Tag: alabama

WATCH: Ramblin’ Ricky Tate, “Drifting”

Posted on by Editor

Artist: Ramblin’ Ricky Tate
Hometown: Birmingham, Alabama
Song: “Drifting”
Release Date: July 30, 2021

In Their Words: “Everyone has lost a love or felt homesick, I’d bet a lot of those people have reached for a whiskey glass a time or two as well. ‘Drifting’ is a tune I wrote about just that. This song is about having hope for better days to come when you feel down. Recorded and filmed field recording style on location in a 140-year-old building, this song has a natural reverb unlike anything you will hear in a studio. I put my heart into this song and I love how the video turned out and I’m honored to share it with y’all.” — Ramblin’ Ricky Tate

Photo credit: Jordan Hudecz

WATCH: The Pine Hill Haints, “Satchel Paige Blues” (Live at Standard Deluxe)

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Artist: The Pine Hill Haints
Hometown: Florence, Alabama
Single: “Satchel Paige Blues” (Live at Standard Deluxe)
Album: The Song Companion of a Lonestar Cowboy
Release Date: May 14, 2021
Label: Single Lock Records

Editor’s Note: The Pine Hill Haints have played every edition of the 280 Boogie, the yearly festival hosted by the music venue Standard Deluxe in Waverly, Alabama. This is the festival’s 20th year.

In Their Words: “Satchel Paige was in it to win it. The scouts were gonna come check him out, and it rained. He was dressed in his uniform holding a ball and glove. He was screaming that he wanted to play on the mound. I can totally identify with that. That’s why I wrote the song. It’s a mean blues number and I wrote it because the Haints totally identify with him.

“Growing up, I heard Auburn had the best punk rock scene in Alabama, so that’s where I went to college. My life changed down there when I was in school. Waverly still has a remnant of that scene, to me. It’s one of the first places I started to come to terms with who I was — my country side — and that has nothing to do with cowboy hats and instrumentation. It has something to do with muddy rivers and eagles, and that’s what country really is. That’s Waverly. We played there around a bonfire long before there was a 280 Boogie. People would dance all night. It was special. It still is. If playing at Standard Deluxe is what ‘making it’ is, that’s all I want. Anything beyond that is extra.” — Jamie Barrier

Photo credit: Abraham Rowe

Six-String Soldiers and The SteelDrivers Team Up for “Long Way Down”

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Six-String Soldiers, the United States Army Field Band from Washington, D.C., are joining The SteelDrivers in a new, collaborative video for “Long Way Down.” It’s an excerpt from a performance on the military group’s Facebook page.

Staff Sgts. Renée and Joey Bennett from Six-String Soldiers tell BGS, “”We’ve learned so much getting to play with these folks. When you get to play with musicians you look up to and respect so much it makes us up our game, which is a treat in itself. We love the energy, depth, and knowledge that The SteelDrivers bring to the table and their adaptability shines through every time we get to merge our two groups. They are each such stunning musicians and to be able to hear them play, let alone be a part of the action, is just breathtaking. They’re all so fun and we’ve had a great time every time we’ve gotten to play together, be that in person or through a virtual collaboration! Being able to make music while being apart has helped keep our morale up during this time. I already consider that to be part of our job, to keep everyone’s spirits up and to be that support for people after a good day or a bad one. During a tough time this becomes even more needed. We’ve been able to reach 40 million people through our livestreams and we were so honored that The SteelDrivers could collaborate with us and bring some smiles to everyone who has listened!”

The SteelDrivers’ Tammy Rogers remembers her first time working with the ensemble: “I first met the Six-String Soldiers a few years ago when I was booked to record with them down in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. We all hit it off immediately and had such a great time. Fast forward to The SteelDrivers playing at the Birchmere in Alexandria, Virginia, when we asked them to sit in with us for a few songs! We all enjoyed the collaboration so much that this just seemed like a fun project to do together during quarantine! I think it worked!”

