All posts by Hallgeir

Today: Delbert McClinton is 73 Happy Birthday

dm

The venerable Delbert McClinton is a legend among Texas roots music aficionados, not only for his amazing longevity, but for his ability to combine country, blues, soul, and rock & roll as if there were no distinctions between any of them in the best time-honored Texas tradition.
~Steve Huey (allmusic.com)

 

Happy Birthday!

Continue reading Today: Delbert McClinton is 73 Happy Birthday

Three films to celebrate Lou Reed

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

We miss Lou Reed dearly and want to remind people of the great artist that he was. His legacy is great!

We have dug up two very good documentaries about The Man on YouTube, hope you enjoy them as much as we did.
…and we also found a fine concert.

The first, Rock’n Roll Heart is a bio of Reed and focuses on his life and musical legacy:

The second one, Classic Albums: Transformer is, of course, about his break through solo album, Transformer:

We’ve included a fine concert as a bonus treat. This video is an intimate visual record of Reed’s sold out performance at The Bottom Line in New York City in 1983. For Reed, whose career began in Greenwich Village when he founded The Velvet Underground, this was a homecoming concert.

– Hallgeir

Today: J.D. Souther is 68 Happy birthday

jdSouther1

John David Souther (commonly abbreviated as JD Souther) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, and actor. He has written and co-written numerous hits songs recorded by artists such as Linda Ronstadt and Glenn Frey of the Eagles.

He is one of the greatest songwriters in the so called west coast rock, country rock wave of the 70s. He is mainly known for other peoples interpretations of his songs.

Happy Birthday!

Continue reading Today: J.D. Souther is 68 Happy birthday

Today: Lyle Lovett is 56 Happy Birthday

LL1

Lyle Pearce Lovett (born November 1, 1957) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Active since 1980, he has recorded thirteen albums and released 21 singles to date, including his highest entry, the number 10 chart hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, “Cowboy Man”. Lovett has won four Grammy Awards, including Best Male Country Vocal Performance and Best Country Album. (- Wikipedia)

 

Somehow you can tell the difference when a song is written just to get on the radio and when what someone does is their whole life. That comes through in Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, Willie Nelson. There is no separating their life from their music.

– Lyle Lovett

Continue reading Today: Lyle Lovett is 56 Happy Birthday

Today: Laura Cantrell released Not the tremblin kind in 2000

CantrellLNotthe

“It is my favourite record of the last ten years and possibly my life”
– John Peel

This is a good album, a very good debut!

It’s a mix of Cantrell’s own compositions and songs from other very gifted songwriters. THey are performed in a sincere and fresh style. It sounds traditional and fresh at the same time, just what the country scene needed. Laura Cantrell is a great interpreter, she has an expressive voice and she knows how to get a story across.

Laura Cantrell – Not the tremblin’ kind, St Andrews in The Square in Glasgow, October 2013 – part of the Glasgow Americana festival:

“Cantrell reclaims the essence of country songwriting, but she also puts subtle twists on familiar slice-of-life songs about whiskey drinkin’, relationships gone sour, livin’ on the road, and simple girl-wants-boy longing. Her music, whether inherently sad or jubilant, is always delivered with convincing sincerity. She’s also not afraid to explore uncomfortable psychological truths in intimate and eloquent detail.”
– Michael Sandlin (Pitchfork)

Laura_Cantrell-Not_The_Tremblin_Kind-Interior_Frontal

I bought this album on the strength of hearing just one track on Bob Dylan’s Theme Time Radio Hour, When the roses bloom. I bought everything I could find of hers, she is a great country singer and songwriter. I play her albums a lot, she reminds me of Kitty Wells in her singing and Dolly Parton in her songwriting, yes, she is that good!

 

Not the tremblin’ kind on Spotify:

– Hallgeir