Josh Ritter, Fleet Foxes, or Vance Joy.” —Fervor Coulee, Donald Teplyske

The Bluegrass Situation premiered “Stealing Starlight”

“Reed Foehl’s excellent album Lucky Enough takes the listener on an existential journey to fill life’s holes. Written at an impossibly difficult time in Foehl’s life, while he was caring for his mother who was battling cancer, Foehl would be understood for writing a melancholy record. Lucky Enough ducks expectation. It does not feel melancholy. It feels settled. Not resigned, but at peace with life’s challenges and tribulations.” —The Marinade with Jason Earle, Listen in to a Podcast Interview

“Reed has the ability to transport the soul, a true master. One of the great songwriters of our time.” —Gregory Alan Isakov. Isakov co-wrote the debut track, “American Miles,” a road song that was inspired by traveling and the great american landscape. Glide Magazine premiered “American Miles”

“Reed Foehl is like a brother to me, we’ve traveled a lot of miles on the road together, and I don’t think they make better singer-songwriters than him.” —Todd Snider  

“He starts out with the gentle strumming ‘Stealing Starlight’ and the quiet acoustics of ‘American Miles,’ which just excels into the beautiful landscape that Reed paints with his words. He begins to pick the tempo up with the steady rhythm of ‘If It Rains’ and ‘He’s On An Island,’ but sandwiched in-between is the piano ballad ‘Carousel Horses.’ Reed Foehl finishes up his new album with the pop/folk tone of ‘Wish I Knew’ and wonderfully, emotion-filled ‘Color Me In.’” —JP’s Music Blog, Jim Pasinski

“I fell for this album just a few moments into its first track, ‘Stealing Starlight.’ There is something so sad and yet oddly comforting in Reed Foehl’s vocal delivery that worked on me immediately and pulled me in, so that I wanted to pay closer attention to every word, to see what this voice had to tell me.” –
—Michael’s Music Log, Michael Doherty

“Reed Foehl is a familiar voice in the wilderness calling you home.  His songs are part New England Folklore, told around an old wood stove in the midst of a winter’s blizzard and part Southern Charm, warm and inviting, like the spring breeze that welcome the magnolia blossoms.” —Ed Jurdi, The Band of Heathens

“Reed’s songs hit you in the heart, and everything else falls away” —Anais Mitchell

Reed Foehl. Photo By Kate Drew Miller

More About Reed Foehl & Lucky Enough:

Foehl certainly took an unexpected route in getting to Lucky Enough. Then again, he says, “I’ve always done things very unconventionally.”

A New England native who had long lived in Colorado, Foehl was making a big move, heading to Nashville to continue his craft as an artist and a songwriter. That made sense after co-writing the leadoff song (“Fly”) with up-and-coming country singer/songwriter Brent Cobb on Lee Ann Womack’s 2014 GRAMMY nominated album, The Way I’m Livin’.

On the way, he got a call from his mother, Linda. She had lymphoma, and she needed him. He didn’t hesitate, ditching his fully loaded car in Nashville and flying straight home to Massachusetts. “It put in perspective what life’s about,” he says. “This was important, definitely more than any of these records I’ve made.”

While he cared for his mother, Foehl kept at his songwriting, thanks to the sponsorship of a longtime friend and hockey teammate. Keeping the creative flames burning was vital. “It’s not just what I do, it’s who I am. I’m writing songs so people can hear them and so I can be OK. That’s really the gist of it,” he says.

After Foehl lost his mother in July 2017, he knew he had to keep moving forward and started thinking about recording an album. Although he launched his solo career with the release of Spark in 2001, he played in bands for years, notably fronting Acoustic Junction and then as a charter member of Great American Taxi. For his fifth solo album, he thought, why not go into the studio with a full-fledged band? “With all my records. I like to take leaps and chances and want to try different things,” he says. “I said, ‘What about doing it with The Band of Heathens?’”

Foehl had toured as an opener with The Band of Heathens, and he knew and loved their tones and sound and how they worked together. The Heathens, for their part, had really hit it off with Foehl on tour and were primed to help him make an album. “We really dug his stuff and felt like it would be a good match,” said Ed Jurdi, who co-produced Lucky Enough with Foehl and fellow Heathen Gordy Quist, with both Jurdi and Quist adding guitars and vocals on the album. “What I felt our job was, was to put him in a position where he could do his thing, just really make him comfortable. The record is about Reed and his songs, so how do we elevate that by adding what we can do? The idea as a producer is to both create a record the artist likes and making an album that the artist didn’t know they could make.”

The great thing about the Heathens, Foehl says, is they always knew when to hold back and when to let it rip, deftly embellishing the 10 songs on Lucky Enough. “They are very much chameleon-like,” Foehl said of the Heathens, “capable and talented enough to adapt and play any style of music.”

Foehl’s solo career has been bookended by loss, losing his father, Billy, in 2001 around the time Spark came out and then his mother preceding Lucky Enough, with three albums in between — 2007’s Stoned Beautiful, 2009’s Once an Ocean and 2014’s Lost in the West. Growing up in Dover, Mass., his parents were a huge influence for Foehl, filling the house with John Prine music and playing for decades together in a bluegrass/country band called The Centre Streeters. His parents encouraged him in his musical passion, regularly taking him to Boston, where he cut his teeth as a performer, busking at the Faneuil Hall Marketplace at the tender age of 11.

Lucky Enough Track Listing
1. Stealing Starlight (3:33)
2. American Miles (3:22)
3. If It Rains (4:48)
4. Takes a Long Time to Make Old Friends (3:18)
5. Carousel Horses (3:00)
6. He’s on an Island (3:26)
7. Running Out of You (3:46)
8. Wish I Knew (2:36)
9. Hello My Dear (4:12)
10. Color Me In (3:28)

Reed Foehl – lead vocals and acoustic guitar
Gordy Quist – guitars, background vocals
Ed Jurdi – guitars, background vocals
Trevor Nealon – keyboards, background vocals
Jesse Wilson – bass guitar, background vocals
Richard Millsap – drums, background vocals
Geoff Queen – pedal steel

Engineered and mixed by Steve Christensen
Mastered by Fred Kevorkian
Green Mountain Records

Reed Foehl On Tour Supporting Todd Snider!
3/13 Wed – The Gramercy Theatre – New York, NY
3/14 Thu – Ardmore Music Hall – Ardmore, PA
3/15 Fri – The Sinclair – Cambridge, MA
3/17 Sun – Infinity Music Hall & Bistro – Hartford, CT
3/18 Mon – The Birchmere – Alexandria, VA
3/20 Wed- The Beacon Theater – Hopewell, VA
3/22 Fri – Lincoln Theater – Raleigh, NC
3/23 Sat – The Ramkat – Winston-Salem, NC
3/24 Sun – The Orange Peel – Asheville, NC
5/2 Thu – The Jefferson Theater – Charlottesville, VA
5/3 Fri – The Rex Theater – Pittsburgh, PA
5/4 Sat – Rams Head On Stage – Annapolis, MD

For more information and updates, please visit www.reedfoehlmusic.com, www.facebook.com/ReedFoehl, www.twitter.com/reedfoehl, and www.instagram.com/reedfoehl.

