It’s time once again for me to endure my yearly task of massive undertaking out here at the June Bug Ranch in Cookeville Tennessee, the mighty yearly festival that has evolved into one of my annual  events The Muddy Roots Music Festival. This big banger happens every Labor Day Weekend, and it’s usually hot, hot and hot…mostly nothing else but rain. You will find out quickly JUST WHY they call it Muddy Roots.

I haven’t missed a single year of Muddy Roots action, and in 2010 I began a rough version of my website. Learning and observing things, people and scenes. Mostly I began to appreciate music, REAL music of all types. This very website here was basically relaunched in 2013, but Muddy Roots pretty much helped inspire my whole platform of operations…I embedded the only rule Muddy has into my daily operations..”Don’t Be A Dick”.

The weather this year certainly didn’t disappoint if you were looking for heat and sun. I myself like cooler weather and cloudy conditions but I guess mother nature said no this year, lots and lots of water. One nice thing they did was what used to be stage 2 was an entire tent to provide shade for the patrons this year. It also held the fourth open mic stage, which I will touch on later, most of the acts on that stage transpired when I was asleep but I wanted to acknowledge the efforts of the man involved.

The only drawback to the tent on the PBR stage, was the heat. Now that’s not truthfully the festival’s fault, but yeah the weather made the loaded tent hot and stuffy. But the added merch space to shop was awesome, also the fact that there was NO stage 1 or stage 2 or stage 3 made it sound more “equal”. Sometimes bands that have never visited or patrons that haven’t ever been might think stage 1 is better than stage 2..that’s NOT A FACT, I’m just making a guess.

The new PBR stage was in the flat part of the backside of vendor row, and had open grass in front of it for the sun lovers. The bad news..this stage had a LOT of the Doom Metal near my camper late night, and I used sleep medication to sleep through Sleep. Yes my friends, I didn’t stay up for many of the later acts, it’s hard on me now. Maybe I’m just getting older and out of shape, I don’t know? The wonderful thing about Muddy Roots is the diversity among styles of music and the respect we have for those differences. I conversed with many people whom weren’t as enthused about the abundance of Doom Metal here, or the new faces..and actually convinced a few people to see things like I do. I’m not really into that stuff and I don’t really think it’s repugnant, I just don’t care for it.

I suppose my coverage this year wasn’t as intense as many years in the past because of the lineup, but there were so many changes to take in..most of them positive. Maybe the year we had all of the Bluegrass wasn’t as big of a deal to the crowd that enjoyed Sleep or High On Fire, and that right there is indeed what makes Muddy Roots so unique and stellar..diversity and the acceptance of other genres.

The staff here at Muddy Roots outdid themselves this year in making this festival the best one yet. I’ll tell you what folks the immense growth in attendance went noticed by me immediately.  I do not think I have witnessed a larger volume of people here. The stage managers Mr. Chad Martindale and Mr. Mark Simmons once again made the two older stages a huge success, and are always willing to lend a helping hand to get set list information and pictures for me.

Many many people labored effortlessly this entire week to bring us this fun, Mr. Chris Cahill, Mr Robert Brown, Mr. Joe Dooda, Miss Destiny Smith, Miss Kelly McNoldy, and SO MANY photographers like Miss Delane Chavez and Mr Milton Chavez. Honestly right now there are many I haven’t named and will name soon. I pretty much tried to retain as much as possible in little time.

I wanted to point out how easy it was at the ticket gate with Miss Kelly there and I wanted to THANK MISS Kimber the personal loan, even though it was insanely HOT, I got my gathering together and finally got ready for some music. Now for many of you that know me personally, my adopted Father passed away this past July and left me with no vacation time left. I had to omit Day 1 on Thursday, which to my dismay contained many of the bands I liked.

But my goodness what a beautiful day today! I did a quick jaunt down vendor row to greet old and new friends to get over to the Wood Stage to see an old friend I featured some time ago. The first act I will bring you is Miss Rebecca Jed.

