The American South has a long history of serving as a fertile breeding ground for singer/songwriters who instinctively meld the various musical elements of their environs. Alabama native Adam Hood carries on that tradition. Like a really good gumbo, there are a lot of subtle flavors mixing together in his personal brand of Southern music – blues, folk, country, rock – all wrapped around lyrics that sound too insightful for someone his age.
Collins takes his inspiration from artists that have previously defied what "country" means to them. Masters like Gram Parsons, Bob Dylan, Ryan Adams, Son Volt and the Drive-By Truckers offer a very important perspective to emerging songwriters like Collins. What thus far has been defined by critics as "alt-country" Collins sees as American music following out of its original source.
The formation of The Band of Heathens is as natural and organic as the music they create. In early spring 2006, the three principle songwriters, Colin Brooks, Ed Jurdi and Gordy Quist, were sharing the bill every Wednesday night at the venerable Austin club Momo's. Originally, it started as each songwriter performing his own set. But in a short time they started sharing the stage equally and collaborating on each other's songs, with bassist Seth Whitney as the anchor of the rhythm section. The Wednesday night series was billed as "The Good Time Supper Club." Largely improvised and unrehearsed, the shows quickly gained in popularity and word spread throughout Austin that if you wanted live music on Wednesday night, Momo's was the place to be.
Growing up surrounded by a family of musicians that owned an Opry House in Texas, it is no surprise that Bo Cox quickly inherited a love for music. After spending years listening to his family sing and play, it came time for Bo to make music of his own.
With influences ranging from his dad and uncles, to legends such as Merle Haggard, Darrell Scott and Delbert McClinton, Bo has strived to produce a sound all his own. In 2006, as chance would have it, Mike McClure happened to catch Bo Cox on stage prior to his own performance and invited Bo to come to Norman to record his debut album. "Rich Man’s Gold" provides a refreshing and stand-out blend of country roots mixed with blues influences that will leave almost any listener with something they'll enjoy.
Brett Crenshaw, a native son of Bay City, Texas, grew up hearing stories about his grandfather playing fiddle with Bob Wills back in the days when Texas music, and the foundation of modern-day country music was in its infancy.
When The Britt Lloyd Band merged in 2003, the thirst for new, edgy, and intriguing music in Texas and the South was on the rise. Despite a market attraction to a mainstream sound across Texas, both rock and country music resided in the BLB's bones, and the crossroad of the two served as a rendezvous point for the band’s gathering. Thus, the answer that so many looked for in a new and innovative sound found its home in the ears of a fast growing number of the BLB listeners.
Charlie Shafter and the Gnomes represent a generation that has been profoundly influenced by a wide variety of musicians from both a bygone era and today. "We are music freaks first and musicians second" says Shafter. "Everyone in this band is a fan of good music regardless of what style the music claims. Influences from Woody Guthrie to Stone Temple Pilots to The Grateful Dead will show up in our sets. We didn't sign up for this to play the same song over and over. You are free to call us unfocused or naive. We are undoubtedly both. This isn't some Glenn Miller story where we are on some deranged search for our sound. It’s either there or it's not and that is for the listener to decide."
Since its genesis, The Cody Gill Band has grown into a successful musical group with undeniable drive and relentless love for a wide range of music from other Texas country and southern rock artists like Reckless Kelly and Cross Canadian Ragweed to other genres and artists such as blues legends Government Mule and the folk-rock stylings of Bob Dylan and Neil Young. The Cody Gill Band takes the stage with a chemistry and family-like attitude not commonly found in any profession.
Fifteen years, and thousands of live shows later, Morrow has emerged as one of the lone star state's best-loved artists. Revered along with college pal Pat Green as a preservationist of the unique Texas music "sound," which combines elements of country, bluegrass, swing and blues, Morrow inspires a fierce loyalty in his fans.
Dale Watson isn't one to uphold the music industry's status quo. He's moving forward on his own terms and true to his own convictions. Even with frequent proclamations declaring him one of country music's last authentic voices (like that in Crazy Again--a recent documentary on Watson's life--when a fan declares, "son, you play country like country was when country was country"), Watson is done with the "C" word and what it's come to represent in modern times. So much so that he's created his own genre, simply called Ameripolitan. In a recent posting on his website (www.dalewatson.com), Dale explains it like this: "I've been trying to come up with a name the best describes this music that me and folks similar do. When folks ask, I hesitate, down right embarrassed really, to say country. I didn't used to be that way, but with the change in country, the term doesn't mean the same as it used to. If you say traditional, or old, or western swing most folks think 'retro' and dismiss it without hearing it. I wanted a name that didn't say country anything and didn't give anyone a preconceived idea. I came up with Ameripolitan. I even put it in Wikipedia defined as: Original music with 'prominent' roots influence." And so it goes with Dale Watson, the kind of unparalleled iconoclast that's far too rare in music today.