 

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Chad Elliott & The Redemptions’ ‘Rest Heavy: The Sun Studio Sessions’ OUT TODAY

Chad Elliott & The Redemptions Release Rest Heavy on August 10, 2018
Bluesy, Rockin’ and Soulful Original Music
Recorded at Sun Studio in Memphis

Available now on all outlets → https://chadelliottrestheavy.hearnow.com

LAMONI, IA — Iowa singer-songwriter, artist and author, Chad Elliott, independently releases Rest Heavy: The Sun Studio Sessions TODAY, August 10, 2018. With Rest Heavy, Elliott shows his love of roots-rock, soul, and blues music with a rocking band behind his artfully crafted songs and gravelly delivery. The self-produced album was recorded by Ples Hampton at the famed Sun Studio in Memphis, TN. Hampton said, “It was honestly one of the best sessions I’ve ever had up here. This is gold.”

Elliott’s writing weaves love, loss and forgiveness into well-worn lyrics with timeless melodies. “Low, loose, and full of juice. This album’s got a lot of life to it,” said acclaimed Iowa singer-songwriter Greg Brown.

Elliott, performing on acoustic guitar and harmonica, is joined by his full band, The Redemptions, which includes Tommy Lewis (electric guitar, harmonica, background vocals), Travis McFarlane (piano, B3 organ, keys), Kevin Boehnke (acoustic guitar, trumpet), Joseph Cafaro (upright bass), and Jim Van Dorn (drums).

“I could, literally, feel the shift in the music just by walking through the doors at Sun Studio. The room seemed to have its own electric currency running through it and it made the songs come alive. We walked away feeling like we had an out of body experience. There were times I would just sit in the corners and look into the air of the room to see if that legendary music was still floating there, mixing with ours,” Elliott said.

Elliott performs more than 200 shows each year and is lauded as “Iowa’s Renaissance Man” by Culture Buzz. He has cultivated over 1,000 songs in his career while also honing his skills as a painter, sculptor, and children’s book author/illustrator (Wilderman’s Treetop Tales). He recently published a poetry book, Rumble & Flash.

What Folks Are Saying:

“Iowa suggests such names as Greg Brown, Bo Ramsey, and Pieta Brown among others but now singer-songwriter, artist and author, Chad Elliott can join their esteemed company with Rest Heavy. Even if you didn’t know that these tracks were recorded at Sun Studios in Memphis, you’d still sense a bit of that Elvis Presley style in Elliot’s mix of roots-rock, soul, blues and modern gospel… This album just oozes soul, truth, and seems rather timeless as it could have been recorded almost any time in the last fifty-sixty years.” —Elmore, Jim Hynes

“Rest Heavy… opens with an arpeggiated piano riff and cymbal crash before launching into a leaned-back, eyes-closed, soulful-howl gospel-blues tune of which Sam Cooke would have approved… As he croon-wails his way through tracks that range from hardscrabble stories and ain’t-life-like-that tunes to songs of somber reflection, his constellation of influences is clear, with stylized moments and melodic arrangements that evoke the likes of Tom Waits, Eric Clapton, Bruce Springsteen and Doc Watson.”  —Little Village Magazine, Lucas Benson

“ … there is a timeless feel all along the tracks that tell his talent.. roots rock, gospel, soul, blues in a perfect spirit… I would even say this album is the perfect tribute to the spirit of the Sun Studios. I already listened at least 10 times to it and these songs take me with them…” —Mike Penard, ISA Radio, France

“Right out of the gates with the title track, ‘Rest Heavy,’ the listener knows they are about to take a journey” —A Soulful Sound

“[‘Rest Heavy’ is] a modern gospel love song written on Easter Sunday that grabs your heart and soul with its classic harmonica-infused melody, tempered backbeat, and Elliott’s gravelly yet warm delivery that nods to the memory of the greats who made their mark at Sun.”  —The Daily Country premieres the title track “Rest Heavy”

“Rest Heavy jumps right at you and doesn’t let go. The whole piece has an edge you can shave with.” —Rob Ellen, Medicine Show Radio (UK)

“Chad’s songs are inspired by real life and by real people. They’re not conjured up in a cookie cutter fashion designated by songwriting rules or regulations. He sings out loud and proud about the places he’s been, the things he’s seen, his life experiences and those of his family and friends.” —Bronson Herrmuth

Rest Heavy Track Listing:
1. Rest Heavy  (3:12)
2. Shy of Shameless  (5:23)
3. Hills of Tennessee  (3:29)
4. Shining Stars  (4:22)
5. Cadillac Problems, Buick Times  (4:56)
6. Alberta  (4:20)
7. Slow Again  (3:47)
8. Dirty River (Catfish Blues)  (3:45)
9. Embarcadero Street  (5:08)
10. Water Under the Bridge  (7:06)
11. St. James Infirmary  (6:21)

Chad Elliott – vocals, electric guitar, harmonica
Tommy Lewis – electric guitar, harmonica, vocals, track 10 chorus
Travis McFarlane – piano, B3 organ, keys, track 10 chorus
Kevin Boehnke – acoustic guitar, trumpet, track 10 chorus
Joseph Cafaro –  upright bass, track 10 chorus
Jim Van Dorn – drums (all), track 10 chorus
Roger D. Feldhans – track 10 chorus

All songs written by Chad Elliott except “St. James Infirmary” (Anonymous)

For more information, tour dates and news from Chad Elliott, please visit www.chadelliott.net, www.facebook.com/elliottmusic, www.twitter.com/chadelliottlive, and www.instagram.com/chadelliottmusic.