You might remember my coverage of her then duo called the Bucksnort Beauties At Dee’s Country Cocktail Lounge last year. We did a wonderful review on her previous album “Wildfire And Moonshine”, which you can read HERE. Now that she is doing more shows solo, she has a NEW album she is promoting now called “Cowboy Up”.

She played a few off the album including the title track “Wildfire And Moonshine” , and another called “All The Hell With All Y’all”..I’m going back to Arkansas. Now folks Arkansas is where she makes her home with her trusty wolfdog and her little man Mr. Noah. She is one of my coolest friends in the Nashville area, and it’s always a pleasure to see her.

I got to watch her play some Loretta Lynn covers and other songs from the new album ‘Cowboy Up” and I will include a track list right here. If you want to buy ANY of these albums here, you can always click on the artist name here.

She has a great Honky Tonk sound to her and I have always liked her down home writing style, she proudly carries her passion of Traditonal Country music, and she is developing her own style. Another focus on Muddy Roots this year were Female Artists. Now that may be an argument there..and I concur that “Female Fronted Bands” are NOT a genre, but I also concur that a lot of festivals under schedule the female artists sometimes.

TRACK LISTING:

1.Cowboy Up
2.Drive
3.Shot Gun Willie
4.Get Rite To It
5.Wreck My Train
6.Feel Like Sinning
7.Alpha Wolf
8.Snake Skin Jacket
9.Mustang
10.Hillbilly Jungle

Here’s a pair of names you will be hearing more of this year. This is Andrea Colburn And Mud Moseley. I have been hanging onto this album as well to tell you more about it now! I mean what better time to wait than until now right?

The first song they played was from their first album called “Sad Songs And Switchblades” from 2015 and it was called “Hwy 9”. It’s a horribly poignant song of murder and blood. This pair comes to the stage meaning business with six bullets in her gun, and when she finishes her song you are dead!

After playing some covers she played “Bones” which was another haunting song about moving smelly bones of a lover who lied.  Burning bones and digging up bones what better way to go into the chilly fall Halloween season than this band? You mix up a GREAT Honky Tonk thump sound with some shock rock type music, and you have this band!

The next song was called “Becky (Take My Boots Off Again)” which on the album has a really good Hillbilly Twang, as does the entire album. From one of the hillbilly queens of underground Country Music this set was amazing.  The next song was also off the new album called “Turn Out the Lights”, which is about being poor pretty much.

I especially appreciate the lead guitar work of Mr. Mud Moseley his sound rivals the lead guitar work of Miss Tommy Ash and others. and underground Country needs more of it! “Sad Country Song” was next which talks about a crazy girl at a bar, playing songs and getting drunk. Maybe she wrote it about herself or maybe not…who knows but ANYBODY can appreciate this twang!

“Garbageman” was next followed by “Shirley” which was another one of the good ones off the new album with a pretty cool shuffle beat. It was the first song from the album, and when I first popped it in I was immediately hooked on their sound…but the next song “Dark River” I REALLY LIKED the guitar work on. The intro and leads were absolutely amazing, and once again a song about a dead body in a dark river…and the body returned!  From what I remember of her set they closed with a few covers, and I shuffled on to the next band!

Tracklist for Easy, Sleazy and Greazy:
1.Shirley
2.Sometimes
3.Garbageman
4.Sad Country Song
5.Bones
6.Becky (Take My Boots Off)
7.Bad With You
8.Full Moon Over Georgia
9.Turned Out The Lights
10.Dark River
11.Tied To the Bed
12. Shirley (1947 Relapse)
13.Pepperoni Sue

Another band with a forthcoming album, is the Texas based Blackgrass Gospel, whom I have featured in the past as well. Their self titled debut album dominated their set from what I could tell, and I got some terrific shots of this band with my NEW camera here!

Their first song was called ‘419″ , and another called “Dead Man” until I noticed the song called “Broken”. My liver is flooded today folks, and my lungs collapsed the other night! I tell you what, this band has evolved in leaps and bounds live. They are one of the more punk influenced string bands that Muddy Roots offers, and I like them a lot.

