Another ACL 2008 spoil was the Belleville Outfit. They’ve got sort of an old time bluegrass swing sound that is chock full of roots goodness. Not to mention their fiddle player is drop dead gorgeous! I can’t wait to see them in a more intimate setting.

Last month, the 34th annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival was amazing and hosted one of the best lineups in years including Los Lobos, Alison Krauss, Peter Rowan and Tony Rice Quartet (featuring the angelic Sharon Gilchrist), Guster, Greensky Bluegrass, Jackie Greene, Yonder Mountain String Band, Sam Bush, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, Chris Thile, Sparrow Quartet , The Infamous Stringdusters, Crooked Still and tons more.

The Peter Rowan and Tony Rice Quartet was what I might consider to be the best set I’ve experienced in 10 consecutive years of going to Telluride Bluegrass. I love Peter Rowan, but what he’s done is to create the ultimate musical atmosphere for Tony Rice to showcase his jaw dropping guitar. And I also think that Sharon Gilchrist is one of the most amazing new mandolin players on the scene. I’ve seen her play with Uncle Earl and Mary and Mars and its so great to see her up on the stage with two Bluegrass gods!


Jackie Greene was another highlight of this year’s festival for me. He’s such an amazingly talented young songwriter and he reminds me of a cross between Tom Petty and Bob Dylan. The combination of his songwriting and musical sensibility make him one of my favorite new acts. If you check him out, give his album Gone Wanderin’ a listen.

Crooked Still was another highlight of the festival that caught me completely by surprise. Their cello player, Rushad Eggleston is out of this earth doing things that I didn’t know could be done with the cello. Not to mention the sweet smooth vocal stylings of singer Aoife O’Donovan

I was delighted to see the Leftover Salmon reunion on the Town Park Stage. They were billed as Drew Emmitt, Vince Herman and friends but nobody was fooled, this was the first time that LoS has played the festival in three years so it was quite a treat and caused me to wax nostalgic a little

If you were at the festival and want to relive some of the fun or even if you weren’t, you
stream or download Bela Fleck and the Flecktones entire set at archive.org. You can also stream or download Yonder Mountain’s set from Telluride Bluegrass 2007.

I was having so much fun that I only got to take a couple photos and none were of any of the performers. Fortunately flickr has got you covered!

Check out this very cool homemade video that the boys from the south of Austin put out. What a cool Beck cover. Its as if the song was written to be played on bluegrass instruments which doesn’t surprise me because Beck has very traditional influences.

Last night I got to see Todd Snider play at the Santa Fe Brewing Company. I arrived at 7:00, thirty minutes before the show was supposed to start and it was already packed. Somebody mentioned to me that Todd’s new album The Devil You Know was ranked 33 on Rolling Stone’s top 50 albums of 2006 list. Todd Snider is finally getting the kind of audience that he deserves. Every one of his albums is a masterpiece of songwriting inspired by such greats as John Prine, Jerry Jeff Walker, Billy Joe Shaver and Kris Kristofferson.

Todd’s buddy from East Nashville, Pete Cooper opened the show. Pete is a clever singer songwriter with a very poignant song about Hank Aaron. Todd took the stage a little after 8:30 with his jumbo Epiphone and harmonica. With Todd solo acoustic in such a small place it made for a very intimate vibe. He played most songs of The Devil You Know and also reached into his older repertoire with songs like Missing You and This Land Is Our Land.

Some of the stories that Todd told between the songs had me rolling on the floor, especially the story about the inspiration for If Tomorow Never Comes. Apparently he stole the name of the song from Garth Brooks after the guy that wrote Garth’s version explained to him how he legally stole Beer Run from Todd.

Paintings by Todd’s wife Moleta Osheowitz-Snider were displayed all over the stage and presumably they were for sale. Below are some photos and a video clip that I took.

Update: I just found this excellent interview/performance with Todd in KUT’s Studio 1A.

I recently came across an amazing bluegrass, rocknroll, western, rockabilly, punk band from L.A. called Rose’s Pawn Shop. Their sound is very familiar yet completely different from anything I’ve heard before. Rose’s Pawn Shop does a wonderful job of taking aspects of all sorts of styles and making something that is new and all their own.

I was so impressed after streaming the songs of their Myspace I immediately bought their album The Arsonist from iTunes. The banjo, fiddle, upright bass, drums, guitar, accordian, mandolin and bouzouki all complement the vocals and make for a huge, energetic sound. But above all else, the inspired songwriting is what really makes me like these guys.

Rose’s pawn shop will be playing SXSW next month and Floyd Fest in July. If you want to listen to some music that will get your feet moving and your blood flowing, check out Rose’s Pawn Shop.

This video will give you a good idea of what Rose’s Pawn Shop is all about:

I’ve been wanting to share this bootleg for a long time. The copy that my sister gave to me as a gift years ago is entitled Lonesome Prison Blues. This is Jerry Garcia playing acoustic with John Kahn on the bass in front of a small audience of inmates at the Oregon state penitentiary on 5-5-82.

