Thursday Morning Music Shuffle – Suffered for Your Sanity Mix

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I had a fun time last night.  Jeff Blaney and band started a month long residency at The 5 Spot.  Renee Wahl was the special guest the first night. She was backed by Daniel Seymour and Patterson Barrett.  Her songs and her voice were as spectacular as always.  Jeff Blaney’s band included Seymour, Justin Amaral, and Chuck Foster on keyboard.  They sounded great.

Before that show was over, I had the great opportunity (thanks Mary) to get a sneak peak at the newly renovated 12th and Porter which is set for some Grand Opening shows this weekend with shows by Chuck Mead and Humming House.  The venue had a long history in Nashville, and it was good to see it ready to open once again. The free food and drinks were nice, too.

Back to The 5 Spot in time to catch the tail end of the beginning of the Whiskey and Women night with Michaela Anne.  Also on the bill, Joanna Barbara, Lauren Farrah, and Jesse Lafser.   Quite an amazing night of music.

Tonight, The 5 Spot is the place again to settle in for the night…  It is night one of another residency, this one featuring the great Paul Burch and the WPA Ballclub. Burch was one of the artists who helped to revitalize lower Broadway in Nashville in the early 90s. Burch and the WPA are celebrating their 20th anniversary this year with the release of Meridian Rising (about the life of Jimmie Rodgers) on Plowboy Records (featuring Jon Langford, William Tyler, Billy Bragg, and Tim O’Brien).  This residency is a don’t miss kind of Nashville event. Special guest tonight is another of Nashville’s finest songwriters, Kevin Gordon! 

A last minute cancellation set the stage for a pretty killer late night show featuring 2014 E2TG Artist of the year, Darrin Bradbury; 2015 E2TG Artist of the Year, Jon Latham; Chris Watts, Elli Perry, and Buck N Stuff (a Buck Owens tribute band that features East Nashville stalwarts, Adam Kurtz, Cameron Carrus, and Lemuel Hayes). 

I am looking forward to tonight!

On to the shuffle:

“Vincent (Starry, Starry Night)” by Jesse Terry

We start thinks out with a gorgeous cover of the Don McLean classic.  From Terry’s album The Calm and The Storm.

“Beside the Little River” by The Shakers

Next up, a taste of some of the most unique and wonderful music coming out of Nashville in the late 1980s and early 1990s.  From the album, Songs from Beneath the Lake.

“Imaginary Friend” by Ships Have Sailed

Our second listen to Mood Swings in as many days.  If anything, I think this track even better than the one we played yesterday.  A great sound.  Check them out.

“The Killing Floor” by FADES

FADES are an Alt-Rock band from London that formed in November 2014. This song is on their self-titled EP.  Dig it! 

“Gnomes” by Zaibatsu

From this Italian band’s album Zero.  Heavy sounds!  Pregressive rock.

“The Stingray Shuffle No 1” by The 427’s

Some more instrumental rock music from the Continental sampler CD we have been spinning of late.  The 427’s are from Calgary.  I am happy that this recent exposure has reignited my love of this style of music.

“Candy” by Dave Rawlings Machine

We close out today’s shuffle with a sticky, sweet and delicious selection from Nashville Obsolete.  No doubt in my mind that Dave Rawlings Machine is the absolute best this town has to offer, and this is music that is going to be talked about for a long time.

VIDEO PLAYLIST

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Thursday Morning Music Shuffle – Joy and Sorrow Mix

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It’s my birthday, and I’ll cry if I want to…

My Birthday Week continues.  Last night included two stops along the way.  Week 2 of the Jason Ringenberg January Jam residency rolled on… This week guest was Peter Cooper with Chuck Mead joining Jason and Peter for a rendition of The Louvin Brothers classic, “The Christian Life”.  Ringenberg really seems to be enjoying this residency – I know I sure am… Next week’s guest is Tommy Womack!

From there, I headed to Mad Donna’s Loft where I caught the tail end of Simon Reid’s set which sounded great, and then witnessed two rocking sets from the always awesome Renee Wahl (who will be releasing some new music soon!) and Brian Langlinais (who will also be releasing some new music soon!). Both Renee and Brian were backed by top notch bands.

Now the “crying”: two late nights in a row has worn me out, but I will press on… tonight, the fine folks at The Basement East were kind enough to schedule the grand opening of their new Pub for my birthday.  So, I will be hanging out there this evening. The party begins at 6:00 with some awesome folks doing wicked cool covers beginning at 8:00.

On to the shuffle:

“Emma” by Youngstrr Joey

In what is either a moment of serendipity or a moment of cruel irony, the first song in my birthday shuffle is by an artist named Youngstrr (sic) Joey.  This is some really cool music out of Glascow. From a forthcoming album called Grilled Wiig (sic). 

“Black Bruce Wayne Interlude” by Rich Robbins

A brief interlude from THE Black Bruce Wayne himself!  Off of Nimbus.

“Barracuda” by Heart

Back in the day, I used to get pissed off at “Classic Rock” radio because some of my favorite “new” music was not being played on the radio.  To be honest, a lot of what was called “Classic Rock” back in the day was dreck.  But some of it was truly classic.  I put this song squarely in the classic category.  Rock and Roll!

“Pinyin” (Auto-Tune Version) by Batkhi Dahn

Our last listen to the newest single from Batkhi Dahn.  This is the Auto-Tune version of “Pinyin”.  I do not usually recommend auto-tune, but… this…

“Fairweather Friend” by John Cale

From the solo debut by the former Velvet Underground member.  This is the only song on Vintage Violence that was not written by Cale.  The song was written by the legendary Garland Jeffries.

“Ode to Joy” by Joe Jackson

This is the final track on Joe Jackson’s latest album, Fast Forward.  Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy!

“Sunny Sadness” by Luke Saxton

A very long and beautiful song by this 19 year old singer-songwriter from York, UK.

“Everybody Knows” by FADES

And we close out today’s shuffle with our first listen to some new music from London.  FADES are an alt-rock band, they are releasing a self-titled EP in March.  I am digging it so far.  The only video I could find is a cover of The Waitresses’ “Christmas Wrapping”.  Enjoy! Merry Christmas!

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VIDEO PLAYLIST