“No Soul To Give” was next, you can’t give your soul to someone because you got no soul to give. That song features some really good banjo work as well as the song called “Shit Creek”. While it’s true much of this type of music isn’t for everybody, neither was the Doom Metal, and like I previously stated..that’s what’s great about Muddy Roots.

“I Eat The Living” was next, and is probably my favorite song on their first album about zombies. I just think the beat is really cool, next up was the song “Stack Them Bones”. They played another new song called “Barnacles” and closed their set with “I Will Haunt You” and the song called “Cold Beer And Whiskey”. We will certainly be featuring their new album when it is released.

I hurried over to the PBR stage to see Call Me Bronco a band from Louisville that recorded a VERY COOL album on the Rusty Knuckles label.  They have a brand spanking new album forthcoming in February that I am eagerly awaiting to tell you about.

Besides their awesome “4 AM” and other favorites of mine, they played some new songs. Much like Blackgrass Gospel, this band has evolved as well, as a unit and sound wise. It was fun to watch them play on a big stage with that much room on it.

A new song that Mr. Samuel proclaimed ANYBODY that can tell him all of the references got a free shirt, that song was called “The Day That Punk Rock Died”.  I was indeed wandering around trying out my new camera, and meeting new folks this year. I think this band was exposed to a whole new audience, here as they displayed other songs called “I’m Not Being Vindictive,I Just Don’t Wanna Hold Hands With You”.

For the more punk loving fans, this band is releasing a terrific EP in 2019 with songs like “St. Joseph’s Burning” and “Cody’s Song”. They also included two songs that aren’t recorded tonight called “Cigarettes” and another called “we Wear Black”. I would like to THANK Mr. Samuel St. Samuel for the help on the song titles, as I had lyrics jotted down. As the sun faded out, and relieved us from that awful heat, I went across the aisle to see my good friends The Rock Bottom String Band.

So I know they opened up their set with “The Grey”, and at this time I had been up 37 hours in the heat. And playing with my new camera, not really used to the flash yet nor do I know how lenses work…YET…just wait folks. Wait on HERE as I learn how to use this thing better in part 2!

Mr. Dave and Mr. Johnathan both taught me stuff, and let me use zoom lenses. From the great state of Texas I bring you Miss Mackenzie Dart, Miss Tara Miller, Mr. Alex Shultz and Mr. Griffin Harrison on the bass. Now, they have had some lineup changes but I have always enjoyed them since I found them in 2014.

So equally from the 2016 album “Home Ain’t Where I’m From” we had the song “Deacon’s Daughter” . They then played some new songs from their three song EP called “Por Vida” and those songs were called “Mark On A Map” and another called “Layi’n Low Lately”.

Then they called up Mr. Gary Lindsey from Black Eyed Vermillion to help them play the song “Devil In Me”. After that I believe the song was called “Scrapi’n By” off the 2016 album, and they closed their set with the song “Witches” and then one of my favorites “Till’ We Die”.

Hobolight Photography has been gracious enough to allow me to use some of their photos on bands I missed and other various tidbits I wanted to touch on. Like the clean up crew and the bathroom attendants that worked VERY VERY hard to make this a fun and clean and safe environment to enjoy our music at.

The Everymen played one of the rowdiest and FUN sets of the weekend, and to be honest I had so much FUN watching this show I forgot to write the songs down! I know folks that maybe some of you were hoping I would cover more bands like I usually do, but this year it grew to such epic proportions that it just wasn’t possible. The growth in attendance made it harder to become mobile, and now honestly that’s NOT such a bad thing..is it?

Everymen photo courtesy of Miss Jenni Maria. Thanks for the use of that one!

So I usually break this down into days but this year I am just going to have two parts if that’s o.k. with y’all. I wanted to touch on a few of the things I missed like the open mic stage on the late night portion of the PBR stage. Tucked away in the corner of a smaller merch sales area, was the stage that Mr. Justin Boot whom I have had the pleasure of meeting a few years back, was running.