The recording is decent with only a couple of flaws. Jerry was in great spirits this day and his playing reflects it. Jerry sounds much like he does on Run For The Roses, the last of his solo albums which was recorded around the same time. The Oh Babe It Ain’t No Lie still brings a tear to my eye when I hear it.

Most deadheads will already have this in their collection and if anybody is willing to trade for the lossless soundboard version in circulation I’d love to get a copy. Here is the info from the etree db. As far as I know, this show has never been officially released and is under no copyright restrictions. So sit back, listen and enjoy!

Oregon State Prison, Salem, Or. (5-5-82)

1. Deep Elem Blues 2:30
2. Friend Of The Devil 5:45
3. Jack-A-Roe 4:39
4. Babe, It Ain’t No Lie 6:12
5. It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry 5:33
6. Run For The Roses 3:45
7. Ripple 4:20
8. I’ve Been All Around This World 4:06
9. Valerie 6:32
10. Dire Wolf 3:43
11. Rubin And Cherise 5:50

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Crooked Still is an excellent new acoustic bluegrass act that I’ve been spending a lot of time listening too lately. I love them because they seem introduce a new perspective on the songs they play. They’re singer has one of the sweetest voices I’ve ever heard. I just got the following email from Crooked Still’s email distribution with some U.K. dates. If you have a chance, check them out!

Here is the message:
2007 is finally upon us and after some time off, we’re ready to kick off our year with a tour in England and Scotland, starting on January 21st. We’ll be playing some fantastic venues throughout England and finishing up at the Celtic Connections festival in Glasgow Scotland!! We had a great time there last year and can’t wait to go back. This also marks our first performances in England and we’re really looking forward to it!

Also tune in to Mountain Stage this week to hear our performance alongside some other great artists including our good friends Chip Taylor and Carrie Rodriguez. Go to www.mountainstage.org to find an NPR station in your area that airs the show!

There is a Texas style troubadour that I’ve been listening to a lot lately. His name is Richard Buckner and he is phenomenal! The only thing more soulful and heartfelt than his songwriting is his voice and his guitar. He’s conveniently labeled “Alt Country” and I’m still not sure that I know what that term means. Buckner’s voice reminds me slightly of Dwight Yoakam and his songwriting reminds me of Townes Van Zandt. When you check him out listen to his debut album “Bloomed” which features Buckner in his purest form. Oh and by the way, he’s getting ready to play Madison Square Garden.
Myspace Page Here

Official Homepage Here

I really love the South Austin Jug Band Song Weather On the Wood from their latest album Dark and Weary World. This weekend I figured it out on the guitar. I was having a hard time finding the lyrics so I had to transpose them myself. I thought I’d share the lyrics and chords.

Its played with a capo on the second fret. The chord progression is something like C – C/B – C/A – G – F – E – F – C – F – C – F – G . It has a finger picking part that is comprized primarily of a C chord. I don’t have the patience or time to properly write out the chords but if you play with these chords you’ll get it pretty easily. The song is very simple which is what I love about it and most other South Austin Jug Band stuff. The lyrics are absolutely beautiful and very relevant for me personally. Here they are:

Weather On The Wood
Carrying around an old guitar that smells like cigarrettes
I can feel the weather on the wood
Feels like she needs new frets
Its still here, where are you?
Does somebody hold you like I used to?

I’m back out on the road time spent so fast
I never know where I am or where I was last
But I feel my way thru the dark and I find my way to you
Does somebody love you like I used to?

Trying to make a bunch of strangers smile thats what I do
It seems to work everywhere with everyone but you
My eyes are heavy my heart is blue
Do you think of me? I dream of you.

Now power lines and highway signs theres open land in view
But all it does is remind me how far I am from you
I’ll be away from home I’m just a traveling man.
Will you wait for me? I’m coming home when I can

My heart beats witht the people I meet Made a friend round every town.
And it seems right when I’m burned out they keep me burning down
The sun is out its getting warmer out here
Its good to see California, its been a long, been a long long year

I’m uprooted in the wind rolling like a wild tumbleweed
I met a friend in Telluride I broke a heart in Tennessee
But I’m so tired, I’m just so tired.

One of the things that makes Keller Williams such a great musician is his influences and choice of cover songs. He plays everything from Grateful Dead to Billy Joel to Bill Monroe to Marley to Funk to Punk to Bluegrass. His influences include Michael Hedges, Ani DiFranco, Jerry Garcia, String Cheese Incident, and many many more. So its a natural transition for Keller to host a radio show in which he plays his favorite music. Enter Keller’s Cellar, a radio show hosted by Keller that is as eclectic ast the music that Keller plays.

On a side note, have you heard Keller’s new release with the Keel’s, Grass? If not check it out today, its very bluegrassy and contains some new territory for both Keller, Larry, and Jenny Keel.

Don’t forget to vote for Keller at this year’s Jammys.

Launch Keller’s Cellar here.