Southern Songs and Stories

Colin Hay talks about his long career, the music and music scenes of his native Scotland and his successive home countries Australia and the US, his admiration for artists like Kasey Musgraves, Sturgill Simpson and Chris Stapleton, about finding his way out of having been, as he puts it, too alternative for commercial labels and too commercial for alternative labels, and a lot more, including excerpts of music from Colin’s latest record, Now and the Evermore.

Colin Hay talks about his long career, the music and music scenes of his native Scotland and his successive home countries Australia and the US, his admiration for artists like Kasey Musgraves, Sturgill Simpson and Chris Stapleton, about finding his way out of having been, as he puts it, too alternative for commercial labels and too commercial for alternative labels, and a lot more, including excerpts of music from Colin’s latest record, Now and the Evermore.

A conversation with Dori Freeman as well as songs from her performance the Albino Skunk Music Festival in May of 2022. Sloane Spencer joins in this conversation that touches on Dori’s deep Appalachian roots, recording her family album in Nick’s newly constructed studio in their backyard, how she draws inspiration and ideas from listening to rap artists, and even her love of Topo Chico brand seltzer.

Fiddler, vocalist and founding member of roots music powerhouse Old Crow Medicine Show

Discovering the music of Jamestown Revival’s fourth album, Young Man, is a pleasant surprise: having brought in an outside for the first time (fellow Texan Robert Ellis) and opting for an all acoustic setting for its ten songs, the duo brought their already potent harmonies to a new level. Their songs are as good as ever, too, reflecting a period of isolation and contemplation, lending the collection a feel of exquisite melancholy.

In this episode, Sarah Shook talks about everything from the evolution of sound in their new album Nightroamer, their road to sobriety, how Southern culture is reflected in their music, how things we might think that negatively affect just the LGBTQ+ community also extend to everyone else, and more.

In this episode, Joshua Ray Walker talks about how his family influenced his career and his songs, how he approaches writing lyrics, the rich music scene of his East Dallas home, and a lot more. Woven throughout is music from his live session on public radio WNCW where he played several songs from his third solo album See You Next Time.

Tammy and Thomm talk about everything from the making of Surely Will Be Singing to the unique nature of the music of the South to how they were inspired as young children to take the musical path they have pursued all their lives, as well as perform songs from their new album.

Peter Holsapple talks with us about the dB’s new retrospective, how his musical upbringing in the hyper local scene in Winston Salem North Carolina served him well as an adult, his lifelong musical friendships, the seemingly unlikely influence of Mott the Hoople and much more. We feature music from I Thought You Wanted To Know as well, a collection that sounds as fresh and innovative now as it did when it was first put on tape.

We take a trip south and west to the Lone Star State for this episode on two great songwriters comparing notes on each other’s latest music, and reaching for a mutual favorite from western North Carolina to talk about in our Three Song Set with Tony Kamel and Kelley Mickwee.