10291 - FREDDY JONES BAND - NEVER CHANGE (2015)

FREDDY JONES BAND
''NEVER CHANGE''
2015
44:51

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1 Never Change (Wayne Healy, Marty Lloyd) 04:40
2 Dreamin' Away (Wayne Healy, Marty Lloyd) 04:06
3 Those Diamonds (Marty Lloyd) 04:10
4 Nothing Can Replace (Daniel Tashian) 03:37
5 We Got Shine (Wayne Healy, Marty Lloyd) 04:20
6 I Don't Miss You When I'm Sleeping (Wayne Healy, Marty Lloyd) 03:53
7 Look My Way (Wayne Healy, Marty Lloyd) 03:39
8 Kerosene (Wayne Healy, Marty Lloyd) 04:31
9 All That You Need (Wayne Healy, Marty Lloyd) 03:37
10 Get On (Wayne Healy, Marty Lloyd) 04:15
11 One More Song (Marty Lloyd) 03:58

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Jim Bonaccorsi/Bass Guitar
Rob Bonaccorsi/Guitar (Electric), Mandolin
Tom Bukovac/Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric)
Stuart Duncan/Fiddle
Wayne Healy/Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Vocals, Vocals (Background)
Wes Hightower/Vocals (Background)
Simon Horrocks/Drums, Percussion
Jedd Hughes/Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Mandolin
Charlie Judge/Keyboards
Tim Lauer/Keyboards
Marty Lloyd/Banjo, Guitar (Acoustic), Vocals, Vocals (Background)
Matt Moon/Guitar (Acoustic), Mandolin, Vocals (Background), Weissenborn
Justin Niebank/Guitar (Electric), Keyboards
Michael Rhodes/Bass (Acoustic), Bass (Electric)
Derek Wells/Guitar (Electric)
Nir Z./Drums, Percussion

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BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Richard Skelly
The Freddy Jones Band are roots-rock specialists in the tradition of groups like Little Feat, the Dave Matthews Band and the Allman Brothers Band. Having grown up in Chicago, the group has no particular aversion to blues, and much of their sound could be described as solid blues rock.

North Avenue Wake Up Call
The group's third album for Nashville-based Capricorn Records, North Ave. Wake-Up Call, is about their experiences on the road, criss-crossing the country in their van, supporting their two earlier releases for Capricorn, Waiting for the Night, (1993) and their self-titled debut, The Freddy Jones Band (1993), a repackaged version of the group's independently released album. Lucid followed in 1997, and two years later they returned with Mile High Live.

The group consists of Marty Lloyd, vocals and acoustic guitar, Wayne Healy, vocals and guitar, Jim Bonaccorsi, bass, Ron Bonaccorsi, guitar and vocals, and Simon Horrocks, drums. While most of the songs on North Ave. Wake-Up Call focus on the band's experiences on the road, some songs on their earlier releases explore the more traditional love won and lost themes.

The band's sound at times is reminiscent of the Allman Brothers, and they have a unique two guitar sound that is augmented by some inspired slide playing and pumping Hammond organ, furthering the comparison.

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BIO/WIKIPEDIA

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10290 - MIKE FLANIGIN - THE DRIFTER (2015)

MIKE FLANIGIN
''THE DRIFTER''
AUGUST 21 2015
35:10

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1 The Devil Beats His Wife 04:53
2 Fit To Be Tied (Feat. Alejandro Escovedo) 03:10
3 The Drifter (Feat. Billy Gibbons) 06:34
4 All Nite Long (Feat. Jimmie Vaughan) 03:29
5 From The Dust (Feat. Stephen Barber & Tosca) 01:14
6 Nina (Feat Kat Edmonson) 03:18
7 Stop The World (Feat. Gary Clark Jr) 04:23
8 Tryin' To Make Mywy Back Home (Feat. Rev. Gaen West) 05:16
9 One Little Heart (Feat. Kat Edmonson) 02:07
10 This Life 00:43

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Ames Asbell/Viola
Stephen Barber/Arranger, Horn Arrangements, Orchestra
Dave Biller/Pedal Steel Guitar
Brady Blade/Shouts, Tambourine
Clem Burke/Drums
Gary Clark, Jr./Featured Artist, Guitar, Vocals
Dominique Davalos/Bass Guitar, Vocals
Kat Edmonson/Featured Artist, Vocals
Alejandro Escovedo/Featured Artist, Guitar, Vocals
Mike Flanigin/Guitar, Organ (Hammond), Strings, Vocals, Wurlitzer Piano
Larry Fulcher/Bass Guitar
Billy Gibbons/Guitar, Vocals
Jake Langley/Guitar
Chris Lovejoy/Congas
Leigh Mahoney/Violin
Bob Malach/Clarinet (Bass), Horn Arrangements, Sax (Tenor)
Chris Maresh/Bass Guitar
Sara Nelson/Cello
Derek O'Brien/Guitar (Rhythm)
George Rains/Drums
The Relatives/Vocals (Background)
Tracy Seeger/Violin
Barry "Frosty" Smith/Drums
Kyle Thompson/Drums
Jimmie Vaughan/Featured Artist, Guitar, Vocals
Reverend Gean West/Featured Artist, Vocals

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WEBSITE

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10289 - MANU DIBANGO - DELUXE COLLECTION GRAND MASTERS (2015)

MANU DIBANGO
''DELUXE COLLECTION GRANDMASTERS''
2015
59:21

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1 Wakafrika 04:47
2 Biko 05:13
3 Pata Pata 04:04
4 Soul Makossa 03:30
5 Hi-Life 05:43
6 Wimoweh 04:20
7 Ami Oh! 04:42
8 Diarabi 04:59
9 Lady 05:30
10 Cry Me a River 04:40
11 Funny Valentine 04:10
12 Summertime 04:14
13 All of Me 03:23

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BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Leon Jackson
Dibango is Cameroon's, and perhaps Africa's, best-known jazz saxophonist. Starting in the 1950s, he became a globe-trotting musician, living and performing in France, Belgium, Jamaica, Zaire, and Cote d'Ivoire, as well as in Cameroon. In 1960, Dibango was one of the founding members of the Zairean band African Jazz, with whom he spent five years. World attention came to Dibango with the release in 1972 of Soul Makossa, a work that actually had precious little of the makossa sound in it, and scored later hits with Seventies and Ibida. Dibango's output has been prodigious and multi-faceted. He has worked with musicians as diverse as Fela Kuti, Sly Dunbar, Robbie Shakespeare, Don Cherry, and the Fania All-Stars. In addition to being one of the leading jazz saxophonists of his generation, Dibango has also run nightclubs, directed orchestras, and started one of the first African musical journals. A later release, Polysonik -- featuring English rapper MC Mello, Cameroonian singer Charlotte M'Bango leading a choral section, and sampled pygmy flutes -- shows that Dibango is continuing to flourish and expand in challenging new directions.

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BOP/WIKIPEDIA

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10288 - LUCERO - ALL A MAN SHOULD DO (2015)

LUCERO
''ALL A MAN SHOULD DO''
SEPTEMBER 18 2015
42:40

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1 Baby Don't You Want Me 05:02
2 Went Looking For Warren Zevon's Los Angeles 04:29
3 The Man I Was 04:28
4 Can't You Hear Them Howl 03:54
5 I Woke Up In New Orleans 05:10
6 Throwback No. 2 04:15
7 They Called Her Killer 03:31
8 Young Outlaws 04:04
9 I'm In Love With A Girl (Alex Chilton) 02:25
10 My Girl & Me In '93 05:18
Tracks By Ben Nichols, Except 9

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Jon Auer/Vocals (Background)
Randy Ballard/Flugelhorn, Trumpet
Roy Berry/Drums
Ben Nichols/Guitar (Acoustic), Vocals
Sharese Norman/Vocals (Background)
Shontelle Norman/Vocals (Background)
Jim Spake/Saxophone
Rick Steff/Accordion, Organ (Hammond), Piano, Wurlitzer Piano
Jody Stephens/Vocals (Background)
Ken Stringfellow/Vocals (Background)
John C. Stubblefield/Bass Guitar
Brian Venable/Guitar (Electric)

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ABOUT THE ALBUM
Jeremy Winograd, www.slantmagazine.com
Nashville is such a musical mecca that it's easy to forget the city lying about 200 miles west not only has better BBQ, but is home to one of the richest musical legacies of the 20th century. From W.C. Handy to Big Star to Three 6 Mafia, Memphis has birthed some of the most important artists in the history of pop music. If there's a single band doing its best to carry the torch and embody (almost) all of those strains of Memphis music today, it's Lucero. Over the better part of two decades, they've excelled at everything from tear-in-your-beer twang to straight-up Memphis soul, a range made cohesive by frontman Ben Nichols's whiskey-soaked rasp and hard-drinking-ramblin'-man vulnerability. And on their eighth album, All a Man Should Do, they encapsulate a broader purview of Memphis's influence, and their own stylistic capabilities as a band, than ever before.

