Kenny Vaughan 'V' Sugar Hill

For his debut solo album Mr Vaughan takes on a journey across the country music map and he makes no stop at Muisc Row. Drawing from a range of musical styles this album, as you would expect from a Tele-master has great playing at it's heart. Using, essentially, his band mates from the Superlatives including Marty Stuart this is not unlike the albums that have come from that fine outfit. Along the way Kenny Vaughan has absorbed a lot of musical influences which inform his country playing. Everything from country pickers Luther Perkins, Don Rich and Roy Nichols to touches of blues, jazz and rock. Whatever the source the songs are a joy to hear, they sound vibrant and full of the verve you get from players who are making the music for the right reasons. Hot Like That is cut from the same cloth as BR5-49 and features Chris Scruggs on steel, while the other steel-like sounds were provided by Marty Stuart using Clarence White's B-Bender guitar. The opening Country Music Got A Hold On Me is a statement of authenticity and absolution. A companion piece to Mike Henderson's Country Music Made Me Do It from some years back. There are crafted instrumentals like Minuit Sur La Place. Another side to Mr. Vaughan's talent is shown in his writing as he has penned all the songs here, including two co-written with Stuart. Production is handled in a clear, concise and captivating way by Brendan Bell, Carmella Ramsey and Vaughan himself. While not know as a vocalist Vaughan holds is own on these songs and when joined by The Oak Ridge Boys on Okolona, Tennessee is a distinctive vocal presence on the songs. The late night feel of Mysterium with his twanging guitar over the jazz keyboards of Charles Treadway sounds like theme for a undiscovered film noir narrative. The closing track, the high-spirited gospel Don't Leave Home Without Jesus affirms the spirited support of his superlative band mates and V confirms Kenny Vaughan not only as a renowned player but also as writer and singer who can only develop these skills alongside his guitar mastery. One can hope that V will soon be followed by V1. Country music, in all it's forms will survive as long as people like Marty Stuart and Kenny Vaughan love and breathe life into the music that still inspires them, as their music does this listener.

Jace Everett 'Mr. Good Times' Humphead

Since the success of Bad Things and subsequently working with Chuck Prophet a more confident and independent Jace Everett has emerged. This one owes more to the White Album than to the whitewash of country radio. There is little here that that format will find favour with and equally many who listened to his major label debut could foresee where he has come to now. There is much sonic experimentation here, guitars slip and slide over a solid rock beat. While Moog, synth bass, B3, Wurlitzer and other keyboards all add atmosphere. The focus here is the voice which has developed on from the darker tone of Bad Things. He has now refined, developed and delivered a more individual vocal presence that has menace as well as measure. The production by Everett and Greg Droman and, on some tracks, by Brad Jones is robust, rocking and rich in texture. Likewise the songs have dirt still attached and tell of modern times and morales. With titles like Business Is Booming, The Drugs Aren't Getting It Done, Angry Hostile Ugly and God Made You Mean tell of a real and harsh world. But Everett is also able to deliver a more reflective view as in the gentler Don't Look Down. The songs all but one solo are co-writes and several are with his very able guitarist Dan Cohen. The overall tone though is of a tougher stance with some distorted vocals, some distanced viewpoints and some undoubted attitude. On first listen I wasn't so sure but subsequent listens have revealed much and allowed the songs to breath and for them to insinuate themselves. The end result is arguably his best album to date but one that takes him a long way from the portals of Music Row and the comfortable costumes of contemporary country. So be aware that he may now be Mr. Good Times but he is still a bad thing and that's a good thing.

Robert Earl Keen 'Ready For Confetti' Humphead/Lost Highway

Through the years Robert Earl Keen has cover all aspects of Texas Roots music from the frat-boy singalongs, fevered road songs to songs of the working man and more. On this latest offering Keen touches on many of those bases. From the Spanish guitar intro to the opening Baldy Baldy Station, through the uptempo joyessness of the title song with it sunny disposition and sing along chorus. The Road Goes On And On is a put down of a person who has high regard for himself. Waves Of The Ocean a song co-wriitten by Keen and Dean Dillon has a interesting rhythmic structure that makes stands out from the other songs and points to the assembled musicians versatility and, again, to that of Keen. And this a very fine set of players which includes Keen regulars Rich Brotherton, Bill Whitbeck and Marty Muse. Add to that Mickey Raphael, Bukka Allen and Lloyd Maines - who also produced the album, amongst others, but there all there to work the songs and they do so with style. Atop of that is another distinctive vocal performance from a very recognizable singer who conveys the humour, pathos and breath of these songs. Play A Train Song, written by Todd Snider, is a plea for a song that runs on rails when when one's like may have run off them for a final time. Life passing is also the theme of Paint The Town Beige. Coming to terms with life's vicissitudes is something that runs through many of the songs here, which is perhaps fitting for a man who has been around the music industry for a long time but who has made an album that is a strong as anything he has done. The album closes with the hymn like Soul Of Man a song arranged by, though not written by, Keen which has a lovely vocal presence, with several voices in harmony and making a fitting and telling album closer. May the road go on and on.

