BBC Radio 2’s Bob Harris has always been a great friend to us here at AUK and so we’re delighted he’s currently celebrating the impressive milestone of 50 years in broadcasting this year by announcing a new charity single of his favourite song ‘Stand By Me’, with proceeds going to the UK organisation Help Musicians which has been around even longer than Bob has and provided vital support to thousands of music creators during the pandemic. Continue reading “Bob Harris organises new charity single in October”
Given the way in in which people typically consume music nowadays, all too often the lyrics are sidelined, if not completely overlooked. But great lyrics are often what make the best songs truly memorable. The following is the first in an occasional series about songs with great lyrics. Mark Underwood explains what makes the following 10 tracks so special. 
The final flourish of the Americana Music Association UK (AMAUK) music festival is the Awards night, held in the luxurious surroundings of the Hackney Empire. Unsurprisingly the evening follows a fairly typical award ceremony format, a master of ceremonies, guest presenters to read out the nominees and the actual winner in categories such as “Best Song“, an acceptance speech and then, between awards, a musical spot featuring those nominated somewhere in the evening. This does mean that there’s plenty of music – it’d be a bit odd after all if there wasn’t – but everyone gets just the one song. The full list of award winners can be found 
News in from the AMA overnight (the US version) of their list of nominees for their honours and awards for 2018, and there’s good news for Mr Isbell, Margo Price and Brandi Carlile among others – in fact the lists are dominated by the 3 artists, although they are also joined by Mary Gauthier for her excellent “Rifles & Rosary Beads” record, nominated for album of the Year), John Prine (nominated for Artist of the Year), and Lee Ann Womack (nominated for Song of the Year). 
Mary Gauthier wrote this record with US Army veterans as part of a program to help those affected by their experiences of war – with those for whom wars do not stop when they come home, those for whom the scars and the horrors endure. These honest raw songs push right into the dark hearts of these veterans, the problems that war brings and the wars they continue to fight once they get home, also giving a voice to the wives and partners who also serve but are unrecognised, those who deal with their broken loved ones. There’s a line from the opener Soldiering On, which sums up the record: ‘what saves you in the battle can kill you at home’. The song drives this home with slabs of drums, guitars and strings, teetering on the ugly as befits the subject matter. These aren’t simple issues and Gauthier never treats them as such; this is a nuanced stripping bare of the problems faced by veterans.