The album includes a cover of Memphis power-pop band Big Star's classic “I'm In Love with a Girl” (the album's title comes from a lyric in the song), and Lucero recruited the band's drummer, Jody Stephens, to sing backing vocals to boot. Lucero's full-band arrangement nicely fills in the gaps of the acoustic original, even if Nichols's vocals, pitched an octave lower than Alex Chilton's high wail, don't quite measure up. There's a poppier underpinning to many of these songs, expressed through electric keyboards and unexpectedly hummable vocal melodies, to songs like “They Called Her Killer” and especially lead single “Went Looking for Warren Zevon's Los Angeles,” on which Nichols's double-tracked vocal hook, rueful-sounding though it may be, proves to be possibly his catchiest earworm to date.

But these forays into greater melodicism don't come at the expense of Lucero's identity as heavily tattooed brawlers and balladeers. All a Man Should Do retains the big-band Memphis-soul instrumentation that defined their last two albums, namely a horn section and Rick Steff's honky tonk piano, while at times returning to a style of songwriting guitarist Brian Venable calls “cowboy emo.” For a band that, for the last few years, has seemingly taken great pains to transcend their alt-country roots, it's a bit surprising to find that the new album begins with a song (“Baby Don't You Want Me”) that would have fit comfortably on 2002's Tennessee. The band successfully melds its past and present, maintaining an emotional pathos without sacrificing the musicality that's come to define much of their recent work. The renewed preponderance of slow, sad songs may mean that much of the album lacks the high-watt adrenaline of their last couple of efforts, but the downbeat style suits Nichols's lyrics, which are particularly vulnerable this time around. Years of singing about women who broke his heart and drinking the pain away seem to be taking their toll. “It's too late to change the path I chose,” Nichols croons mournfully on the quavering “I Woke Up in New Orleans.”

On the album's second half, however, Nichols quits wallowing in regret and elects to do something about it. Midway through the album's most soul-influenced song, “Throwback No. 2,” the track becomes more upbeat and Nichols begins entreating a girl to marry him. Complete with pounding Wurlitzer and a fantastic, emotive sax solo by longtime Memphis session man Jim Spake, this section of the song is one of the album's most musically exhilarating passages. And considering the way Nichols usually sings about girls, his pleas are almost as shocking as it would be to hear James Taylor unleash a violent torrent of gangsta rap. Even on an album full of obvious nods to music of the past, Lucero manages to surprise.

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REVIEW/AMG
Mark Deming
Sometimes a man wants to rock out, and other times he wants to sit back with a beer and think about where life has been leading him. Lucero are clearly in the latter mood on All a Man Should Do, which is the most subdued and contemplative album the Memphis-based band has delivered in some time. The songs and the performances are no less passionate than Lucero has ever been, but while this band usually hits like a Dixie-fried fusion of Bruce Springsteen and the Replacements, All a Man Should Do is an album about reflection and even remorse, pondering love that's gone wrong ("They Called Her Killer," "Baby, Don't You Want Me") and places and people that are no longer what they used to be ("Went Looking for Warren Zevon's Los Angeles," "Woke Up in New Orleans"), and the introspective middle-of-the-night feel of these sessions rings as true as the band's most rollicking material. The raspy twang of Ben Nichols' voice never sounds anything less than honest, especially on this material, and Rick Steff's piano and keyboards take a larger place in the arrangements here, with his emphatically placed notes adding just the right high lonesome accent. And if this doesn't always sound like full-on rock & roll, the muscular R&B groove of "Throwback No. 2" and the distant thunder of "Can't You Hear Them Howl" are on hand to remind us these guys haven't gone soft. (They also manage that rare feat of covering Big Star and finding something new in the song with their version of "I'm in Love with a Girl," which features backing vocals from founding Big Star member Jody Stephens.) Saying All a Man Should Do is a more mature effort from Lucero sells short the street smarts and emotional wisdom of their previous work, but this album does find the fine band reaching for something different, and they hit their target with skill, assurance, and clarity.

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BIOGRAPHY/AMG
David Jeffries
Tennessee
Adding a Southern flavor to their love of the indie folk-pop of Ida, Memphis alt-country rockers Lucero have suffered the turbulence that comes with the indie scene, but their story of perseverance and survival is triumphant, so much so that director Aaron Goldman made a film about it. Formed by leader Ben Nichols in the late '90s, Lucero took their name from the Spanish word meaning "bright star." After releasing a single on the Landmark label, Lucero -- rounded out by drummer Roy Berry, bassist John C. Stubblefield, guitarist Brian Venable, and keyboard man Rick Steff -- signed with the alternative country label Madjack for their 2001 self-titled debut. Momentum started to build with their 2002 release, Tennessee. With critics picking up on their rock and Replacements edge, a decision was made to sign with the more diverse label Tiger Style. The 2003 release That Much Further West earned them positive reviews and a spot on Rolling Stone's Hot List. Things seemed to be going well, but as the album was catching indie fire, Tiger Style announced they were closing shop.

Nobody's Darlings
The band formed its own label, Liberty & Lament, through a deal with East West and worked on its next album with famed musician/producer Jim Dickinson. Released in spring of 2005, Nobody's Darlings featured the most Southern-fried sounds from the band yet. Mixing archival footage along with footage shot during the recording of the album, Goldman premiered his Lucero documentary Dreaming in America in September of 2005. A month later the film was released on DVD and CD/DVD featuring 13 rare live bonus tracks. The out of print effort The Attic Tapes (originally released prior to their 2001 Madjack debut) was reissued in April 2006 with bonus early demo and rare 7" tracks, which preceded the release of Lucero's next studio effort, September's Rebels, Rogues & Sworn Brothers. Supporting tour dates through the fall followed with openers Rocky Votolato and William Elliott Whitmore. The year 2009 saw the release of Nichols' solo EP The Last Pale Light in the West along with the band's album 1372 Overton Park. Lucero spent the remainder of the year on tour in support of the album.

Women & Work
Lucero remained busy touring in 2010 and 2011. Although they didn't record, they played festivals ranging from SXSW to Coachella to the Van's Warped Tour (Nichols played some solo shows as well). Toward year's end, they reentered the studio to begin Women & Work, their debut offering for ATO Records. Produced by Ted Hutt and featuring a full horn section -- as well as guest vocals from Amy LaVere -- the album was released in March of 2012 and followed by an American tour. In November 2013, Lucero played a three-night stand in Atlanta; the show was recorded with an eye toward officially documenting the group's powerful live show. The two-plus-hour Live from Atlanta followed in August 2014, issued by Liberty & Lament in partnership with Ingrooves. In 2015, Lucero released their tenth studio effort, All a Man Should Do, which included Big Star's Jody Stephens on a cover of the iconic pop band's song "I'm in Love with a Girl."