 

LISTEN: Melody Duncan, “Over the Hill”

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Artist: Melody Duncan
Hometown: Mobile, Alabama
Song: “Over the Hill”
Album: Wolf Song
Release Date: March 12, 2021

In Their Words: “This was the last song I recorded for the album. I wasn’t sure if I was going to put this one on the record until the last moment, but I’m really glad I did. The track is made with only vocals and guitar, and it felt really complete to me. I think the lyrics are pretty straightforward; they’re a kind of journal entry mixed with sentiment I think many of us feel as we age. The longer we live, the more challenges, difficulties, and growth opportunities we face. We learn all these amazing life lessons and have to rise above the accompanying challenges. Sometimes through our experience or culture, we’re taught to fear aging and what it might mean for our bodies and minds. But the song is an expression of being resilient because of what we’ve been through, and despite whatever is ahead. It’s about making it through tough times at every age and stage we are in. It’s a dedication for all of those willing to invest in a good today, even if our bones ache in the morning.” — Melody Duncan

Photo credit: Katy Herndon

LISTEN: Alabama Slim, “Someday Baby”

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Artist: Alabama Slim
Hometown: Vance, Alabama / New Orleans, Louisiana
Song: “Someday Baby”
Album: The Parlor
Release Date: January 29, 2021
Label: Cornelius

In Their Words: “‘Someday Baby,’ well, I tell you, when I first heard the record, it was Muddy Waters that did it. I play it the way I want to play it and sing it the way I want to sing it. That’s it.” — Alabama Slim

Photo credit: Jed Finley

WATCH: The Sweeplings, “Deep & Wild”

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Artist: The Sweeplings (Cami Bradley and Whitney Dean)
Hometown: Spokane, Washington (Cami) and Huntsville, Alabama (Whitney)
Song: “Deep & Wild”
Album: Losing Ground, Vol. 2
Release Date: September 18, 2020
Label: Nettwerk

In Their Words: “‘Deep & Wild’ is a lighthearted song about entering into the unknown with a willing attitude and a free spirit. We sat down to write this song with a painted picture of each scene in our minds. It shaped itself as we wrote, seamlessly creating a tune about the longing to explore the unknown with someone you love with no other purpose other than to find what’s most freeing. This song in particular fits itself into our EP series, Losing Ground, Vol 1 & 2, as a happy spot of contrast to the cinematic drama of the most of the collection.

“It took us a long time to get to these EPs. We worked tirelessly relationally and musically to make it happen. Stopping and starting, pushing and pulling. Because of that, we lost some ground in our process, but it ultimately brought us to something more magical. These two EPs truly have the grit of our story behind each song. The songs range in sentiment and tone, but all share the same heart. We wanted to create something special with as minimal sonic distractions as possible. We just let the performances and songs speak for themselves, simple and even bare at times. In that, we found our true identity as artists and songwriters.” — Cami Bradley and Whitney Dean, The Sweeplings

Photo credit: Glass Jar Photography

The Show On The Road – Nicole Atkins

Posted on by Chris Jacobs

This week on The Show On The Road, a conversation with Nicole Atkins, a singer/songwriter  out of Neptune City, New Jersey who has become notorious for making her own brand of theatrical boardwalk soul. 

LISTEN: APPLE PODCASTS • STITCHER • SPOTIFY • MP3

The Show On The Road host Z. Lupetin fell in love with Atkins’ newest, harmony-rich record, Italian Ice, which came out spring 2020 and was recorded in historic Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Both rumblingly ominous and joyously escapist, standout songs like “Domino” make the record a perfectly David Lynch-esque summer soundtrack of an uneasy 2020 scene that vacillates between fits of intense creativity and innovation and deep despair. Toiling below the radar for much of her career, Atkins is finally enjoying nationwide recognition as a sought-after writer and producer; Italian Ice was co-produced by Atkins and Ben Tanner of Alabama Shakes.

While some may try to shoehorn Nicole Atkins into the Americana and roots-rock categories, one could better describe her as a new kind of wild-eyed Springsteen, who also mythologized the decaying beauty of New Jersey’s coastal towns like Asbury Park, or a similarly huge-voiced, peripatetic Linda Ronstadt who isn’t afraid to mix sticky French-pop grooves with AM radio doo-wop, ’70s blaxploitation R&B and airy jazz rock like her heroes in the band Traffic. If you watch her weekly streaming variety show, “Live From The Steel Porch” (which she initially filmed from her parents’ garage in NJ, but now does from her new home in Nashville), you’ll see her many sonic tastes and musical friends gathering in full effect. Italian Ice features a heady collection of collaborators including Britt Daniel of Spoon, Seth Avett, Erin Rae, and John Paul White.