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Donna the Buffalo On Tour, New Album In The Works With Producer Rob Fraboni

(Left to right: David McCracken, Jeb Puryear, Tara Nevins, Mark Raudabaugh, Kyle Spark). Photo by Chris Mortenson from the band’s recent appearance on Jam in The Van

Distinctive, Groove-heavy, and Danceable,
Donna The Buffalo Recording New Album with Producer Rob Fraboni

 

Spring and Summer Tour Dates Announced!

ASHEVILLE, NC — Donna the Buffalo is joining forces with legendary Producer/ Engineer Rob Fraboni to record their next album February 2018 at Sonic Ranch in El Paso, TX. It is one of the world’s largest residential recording studios and is built around an 80-year-old hacienda and pecan orchard right along the border. Fraboni is well known for his work with Bob Dylan, The Band, Eric Clapton, The Rolling Stones, Tim Hardin, The Beach Boys, Joe Cocker, and Bonnie Raitt, and as Vice President at Island Records where he oversaw the remastering of the entire Bob Marley catalog. He produced the soundtrack on Martin Scorsese‘s groundbreaking concert movie, The Last Waltz, which included an all-star cast of famous rock and roll performers. He built and designed the legendary Shangri-La studios in Malibu to the specification of Bob Dylan and the Band. Referred to as a “genius” by Keith Richards in his bestselling autobiography Life.

Rob Fraboni, Tara Nevins, and Jeb Puryer at Sonic Ranch. Photo by Bess Greenberg

Known as one of the most dynamic and determined bands continuously touring America since 1989, Pittsburgh City Paper says, “Though it will always be hard to pinpoint the key to an act’s staying power, distinctiveness and consistency surely can’t hurt. Donna the Buffalo has carved out a niche; it has weathered trends, and even made some of its own by being unapologetically itself.” Donna the Buffalo is Jeb Puryear (vocals, electric guitar) and Tara Nevins (vocals, fiddle, guitar, accordion, scrubboard) joined by David McCracken (B3 Hammond organ, Hohner Clavinet & piano), Kyle Spark (bass) and Mark Raudabaugh (drums).

Donna the Buffalo drew their original inspiration from a cherished part of the American heritage: the old-time music festivals of the south that drew entire towns and counties together. Not only was it playing music at these events, it was the vibe and the togetherness that bonded the people that attended. The Erie Times says, “They craft spirit-soaring songs with distinct sensibilities: Nevins’ songs are unfailingly melodic, brisk and buoyant, powered by her reassuring, wisdom-soaked vocals and ever-present fiddle and accordion. Puryear’s songs accentuate the groove, his exceptional guitar work and sly, Dylan-like way with lyrics.”

Donna the Buffalo’s fanbase, The Herd, will be excited to hear the news of the upcoming album since their most recent album, Tonight, Tomorrow and Yesterday, came out nearly five years ago in the spring of 2013. All Music Guide says of it, “This is what 21st century Americana sounds like, a little bit of this and that from anywhere wrapped up into a poignant, jamming dance reel, a place where the past and history meet easily in the immediate now and everybody feels like dancing.”

Donna the Buffalo has released ten albums and are affiliated with several others including  two solo albums from Nevins including 2011’s Wood and Stone (produced by Larry Campbell in Levon Helm Studios) and Mule to Ride in 1999,  Puryear’s 2007 solo album Hopes and Dreams, and a 2003 release, Wait Til Spring, with Jim Lauderdale. The band’s 2008 release, Silverlined, as well as the 2013 release, Tonight, Tomorrow and Yesterday, (both on Sugar Hill Records) did well on the Americana Music Chart, each placing well into the top ten.

“Donna the Buffalo knows a thing or two about rhythm, says New Haven Register. “Cajun, zydeco and old-time rhythms. A bit of reggae rhythm. Various guitar and fiddle rhythms. The rhythm of traveling by bus year after year for more than a quarter-century now, criss-crossing America… over and over again.”

The band’s tour kicks back up in New York City at at the City Winery in mid-March before a show at Ransom Steele Tavern near their hometown in the Finger Lakes region of New York state. They’ll be sunny Florida for the Suwannee Spring Reunion in March and the Peace River Revival in early April. They’ve got a plethora of shows lined up including two festivals which they started and are still the driving force behind: Spring Shakori Hills GrassRoots Festival in Pittsboro in North Carolina in May and The Finger Lakes Grassroots Festival in Trumansburg, New York in July, as well as other great festivals like MerleFest, Old Settlers Music Festival, Edinboro Music & Arts Fest, Buttermilk Jamboree, Blue Heron Music Festival, and more!

Donna the Buffalo on Tour
3/16 Fri – City Winery – New York, NY
3/17 Sat – Ransom Steele Tavern – Apalachin, NY
3/24-25 Sat-Sun – Suwannee Spring Reunion – Live Oak, FL
4/6 Fri – Terra Fermata – Stuart, FL
4/7 Sat – Peace River Revival – Punta Gorda, FL
4/14 Sat – Loaded Up and Truckin @ Oskar Blues Brewery – Hendersonville, NC
4/19-20 Thu-Fri – Old Settlers Music Festival – Driftwood, TX
4/21 Sat – Blue Moon Saloon and Guest House – Lafayette, LA
4/26-29 Thu-Sun – MerleFest – Wilkesboro, NC
5/3-6 Thu-Sun – Spring Shakori Hills GrassRoots Festival – Pittsboro, NC
5/11 Fri – The Dock – Ithaca, NY
5/12 Sat – Narrows Center for the Arts – Fall River, MA
5/13 Sun – Infinity Hall – Norfolk, CT
5/17 Thu – Edinboro Music & Arts Fest – Edinboro, PA
5/18 Fri – The Ardmore Music Hall – Ardmore, PA
5/19 Sat – The State Theatre – Falls Church, VA
5/20 Sun – Edinboro Music & Arts Fest – Edinboro, PA
6/16 Sat – Buttermilk Jamboree – Delton, MI
7/6-8 Fri-Sun – Blue Heron Music Festival – Sherman, NY
7/19-22 Thu-Sun – Finger Lakes GrassRoots Festival – Trumansburg, NY
8/16 Thu – Daryl’s House Club – Pawling, NY
8/17 Fri – Green Mountain Bluegrass & Roots Festival – Manchester, VT
8/18 Sat – Hickory Festival – Wellsboro, PA
8/24 Fri – Evanston SPACE – Evanston, IL
8/25 Sat – Porcupine Mountains Music Festival – Ontonagon, MI
9/15 Sat – Harwich Cranberry Jam – Harwich, MA

