The Cowboy Rides Away

It is the misfortune of Lloyd Estel Copas to be better remembered for how and with whom he died than for the wonderful music he made as Cowboy Copas, in which guise he was a dominant presence on the country charts from 1946 to ...
by David McGee
 

 
 

A Hoot For The Age

The hootenanny lives! Banjo master/educator Bill Evans’s In Good Company has that feel of an informal gathering of musicians playing exactly what they want to play, complementing each other to a T and having a great time doin...
by David McGee
 

 

 

Jammin’ On the High Seas

Originally given away free as a collectible to patrons of the annual Rhythm & Blues Cruise , Robert Mugge’s hour-and-a-half documentary offers an in-depth look at the fabled after-hours jams sessions aboard ship, when...
by David McGee
 

 
 

Here Comes the Sun

“As fast as we roll, we’re always catching up/as much as we have, it’ll never be enough/as hard/as hard as we work, we just work our fingers to the bone/what do we have to show?” Listening to this catchy chorus of the f...
by David McGee
 

 

 

On Saving Mortal Souls

“Having not played in this style in the past is a huge disadvantage, but I am willing to stretch and fight to get it under control. Those pesky chords! Those finger positions, those slides, those finger-thumb rolls, those cou...
by David McGee
 

 
 

Summit Sessions: B.J. Thomas on Scepter

For those of a certain generation, the radio of their youth never seemed to be long without a new, great B.J. Thomas single. Indeed, between 1966 and 1972 he had 19 charting singles, some way bigger than others, some more regio...
by David McGee
 

 

 

For That Man In the Booth, the One With a Woman on Each Arm…

Apart from interviewing Albert King in 1978 upon the release of his New Orleans Heat album on the Tomato label, where he was continuing the roll he had enjoyed during the previous five years on Stax, my enduring memories of thi...
by David McGee
 

 
 

Return of the Slide Guitar Titan

Eleven albums into his career the titan of the slide guitar Sonny Landreth demonstrates what an artist is made of by continuing to find new and challenging avenues of expression. On Elemental Journey the task he sets for himsel...
by David McGee
 

 

 

Breathe Deep The Intoxicating Fragrance

Being unfamiliar with the first two self-released albums by the duo known as The Bergamot (native Indianans Jillian Speece of South Bend and Nathan Hoff of Michigan City), I will happily admit to being bowled over by everything...
by David McGee
 

 
 

Sovereignty Well Earned

You may think these fellows rather audacious in naming themselves Royal Southern Brotherhood, but when you see their lineup includes an Allman, a Neville and a Zito, well, good to see you, fellows. As that funnyman from Transyl...
by David McGee
 

 

 

One Humanist Touch

The second album from singer-songwriter-multi-instrumentalist Mike T. Lewis and his wife and musical partner MaryBeth Zamer–collectively known as the Twangtown Paramours–is a solid advance over the couple’s 2010 debut.
by David McGee