Tag: Bonnie Whitmore

LISTEN: The Whitmore Sisters, “The Ballad of Sissy & Porter”

Posted on by Editor

Artist: The Whitmore Sisters
Hometown: residing in Austin, Texas, and Los Angeles, California; from Denton, Texas
Song: “The Ballad of Sissy & Porter”
Album: Ghost Stories
Release Date: January 21, 2022
Label: Red House Records

In Their Words: “Several of the songs on Ghost Stories were inspired from the loss of friends. I penned this tune with Bonnie Montgomery via The House of Songs and it was inspired by the love and close friendship of Chris Porter, a singer-songwriter who died tragically on tour in 2016. Porter was many things to a lot of people, but his humor and his ability to spin a yarn was pretty remarkable. Even when you were present in the events of the story, Porter had a way of telling it that always seemed more interesting than what my mind could recall. The tall tales of Porter live on in the song that is dressed in Cajun fiddle from my sister Eleanor and accordion from Dirk Powell.” – Bonnie Whitmore

Photo Credit: Vanessa Dingwell

WATCH: Bonnie Whitmore, “Time to Shoot”

Posted on by Editor

Artist: Bonnie Whitmore
Hometown: Austin, Texas
Song: “Time to Shoot”
Album: Last Will and Testament
Release Date: October 2, 2020

In Their Words: “When I wrote ‘Time to Shoot,’ it was after the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando. It was the largest death count of any mass shooting and was in the summer of 2016. Remember 2016? That year of a thousand losses that started with David Bowie, Prince, Leonard Cohen on Election Day, and Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia) right at the end? I was reflecting back on the earliest mass shootings that I could recall and I remembered it was Columbine in 1999. It struck me that it has been 20 years, and nothing has changed. Twenty years of making mass shootings normalized. The potential of becoming someone’s target practice is no longer how, but which large gathering.

“I was in high school when Columbine happened and I remember the immediate fear and repression that came afterwards, and for more than half of my life I’ve watched systemic violence being tolerated by my country and its people. I can see a pattern of unaddressed mental health issues and the ease of accessibility to these military-style weapons, and also the toxic masculinity and fear and shame that’s at its core, but each time it happens nothing changes. Nothing but more fear and ‘thoughts and prayers.’ I cannot accept that this is the only way. I know this is not an easy topic to discuss, but it is worth discussing over and over because we have to find a solution. It’s time we collectively shed some light in those dark places and do the work to get through this, because if the desire is to build towards a better future, then there is a lot that’s got to change for the better.” — Bonnie Whitmore

Photo credit: Eryn Brooke; Video: Ryan Doty

LISTEN: The Mastersons, “Eyes Open Wide”

Posted on by Editor

Artist: The Mastersons
Hometown: Los Angeles, California
Song: “Eyes Open Wide”
Album: No Time for Love Songs
Release Date: March 6, 2020
Label: Red House Records

In Their Words: “‘Eyes Open Wide’ was one of the first tunes we wrote for the record. It took on a Byrds/Gene Clark feel the moment the Rickenbacker 12 string came out, which seemed apropos for a record cut in LA at Sunset Sound. Once Shooter Jennings had Bonnie Whitmore and Mark Stepro add their harmonies it added a Fleetwood Mac vibe and turned into a pretty fun track. It also feels like a song for the times as we can’t bury our heads in the sand with so much going on in the world. It’s tempting to check out with so much bad news every day, but it’s time for all hands on deck.” — The Mastersons

Photo credit: Curtis Wayne Millard