 

“Swing That Thing” Live on Jam in The Van –> 

For more information and tour dates, please visit www.donnathebuffalo.com
www.facebook.com/donnathebuffalo and www.twitter.com/donnathebuffalo

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Jon Stickley Trio Featured on NPR’s Folk Alley & Mountain Stage- New Album Out Now

Jon Stickley Trio. Photo by Heather Hambor

Jon Stickley Trio Featured on NPR’s Folk Alley & Mountain Stage

New Album, Maybe Believe, Produced by Dave King (The Bad Plus)
at Echo Mountain Studios in Asheville NC

Out now on Amazon, iTunes, cdbaby, Bandcamp
www.jonstickley.com/product/maybe-believe/

ASHEVILLE —  Jon Stickley Trio independently released their 3rd full length album, Maybe Believe, on May 12, 2017. Jon Stickley Trio create textural soundscapes combining Jon Stickley’s rapid-fire flatpicking guitar with the sultry and wild, yet refined, melodies of Lyndsay Pruett on violin set over the deep groove of Patrick Armitage on drums. Produced by Dave King (Of The Bad Plus) at Echo Mountain Recording Studio in the band’s hometown of Asheville, NC.

On release week, NPR’s Folk Alley posted the world premiere of a stream of the entire album → www.folkalley.com/archives/001565.php.

In April, Jon Stickley Trio performed on NPR’s Mountain Stage and their episode is scheduled for broadcast this Friday, May 20 and begins feeding to 200+ NPR stations. Airtimes and stations can be found here: http://goo.gl/7p4Y7J.

They will also be touring the States extensively with Maybe Believe. See the full list of tour dates below.

What people are saying about Jon Stickley Trio:

“The latest record from the Jon Stickley Trio flexes new and strong muscles, utilizing more progressive structures and deeper pockets than ever before. All the while, the group retains its place as a modern-thinking acoustic ensemble with one foot in tradition and the other in a bluegrass honored future that allows for the avant garde, punk, and be bop to mix in freely and tastefully.”
—Dave King

“Clear, Present, and Slightly Dangerous”
—Musoscribe, Bill Kopp

“The Trio… flex some seriously creative musical muscles on the twelve-track project which contains nine originals and three covers that beguile with the trio’s skillful, energetic musicianship.”
—The Daily Country, No Depression, Tara Joan

“With this eclectic instrumentation, their melodies wander between cultures and rhythms, pulling you in and making you want to dance… With instrumental only tracks, the Jon Stickley Trio’s diverse musicality is the star.” —Scenes Media, Christie Hudon

“In an age of music where it can be difficult to find something new, Jon Stickley Trio is a consistent breath of fresh air. Their infectious and irresistible energy can be felt through each note, providing a compelling soundtrack you never knew you needed.” — The Poke Around, Tom Cunningham

“Sure, comparisons to previous musicians are a good way to explain a new artist to the masses, but to do so is to cheat Stickley of what he really is: a damn genius, a musical mastermind, and one of the most unique, creative, and inventive guitar players I’ve ever heard…  Stickley’s guitar playing shares as much in common with the flow of the greatest rappers of all time as it does with his flatpicking heroes…” —Greensky Bluegrass’ Anders Beck

“The majority of the songs on the new album were written by Stickley, using his talents to layer different grooves and play with polyrhythms. Lyndsay Pruett contributed a couple of jazzier numbers including ‘The Price of Being Nice”’ and a short solo, ‘Lady Time,’ that closes out the album with her distinctive pizzicato playing and violin improvisation.” —AXS, Renee Wright, Renee Wright

“A new generation of bluegrass-reared instrumental explorers is coming into its own, and the Stickley Trio is in the vanguard.” — Music City Roots, Craig Havighurst

“Thoughtful & energetic” —Bryan Sutton

Find out more about Maybe Believe in this behind-the-scenes video with the band recorded at Echo Mountain during their recording sessions →

Jon Stickley Trio On Tour
5/19 Fri – Lower Town Arts & Music Festival – Paducah, KY
5/20 Sat – Forest Fest – Louisville, KY (11am show)
5/20 Sat – Moonshiner’s Ball – Berea, KY
5/26 Fri – Rooster Walk – Martinsville, VA
5/27 Sat – Big Wesser BBZ at Nantahala Outdoor Center – Bryson City, NC
6/8 Thu – Founders Brewing Co – Grand Rapids, MI
6/9 Fri – Parliament Room at Otus Supply – Ferndale, MI
6/10-11 Sat-Sun – NorEastr Festival @ County Fairgrounds – Mio, MI
6/12 Mon – WNMC House Concert Series @ The Moon Tower – Traverse City, MI
6/14 Wed – B Side Ballroom – Oneonta, NY
6/15 Thu – Abilene Bar – Rochester, NY
6/17 Sat – Skunk Funk Music Festival – Cazenovia, NY
6/18 Sun – Gypsy Sally’s – Washington DC
6/19 Mon – Metro Gallery – Baltimore, MD
6/20 Tue – Motorco Music Hall – Durham, NC
6/21 Wed – Muddy Creek Music Hall – Winston-Salem, NC
6/22 Thu – River Jam at US Whitewater Center – Charlotte, NC
6/23-24 Fri-Sat – Clusterpluck @ Spirit of Suwannee Music Park – Live Oak, FL
7/7-8 Fri-Sat – Breckenridge Brewery – Littleton, CO
7/15 Sat – Red Wing Roots Music Festival – Mount Solon, VA
7/22 Sat – Burning Can @ Oskar Blues – Brevard, NC
7/29-30 Sat-Sun – FloydFest – Floyd, VA
8/2 Wed – The High Watt – Nashville, TN
8/3 Thu – Hi Tone – Memphis, TN
8/4 Fri – Homegrown on the River – Ozark, AR
8/6 Sun – Rhythms on the Rio – South Fork, CO
8/9 Wed – The Bishop – Bloomington, IN
8/10 Thu – Woodlands Tavern – Columbus, OH
8/11 Fri – Bright Box Theater – Winchester, VA
8/12 Sat – Musikfest – Bethlehem, PA
8/16 Wed – The Ark – Ann Arbor, MI
8/17 Thu – Albert S. George Youth Center – Barnesville, OH
8/18 Fri – Ignition Music Garage – Goshen, IN
8/19 Sat – Short’s Brewing Co – Bellaire, MI
8/20 Sun – Hoxyville Music Festival – Wellston, MI
9/5-10 Fri-Sun – Sisters Folk Fest – Sisters, OR
9/14 Thu – World Cafe Live – Philadelphia, PA
9/15-16 Fri-Sat – Wormtown Music Festival – Greenfield, MA
9/17 Sun – The Knitting Factory – New York, NY
10/7 Sat – Joshua Tree Music Festival – Joshua Tree, CA

For more information and updates from the road, please visit www.jonstickley.com, www.facebook.com/JonStickleyTrio, www.instagram.com/jonstickleytrio, and www.twitter.com/jonstickleytrio.