Paladino Self-Release

This Los Angeles band is front by Jonathan Harkham who is the band lead vocalist and songwriter but is ably backed up by his fellow band members who deliver an energetic mix of country and the numerous influences that the players varied background bring to bear on the songs. The songs on the album are a mix of Harkham originals and covers. The covers included a starker Green Green Grass Of Home than many may be used to. Harkham is joined by other band members who back up his dead-pan vocals add range to the vocal array. Another classic song given the Paladino treatment is Have You Ever Been Lonely which has some melodic guitar to help it along. Here I Lie and Dim & Gutless JIg have a tempo and attitude that suggest a punk rock lineage somewhere along the way. This gives them a sound that may be a little rough edged for those more used to the polished fake-pearls of mainstream radio but will equally find them favour with others who like their country music in a rawer state. The album closed with Harlan Howard's Too Many Rivers To Cross and it sets a standard of simplicity and clarity in the writing that Harkham may have not yet achieved but for which he is no doubt reaching. In Paladino he has assembled a quartet of fellow players with whom he can explore the possibilities of the amalgam of such a traditional format melded with less traditional influences. The end result here is full of energy and exhilaration that makes their music something that many will find favour with and will, doubtless, return to. 

Tokyo Rosenthal 'Who Was That Man?' Rock & Socks

For his latest album this singer/songwriter has assembled and illustrious crew together who include Chris Stamey and Will Rigby on bass and drums respectively to back him. The opening title track has some appealing mariachi horns to bolster its question. Mention need to be made of the pedal steel of Allyn Love, the fiddle of Bobby Britt and Charlie Chamberlin's contribution. After that the songs run true with Rosenthal's world view and the album is dedicated to the wildlife affected by the BP oil spill in the Gulf showing pretty much where Rosenthal sees himself in the scheme of things. This is country/Americana storytelling, delivered with some passion and presence.  Your 3rd Score has an almost English folk rock feel while The Librarian returns south of the border again with the horns again adding punch. San Antone's fiddle and steel adding to this uptempo tale of not quittin' but facing up to the past to find a future. A theme also running through Fresh Start. An air of destruction stalks Ann Marie or so it would seem, for the lyrics are sometimes not always the easiest to decipher, but they succeed in being the central focus of these songs and their strong roots settings. All of which gives you the answer to the question that the title poses. That man, making the music real, is Tokyo Rosental and this latest album will please many who like their Americana with grit and grace. 

Ginger St. James Spank, Sparkle & Growl Self-Release

A powerful torch singer with a burlesque background and a sound that touches on blues, rockabilly, country and jazz. All elements that came together in the 50s (and earlier) to create rock 'n' roll and what we now call roots music. This self produced ep of 6 tracks, 5 written by St. James gives the world a chance to listen to this Canadian performer's dynamic delivery. With her band The Grinders she lays out a soild beat behind their singers force of nature naughtiness. Boom Boom Room is a raunchy riot of upfront love and licentiousness. There's plenty of YouTube evidence of her live libido but here her recorded renditions stand up too. Her vaudevillian vantage point may be taken from a different era but sounds right up to date and one cannot escape the similarity in her approach to that of Imelda May's own. They draw from similar sources and attitudes but each has their own audience and, no doubt, developed with awareness of the other but both have a sense of direction and devotion to their chosen path that makes them equally rewarding. Spank, Sparkle & Growl is the first step that will hopefully see St. James develop and expand on her elemental essence and bring it to a wider audience. 

