It’s been a while since we heard from singer/songwriter Grey DeLisle – she needed to take a break from live performance and perhaps the music business in general. But she’s back, and making up for lost time with this double-album of 20 songs she’s written. Aside from the physical and voluminous homage to The Beatles’ “White Album”, DeLisle pays tribute to that wonderful convergence of Nashville country, Bakersfield honky-tonk, and British blues/pop of the ‘60s. She’s got an exceptional lineup of musicians here: Murry Hammond (acoustic guitar), Greg Leisz (steel guitar/12-string Rickenbacker guitar), D.J. Bonebrake (vibes/drums/percussion), Phil Jones (drums), Adam Pike (mellotron), Gideon Klein & Paul Nelson (cellos), Tammy Rogers (violins/violas/strings arranged & performed), Deke Dickerson (guitar/stand-up bass), David Ralicke (trumpets), and Cherry Currie & Stephen McCarthy (vocals).

You say you know a bunch of songs of Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band… But do you know them played by outlaw country/Americana-rock band Ward Hayden & The Outliers? Well you will this year, as this Massachusetts act, formerly known as Girls, Guns & Glory, has plans to release TWO albums’ worth of The Boss’s songs in 2025. The two-year recording process for these 16 covers also inspired an album of original tunes, which they’ll be recording this summer. This first one includes songs like “Dancing in the Dark”, “Two Faces Have II”, and the lead-off track, “Promised Land”.

Mason Via has had quite a productive time these past four years. He toured the world as a member of Old Crow Medicine Show, earned a Grammy nomination for his work on the band's chart-topping album Jubilee, contributed songs to Grammy-winning and nominated records by Molly Tuttle and the Del McCoury Band, and released his solo debut, New Horizons. Now comes his follow-up, the self-titled bluegrass-oriented album with some impressive songwriting and top-notch talent from pickers like mandolinist Aaron Ramsey, banjoist Jason Davis, and fiddler Jim Van Cleve.

It’s the first album together in 14 years, though they’ve certainly kept busy during that time with other projects and accolades. Alison has collaborated with Robert Plant among others, and Jerry Douglas has played with, well, just about everybody… Collectively, the members of AK& US have sold over 8 million records and received more than 70 GRAMMY Awards. Ron Block (banjo, guitar, vocals) and Barry Bales (bass, vocals) are still with the band, but they now welcome guitarist and vocalist Russell Moore, best known as the front man of IIIrd Tyme Out, following the departure of long-time member Dan Tyminski.

Music resource The Vinyl District describes the Seth we know: "...an accomplished guitarist and an even better singer, distilling the soul of Ray Charles, the Southern boy roots charm of Delbert McClinton, and an uptown blues turn of phrase (à la Percy Mayfield) into his own distinct voice."

Led by prolific Austin songwriter Kevin Dehan, Cactus Lee reflects a deep love for Texas country songwriters, interwoven with the bold spirit of outlaw and outsider influences. Fans of Tom T. Hall and John Prine will appreciate his/their sound and songwriting style. Bandmates here are Russell Hymowitz on bass, John Bush on percussion, and Adam Amram on drums. Then there’s accordion, saxophone, pedal steel, strings, and on one song, cowbell! As the Austin Chronicle describes it, “fuller production with some new instrumentation fills out Cactus Lee's hippie folk sound – more Gene Clark than Gene Autry, more Jackson C. Frank than Alan Jackson. Which is to say, the music is more inspired by the dirty realism of Seventies Americana-makers than country counterparts.”

Bobby Rush’s career of singing and playing the blues goes back to the early years of the Chitlin’ Circuit -- longer than most of us have been alive. Kenny Wayne Shepherd is a powerful blues guitarist himself, and the two have teamed up for Young Fashioned Ways. Together they bridge the generational divide (Rush is 91, Shepherd 47) on this 10-song album.

Wonderful virtuosity on the fiddle, mandolin, guitar and saxophone – yes, saxophone! -- from this trio that straddles that ‘NCW-sweet-spot somewhere between old-time, Celtic, contradance, Americana and jazz. It’s Andrew Van Norstrand, Noah Van Norstrand, and Chris Miller. Check out WNCW Program Director Joe Kendrick’s recent podcast on them here: https://www.wncw.org/podcast/southern-songs-and-stories They have gigs in our area in May, including Knoxville on the 3rd, Asheville on the 7th, Shelby on the 8th, and the SkunkFarm on the 9th.

Get to know one of the latest great soul releases, fronted by Tomar Williams. Tomar grew up gigging around Austin while in high school in the 1980s, and this is his 3rd album. Supporting him here are James Rodman (Wurlitzer electric piano and Hammond organ), Chris Alexander (bass) and Paul Kresowik (drums), and Jorion Dawson (saxophone), plus Angela Miller and Lauren Cervantes provide shimmering harmonies.

The Sure Fire Soul Ensemble is a 9-piece heavy, instrumental funk band from San Diego, CA. Their influences are vast and include Hip Hop groups like Wu-Tang Clan and De La Soul, as well as funk and soul masters like Isaac Hayes, The Meters, and James Brown. But in reference to the name of this album, the two genres they meld together most here are funk and jazz. Dig this great new release of instrumentals, out this week via Colemine Records.