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Jon Stickley Trio Tours With New Album Produced By Dave King (The Bad Plus) – ‘Maybe Believe’ Out 5/12

Jon Stickley Trio. Photo By Heather Hambor

 

Jon Stickley Trio Releases Maybe Believe on May 12, 2017
Produced by Dave King (The Bad Plus) at Echo Mountain Studios in Asheville NC

“Thoughtful & energetic” —Bryan Sutton

Watch a behind-the-scenes video from the recording session → www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccQB75r3Vww

ASHEVILLE —  Riding the wave of their critically acclaimed 2015 album, Lost at Last, Jon Stickley Trio independently releases their 3rd full length album, Maybe Believe, on May 12, 2017. Jon Stickley Trio combines Jon Stickley’s rapid-fire flatpicking guitar with the sultry and wild, yet refined, melodies of Lyndsay Pruett on violin set over the deep groove of Patrick Armitage on drums.

“The latest record from the Jon Stickley Trio flexes new and strong muscles, utilizing more progressive structures and deeper pockets than ever before,” says Producer Dave King (Of The Bad Plus). “All the while, the group retains its place as a modern-thinking acoustic ensemble with one foot in tradition and the other in a bluegrass honored future that allows for the avant garde, punk, and be bop to mix in freely and tastefully.”

Greensky Bluegrass’ Anders Beck says of Jon, “Sure, comparisons to previous musicians are a good way to explain a new artist to the masses, but to do so is to cheat Stickley of what he really is: a damn genius, a musical mastermind, and one of the most unique, creative, and inventive guitar players I’ve ever heard…  Stickley’s guitar playing shares as much in common with the flow of the greatest rappers of all time as it does with his flatpicking heroes…”

The album title, Maybe Believe, is a continuation of the theme from Lost at Last. With Lost at Last, the band was stepping away from their collective musical past, into new territory that was somewhat uncomfortable, but also inspiring and free. With Maybe Believe, they have become more comfortable in their own skin yet retain an element of vulnerability while continuing to move into uncharted territory. This album marks the next step in the band’s evolution, and takes the listener to original and unexpected new places that still embody the familiarity of the Jon Stickley Trio’s signature style.

 

Dave says, “I was honored to be a part of this evolution and I think we made a very compelling album for music fans and musicians of all kinds.” This is his second time joining forces with the Trio at Echo Mountain Recording Studio in the band’s hometown of Asheville, NC, once again working with Engineer Julian Dryer. Both were also on board for Lost at Last which garnered praise from The New York Times, NPR’s Heavy Rotation, NPR’s World Cafe, Folk Alley, Premier Guitar Magazine, Acoustic Guitar Magazine, Performer Magazine, and many others.

Stickley says, “We had just gotten to know Dave last time and had such a good time. Bringing him in again takes the whole thing up a notch. It was a completely different experience, after traveling all over the place touring [in 2016 the Trio drove over 50,000 miles], over time we’ve developed a cohesion as a band where we intimately know each other and can feel where each other is wanting to go and respond. It’s developed into a tight musical relationship.”

The album’s opening track, “Jewels,” is a short, mellow, piece which serves as the album’s prologue, setting the tone of the record, quieting the mind of the listener. It’s a cleansing of the palette before the full course, and features the delicate harmonics of Jon and Lyndsay along with and Patrick’s textural brushwork.

Then they go full throttle with “Playpeople,” an eclectic piece that draws inspiration from Green Day, Duran Duran, Grateful Dead, and David Grisman Quintet, but in the end, is ultimately pure Jon Stickley Trio. This track’s title is a gender-neutral term for someone who likes to have a good time, and does so despite all external obstacles and displays the Trio’s fun-loving energy and virtuosity, as well as their controlled intensity.

“Almost With You” and “Mt. Sandia Swing” highlight the Jon Stickley Trio’s ability and inclination to play with polyrhythms and layer different grooves on top of each other. Dave King described “Sandia” as “The Violent Femmes… playing Jazz.”

Jon Stickley’s music brings forth mental imagery from the soundscapes the band has created in songs like “Slow Burn,” which is a like simmering pot of stew that occasionally boils over, while “Microbruise” embraces the fun-loving nature of Asheville’s beer brewers and drinkers, and “Cecil” is the Trio’s heaviest song yet featuring seamless interplay between guitar and violin with a sludgy, old school, John Bonham style drumbeat.

The aforementioned songs were all penned by Stickley, while Lyndsay Pruett’s hand brings forth a couple of jazzier numbers. A highlight of the record, “The Price of Being Nice” has a quirky, infectious theme that is explored throughout the song with a somewhat deconstructed treatment that allows the Trio to shine. Pruett also wrote “Lady Time,” a short solo song that closes out the album that features her distinctive pizzicato playing and improvisations.

The album contains three covers, “Jerusalem Ridge” (a Bill Monroe tune with a twist that has become a staple at live shows), “Avril 14th’ (a piece by Richard James a.k.a. Aphex Twin), and “Birdland Breakdown” (a tune by mandolinist John Reischman which also appeared on Tony Rice’s jazz-grass album Still Inside).