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WEBSITE

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10287 - AUSTIN PLAINE (2015)

AUSTIN PLAINE
''AUSTIN PLAINE''
SEPTEMBER 11 2015
37:41

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1 Never Come Back Again 03:16
2 Hard Days 03:11
3 Your Love 02:57
4 The Other Side of Town 03:07
5 Houston 03:20
6 Only Human 03:11
7 Reckoning Plan 03:49
8 The Cost 03:19
9 Wait 04:01
10 The Hell If I Go Home 03:44
11 Beautiful 03:41

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REVIEW
Timothy Monger
A deep sense of wanderlust imbues the self-titled debut by indie folk singer/songwriter Austin Plaine. A native of Minneapolis, the young bard takes cues from veteran Midwestern ramblers like Conor Oberst and Minnesota's favorite son, Bob Dylan, framing them within a modern folk-pop framework. A sojourn to Nashville in 2013 connected him with WeVolve Music, an artist development firm, among other things, and they helped usher his early efforts into what would eventually become this 11-song LP. Wide-eyed and earnest, Plaine uses the musical and emotional palette of the Mumford generation to tell his tales of the vagabond life and the roads taken to achieve it. Soaring harmonic choruses are hoisted atop boot-stomping strummers that feature banjo, mandolin, and piano churning together in exultant rhythms. Overall, it's a pleasant and hopeful sound, if a familiar one. Driving tales of love and inspiration like "Wait" and "Beautiful" are effective enough, but on tracks like "Hard Days" and "Houston," Plaine's tales of downtrodden Americana grit just don't feel lived-in enough to be believable. Like many on the pop end of the early-2010s indie folk movement, he uses folk as a starting point, but his acoustic toolbox is frosted with a smattering of digital effects and the type of robust sonic grandeur that will help him get played on the radio. Prior to the album's release, Plaine's big-hearted mandolin anthem "Your Love," complete with a thumping bass drum and distant Lumineers-inspired "hey" shouted rhythmically in the background, actually received a choice placement in a MasterCard commercial. While this type of innocuous contemporary fare may earn him his 15 minutes, a lasting career is built on deeper stuff. While he shows flashes of craft on his debut, Plaine may need to travel farther than Nashville to acquire the kind of hard-won world-weariness he seems to be striving for.

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BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Timothy Monger
Minneapolis native Austin Plaine writes country-tinged folk-pop, taking inspiration from artists like Ryan Adams, Elliott Smith, and fellow Midwesterners Bob Dylan and Bright Eyes. After heading to Nashville in 2013, he began working on the songs that would eventually become his self-titled debut album. Originally released through a Noisetrade campaign, his visibility increased when one of his songs was placed in a Mastercard commercial. Plaine soon signed with Razor & Tie imprint Washington Square, who gave his debut a proper release in 2015.

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10286 - RUDY JACKMAN - BREAKING CHAINS THE JOURNEY (2013)

RUDY JACKMAN
''BREAKING CHAINS THE JOURNEY''
SEPTEMBER 15 2015
58:27

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1 What'd Did I Do Wrong (Allen Toussaint's) 03:30
2 Black Widow Woman 04:49
3 Jealous Kind (Bobby Charles) 05:11
4 Nine To Five 03:45
5 Misty Love 04:38
6 Juliet 05:19
7 Rebel Whithin (Acoustic) 05:28
8 Morning Melodies 05:41
9 Steal Away (Breaking Chains) 04:55
10 Say Hello 04:18
11 Stormy Affair 04:58
12 Rebel Whitin 05:48
Tracks By Rudy Jackman, Except 1, 3

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WEBSITE

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10285 - MONKEYJUNK - MOON TURN RED (2015)

MONKEYJUNK
''MOON TURN RED
SEPTEMBER 25 2015
42:37

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1 Light It Up (Tony Diteodoro, Ken Friesen, Steve Marriner, Paul Reddick, Matt Sobb) 03:33
2 You (Tony Diteodoro, Steve Marriner, Paul Reddick, Matt Sobb) 03:44
3 Show Me Yours (Tony Diteodoro, Steve Marriner, Matt Sobb) 04:05
4 Hot Hot Papa (David Wilcox) 04:35
5 Love Attack (Tony Diteodoro, Steve Marriner, Matt Sobb) 04:28
6 Live Another Day (Tony Diteodoro, Steve Marriner, Matt Sobb) 04:58
7 Learn How To Love (Tony Diteodoro, Steve Marriner, Paul Reddick, Matt Sobb) 05:02
8 Lucky One (Tony Diteodoro, Steve Marriner, Matt Sobb) 02:56
9 Travelin' Light (Tony Diteodoro, Steve Marriner, Matt Sobb) 04:22
10 Meet Me At Midnight (Tony Diteodoro, Ken Friesen, Steve Marriner, Matt Sobb) 04:50

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Tony D/Guitar, Vocals (Background)
Nick Diak/Vocals (Background)
Ken Friesen/Vocals (Background)
Gordie Johnson/Organ (Hammond)
Kelly Prescott/Vocal Harmony
Steve Marriner/Guitar (Baritone), Harmonica, Keyboards, Vibraphone, Vocals, Vocals (Background)
Steve O'Connor/Organ (Hammond)
Kelly Sloan/Vocal Harmony
Matt Sobb/Drums, Percussion, Vocals (Background)
David Wilcox/Guitar, Vocals

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REVIEW/AMG
Timothy Monger
Moon Turn Red, the fourth LP from Juno-winning blues-rockers MonkeyJunk, is a robust, hard-driving set with a pleasingly saturated vintage vibe, courtesy of producer and Blue Rodeo member Colin Cripps. With its unique formula of electric guitar, baritone guitar, and drums (no bass) remaining intact, the band hums along like a well-oiled machine, dishing out heavy grooves that touch on funk, soul, deep swamp blues, and, most prominently, rock & roll. A big part of MonkeyJunk's appeal is how they approach a genre that often relies on tired, played-out tropes. There are plenty of acts offering very standard takes on bluesy rock, but MonkeyJunk pay a lot of attention to their craft both in the studio and on-stage. On Moon Turn Red, they channel the traditions of the American South through the stadium muscle of Led Zeppelin, experimenting with sounds and grooves that go beyond the roadhouse into something weirder and more exciting. Album highlight "Live Another Day" pairs a floor-rattling organ (or possibly deconstructed harmonica) intro with a mighty, lumbering, half-swung groove before blowing the roof off with a nifty bit of hard rock guitar harmony. Similarly, the thumping riff-rocker "You" leaps out of the speakers with enough propulsion to drive a locomotive. More than just a collection of guitar solos and roots themes, their songs are clever and well thought out, with plenty of presence, but still with a keen sense of providing rock's most essential thrills. Now eight years into their career and MonkeyJunk sound more vital than ever.

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OFFICIAL BIO
The 2008 birth of the Ottawa-based band MonkeyJunk came along just when music fans needed them the most. They brought an accessible and refreshing blend of swamp-rock roots and blues to the table and haven’t looked back. In the relatively short time they’ve been performing and recording together, the members of MonkeyJunk have won a collective 20 Maple Blues Awards, two Canadian Independent Music Awards, a Blues Music Award (USA), and have been nominated twice for a JUNO Award, taking home the coveted hardware in 2012.

Straight out of the gate, MonkeyJunk quickly became one of the most popular new bands on the scene, performing at festivals and packed venues across the country, amassing a large audience of devoted fans, affectionately called “MonkeyJunkies”. In fact, they hit the road for a tour before their debut album Tiger In Your Tank was even released. They are not a fluke, one-off collective or “ordinary Joes” who decided to start a band. These are three musicians who individually had established careers prior to forming MonkeyJunk. Steve Marriner, the trio’s vocalist, baritone guitarist, harmonica and organ player, was well known as the ‘go-to’ guy as a producer, sideman and session player. He’s also toured the world performing alongside Harry Manx. Steve is also the consummate musical networker and stage guest having been invited to join many artists in concert such as Randy Bachman, Colin James and Big Sugar. At the age of nineteen, lead guitarist Tony D performed for three nights in Buddy Guy’s band. In 1982, he opened for Stevie Ray Vaughn. These events helped propel him into a long-standing career with his own popular project, The Tony D Band. He has also toured with some of this country’s greatest musicians, including the late Dutch Mason. Before MonkeyJunk, drummer and percussionist Matt Sobb was a very busy session drummer around Ottawa and has backed up several regional, national and international artists live on stage, touring and in studio over the last 24 years such as Kim Wilson (Fabulous Thunderbirds), Jeff Healey and Tom Wilson (Blackie & The Rodeo Kings, Junkhouse, Lee Harvey Osmond), The Tony D Band, his brother’s band Marty Sobb and The Mobb among many others.

