Helen Jones

For the Sake of the Song: Jason Isbell “The Life You Chose”

April 15, 2024 Helen Jones 4

Trying to choose a favourite out of the almost faultless catalogue of songs Jason Isbell has put out feels like a daunting, nigh impossible, task, but it dawned on me just recently as I was enjoying […]

Shane Smith & The Saints “Norther”

April 8, 2024 Helen Jones 0

With their fourth album, the band mark themselves out as someone who can provide music with not only grit, but also real heart. Globally, 2020 may have been the year that felt to most like they […]

Classic Clips: Neil Young “A Man Needs a Maid” – Live at the BBC, 1971

April 8, 2024 Helen Jones 3

I first became enchanted by ‘A Man Needs A Maid’ when I heard a version of it on the 2007 Neil Young covers album ‘Borrowed Tunes II’. It’s a song of heartbreaking feeling as Young wrestles […]

The Dust-Ups “The Dust-Ups”

March 21, 2024 Helen Jones 0

A lively debut that offers both fun and great traditional musicianship. “I did time in Guatemala, was a king in Peru / Everywhere I went I was loving you,” sings Dust-Ups frontman Ryan Chatelain on ‘Only […]

Brittney Spencer “My Stupid Life”

February 29, 2024 Helen Jones 0

Smooth vocals and slick production make for a light and easily palatable record that still offers a good level of nutrition. Brittney Spencer first came to many people’s attention when she posted a cover of The […]

Promo photo for Jack Barksdale EP "Battleground"

AUK’s Monthly EP Round-Up – September 2026

September 23, 2026 1

It’s September already, and with it the first signs of Autumn’s “season of mists and mellow fruitfulness”, inviting us to bid a fond farewell to another year of outdoor festivals culminating in last weekend’s ‘Long Road’ at […]

Artwork for Lisa Bouchelle album "Vandals Thieves and Lovers"

Lisa Bouchelle “Vandals, Thieves and Lovers”

September 23, 2026 0

Classy vocals from Lisa Bouchelle are front and centre of a fine country soul collection, featuring Amanda Shires, with some unexpected twists. It’s always a pleasure as a reviewer to discover a new top vocalist – […]

Album art for Mac Cornish album "Wayfaring Woman"

Mac Cornish “Wayfaring Woman”

September 23, 2026 0

Californian singer reminds you of the days when country music was country music, and that’s no bad thing. Mac Cornish grew up on the eastern slopes of the Santa Cruz mountains in northern California, where she […]

Behind the Songs

Behind the Songs: Maya de Vitry – “All My Faith”

September 15, 2026 0

Behind the Songs: Maya de Vitry – “All My Faith”If you arrive at All My Faith looking for something that sounds like Gillian Welch, you might find your thirst briefly satiated by No Time to Rush, the final […]

Interviews

Interview: Adam Chaffins on what is great about flea markets, dive bars and trailer trash

August 28, 2026 1

As one of the most resourceful songwriters in americana, Adam Chaffins welcomes you to the latest from his wacky, witty world in Trailer Trash: Doublewide (Spirit Nashville Recordings, 2026), a collection of narratives about schemers, dive […]

Interviews

Video Interview: Richard Olson of the Hanging Stars and Tim Prottey-Johns of the First Time Flyers on the Long Road Festival

August 26, 2026 0

Why musicians love the Long Road Festival. In preparation for Americana UK’s David Jarman‘s preview of the Long Road Festival, he interviewed Richard Olson of the Hanging Stars and Tim Prottey-Jones of the First Time Flyers. […]

Tracks

Track Premiere: Louise Bichan “The Standing Stones”

September 14, 2026 0

Standing Stones – enigmatic traces of the long past dwellers in these lands. People with their own culture, their own way of looking at the world – and even though they are long gone these remaining […]

Videos

Video: Oxygenpony “Twenty One”

May 4, 2020 0

Paul Megna, formerly of the band Oxygen Ponies, is now performing under the Oxygenpony moniker. ‘Twenty One’ is the atmospheric, first single from ‘How Aeroplanes Fly’, the debut album with the new project. The dreamy song […]

Album Reviews

John Hinshelwood “Called Back (The Poems of Emily Dickinson)”

July 16, 2021 0

The poems of Emily Dickinson find fine musical accompaniment in the hands of John Hinshelwood and his musical collaborators. Setting the words of poems to music can be challenging–while bespoke lyrics may often be poetic, many […]

Articles by Helen Jones