Jon Stickley Trio On Tour
3/10 Fri – The Grey Eagle – Asheville, NC
3/15 Wed – The Station Inn – Nashville, TN *w/ The Dustbowl Revival
3/16 Thu – The Earl – Atlanta, GA w/ The Dustbowl Revival
3/17-18 Fri-Sat – Anastasia Music Festival @ St. Augustine Amphitheater – St. Augustine, FL
3/21 Tue – Taos Mesa Brewing – El Prado, NM
3/22 Wed – House Concert – Albuquerque, NM
3/23 Thu – Last Exit Live – Phoenix, AZ
3/24 Fri – Coconino Center For The Arts – Flagstaff, AZ
3/25 Sat – Seven Grand – San Diego, CA
3/29 Wed – Throckmorton Theatre – Mill Valley, CA
3/30 Thu – Neck of the Woods – San Francisco, CA
3/31-4/1 Fri-Sat – WinterWonderGrass – North Lake Tahoe, CA
4/6 Thu – The Stage at KDHX – St. Louis, MO
4/7 Fri – Rhythm and Blooms Festival – Knoxville, TN
4/8 Sat – Albino Skunk Festival – Greer, SC
4/12 Wed – Willie’s Locally Known – Lexington, KY
4/13 Thu – The Fire Pit’s Side Bar – Milwaukee, WI
4/14 Fri – Mid West Music Festival – LaCrosse, WI
4/15 Sat – Two Brothers Roundhouse – Aurora, IL
4/29 Sat – WV Craft Brew Fest – Lewisburg, WV
5/12-13 – Fri-Sat – LEAF – Black Mountain, NC
5/19 Fri – Lower Town Arts & Music Festival – Paducah, KY
5/20 Sat – Moonshiner’s Ball – Berea, KY
5/26 Fri – Rooster Walk – Martinsville, VA
6/8 Thu – Founders Brewing – Grand Rapids, MI
6/9 Fri – Parliament Room at Otus Supply – Ferndale, MI
6/10-11 Sat-Sun – NorEastr Festival @ County Fairgrounds – Mio, MI
7/15 Sat – Red Wing Roots Music Festival – Mount Solon, VA
7/29-30 Sat-Sun – FloydFest – Floyd, VA
More dates TBA!

Maybe Believe Track Listing*

1. Jewels 2:03
2. Playpeople 4:36
3.  Almost With You 3:39
4.  Slow Burn 4:47
5. Jerusalem Ridge (Bill Monroe) 5:36
6.  Avril 14th (Richard James a.k.a. Aphex Twin) 1:59
7. Cecil 4:36
8.  Microbruise 3:19
9. The Price of Being Nice (Lyndsay Pruett) 3:39
10.  Mt. Sandia Swing 4:23
11.  Birdland Breakdown (John Reischman) 3:54
12. Lady Time (Lyndsay Pruett) 3:44

* All songs written by Jon Stickley unless otherwise noted

For more information and updates from the road, please visit www.jonstickley.com, www.facebook.com/JonStickleyTrio, www.instagram.com/jonstickleytrio, and www.twitter.com/StickleyMusic.

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Asheville’s Tellico Enters The Studio To Record Their Debut Album After A Succesful Kickstarter Campaign

After a Successful Kickstarter Campaign,
Asheville’s Tellico Enters the Studio To Record Their Debut Album
Tellico is Anya Hinkle (guitar, fiddle & vocals), Stig Stiglets (bass & vocals),
Aaron Ballance (dobro), and Jed Willis (mandolin, clawhammer banjo)

Newly Formed Asheville Band, Tellico, Raises $12,248 For Debut Album
Jon Stickley Will Produce the Album at Sound Temple Studios in Asheville

Tellico is happy to announce their Kickstarter campaign was successfully funded and they will be heading into the studio at the turn of the year to record their debut album. Based in Asheville NC with it’s thriving roots music scene, the quartet combines some of the finest voices, songs and instrumental prowess in western North Carolina and beyond. Tellico features the singing and songwriting of Anya Hinkle (guitar, fiddle, vocals) and Stig Stiglets (bass, vocals) with Aaron Ballance on dobro and Jed Willis on mandolin and clawhammer banjo.

Late last year, former members of the Asheville bands Dehlia Low (Anya, Aaron, and Stig) and Town Mountain (Jed) decided the combination of their history together and the excitement of a new project was so compelling that they formed Tellico. “This project has rekindled something powerful,” says Ballance. “I’m looking forward to resurging the sounds with Anya and Stig and to working with Jed. As an instrumentalist, I can’t think of better company.”

The band is wowed by all of the support: on top of their Kickstarter totals of $12,248 (surpassing the $7500 goal) they also received a grant from the Toe River Arts Council for $1000.

Rehearsals are now in progress in advance of the recording dates. The album will be recorded at Sound Temple Studios in Asheville over the New Year holiday with Chris Rosser as the engineer. Tellico is proud to announce that fellow Ashevillian, Jon Stickley (Jon Stickley Trio), will produce the album and has been working with the band during their rehearsals. This is really special for the band on a lot of levels; Jon and Jed have known each other and played music together since they were 16! Also, Jon produced Dehlia Low’s album “Tellico” (the namesake album of this new outfit that has newly arisen since Dehlia Low). Jon has also performed with both in Dehlia Low and Tellico over the years.

“I was so excited when I heard about the formation of Tellico! I’ve had the pleasure of producing other projects for these musicians and was happy to re-enter that relationship.” Jon Stickley goes on to say,  “Anya’s lyrics are full of subtle emotion, and the melodies are unshakeable. Stig’s tunes range from bluesy ragtime romps to longing tales of love that just didn’t work out. It is all complimented by the tasteful and diverse accompaniment of Aaron’s Dobro, and Jed’s mandolin and clawhammer banjo. Tellico blends refined songwriting, sweet vocal harmonies, and expert picking to create something that has elements of bluegrass and old-time, but is a sound all its own. I’m really looking forward to helping them make a great record.”

The band is all in unison in singing Stickley praises for the job. Jed expresses, “As long as I have played music, Stickley’s virtuosic presence has pushed and inspired me. For a decade and a half our musical lives have woven in and out of each other’s and I have witnessed his immeasurable influence on musical communities across the country. I am excited and proud to be crossing paths with him on this project.”

“Anyone who has heard Stickley play knows his sense of adventure. He draws from many sources and understands what it is to make something new that derives from the old,” says Aaron. “He is as skilled and creative a player as any of us know. Just the thought of being in the same room with him makes one want to play their absolute best. Top it off with a warm personality, and you’ve got the best kind of friction imaginable. We’re lucky to have him work with us on this album. He’s the real thing!” Stig says “Stickley makes completely original music and we look forward to applying some of that science towards our new record.”