As one of Canada’s heaviest bands since Big Sugar, their music is passionate and edgy with unfettered delivery. MonkeyJunk’s fourth release for Stony Plain Records, Moon Turn Red, is sure to further cement the band’s popularity. “With each record we make, we feel like we’re pushing more boundaries. Moon Turn Red is no different. I really think some of the songs on this album are some of the best we’ve written”, says Marriner. “We explored grooves we’ve never hit on before, and experimented with some new sounds while paying particular attention to the melodic passages of the songs.” With ten scorching tracks varying from straight-up rockers like “Light it Up”, “You”, “Hot Hot Papa”, “Live Another Day”, “Lucky One”, and “Travelin’ Light”, the reggae-tinged “Love Attack”, the funky “Show Me Yours”, to the soulful, goose bump inducing love songs “Learn How to Love” and “Meet Me at Midnight”.

Moon Turn Red also features a guest appearance from legendary Canadian guitarist David Wilcox, who plays guitar and sings on MonkeyJunk’s cover of his classic “Hot Hot Papa”. Also, the track was produced by Colin Cripps of Blue Rodeo. “It was a real thrill for all of us to work with David Wilcox as he is someone we have been a fan of for many years – one of our musical heros”, says Sobb. “We listened to his music growing up, have covered his songs in previous bands and still listen to his records in our van while on tour.” He was very generous with his time and talents and it was truly an honour that he was so gracious and genuinely invested in making the track sound great with us. It was great to have Colin on board to produce that song too – his musical sensibility and keen ears really harnessed the best out of all of us!” Another coup for the band was having Gordie Johnson (of Big Sugar and Grady fame) lend his talents to the recording. As Marriner states, “He possesses an acute sensibility for melody and groove, a champion of ‘riff-rock’, while his role on our record is more supportive than feature, he brought all sorts of vibe to the session that I believe we effectively captured on tape that day.” Tony D adds, “Gordie and I both come out of the blues. We’ve known each other for over twenty five years. It was serendipitous that he happened to be touring in the vicinity of the studio in Almonte, ON and after all these years we finally got a chance to work together!”

Moon Turn Red is not only an outstanding addition to an already impressive body of work and a turning point for MonkeyJunk, it is an example of musical camaraderie and brotherhood; the trio of long-time friends and colleagues just seem to click in a way that is at once natural and otherworldly. Their passion, conviction and dedication to their music is evident with every lick, every beat and every lyric. MonkeyJunk is a reminder to listeners that musicianship, ability and strong song writing always triumph.

sarahfrenchpublicity.com

“The name MonkeyJunk comes from Son House, who once said ‘I’m talking about the blues, I ain’t talking ’bout no monkeyjunk.’ But I am going to talk about MonkeyJunk – they are brilliant and have produced one of the best albums I have heard in a long time…; Ten tracks that prove that this Canadian band is here to stay. And as Son House would have said if he had seen these boys: ‘I’m talking ’bout the blues, I’m talking about MonkeyJunk!'” – Bob Boncey, Blues Matters (UK)

“The Sultans of Swamp R&B” – William Shatner

“MonkeyJunk are keeping the spirits of Muddy Waters and the other roots giants alive with their own unique brand of music. Check it out – you won’t be disappointed.” – David Wilcox

“Loved your CD, some really cool tunes – It is one I find myself listening to over and over again” – Ritchie Hayward, Little Feat

“Blues, raw and different.” – Star Trek captain/Canadian actor/musician Bruce Greenwood

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10284 - KUNIO KISHIDA - SLIDE ANGEL (2015)

KUNIO KISHIDA
''SLIDE ANGEL''
JUNE 30 2015
67:57

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1 Blue Bonnet 04:12
2 J.O.T.O 04:52
3 Livin' in the Darkside City 04:10
4 Luv Bite 05:42
5 Said 05:25
6 Slide Angel 03:51
7 Sweet Ann 05:04
8 Ballad of Rockey 04:38
9 Unfinished 08:17
10 You Are the Real 03:57
11 You Don't Know How I Feel 04:20
12 I Wa Ki 02:32
13 Jam Bushi Chuck 06:22
14 Jam Kunio's Boogie 04:29

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ABOUT THE ALBUM
www.hittinthenote.com
Kunio Kishida is a gifted musician and guitar collector from Japan who has long admired and been influenced by the talents of the Allman Brothers Band. Many ABB fans know Kunio from his visits to NYC and The Beacon Theatre. He has recently released a new CD full of original compositions titled "Slide Angel" with many very special guest and will be making an appearance at the Big House on September 27, 2015.

Kunio Kishida and Chuck Leavell started this recording, in Tokyo, March 5th of 2014. Those tracks made their way to Decatur, Alabama, Nagoya, Japan, Macon, Georgia, and Nasville, Tennessee. In each location, some of our favorite artists added their unique sounds to this project.

On this release, he plays eight vintage Gibson guitars, six Les Pauls (including Duane's "First Baby" and Dickey Betts's, previously owned, Les Paul) along with two 1958 Explorers.

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Album Notes
cdbaby
This is Kunio's latest album produced by Muscle Shoals/Capricorn producer, Johnny Sandlin. Fourteen original tracks which include great guest artists:Chuck Leavell-piano and organ, Jamie Oldaker-drums, Paul Hornsby-organ, Jerry Wasley Jr-bass, Johnny Sandlin-shaker, Scott Boyer-vocals, Carla Russel-vocals, Kenneth Brian-vocals, Lillie Nae Rische-vocals,

There are 14 tracks with a variety of styles and two bonus tracks featuring a live, in studio jam session.

Kunio plays many original vintage guitar: six 1950s Gibson Les Pauls, two Gibson Gibson Explorers, Gibson 1963 J-45, and a RS Alabama Boy model guitar.

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10283 - ALAN STIVELL - AMSER (2015)

ALAN STIVELL
''AMSER''
2015
67:46

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1 NEw' AMser 04:43
2 AmSEriou all 03:15
3 Kesa no haru 06:37
4 MINtin NEw 'HANv 02:31
5 An Tostan d'an harzou 05:15
6 Postscript 05:38
7 KAla-GoANv 03:00
8 What Could I Do 04:31
9 KErzu 05:17
10 Purple Moon 07:46
11 Halage 02:53
12 Echu ar GoANv 03:09
13 NEw' Amser 2 (alternative mix) [Bonus Track] 04:50
14 What Could I Do (alternative mix) [Bonus Track] 03:58
15 En Enor da Seamus (harp solo instrumental) [Bonus Track] 04:19

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BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Bruce Eder
If there is a single savior of Celtic music, Alan Stivell is probably it. Since the end of the 1960s, he has done more to revive interest in the Celtic (specifically Breton) harp than anyone in the world and, in the process, almost singlehandedly made the world aware of native Breton Celtic music. Since 1971, he has been recording albums of extraordinary beauty and diversity, ranging from ancient Breton and Irish material to modern folk-rock and progressive rock.

He was born Alan Cochevelou, the son of a harp-maker. His father was the rediscoverer of the Breton harp, but he started his musical life on a somewhat more conventional instrument, taking up the piano at age five. He was given a harp by his father at age nine, and studied for the next several years under the direction of his father and Ms. D. Megevand, a concert harpist, freely mixing classical repertoire and arrangements of Breton, English, Irish, Scottish, and Welsh folk material.

Reflections
Stivell was playing concerts at age 11, and he began taking up the more general study of traditional popular Celtic music, including the Scottish bagpipes, drum, Irish flute, and tin whistle, while in his teens. He ultimately became well-versed in all of these and won honors in national piping competitions in Scotland, and chose the professional name of Stivell, the Breton word meaning fountain, spring, or source. By the age of 21, while studying for his degree in English, he became an established folk musician, recording songs to his own harp accompaniment. While his singing is less effective than his harp or bagpipe playing, his voice is expressive, and most of his albums feature a mix of vocal and instrumental music. In 1967, he formed a group consisting of himself on harp, bagpipes, and Irish flute and Dan Ar Bras on electric guitar, backed by bass and drums. He released several albums during this period, including Reflections (1971), A L'Olympia (1972), Chemins de Terre (1972), Celtic Rock (1972), and E. Lagonned (1976). He left the group in the mid-'70s to concentrate exclusively on a solo career -- by this time, he had become a major influence on a multitude of folk-rock musicians with his interweaving of electric and traditional instruments.