Randy Travis 'Anniversary Celebration' Humphead/WB

One criticism that one often hears about todays bunch of country singers is that you just can't recognize them. So in that light I listened to this album, the first time, without reference to the credits to see just who stood out. It was true I couldn't identify that many other than a couple of standouts. A Few Ole Country Boys the second track in features Jamie Johnson who seems to have found his voice from the off. Others definitely benefit from singing with Randy Travis still powerful and distinctive voice but few overshadow his tempered voice and delivery. When I did look a couple of the duet partners names were new to me. Kristin Chenoweth is an actress and singer who joins Travis on Love Looks Good On You a song that is more Broadway than Bakersfield but delivered well. Better Class Of Losers/She Got The Rhythm is a nicely uptempo medley from Travis and Alan Jackson and highlights each distinctive stylings. Shelby Lynne gives a typically strong performance on Promises. One of the most powerful and affecting songs here is Road To Surrender a song that only makes sense when sung by people with years under their belt, its spiritual message is sung by Travis, Kris Kristofferson and Willie Nelson is as powerful as it gets. It's one of the more recent songs included in the collection and it's followed by a classic Diggin 'Up Bones with John Anderson who is another name from the past who is good to hear again. It's 25 years since Randy Travis magnificent Storms Of Life was a part of a wave of what was called New Traditionalists appeared (along with Steve Earle, Dwight Yoakam and Lyle Lovett) and many of these new younger vocalist owe as much to Travis, in their vocal nuances, as they do to earlier singers who influenced Randy Travis. Some of these earlier influences appear on Didn't We Shine and include George Jones, Ray Price, Connie Smith, Lorrie Morgan, Gene Watson and Joe Stampley all still vocally powerful. Produced by his long time producer Kyle Lehning it is a fitting tribute to Travis achievements and aptitude, and for sticking to a genre he clearly loves and has more to give to.

Rosi Golan 'Lead Ballon' Family

A well packaged, played, performed and produced album that crosses genres and styles with ease. A balance of folk, pop and light touches of Americana that makes Golan's music a very easy on the ear experience that is full of a playfullness and atmosphere that makes it ideal as a soundtrack, something borne out by the number of film and tv placements listed on the press release attest to. These include One Tree Hill, Private Practice and Brothers & Sisters. But here it's the music that counts and Golin flexible voice is married to a nuanced and textured production form Tony Berg that places her voice with a series of arranged musical settings that show off Golin's co-written songs to their best advantage. There are a large number of players listen and a wide range of instruments which include harmonium, banjo, pedal steel, strings, horns alongside bass, drums and guitars. All of which never overwhelm her vocal prowess. Those involved here include David Rawlings and Snow Patrol's Gary Lightbody. The twelve songs all fit well together to create an album that has much that will find favour with a wider audience that we would normally aim at here. But one can't diminish the attractiveness of songs like Seeing Ghosts or Flicker. Rosi Golan is one of those artists who could with a small adjustment here and there deliver her songs in a number of different genre settings but, here, offers a fairly broad-based platform for the listener to appreciate. Her co-writers include Iain Archer, himself an acclaimed artist, who joins her here on those songs. In the end, however, it is the songs, one's as striking as Can't Go Back, sung with Natalie Hemby one of it's co-writers that make their own statement and shows that with this, her second album, that Rosi Golan will not sink like a lead ballon but rather will float upwards and find her own level.

The Noise Revival 'Orchestra Songs Of Forgiveness' Self-Release

This Austin based band use some orchestral instrumentation to give them a unique sweeping sound that recalls a number of reference points without ever straying into a place where they lose their identity. The music here may not be classed as the kind we normally review but as the area of alt.country has expanded to the point where cello and violin are frequent elements in the music this is a step that is not that far from the path. The band are now are more manageable 8 piece where before they had numbered 13. The use a number of quests including vocalists Dana Falconberry and Danny Malone who join Orchestra leader and songwriter Nathan Felix and Heather Coleman to provide a layered vocal sound that is underscored by the melodic musical arrangements which give depth and texture to the overall sound. Though there are only 5 tracks they manage to convey a varied sound-scape that is memorable and persuasive.The title track has a ambient aura of Africa. Sapphire features some elegant playing from guest Warren Hood and Daniela Nunez's flute on a song that laments lost love. The music they make has been featured in film and has been performed live at a number of venues in Europe as well as in their home base of Austin they are adaptable and adventurous and considering the relative success of bands like Calexico and Alejandro Escovedo bring elements of a broader brush stroke in the mainstream the Noise Revival Orchestra could well do the same with some wider exposure foe their intelligent music.

Ciara Sidine 'Shadow Road Shining' Self-Release

Ciara Sidine is a singer/songwriter and unlike many people who write their own material she is an intriguing and gifted singer with a supple, wonderful voice. The album’s song are all Ciara’s own with the exception of opening track, the traditional Riding Home. This and the album’s closer, the acoustic Sleepy Eyes are produced by Ciara and guitarist Conor Byrne whose playing shines throughout the album. Otherwise production is well-handled by Martin Clancy.

The moods of the songs varies from the intense and atmospheric Mercy Moon through the more traditional Constellations High, a duet with Jack L to the nostalgic feel of The Arms of Summer. Ciara is exceptionally able to convey emotion and tension with her voice, while always remaining pitch perfect – something many singers simply cannot do.