The band feels really good about an Asheville-based project from head to toe. The songs that will be on the album reflect the sights, sounds, and feelings of living in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina capturing the resonating and universal themes of love, disaster, cheatin’, loss, busking, dreams, and change. The blend of Anya and Stig’s committed, authentic vocals with Aaron’s flowing and soaring dobro and Jed’s textured and expressive mandolin bring to the songs their foundation, rooted in the mountain music they grew up with, but taken somewhere unique.

“I love how the songs on the album sound with these musicians playing all things that I didn’t even realize I was longing to hear.  Their playing overlays absolutely perfectly with the meanings of the songs, whether playful and amusing or searching, haunting and lonely,” says Anya Hinkle.

“We carry with us the support of our backers from our Kickstarter campaign, which means the world to us as we begin the process of recording because it’s a daunting process to capture, to freeze, a song at a single given time and place.” says Anya. “Jon’s positive guidance and relaxed confidence helps us to welcome this opportunity to make the best music we possibly can when we get into the studio.”

Tellico looks forward to the new album and will be updating on the progress at tellicoband.com, facebook.com/tellico & twitter.com/TellicoBand.

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Leftover Salmon To Digitally Release 2004 Self-Titled Album on Feb 11th; Bill Payne of Little Feat Joins Los For Several Shows

Leftover Salmon To Digitally Release 2004 Self-Titled Album on Feb 11th
Bill Payne of Little Feat to Join Leftover Salmon for Several Shows

Leftover Salmon with Bill Payne of Little Feat. Photo by Dylan Langille

Leftover Salmon is thrilled to announce that on Tuesday, February 11, 2014 their 2004  album, Leftover Salmon, will be available digitally for the first time on all major digital outlets.

“The self-titled work was a collaboration with producer-friend Bill Payne of Little Feat. Mature yet playful, graceful yet dirty, it became apparent that Leftover Salmon was poised for out-and-out domination” writes Scott Caffrey (2005).

When asked how they came to choose Little Feat member Bill Payne as Leftover Salmon’s producer by Mike Greenhaus (2004), Drew Emmit summed up up the beginning of what was to become a long-term friendship and collaboration:

When we had our benefit concerts for Mark Vann when he was ill, [Little Feat’s] Paul Barrere and Bill Payne came out for those shows and played all five nights. We really formed a connection with them then and they were very supportive. Their presence was amazing and playing music with them was amazing after being such big Little Feat fans. So when we were trying to figure out producers for this record we were just trying to think of who would be really good organizationally—who would really bring all of this together. When Vince and I had gone out to the 25th Anniversary of Little Feat concert with Sam Bush, Bela Fleck, Jackson Browne, and Billy Bob Thornton, Bill Payne was the driving force in keeping it all together. So we had this vision of him: not only do we love his music, but he is really great at bringing different sounds together. He plays a particularly beautiful solo on “Whispering Waters”—-it makes me feel like I am at the ocean.

To celebrate the digital release of the album, Leftover Salmon is offering a free stream and download of the track “Whispering Waters” featuring Bill Payne: http://bit.ly/LOSWhisperingWaters.

Leftover Salmon with Bill Payne of Little Feat. Photo by Dylan Langille.

Leftover Salmon 2004 Track Listing:
1. Down In The Hollow
2. Mountain Top
3. Delta Queen
4. Lincoln At Nevada
5. Woody Guthrie
6. Fayetteville Line
7. Everything Is Round
8. Whispering Waters*
9. Last Days Of Autumn
10. Just Keep Walkin’
11. Weary Traveler
* Featuring Bill Payne on Grand Piano

*****

In true Salmon form, they’ll be performing songs from the album at shows mixed in with other old Leftover favorites, songs from their 2012 release Aquatic Hitchhiker, as well as new tunes release last year through Breckenridge Brewery. Bill Payne meets up with LoS halfway through their Powder Daze Winter Tour at the WinterWonderGrass Festival in Avon, CO this February and then travels on with LoS for shows in Jackson, WY and Victor, ID, then two nights in Big Sky, MT with the tour ending in Missoula. Leftover Salmon will pick back up for their early spring tour starting in late March.

Looking back over the past 25 years of rootsy, string-based music, the impact of Leftover Salmon is impossible to deny. Today, Leftover Salmon is: Vince Herman (vocals, acoustic and electric guitar, mandolin); Drew Emmitt (vocals, mandolin, acoustic and electric guitar, mandola, fiddle); Andy Thorn (vocals, acoustic and electric banjo, National guitar); Greg Garrison (vocals, acoustic and electric bass, acoustic guitar); Alwyn Robinson (drums, percussion).

Be sure to tune in to LiveSalmon.com for LIVE-streams of all shows (provided there is access to an Internet connection) and downloads of live performances within a few days of the show.

Leftover Salmon on Tour
2/12 Wed – Crested Butte Center for the Arts  – Crested Butte, CO
2/13 Thu – Crested Butte Center for the Arts  – Crested Butte, CO
2/14 Fri – Animas City Theatre – Durango, CO
2/15 Sat – Animas City Theatre – Durango, CO
2/16 Sun – Telluride Conference Center – Telluride, CO
2/21 Fri – WinterWonderGrass Festival – Avon, CO*
3/13 Thu – Pink Garter Theatre – Jackson, WY*
3/14 Fri – Knotty Pine – Victor, ID*
3/15 Sat – Whiskey Jacks – Big Sky, MT*
3/16 Sun – Whiskey Jacks – Big Sky, MT*
3/17 Mon – The Top Hat – Missoula, MT*
3/26 Wed – Terrapin Crossroads – San Rafael, CA
3/27 Thu –  Terrapin Crossroads – San Rafael, CA
3/28 Fri – Crystal Bay Club- Crystal Bay, NV
3/29 Sat – Crystal Bay Club- Crystal Bay, NV
3/30 Sun – Belly Up – Solana Beach, CA
3/31 Mon – Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. – Chico, CA
4/01 Tue – Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. – Chico, CA
4/03 Thu – Papa Charlies – Lutsen, MN
4/04 Fri – First Avenue – Minneapolis, MN
4/05 Sat – Majestic Theatre – Madison, WI
4/18 Fri – Aggie Theatre – Ft. Collins, CO
4/19 Sat – Aggie Theatre – Ft. Collins, CO
5/30 Fri – Blackstock Music Festival – Blackstock, SC*
6/13-15 Fri-Sun – Snowmass Mammoth Fest – Snowmass, CO
6/19-22 Thu-Sun – Telluride Bluegrass Festival – Telluride, CO*
9/11-14 Thu-Sun – Phases of the Moon Music & Art Festival – Danville, IL*

* Featuring special guest Bill Payne of Little Feat

For more information and complete tour dates please visit: www.LeftoverSalmon.com

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The Honeycutters Launch Kickstarter Campaign, CMT Show

The Honeycutters Launch Kickstarter Campaign
CMT’s Concrete Country Features The Honeycutters

 CLICK to Visit The Honeycutters’ Kickstarter Site!