This stage flourished late night more than any time and much to my dismay it ROCKED when I was sleeping. Also in my defense I got really sick after the festival, I felt it coming on. I suppose at 47 I am partied out, I think the entire weekend I had 2 beers, and a few pulls of moonshine. I like the shine when I’m sick with O.J. and honey and lemon.

Mr. Justin ran a DYNAMITE stage here this weekend with surprise acts the likes of  Mr. Tim Vee, Miss Lara Hope And The Ark Tones, Black Eyed Vermillion, Mr. Fritz from the duo of Whiskeydick, Freight Train Rabbit Killer, Miss Molly Gene, The Rock Bottom String Band and Red Necromancer.

From what I heard it was truly an amazing experience in carrying on the music all day and night long this weekend. No matter WHERE you went or WHAT you did, there was music and food to enjoy.  Merch to shop for and new faces to meet and greet.

My good friends over at Ellie Monster were there to provide us with vintage western wear as well as my dear friend Miss Sara Brown from Stoned Beautiful Jewelry. She makes the most lovely hand crafted turquoise and bone wares on the East Coast…really on ANY coast.

The vendors of food and clothes are also equally wonderful to become friends with, and get to know as people. Many of them I get to see often at other festivals all over the United States, like my friends at Pop’s Place whom took over the Billy Bayou’s Sweet Dixie Tea stand, I understand the previous owner had some health issues and sadly passed away.

There were a few more acts on Friday I wanted to see, but time and my need for sleep just wouldn’t permit me too. When I do this kind of thing I come right from my factory job of third shift, and go right to the music. I am usually up for long hours, and I don’t get much rest. So with that in mind I had to head back to my loaned camper for the night and sleep through Sleep..and it wasn’t hard really because I was exhausted.

The next morning began a little overcast and about 2PM, we had a damn good shower for about an hour that held up a few of the PBR stage acts. I had ALL my rain gear out at the ready under the Rusty Knuckles booth. I spent quite a bit of time over at the Wood Stage today, as many of the acts I wanted were there today. The wet ground from the morning began to flourish with vivid colors running from confetti left behind by the Everymen.

Children were running rampant flailing swim noodles left laying around by the epic swim noodle battle of 2018. I plunked my chair down with my books and belongings on it, and climbed up into the tower, which this year was closed to media only. Now by 4pm when the Gallows took the stage I was EVER SO THANKFUL I had a safe place to catch the action.

You know, every year I have a new band I find here, even if they have been on my radar or not. Today I bring you a FANTASTIC band called Blue Cactus from Chapel Hill North Carolina. Miss Steph Stewart and Mr. Mario Arnez make up the front duo of this band, and today it was just them two. Now, I want to articulate on how different the album is with backing vocals on songs like “I Never Knew Heartache”. Miss Steph’s vocals are reminiscent of the late Miss Tammy Wynette, including the backing DUM DUM DUM vocals during the chorus buildups.

That song was absolutely one of the most well written songs I have been blessed to hear in YEARS, if you give me a three chord and a truth song, this song makes you want to get DRUNK and STONED and CRY. The steel guitar brings her sweet vocals forward into the world with sorrowful fashion.

“Anymore Something” was their third song today, as I was absolutely transfixed on their show here today, I mean I was truly amazed with EVERY aspect of their music, their demeanor and their respect for history of Country Music here…you can just FEEL their charisma. Mr Mario’s lead guitar abilities were not too shabby either, I could rate others better, but his style and technique just FITS into what they do. He does not have the fish out of water appearance here.

The set opened with “So Right (You Got Left)”  the title itself bored me and made me think of many songs aptly named the same. BUT it was TRULY well written and I enjoyed the lyrics here, it made me smile and enjoy the twang from Mr. Mario.

