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Margo Price has announced the surprise release of a new live album, ‘Perfectly Imperfect at The Ryman’. Out today exclusively on Bandcamp, all proceeds benefit the MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund, and while Margo has been working on putting the energy of those gigs back out into the world ever since they happened, she couldn’t wait any longer. Continue reading “Margo Price releases new live album featuring Emmylou and Sturgill”
Will I be listening to this top ten in ten years? For the most part, probably. Most of the selections have stood my test of time for a good twenty or thirty years and I don’t think the newer additions are going anyplace soon. How do I know these are my top ten? I wouldn’t begin to defend them through any other reason than that they are my choice of listening when seeking connection to something deeper or more profound than is offered in our quotidian existence. Judge for yourself whether they are worthy of your time: Continue reading “A top ten of classic Americana albums”
In these trying times we can think of nothing better here at AUK than knocking out Top Ten’s of this, that and the other. Indeed every man and his wife (or every wife and her husband or every wife and her wife or every husband and his husband or… let’s just say everyone and their significant other) seems to be on the case. Continue reading “The top ten Americana duets”
Earth’s nearest neighbour has provided much inspiration to songwriters from all musical genres and Americana is no exception. The moon has been used as a metaphor for the impossible, the unattainable as well as providing a romantic backdrop for Americana songs. It is also perhaps no accident that the illicitly produced spirit Moonshine and respective bootlegging activities have given a rich seam of material for Americana artists keen to express the human spirit of defiance and rebellion. Continue reading “Top ten Americana songs influenced by the moon and moonshine”
It’s time, folks, for another instalment of our feature in which the writers of AUK attempt to put into words their personal reflections of what our genre is and why they love it so much. This time Richard Phillips, lover of cheap records and twelve-string guitars tells us where it’s at musically speaking. Continue reading ““What Is This Americana Thing Anyway…?” – Richard Phillips”
There was a time when the free CDs glued to the front of magazines were something other than a revenue stream for the publishers, and every so often a reminder of the glory days pops up. Back in September 1998 Uncut Magazine came with a CD called ‘Sounds of The New West‘. It was designed to accompany an article introducing New Country/Alt. Country/Americana to those scared of the word Country. What you got was a cracking compilation that should have sent you off to investigate the rest of the genre, whatever you wanted to call it. Now fully 19 years and change later we have volume five. The series of CDs makes for a good study in how tastes in Americana have shifted over the last couple of decades. Continue reading “Classic Americana Compilations – Sounds to remember”
As a renowned singer, songwriter and musician, Emmylou Harris will no doubt need little or no introduction. Harris is, without doubt, one of the all-time greats. Her contribution to music over the years is summed up magnificently in the notes accompanying her 2005 compilation album ‘The Very Best of Emmylou Harris: Heartaches and Highways’ as “a cornerstone of the country-rock genre, who led country music back to its roots, who was a trailblazer for female musical collaborations, who prefigured the resurgence of bluegrass, and who became a key artist of the Americana movement”. Continue reading “AmericanA to Z – Emmylou Harris”
During 2019 Emmylou Harris, Jackson Browne and Steve Earle embarked on “The Lantern Tour” which raised money for the Women’s Refugee Commission in the US. They’ve now announced some new dates for the rest of 2019 and 2020 which will feature Harris, Browne and Earle again along with Patty Griffin, The Mastersons, Thao Nguyen, and David Pulkingham. Continue reading “Emmylou Harris, Steve Earle and Jackson Browne to tour another refugee benefit concert”
We leave you this wet weekend dear reader with something fairly special. Earlier this week Brandi Carlile played a headlining show in her home state of Washington called ‘Echoes Through the Canyon’ which included performances by support acts Neko Case and Emmylou Harris who Carlile had picked herself. The latter performed a version of Sarah McLachlan’s classic from 1998 with Carlile itself which it’s fair to say is up there with the original. Have a good one.
For the last few weeks, we’ve been covering the forthcoming Guy Clark covers album which Steve Earle and his Dukes will be releasing at the end of this month, and today we come to Clark’s 1988 album ‘Old Friends’, for which he enlisted a veritable feast of musician friends including Rosanne Cash, Vince Gill, Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell. The latter two appear on Earle’s new version of the album’s title track, which RS describes as “a solemn prayer, with Harris harmonizing with Earle on the opening verse… Crowell, Jerry Jeff Walker, Terry Allen and Jo Harvey Allen also join in here, offering various spoken-word lines that underscore the timeless camaraderie of the songwriters.” ‘Guy’ is out March 29th.