The Honeycutters are thrilled to announce the launch of their Kickstarter campaign on Thursday, April 25, 2013 for a Spring 2014 album release! The band is fronted by vocalist and songwriter, Amanda Anne Platt and lead guitarist/ producer Peter James and includes Tal Taylor on mandolin, bassist Rick Cooper, and Josh Milligan on drums.

The Kickstarter campaign launches during this weekend’s MerleFest, where The Honeycutters are set to perform, and will run for forty days. The goal is set to raise $28,000, which will be earmarked for recording; the mixing & mastering of the album at the prestigious Echo Mountain Recording Studios in Asheville; album packaging design; album pressing; distribution; publicity and radio promotion. Supporters will receive an assortment of special gifts for pledging to the campaign including a day at the studio w/ The Honeycutters; handwritten lyrics booklets to accompany the album; house concerts featuring The Honeycutters; an invitation to a either a guitar workshop w/ Peter James or a songwriting workshop w/ Amanda Anne Platt; a special edition poster; pre-release copies of the album; stickers; digital downloads and more.

“We love playing music, being on the road, and meeting the people that make our lives as musicians possible,” Platt says. “We’re hoping that the release of this next record will afford us a greater opportunity for doing what we love–we want to bring more Honeycutters music into the world!”

Last year marked a successful year for The Honeycutters, with the release of their second album, When Bitter Met Sweet, which was also fan funded. The album released at MerleFest and was one of the top ten selling albums at MerleFest 2012. The band went on to sell out the Grey Eagle in Asheville for their official CD release party, and they performed at Strawberry Music Fest in California. Highlights for the band in 2012 included opening for Guy Clark in Nashville, TN and for Jim Lauderdale in New York City.

When Bitter Met Sweet remained on the Americana Radio Chart for 11 weeks after its June release where it reached #23. It  landed at #94 in the top 100 Americana releases for 2012 and placed #4 in WNCW’s Top 100 Albums of the same year. Regionally, it was the #2 record, right behind The Avett Brothers’ The Carpenter. Asheville’s Mountain Xpress reader’s poll selected The Honeycutters as “Best Local Americana Country Band” for the second year running. The group’s first release, Irene (2009) also received positive accolades like placing #32 on WNCW’s Top 100 Chart and a listing on Iaan Hughes’ No Depression Podcast’s Top Twenty of 2009.

The Honeycutters are currently featured in CMT’s Concrete Country series where they perform three original songs live in the heart of Downtown Nashville. Watch it here: http://www.cmtedge.com/2013/04/22/concrete-country-the-honeycutters/

For a free download of a sampler of The Honeycutters’ music, visit NoiseTrade: http://bit.ly/honeycuttersntm.

 CLICK to Visit The Honeycutters’ Kickstarter Site!

The Honeycutters on Tour:
Fri & Sat 4/26-27/13 MerleFest – Wilkesboro, NC
Fri & Sat 5/17-18/13 Isis Music Hall – Asheville, NC
Wed 5/29 The Berkeley Cafe – Raleigh, NC *w/ Zoe Muth & The Lost High Rollers
Thu 5/30 US National Whitewater Center – Charlotte, NC
Sat 6/1 Nelsonville Music Fest – Nelsonville, OH
Wed 6/5 Old St Francis Theater, Bend OR *
Thu 6/6 Kennedy School – Portland, OR *
Fri 6/7 Hotel Oregon – McMinnville, OR *
Sat 6/8 Treehouse Cafe – Bainbridge Island, WA
Sun 6/9 Crystal Ballroom – Portland, OR *
Tue 6/11 Oly Club Centralia – WA *
Wed 6/12 Edgefield – Troutdale, OR *
Thu 6/13 Sand Trap – Gearhart, OR *
Fri 6/14 Grand Lodge – Forest Grove, OR *
Sat 6/15 Conor Byrne Pub – Seattle, WA
Sun 6/16 Green Frog Acoustic Cafe – Bellingham, WA
Thu 6/27 Western Carolina U’s Summer Concert Series – Cullowhee, NC
Fri 6/28 High Rock Outfitters – Lexington, NC
Sat 6/29 Amanda Anne Platt solo opening for Jill Andrews (Barley’s Knoxville, ticketed show)
Wed 7/10 Eddies’ Attic – Decatur, GA w/ Rebecca Pronsky
Sat 7/20 Magnolia Music and Medicine Show – Eastman GA
Sat 8/10 Dead On The Creek Music Festival – Willits CA
Fri 8/23 Summer Tracks Series – Tryon NC
Sun 8/25 Music On The Lake, Blue Ridge Community College – Flat Rock, NC (  (duo show)
Sat 9/7 Bluegrass & Old Time Music Festival –  – Harmony PA
*as part of McMenamins Great American Northwest Music Tour

More information can be found at www.thehoneycutters.com

ABOUT THE HONEYCUTTERS
The Honeycutters are, at the heart, the musical collaboration of singer/songwriter Amanda Anne Platt and lead guitarist/ producer Peter James. While their sound has drawn comparisons to such artists as Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris or Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, Platt and James produce a refreshingly unique blend of Americana music that is comfortingly familiar while being entirely original. Whether performing as an acoustic duo or a full fledged Honky-Tonk five piece band, The Honeycutters leave smiles on the faces of the ears that they catch.

Like so many of country music’s great duos, Platt and James have a musical chemistry that can be felt throughout the songs they play, from the sounds of their guitars to their vocal harmonies. Perhaps this is why they are frequently mentioned along with the movement to “take country music back to its roots.” The Honeycutters are just doing what they know how to do: make music that feels as good to hear as it is to play.

 CLICK to Visit The Honeycutters’ Kickstarter Site!

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