Renaissance of the Celtic Harp
During the early '70s, he acquired a popular following in France and England. By the mid-'70s Americans -- and not only those of Irish or, more rarely, Scottish, Welsh, and Breton descent, but those interested in things Celtic -- were discovering Stivell in growing numbers, prompting labels such as Rounder to begin releasing his work (until then, available only as expensive imports) in the United States. Stivell's first major solo album, Renaissance of the Celtic Harp (1972), remains a favorite among fans of the stringed instrument, while his later albums also display his abilities with bagpipes and as a singer. For a time during the mid-'70s, his success placed traditional Breton and Celtic music on the English charts on a regular basis.

Stivell's biggest accomplishment, however, involved the rebirth and rediscovery of an instrument and an entire cultural history. His career brought to fruition the revival of the Breton harp that his father had begun in the 1930s and '40s. The harp had a long and honored place in the history of the Celtic peoples, first embraced (and possibly invented) by the primordial Irish people, who carried it to Scotland and Wales, and later to Brittany and the rest of the European mainland. Although preserved as an image in numerous works of art, the Breton harp had receded from memory and use well before the 20th century. Alan Stivell played his father's first modern Breton harp for the first time in 1953, and within 20 years there were over 100 players where there had been none. Stivell has also used harps from Ireland, Scotland, and Wales in his recordings and performances.

Celtic Symphony
More recently, he has moved in two different directions simultaneously, into the realm of folk-rock with a band of Breton musicians, and serious music with his Celtic Symphony, a work for mixed ensemble of orchestra, Breton and Irish instruments, and voices. A somewhat enigmatic figure, given his focus on Breton culture, Stivell is one of the most compelling of folk musicians, and has achieved stature outside the folk music world, such that musicians like Kate Bush have appeared on his recent albums.

Stivell's music has found an audience among people who have never been anywhere near Brittany, Ireland, Scotland, or Wales. The Celtic peoples were among the westernmost settlers of Europe, and occupied some of the bleakest yet most starkly beautiful land in Europe -- the Romans, in particular, couldn't understand why any sane race would want to live in those places. But, of course, the Romans are gone, buried, and seldom discussed save for their language and a handful of literary works and historical figures; by contrast, hardly anybody born outside of Scotland or Wales can speak those native languages (or would want to -- and the last native speaker of Manx died some years ago), yet their music is still played, and their culture exerts a pull on people the world over. Celtic music has always had an element of loneliness, of the single harpist, piper, or drummer looking out across the vastness to the west (all that lay west was, of course, the Atlantic Ocean and America some 3,000 miles away), and Stivell, more than any other single musician, captures the inherent joy, wistfulness, and loneliness in this music.

Additionally, some of the more recent developments in music and audiences have expanded his audience even further. His harp recordings, with their enveloping lyricism and tightly interwoven patterns of variations, can appeal to more serious listeners of new age music. Alan Stivell's main audience, however, lies with fans of Celtic music and culture, and English folk music. Embracing ancient and modern elements, but (apart from his folk-rock work) making no compromises to modern melodic sensibilities, his music captures the mystery and strangeness of Breton, Irish, Welsh, and Scottish landscapes that are both ageless and timeless. It is haunting, mysterious, and beautiful, with no equivalent in modern popular music and few peers in the realm of commercial folk music.

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10282 - WARNER E. HODGES AND THE DISCIPLES OF LOUD - PREACHIN' THE GOSPEL (2015)

WARNER E. HODGES AND THE DISCIPLES OF LOUD
''PREACHIN' THE GOSPEL''
SEPTEMBER 28 2015
70:15

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1 Wind Me Up 04:12
2 Can't Never Could Do Nothin' 05:19
3 Marking Time 03:44
4 Uh Huh 04:44
5 I'm Your Man 06:25
6 Ain't No Hero 04:18
7 Quit Yer Bitchin' 03:40
8 Tick Tock 03:57
9 Shock to the System 04:01
10 Seduction 04:45
11 Take Me Back 03:49
12 Swing for the Lights 05:55
13 Rendered Powerless 04:34
14 Don't Bother Knocking 05:19
15 When Mercy Calls 05:27

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10281 - BILLY CRAIN - FAMILY MATTERS (2015)

BILLY CRAIN
''FAMILY MATTERS''
SEPTEMBER 14 2015
53:00

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1 Dark House 05:38
2 True Beauty 06:07
3 Lucky Penny 06:26
4 Family Matters 05:31
5 Road Warriors 05:13
6 Glory (Jim's Song) 04:29
7 Hurricane Helen 05:34
8 Wilder Things 04:04
9 Joe Parker 04:46
10 1928 05:09

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Album Notes
cdbaby
This CD gets about as up close and personal as Billy Crain can get. "I grew up with my older brother, Tommy Crain, of the Charlie Daniels Band, as my mentor. We toured together on and off since our early teens. My whole family picture shattered drastically on Jan. 13, 2011. My beloved brother passed away in his sleep. A week later on the very night of Tommy's memorial service, my wife, Sandy and I, took in a little boy named Dallas as our foster child. Later that summer Sandy was diagnosed with breast cancer and went through two rounds of surgery. It was a rough time. I was on the road with the Outlaws and on Feb 22nd, we took in a second foster child named Stella Rose. I also went through some legal stuff with the Outlaws so it felt like my whole world was caving in. In Feb of 2013 my mother died and a month later my father died. I was about as beat down as you can get. I had already started work on my third solo record "Silent Roar." In June of 2013, my doctor and my pastor both told me "You better get off the road or you are gonna die." I was 30 pounds underweight and I knew i literally was dying. After a couple of months off the road I began to get my health back. I went through an intense period of writing and soul searching. Dallas and Stella were both adopted and the tragedies of the last 3 years were coming alive in my music. I decided to call this work of music "Family Matters' because that is what it is about.......Family. I look forward to sharing my family with you because it's been one incredible journey."

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OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY
I've played in front of 1,100,000 people in Washington, D.C. on the fourth of July and performed for no one in a club called the Losers on Christmas Eve. I was taught guitar by the best, my brother, Tommy Crain. I got to see Duane Allman, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Albert King, and Jimmy Page perform when I was a teenager. I've shared the stage with the Rolling Stones, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Van Halen, ZZ Top, The Cars, The Marshall Tucker Band, The Allman Brothers Band, The Charlie Daniels Band, and all the heroes of old. I've played a show using Duane Allman's Les Paul, recorded a record using Steve Gaines Stratocaster, and am the proud owner of my brother's beloved Gold Top Les Paul. I've stayed up all night flipping quarters with Gregg Allman, jammed with Dicky Betts on "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed" in the wee hours of the night in a hotel room in Philadelphia, and almost had the bottom half of my left ear bitten off by Allen Collins. Oh yeah, I drank whiskey with Jimmy Page too. I've shared the stage with a Blues Brother named Dan Ackroyd, travelled in Econoline Vans, Silver Eagles, and puddle jumper planes and toured the world many times over. I've recorded with little known acts at the time like Shania Twain and the Dixie Chicks. I've received royalty checks for as little as 15 cents and as big as $80,000. I've been an Outlaw, a Bellamy Brother, a Music Row songwriter and producer and session guitar player, won songwriter awards, received multi-platinum sales awards and ended up shoveling horse manure to pay my child support. I am a sinner but have been saved by the Grace of God, been a foster parent, a humanitarian to Haiti, and buried my brother, my parents, been sued, helped my wife survive cancer, adopted 2 children and had to retire indefinitely from the road,, all in a 2 year period. I still love to play guitar, write songs, and make records, I love Jesus and my wife and 4 children and that's about all you need to know about me....... - See more at: http://www.billycrain.com/bio/#sthash.6TLdzSz2.dpuf