Although it is a first album Shadow Road Shining is a fully developed mature work which is engaging, incredibly musical (there are a lot of albums out there that aren’t, believe me) and one which becomes better and better the more you listen.

My only reservations are with the running order, but this is totally personal. Ciara Sidine has made a really good album and I can only hope it is the first of many.

I Draw Slow 'Redhills' Self-Release

Sometimes I think there is a whole I Draw Slow world existing in a parallel universe. It is inhabited by rounders, bounders, charming outlaws and has a colourful history which includes, of course, the lady of the night with a gilded heart who features in Goldmine. By the by, the band have made a stunning video for Goldmine – take a look on YouTube and be delighted.

Fancy aside, I Draw Slow are one tight string band. Each member is a an integral part of the whole, so it would be unfair to single out any one as they all play superbly. Louise Holden’s sensual, insinuating voice takes most lead vocals and the harmony/duet singing with her is perfection.

The songs are all by Louise and brother/guitar player Dave excepting the gospel (Satan Your) Kingdom (Must Come Down) and the instrumental Buffalo Hunt and their songwriting has got even better. Their style is still their own – acoustic, rooted in string band, Americana with a wash of colour which comes from their being an Irish band. As well the album is a visual delight with Colin Derham’s cover art intriguing and mystifying the eye. 

Redhills is an album anyone would enjoy and the more you listen the more you not only like the music, the narratives of the songs and the profusion of moods they convey, the more you might be drawn into I Draw Slow’s uniques gorgeous world.

Carrie Rodriguez and Ben Kyle 'We Still Love Our Country' Ninth Street Opus

While she has made more interesting and inventive recordings this duet album, this is one that will undoubtably make its way onto my player more often, at least for the time being. This mini album of six covers and two originals is delivered in a classic way with fiddle and steel prominent. But like all the classic country duet albums it's the voices that make it so special. Although starting as a fiddle player Rodriguez found her voice when she played with Chip Taylor. Since then it has developed into a striking instrument as forceful as her fiddle playing. In Ben Kyle she has found a perfect foil vocally. The Romantica singer and Rodriguez combine their voices in a way that is every bit as powerful as the Gram and Emmylou or George and Tammy combinations were. The two songs Your Lonely Heart and Fire Alarm, especially the former fit well with the more well know songs. What also stands out is the ensemble playing which is done with a light touch that Nashville has long forgotten how to do. If I Needed You, My Baby's Gone, Unwed Fathers and Love Hurts are such great songs anyway that it may be hard to do a bad version but they, most certainly, don't. These versions stand up well even against the most renowned versions. Big Kiss is a Chip Taylor song and a nod to her mentor and how confident Rodriguez has become as a singer.  But that's not to underestimate Kyle equally important contribution. The duo co-produced the album with Lee Townsend who produced Love and Circumstance. One can only hope that they will, at some point, carry the partnership on. Rodriguez's next album will be original songs so we will have to wait and see how that turns out. This, as the album title states, is about a love of genuine country music that she (they) would have heard growing up. It's hard not to love this album if you are captivated by passionate vocals, great songwriting and perceptive playing.

Rita Hosking 'Burn' Self-Released

Americana music that combines elements of folk storytelling and country music instrumentation. For her fourth solo album Hosking continues from where her last acclaimed album left off. Using producer Rich Brotherton again with several members of Robert Earl Keane's band that includes Marty Muse on steel and Glen Fukunaga on bass alongside members of her own band ensures that the musical bedrock is top notch and these guys know how to support a song. Hosking also knows how to write a good song. She draws us into the lives of ordinary people and their, maybe, not-so-ordinary life and times. There are the fisherman and people who had to contend with the oil spill in the Gulf Of Mexico (Ballad For The Gulf Of Mexico), the woman who throughout her live has had to deal with Dishes, as a metaphor for life (Dishes). Elsewhere there are miners, demolition derby drivers, departed lovers and Indian givers. Then there's Hosking's striking voice that has been mention alongside those of Gillian Welch and Emmylou Harris and without wishing to burden here with such comparisons it would be fair to say that it does fall somewhere between the two. Hosking also plays with a more bluegrass orientated trio Cousin Jack but here the sound is more amped with electric guitar bass and drums. While many of the songs are delivered with a more acoustic and sparse lilt the band can get a little more loud when required as on My Golden Bull, a song with some religious references to real love which builds from its voice and guitar intro to something more powerful and menacing, wherein the guitar and banjo intertwine. How Many Fires builds up that sense of tension again from a simple start to something more powerful and driven. Rita Hosking has an understanding of human nature which she conveys with her songs and voice. She burns with a controlled intensity that makes this well-packaged album something special. 