After playing guitar and moving in and out of hard-luck bar bands in Charlotte and New York — many of which that would find any way to get rid of their one female member — Atkins’ bold first solo record Neptune City dropped in 2007 and three more acclaimed LPs followed, including her twangy, oddball breakout, Goodnight Rhonda Lee in 2017 on John Paul White’s Single Lock Records.

Much like the tart and brain-freezing treat sold on boardwalks around the world, Atkins’ newest work is a refreshing and many-flavored thing and demonstrates that, in a lot of ways, the show-stopping performer, producer, and songwriter has finally embraced all the sharp edges of her personality.

Photo credit: Anna Webber

LISTEN: India Ramey, “Montgomery Behind Me”

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Artist: India Ramey
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “Montgomery Behind Me”
Album: Shallow Graves
Release Date: September 4, 2020

In Their Words: “‘Montgomery Behind Me’ is somewhat autobiographical. I got married young, the first time. My first husband (who is a nice man) was from a ‘good family’ in Montgomery. I was not, so I was a square peg in a round hole. I just never fit, not with him, not with anyone there. I felt guilty for not being happy and not making everyone else happy. Eventually I had to accept that my time there was an exercise in futility. I also had to muster the courage to accept who I am and be not just OK with it, but be happy about it. When I would think about leaving, I had this vision of me heading down that long, flat highway with the small Montgomery skyline behind me and never looking back. Above and beyond the personal stuff, this song is a refusal to people-please and an acceptance and liberation of one’s true self.” — India Ramey

India Ramey · Montgomery Behind Me

Photo credit: Stacie Huckeba

LISTEN: The Krickets, “These Games”

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Artist: The Krickets
Hometown: Mobile, Alabama
Single: “These Games”
Release Date: June 5, 2020

In Their Words: “This song is our answer to a pandemic benching our 2020 tour. Band life went from having a decently balanced tour/fam scene to becoming full-time homeschool teacher/maid service/short order cook shut-ins who were financially shut down. We HAD TO do something constructive to stay positive, so we learned how to remotely write and record. One of us (Lauren) is a studio nerd and she produced the track. We had to get brave about releasing something on our own, because we’ve had some incredible producers in the past and we didn’t want the quality to dip for our listeners. It’s empowering to have that 100% control over the sound as an artist but if your fans hate it, it’s also 100% your fault.

“The sound of ‘These Games’ is definitely different for us, with a nod to some retro doo-wop harmonies and Southern rock ballads we grew up on. Bottom line, we love making music and the incredible people that support it. Since the normal way to play and record isn’t an option right now, we had to decide to embrace the rawness and release the music, bells and whistles be damned. Someday when that normalcy returns, we’ll be able to use fancy studios and producers again, but here’s what we can do now. We plan to release a new one every couple of months until we can tour again. That live music energy thing is real and sacred and necessary and we can’t wait to get back to it.” — The Krickets (Lauren Spring, Emily Stuckey Sellers, Rachel Grubb)

The Krickets · These Games

Photo credit: Laura Lashley

WATCH: Grace Pettis, “Landon”

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Artist: Grace Pettis
Hometown: Mentone, Alabama; current residence is Austin, Texas
Song: “Landon”
Release Date: March 20, 2020
Label: MPress Records

In Their Words: I spent about ten years writing ‘Landon.’ It was a tough sentiment to get just right. Landon and I became best friends in a high school in a small town in Alabama. He came out right after graduation and I was one of a few trusted people. My job, in that moment, was to listen. Instead, I responded with a canned answer — one that was drilled into me by a devout Christian upbringing. I knew, deep down, that I was wrong. It took me years (I’m embarrassed by how many years) to confront my conscience and admit that to myself.

“In a lot of ways, my faith journey as a liberal Catholic was jump-started by these questions. It was scary. It was liberating. I felt closer to God than I ever had. By the time I’d figured out how to write the song and how to face up to it, we’d both come to a new place of understanding ourselves in the world. ‘Landon’ is an apology. When I play ‘Landon’ at shows, I like to dedicate it to anybody in the audience who’s owed an apology; one that’s many years coming. And then I dedicate it to anybody in the audience who owes somebody else an apology; one that’s many years in the making.” — Grace Pettis

Photo credit: Nicola Gell Photography