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10280 - DAN BAIRD AND HOMEMADE SIN - GET LOUD! (2015)

DAN BAIRD & HOMEMADE SIN
''GET LOUD!''
SEPTEMBER 25 2015
48:06

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1 Get Loud 05:31
2 Nothin' Left to Lose 04:40
3 Don't Be Wastin' My Time 04:09
4 Thin Disguise 04:13
5 A Few of My Own 03:37
6 Country Black 03:00
7 Fairground People 03:40
8 Silver Little Lies 06:33
9 A Little Bad Luck 04:22
10 Get It Right 03:38
11 Movin' Right Along 04:34

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BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Greg Prato
Dan Baird was the frontman for late-'80s roots rock/one-hit wonders the Georgia Satellites, before launching his own solo career. Born on December 12, 1953, in San Diego, CA, but raised in Atlanta, GA, Baird picked up the guitar early on and began playing with local bands during his teenage years. By December of 1980, Baird had formed the Georgia Satellites (who would eventually consist of both Baird and Rick Richards on vocals/guitar, Rick Price on bass, and Mauro Magellan on drums). The quartet quickly found their musical niche -- a bar band version of such classic three-chord rockers as AC/DC and the Rolling Stones -- and in 1985 issued their debut recording, an independently issued six-song EP titled Keeping the Faith.

The mini-album helped land the Satellites a recording contract with Elektra, which led to the release of their full-length, self-titled major-label debut a year later. It took a while for the album to pick up steam, but it eventually became a surprise platinum certified hit by the summer of 1987, due to the number five hit single "Keep Your Hands to Yourself," and another popular single/video, "Battleship Chains." Baird and the Satellites issued two more releases during the late '80s, 1988's Open all Night and 1989's In the Land of Salvation and Sin, but neither matched the success of their self-titled debut, and led to the group's split by the dawn of the '90s.

It didn't take long for Baird to regain his footing and begin a solo career, as evidenced by 1991's Love Songs for the Hearing Impaired (issued on Rick Rubin's Def American label). The album appeared to put Baird back on the right track commercially, as it spawned a popular single/video with "I Love You Period." But a long break ensued before the appearance of his sophomore solo effort, 1996's Buffalo Nickel, which sunk from sight shortly after release (the same year, the Georgia Satellites re-formed, but without Baird). He set his sights on producing and/or guesting on other artist's recordings, including Fred Haring's This Grand Parade, Will Hoge's Carousel, and Chris Knight's Pretty Good Guy. Baird, along with his group the Yayhoos (which formed in the midst of the unsuccessful Buffalo Nickel tour), released two albums: 2001's Fear Not the Obvious and 2006's Put the Hammer Down. Out of Mothballs, a collection of outtakes and rarities, appeared early in 2008, followed later in the year by Dan Baird & the Homemade Sin.

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MORE
The Georgia Satellites were one of the most ferocious bands of the 80’s and what set them apart from the other 10,000 groups who cranked their amps up to 11 was that their wild riffs and tanked cries came from a band that, from the start, understood it’s place in rock tradition and fought hard to solidify it with each recording.

The story starts in the early 80’s at Hedgen’s, a "country club for the spiritually impoverished and emotionally destitute" , as chief songwriter Baird would later identify it. Bassist Keith Christopher, Drummer Mauro Magellan and Guitarists Rick Richards and Dan Baird were playing on the Atlanta circuit in various bar bands such as the Hellhounds, the Brains and the Woodpeckers. These bands would gradually morph into the original Georgia Satellites.

#1 fan and road manager Kevin Jennings, sold an EP of early Satellites recordings to an independent UK record label, Making Waves and the EP, Keep The Faith, provoked an extraordinary reaction from the UK music press, which, in turn, woke up the previously indifferent stateside music industry. The stand-out track on the EP and most peoples introduction to the band was Keep Your Hands To Yourself which was swiftly culled from the bands eponymous debut major label release on Elektra and became a runaway grammy nominated hit, both LP and single only being kept off the respective #1 slot’s by Bon Jovi’s Slippery When Wet and Living On A Prayer. A second hit single, Battleship Chains, solidified the LP’s platinum success.

Where the Satellites really earned their reputation though, was with their live shows. All those years of three sets a night, paid dividends as their live performances laid waste to audiences across the States and in particular Europe, which took the band to it’s collective heart, a love affair that continues to this day.

Two more Elektra LP’s, Open All Night and the remarkable Salvation And Sin, plus a track, Hippy Hippy Shake, on the Tom Cruise movie soundtrack, Cocktail, followed, but by the early 90’s, all those years of incessant touring had taken their toll and the band split.

Dan Baird forged a successful solo career with Rick Rubin’s Def American, scoring major hits with the album Love Songs For The Hearing Impaired and single I Love You Period. A second LP, the critically acclaimed Buffalo Nickel, followed and Dan also developed a career as a highly sought after producer.

Post Satellites Mauro played on both of Dan’s Def American albums before taking time out to raise a family and concentrate on his other interests. Keith had also returned to the fold for the Def American recordings and like Mauro played on both ‘Love Songs For The Hearing Impaired’ and ‘Buffalo Nickel’. After recording ‘Buffalo Nickel’, Keith went on to join Kenny Wayne Sheppard’s band and play on a multitude of sessions, including Ayo's 2006 double platinum debut Joyful.

In 2001 Dan returned to live performance, with the Sofa Kings, a band that featured hot shot guitarist Ken McMahan. The shows producing the live album, Redneck Savant. Dan also found time to record and tour as part of the alt “supergroup”, The Yayhoos who also featured Keith Christopher and long time Dan sparring partner Terry Anderson. The Yayhoos line up is completed by Eric "Roscoe" Ambel. The foursome have released two albums to date, Fear Not The Obvious in 2002, following it in 2007 with Put The Hammer Down.

2003 saw the release of a compilation of Dan and Georgia Satellites unreleased gems - Out Of Mothballs - and Mauro put out an album with his other band The Crashers - Love School. Dan, Keith, Mauro and Ken hit the road for the first of a sucession of tours which were documented on the 2005 double live set - Feels So Good.

In 2007 the band decided to take some time off to concentrate on writing and to recharge their batteries. During this period, Ken had his first child and decided to spend some time at home. His legacy and importance to the band are stamped all over the live cd and dvd set - Fresh Out Of Georgia - which will stand as a worthy testament to his time with the band.

His replacement is none other than Warner E. Hodges, also guitarist extrodinaire with Nashville legends, Jason And The Scorchers. Warner is probably the only guitarist capable of matching Dan's intensity chord for chord and proved to be the missing piece in the Homemade Sin jigsaw. Long term friends, Dan had co-produced Warner's 2007 debut solo album - Centerline.

February 2008, Dan, Warner, Mauro and Keith embarked upon the recording of Homemade Sin’s debut studio album. Recorded in Nashville the fourteen tracks on ‘Dan Baird & Homemade Sin’ represent the first new Dan Baird studio album since ‘Buffalo Nickel’.

The album was released in Europe in May 2008 to rave reviews and was playlisted by BBC Radio 2's Bob Harris, an American release scheduled for 2009. Live audiences got to hear the new songs for the first time when Homemade Sin, joined the Quireboys on a highly successful package tour of the U.K. and Scandinavia. The band were back in Scandinavia once again in October with one veteran (and by all accounts highly jaded) music journalist giving the band a SIX out of FIVE star review and proclaiming the show to be the best gig he’d seen in over twenty years!

Can you give me an amen?