“Not Alone (Till You Come Home) was next today, another well written song featuring her truly soulful voice. One thing I wanted to illustrate about the album is that all of the songs compliment each other truly well. They played a new song they called “Rodeo Queen” which was a good song, I’ll have to keep in contact with them for info on the new album.

I began to mosey onto the other stages here while they played a political song called “Finger On The Button”, I wasn’t really impressed with that one. Not really any sided on politics myself but it just really didn’t fit their entire presentation well,  but all in all it was one of the best sets of the weekend in my opinion….uh oh here starts the rain!

Miss Molly Gene One Whoaman Band did not get to play her slotted time at 1PM, but she did indeed get to play. I had to run back to my dump site to get my rain boots.  She is a Missouri based OMB, with just as much energy as Mr. Scott H Biram, with a meaner kick drum stomp! I got to hear her play a song with Freight Train Rabbit Killer and she played “I Am Strong, I Am Woman”.

The rain didn’t stay around for too long, however it was lengthy enough to be menacing and make mud. I climbed up into the tower later on during the next few sets while it rained and it helped keep my camera dry. I wasn’t sure about waterproofing my new camera.

While this was transpiring I kind of wandered around a little bit as they jumbled many of the bands to different times and stages. I did get to stop and see the Maness Brothers that got moved to the Spider Monkey stage. They have a high energy show going on, also form Missouri.

The PBR stage had the most of the Doom Metal on Saturday,so I opted to focus on the music I appreciated personally more than feature music I didn’t care for. But I was extremely heartwarming to see it being supported in such a grand fashion here. I mean the Muddy Roots lineup shirts SOLD OUT in an HOUR, these “NEW” faces here were buying merch, and buying food, WHO could be upset with that growth?

I did check out a portion of the set that Stump Tail Dolly had, and it was equally nice to see them perform on such a big, nice stage. They have new music, and I don’t know all of the new song names right now, I’ll be catching up with Mr. Ryan soon on new things they are doing. They always have a great stage presence and powerful songs like “Cumberland Gap” and “Iv’e Endured”.

The last band I wanted to touch on in this half of the article here was a Tex Mex punk based band called Pinata Protest from San Antonio Texas. These four guys tear up the stage every time I have covered them, last year they were equally amazing on stage.

The lead singer plays an accordion and spins in circles like a crazed madman, and they have some wicked guitar solos. I did remember the song ‘No Que See”. Piñata Protest was founded by the Mexican-born singer and accordionist  Mr. Àlvaro Del Norte. The band includes Mr. Regino Lopez on electric guitar and vocals, Mr. Richie Brown on electric bass and vocals, and Mr. Chris-Ruptive on drums and vocals.

As the band blazed through energetic songs like “Vato Perron” the rain started, and I moved to my truck to get my rain gear for the day. See I come prepared, and I do NOT quit for anything. The band split up audience to their likes of red and green salsa, and I left before they acted on what that was all about.

Now, folks I want you to get ready for my second portion to this series because it will include a VERY special tribute to a Muddy Roots veteran the likes of the rest of us here this weekend. We had a very touching moment out here at the Junebug ranch with the New blood Tubs and the Gallows..but that will be the part 2, so stay tuned.

By Joshua Wallace

Asleep At The Wheel have returned with a new album of original cuts and covers.  This is the first Asleep At The Wheel record since 2016’s Christmas album titled Lone Star Christmas Night.  This record finds the band splitting vocal duties between Ray Benson and new fiddle player Katie Shore. Katie has been featured on Asleep At The Wheel albums before, but not this heavily as she takes lead vocals on six tracks throughout the record.  This brings a fresh sound to a band that has been around since 1970.

One of my favorite tracks on the album is “Pencil Full Of Lead” which is a Ray Benson lead cut.  It’s a faster number that features the classic Asleep At The Wheel sound you’ve come to know and love with nice work from Eddie Rivers on both pedal steel and sax.  Another favorite is a track that was co-written by Ray Benson and Katie Shore titled “Call It A Day Tonight”. This is a slower jazzy number that really allows Katie’s vocals to shine.