Ernest Troost 'Live At McCabes' Travelin' Shoes

As the title suggest this is a live recording of this Kerrville Folk Festival winner. He is therefore foremost a songwriter and the fifteen songs here are from his pen. The album opens with three songs that feature his guitar and voice solo, which are both well capable of giving these song life and breath. He is an accomplished guitarist and has written numerous film sores as well as acting as a producer for Judy Collins. For By And By he brings out harmony singer Nicole Gordon to add to the vocal power for his literate and likable songs. Switchblade Heart is one of the songs that won him the Kerrville award while Bitter Wind tells of drug addiction. As a writer Troost would fit well with the Texas troubadour tradition.his song bring to live the characters he writes about. Each of the song is introduced and gives some explanation of their why and wherefores. Nicole Gordon sings lead on the work song This Field, as she does on Doubtin' Blues. Having brought bassist Mark Goldberg to the stage for several songs he expands the line up for the remainder of the set with Debra Dobkin on drums and Dave Fraser on harmonica. This again underscores the blues roots of the songs that without ever becoming pure blues stand at a crossroads of folk, blues and country blues. All genres where storytelling is a key function of the writing. The Last Lullaby is a heartfelt and affecting lament for friends who have passed on, Fraser's accordion adding to the atmosphere. "Real music got a mind of it of it's own" is the theme for the truth told in Real Music. His love of Piedmont blues is expressed in the afore mentioned Disturbin' Blues. He closes the set with The Last To Leave though those who were there and anyone who hears this album won't want to leave Troost's music behind. Discerning fans of lasting songwriting and real music should head to Troost's songs, he will take you on a journey in his travelin' shoes. 

Anna Coogan 'The Wasted Ocean' Self-Released

This album draws from Coogan's past experience as a fisheries biologist and as a kayaker on the whitewaters of New  England. This is evident also in the cover design and from her sleeve note. But what concerns us here is the music which has Coogan soft voice at it's centre along with her songs, some of which pick up on the sea theme. The Sons Will Join Their Fathers and follow them to sea where the salt in their veins is a strong pull. Love Without Strings alludes to distance and belief. Life In A Peaceful World showcases Coogan's distinctive high-register voice and the simple ensemble playing of the band led by producer Evan Brubaker. The music is a mix of folk and indie rock with subtle textures of banjo, mandolin, dobro, viola, violin and Hammond organ. Very much the tools of the roots music trade these days. Water, wind and waves with movement and the parting of people are themes woven into the tapestry of these songs. To the point where in A Little Less Each Day that the subject misses their love in that way. Many of these songs are plaintive and full of longing. Come Ashore, Love feel like an age old song but its timelessness is what makes it special. One of the few outside songs is Phil Ochs' The Crucifixion given an extended pure-voiced reading that makes it sit easily alongside her own songs. The Wasted Ocean is full of the tides that rule many lives and is to be applauded for the way that Coogan has been able to use the overall concept as the heart of these songs and in her individual, fragile voice.

Blame Sally 'Speeding Ticket And A Valentine' Ninth Street Opus

This San Francisco quartet come from diverse musical backgrounds, something that allows the band a wide scope for their collective efforts. They have found common ground and present a united front, but one that allows various members to contribute songs and lead vocals to the album. Musically they offer a diverse range of styles all delivered with skill, as all four form the core of the band playing a host of instruments between them and bringing in guests to cover the rest - bass guitar being one. Bird In The Hand opens their account with an immediately attractive song delivered with a light touch of harmony and twanging guitar. Next up Big Big Bed has a more claustrophobic sound later Mona Lisa With A Smile has a lighter touch that is airy and almost jazzy. Contrasting that the Spanish/English ensemble vocals of Pajaros Sin Alas, laced with accordion, suggest a heat and passion. Something that carries through the other songs were there is a maturity to the songwriters that suggest this quartet have gone through a fair amount of life's trials to get to where they are right now. Back In The Saddle is a collective effort in terms of writing by all four - Monica Pasqual, Jane Selkye, Rénee Harcourt and Jeri Jones - a song about picking up the pieces and getting on with life. The uptempo Countdown has a strong keyboard base for some strong vocal interplay to hit home. Wide Open Spaces lives up to its title with Hammond B3 to the fore and another strong vocal interaction. Take Me There is more reflective and closes an album that leaves you in no doubt about the individual and collective talents of Blame Sally. The only question is their diversity something that may confuse. It's hard to say, as the variety in the different vocalist and musical styles is very much a part of who they are and may be part of the oxymoron that the title suggests. The best way is to go and check their music out yourselves.