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WEBSITE

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10279 - DAN BAIRD - CIRCUS LIFE (2013) (REPOST)

DAN BAIRD AND HOMEMADE SIN
''CIRCUS LIFE''
NOVEMBER 24 2013
53:32

1 Fall Apart On Me (Dan Baird, Joe Blanton) 4:23
2 Little Darlin' (Dan Baird) 3:14
3 All The Same (Dan Baird, Joe Blanton, Warner E. Hodges) 3:45
4 Thousand Little Pieces(Dan Baird, Joe Blanton) 7:39
5 Where'm I Gonna Lay My Head (Dan Baird) 4:17
6 Break Down And Cry (Dan Baird) 4:15
7 Think It's Time (Keith Christopher) 4:42
8 Baby This (Dan Baird, Joe Blanton, Warner E. Hodges) 3:32
9 Long Way Down (Dan Baird) 6:30
10 Outlivin'(Dan Baird, Joe Blanton3:05
11 Face Of Love (Dan Baird, Warner E. Hodges) 3:31
12 Wear And Tear (Dan Baird) 4:16

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Dan Baird/Guitar, Percussion, Vocals
Keith Christopher/Bass Guitar, Vocals
Warner E. Hodges/Guitar (Electric), Vocals (Background)
Mauro Magellan/Drums, Percussion
Ben Strano/Piano
Michael Webb/Keyboards

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BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Greg Prato
Dan Baird was the frontman for late-'80s roots rock/one-hit wonders the Georgia Satellites, before launching his own solo career. Born on December 12, 1953, in San Diego, CA, but raised in Atlanta, GA, Baird picked up the guitar early on and began playing with local bands during his teenage years. By December of 1980, Baird had formed the Georgia Satellites (who would eventually consist of both Baird and Rick Richards on vocals/guitar, Rick Price on bass, and Mauro Magellan on drums). The quartet quickly found their musical niche -- a bar band version of such classic three-chord rockers as AC/DC and the Rolling Stones -- and in 1985 issued their debut recording, an independently issued six-song EP titled Keeping the Faith.

The mini-album helped land the Satellites a recording contract with Elektra, which led to the release of their full-length, self-titled major-label debut a year later. It took a while for the album to pick up steam, but it eventually became a surprise platinum certified hit by the summer of 1987, due to the number five hit single "Keep Your Hands to Yourself," and another popular single/video, "Battleship Chains." Baird and the Satellites issued two more releases during the late '80s, 1988's Open all Night and 1989's In the Land of Salvation and Sin, but neither matched the success of their self-titled debut, and led to the group's split by the dawn of the '90s.

It didn't take long for Baird to regain his footing and begin a solo career, as evidenced by 1991's Love Songs for the Hearing Impaired (issued on Rick Rubin's Def American label). The album appeared to put Baird back on the right track commercially, as it spawned a popular single/video with "I Love You Period." But a long break ensued before the appearance of his sophomore solo effort, 1996's Buffalo Nickel, which sunk from sight shortly after release (the same year, the Georgia Satellites re-formed, but without Baird). He set his sights on producing and/or guesting on other artist's recordings, including Fred Haring's This Grand Parade, Will Hoge's Carousel, and Chris Knight's Pretty Good Guy. Baird, along with his group the Yayhoos (which formed in the midst of the unsuccessful Buffalo Nickel tour), released two albums: 2001's Fear Not the Obvious and 2006's Put the Hammer Down. Out of Mothballs, a collection of outtakes and rarities, appeared early in 2008, followed later in the year by Dan Baird & the Homemade Sin.

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MORE
The Georgia Satellites were one of the most ferocious bands of the 80’s and what set them apart from the other 10,000 groups who cranked their amps up to 11 was that their wild riffs and tanked cries came from a band that, from the start, understood it’s place in rock tradition and fought hard to solidify it with each recording.

The story starts in the early 80’s at Hedgen’s, a "country club for the spiritually impoverished and emotionally destitute" , as chief songwriter Baird would later identify it. Bassist Keith Christopher, Drummer Mauro Magellan and Guitarists Rick Richards and Dan Baird were playing on the Atlanta circuit in various bar bands such as the Hellhounds, the Brains and the Woodpeckers. These bands would gradually morph into the original Georgia Satellites.

#1 fan and road manager Kevin Jennings, sold an EP of early Satellites recordings to an independent UK record label, Making Waves and the EP, Keep The Faith, provoked an extraordinary reaction from the UK music press, which, in turn, woke up the previously indifferent stateside music industry. The stand-out track on the EP and most peoples introduction to the band was Keep Your Hands To Yourself which was swiftly culled from the bands eponymous debut major label release on Elektra and became a runaway grammy nominated hit, both LP and single only being kept off the respective #1 slot’s by Bon Jovi’s Slippery When Wet and Living On A Prayer. A second hit single, Battleship Chains, solidified the LP’s platinum success.

Where the Satellites really earned their reputation though, was with their live shows. All those years of three sets a night, paid dividends as their live performances laid waste to audiences across the States and in particular Europe, which took the band to it’s collective heart, a love affair that continues to this day.

Two more Elektra LP’s, Open All Night and the remarkable Salvation And Sin, plus a track, Hippy Hippy Shake, on the Tom Cruise movie soundtrack, Cocktail, followed, but by the early 90’s, all those years of incessant touring had taken their toll and the band split.

Dan Baird forged a successful solo career with Rick Rubin’s Def American, scoring major hits with the album Love Songs For The Hearing Impaired and single I Love You Period. A second LP, the critically acclaimed Buffalo Nickel, followed and Dan also developed a career as a highly sought after producer.

Post Satellites Mauro played on both of Dan’s Def American albums before taking time out to raise a family and concentrate on his other interests. Keith had also returned to the fold for the Def American recordings and like Mauro played on both ‘Love Songs For The Hearing Impaired’ and ‘Buffalo Nickel’. After recording ‘Buffalo Nickel’, Keith went on to join Kenny Wayne Sheppard’s band and play on a multitude of sessions, including Ayo's 2006 double platinum debut Joyful.

In 2001 Dan returned to live performance, with the Sofa Kings, a band that featured hot shot guitarist Ken McMahan. The shows producing the live album, Redneck Savant. Dan also found time to record and tour as part of the alt “supergroup”, The Yayhoos who also featured Keith Christopher and long time Dan sparring partner Terry Anderson. The Yayhoos line up is completed by Eric "Roscoe" Ambel. The foursome have released two albums to date, Fear Not The Obvious in 2002, following it in 2007 with Put The Hammer Down.

2003 saw the release of a compilation of Dan and Georgia Satellites unreleased gems - Out Of Mothballs - and Mauro put out an album with his other band The Crashers - Love School. Dan, Keith, Mauro and Ken hit the road for the first of a sucession of tours which were documented on the 2005 double live set - Feels So Good.

In 2007 the band decided to take some time off to concentrate on writing and to recharge their batteries. During this period, Ken had his first child and decided to spend some time at home. His legacy and importance to the band are stamped all over the live cd and dvd set - Fresh Out Of Georgia - which will stand as a worthy testament to his time with the band.

His replacement is none other than Warner E. Hodges, also guitarist extrodinaire with Nashville legends, Jason And The Scorchers. Warner is probably the only guitarist capable of matching Dan's intensity chord for chord and proved to be the missing piece in the Homemade Sin jigsaw. Long term friends, Dan had co-produced Warner's 2007 debut solo album - Centerline.

February 2008, Dan, Warner, Mauro and Keith embarked upon the recording of Homemade Sin’s debut studio album. Recorded in Nashville the fourteen tracks on ‘Dan Baird & Homemade Sin’ represent the first new Dan Baird studio album since ‘Buffalo Nickel’.

The album was released in Europe in May 2008 to rave reviews and was playlisted by BBC Radio 2's Bob Harris, an American release scheduled for 2009. Live audiences got to hear the new songs for the first time when Homemade Sin, joined the Quireboys on a highly successful package tour of the U.K. and Scandinavia. The band were back in Scandinavia once again in October with one veteran (and by all accounts highly jaded) music journalist giving the band a SIX out of FIVE star review and proclaiming the show to be the best gig he’d seen in over twenty years!

Can you give me an amen?

**********

TO THE TOP

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10278 - DAN BAIRD AND HOMEMADE SIN - KEEP YOUR HANDS TO YOURSELF: BEST OF, DISC TWO (REPOST) (2013)

DAN BAIRD AND HOMEMADE SIN
''KEEP YOUR HANDS TO YOURSELF: BEST OF, DISC TWO''
APRIL 1 2013
108:42

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DISC ONE
1 It Comes To Me Naturally 3:37
2 I Dunno 3:22
3 Six Years Gone 3:14
4 Julie & Lucky 5:36
5 I Love You Period 4:19
6 Nights Of Mystery 6:15
7 L'il Bit 4:48
8 Open All Night 2:54
9 Dixie Beaux Deraunt 2:54
10 Another Chance 4:11
11 All Over But The Cryin' 6:44
12 Dan Takes 5 3:36

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DISC TWO
1 Sheila (Inc. Pills) 6:38
2 Younger Face 3:45
3 Railroad Steel 7:15
4 Keep Your Hands To Yourself 3:46
5 Feels So Good (Inc. Look What You Started) 10:35
6 Hush 9:56
7 Be Good To Yourself 3:04
8 Battleship Chains 3:27
9 Like A Rolling Stone 7:55

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REVIEW/AMG
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Dan Baird had a brief moment in the sun after the demise of the Georgia Satellites, releasing a couple records on American Records before retreating to independent status. This collection rounds up the highlights of his time on a major and peppers it with selections from before and after this phase, creating a good testament to Baird's time as a standard-bearer for all that's good and pure in rock & roll.

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BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Greg Prato
Dan Baird was the frontman for late-'80s roots rock/one-hit wonders the Georgia Satellites, before launching his own solo career. Born on December 12, 1953, in San Diego, CA, but raised in Atlanta, GA, Baird picked up the guitar early on and began playing with local bands during his teenage years. By December of 1980, Baird had formed the Georgia Satellites (who would eventually consist of both Baird and Rick Richards on vocals/guitar, Rick Price on bass, and Mauro Magellan on drums). The quartet quickly found their musical niche -- a bar band version of such classic three-chord rockers as AC/DC and the Rolling Stones -- and in 1985 issued their debut recording, an independently issued six-song EP titled Keeping the Faith.

The mini-album helped land the Satellites a recording contract with Elektra, which led to the release of their full-length, self-titled major-label debut a year later. It took a while for the album to pick up steam, but it eventually became a surprise platinum certified hit by the summer of 1987, due to the number five hit single "Keep Your Hands to Yourself," and another popular single/video, "Battleship Chains." Baird and the Satellites issued two more releases during the late '80s, 1988's Open all Night and 1989's In the Land of Salvation and Sin, but neither matched the success of their self-titled debut, and led to the group's split by the dawn of the '90s.

It didn't take long for Baird to regain his footing and begin a solo career, as evidenced by 1991's Love Songs for the Hearing Impaired (issued on Rick Rubin's Def American label). The album appeared to put Baird back on the right track commercially, as it spawned a popular single/video with "I Love You Period." But a long break ensued before the appearance of his sophomore solo effort, 1996's Buffalo Nickel, which sunk from sight shortly after release (the same year, the Georgia Satellites re-formed, but without Baird). He set his sights on producing and/or guesting on other artist's recordings, including Fred Haring's This Grand Parade, Will Hoge's Carousel, and Chris Knight's Pretty Good Guy. Baird, along with his group the Yayhoos (which formed in the midst of the unsuccessful Buffalo Nickel tour), released two albums: 2001's Fear Not the Obvious and 2006's Put the Hammer Down. Out of Mothballs, a collection of outtakes and rarities, appeared early in 2008, followed later in the year by Dan Baird & the Homemade Sin.

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The Georgia Satellites were one of the most ferocious bands of the 80’s and what set them apart from the other 10,000 groups who cranked their amps up to 11 was that their wild riffs and tanked cries came from a band that, from the start, understood it’s place in rock tradition and fought hard to solidify it with each recording.

The story starts in the early 80’s at Hedgen’s, a "country club for the spiritually impoverished and emotionally destitute" , as chief songwriter Baird would later identify it. Bassist Keith Christopher, Drummer Mauro Magellan and Guitarists Rick Richards and Dan Baird were playing on the Atlanta circuit in various bar bands such as the Hellhounds, the Brains and the Woodpeckers. These bands would gradually morph into the original Georgia Satellites.

#1 fan and road manager Kevin Jennings, sold an EP of early Satellites recordings to an independent UK record label, Making Waves and the EP, Keep The Faith, provoked an extraordinary reaction from the UK music press, which, in turn, woke up the previously indifferent stateside music industry. The stand-out track on the EP and most peoples introduction to the band was Keep Your Hands To Yourself which was swiftly culled from the bands eponymous debut major label release on Elektra and became a runaway grammy nominated hit, both LP and single only being kept off the respective #1 slot’s by Bon Jovi’s Slippery When Wet and Living On A Prayer. A second hit single, Battleship Chains, solidified the LP’s platinum success.

Where the Satellites really earned their reputation though, was with their live shows. All those years of three sets a night, paid dividends as their live performances laid waste to audiences across the States and in particular Europe, which took the band to it’s collective heart, a love affair that continues to this day.

Two more Elektra LP’s, Open All Night and the remarkable Salvation And Sin, plus a track, Hippy Hippy Shake, on the Tom Cruise movie soundtrack, Cocktail, followed, but by the early 90’s, all those years of incessant touring had taken their toll and the band split.

Dan Baird forged a successful solo career with Rick Rubin’s Def American, scoring major hits with the album Love Songs For The Hearing Impaired and single I Love You Period. A second LP, the critically acclaimed Buffalo Nickel, followed and Dan also developed a career as a highly sought after producer.

Post Satellites Mauro played on both of Dan’s Def American albums before taking time out to raise a family and concentrate on his other interests. Keith had also returned to the fold for the Def American recordings and like Mauro played on both ‘Love Songs For The Hearing Impaired’ and ‘Buffalo Nickel’. After recording ‘Buffalo Nickel’, Keith went on to join Kenny Wayne Sheppard’s band and play on a multitude of sessions, including Ayo's 2006 double platinum debut Joyful.

In 2001 Dan returned to live performance, with the Sofa Kings, a band that featured hot shot guitarist Ken McMahan. The shows producing the live album, Redneck Savant. Dan also found time to record and tour as part of the alt “supergroup”, The Yayhoos who also featured Keith Christopher and long time Dan sparring partner Terry Anderson. The Yayhoos line up is completed by Eric "Roscoe" Ambel. The foursome have released two albums to date, Fear Not The Obvious in 2002, following it in 2007 with Put The Hammer Down.

2003 saw the release of a compilation of Dan and Georgia Satellites unreleased gems - Out Of Mothballs - and Mauro put out an album with his other band The Crashers - Love School. Dan, Keith, Mauro and Ken hit the road for the first of a sucession of tours which were documented on the 2005 double live set - Feels So Good.

In 2007 the band decided to take some time off to concentrate on writing and to recharge their batteries. During this period, Ken had his first child and decided to spend some time at home. His legacy and importance to the band are stamped all over the live cd and dvd set - Fresh Out Of Georgia - which will stand as a worthy testament to his time with the band.

His replacement is none other than Warner E. Hodges, also guitarist extrodinaire with Nashville legends, Jason And The Scorchers. Warner is probably the only guitarist capable of matching Dan's intensity chord for chord and proved to be the missing piece in the Homemade Sin jigsaw. Long term friends, Dan had co-produced Warner's 2007 debut solo album - Centerline.

February 2008, Dan, Warner, Mauro and Keith embarked upon the recording of Homemade Sin’s debut studio album. Recorded in Nashville the fourteen tracks on ‘Dan Baird & Homemade Sin’ represent the first new Dan Baird studio album since ‘Buffalo Nickel’.

The album was released in Europe in May 2008 to rave reviews and was playlisted by BBC Radio 2's Bob Harris, an American release scheduled for 2009. Live audiences got to hear the new songs for the first time when Homemade Sin, joined the Quireboys on a highly successful package tour of the U.K. and Scandinavia. The band were back in Scandinavia once again in October with one veteran (and by all accounts highly jaded) music journalist giving the band a SIX out of FIVE star review and proclaiming the show to be the best gig he’d seen in over twenty years!

Can you give me an amen?

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