Another favorite is the track “Pass The Bottle Around”.  This is a Ray Benson track that features Katie heavily on fiddle with a nice solo feature towards the end.  You do get the feeling that Katie Shore is the star of this album and Ray Benson is more of a support player.  The song “Weary Rambler” is perhaps my favorite that features Katie Shore on vocals. It’s another mellow jazzy tune about ramblers looking for freedom.  Finally, the album closes out with a number featuring Seth and Scott Avett of The Avett Brothers and written by Seth Avett. Basically, if you have ever wondered what The Avett Brothers would sound like with Asleep At The Wheel backing them, this is it.  The song pays tribute to Willie Nelson who has written about nearly everything you can write about and he got there first.

New Routes is an album that feels like a new beginning for this old band.  They’re exploring new sounds and bringing a new singer to the forefront with the vocals of Katie Shore being heavily featured.  I feel like this record breathes new life into an act that some would say had become a tribute act as they have not released many original records over the recent years.  I’m looking forward to what comes from Asleep At The Wheel which now effectively features two vocalists and is still an amazing country and western swing band. New Routes is out everywhere you can find good music on Friday September 14th, 2018.          

Favorite Tracks : Pencil Full Of Lead, Call It A Day Tonight, Pass The Bottle Around, Weary Rambler, Willie Got There First

Asleep At The Wheel – New Routes (2018)

1. Jack I’m Mellow
2. Pencil Full Of Lead
3. Call It A Day Tonight
4. Seven Nights To Rock
5. Dublin Blues
6. I Am Blue
7. Pass The Bottle Around
8. Big River
9. Weary Rambler
10. More Days Like This
11. Willie Got There First (featuring Seth Avett and Scott Avett)

By Joshua Wallace

I had the privilege to attend the American Aquarium show this past Saturday night (09/08) in my home town of Valdosta, GA at Ashley Street Station and it was a good one.  This isn’t the first time American Aquarium has been to town, it’s actually the third that I can remember. The last time I saw them in town was 2014 and that was before BJ Barham went sober and with the old lineup.  That band was tight and always a good show, but the show I saw this past weekend was best I have ever seen them. This new lineup of American Aquarium is must see if they come to your area. They’re currently touring on the Thing’s Change record.  This is in my opinion their best album yet. It will be very high on my Top 50 Albums of 2018 list which will be published in December alongside the list Gary Hayes does.

Justin Kennedy Band

The show started off with the Justin Kennedy Band who played about an hour’s worth of mostly original material and a few select cover songs.  They are largely a southern rock group with some country influence. They played a few songs off their current album titled “Outlaw” including the title track, “Rockstar Heart”, “Travelin’ Man”, “Bandaids and Broken Hearts”, “Best I Ever Had” and “Letters”.  That last song I mentioned “Letters” was my favorite original of the night. It was a heartfelt ballad that deserves to be heard so check them out live or go find that track on your favorite streaming service. They also did a few select covers which included tracks by Lynyrd Skynyrd and Otis Redding.  Don’t sleep on this band if they’re playing near you, Justin Kennedy and company put on a great southern rock show with some good songwriting and killer riffs.

Justin Kennedy jamming a guitar solo

American Aquarium takes the stage

After JKB finished up, American Aquarium took the stage.  The band quickly got down to business jumping into a track off their new album titled “The World Is On Fire”.  This is a good track to introduce the new band to new audiences with because it showcases the diversity of the band with quieter moments that give way to a rock heavy chorus.   It was followed up with another new tune in “Tough Folks” which is another heavy rocker that got the crowd going.

BJ Barham rocks out with Shane Boeker

The band didn’t just stick to new stuff, there were older tracks sprinkled throughout including a good version of “Casualties” and a great version of the local favorite “Hurricane”.  Before that track there was some back and forth with BJ and the crowd about the meaning of the song. “Hurricane” is actually about a girl from Valdosta, GA and BJ was trying to describe the relationship as somewhere between dating and relations but someone in the crowd interjected by calling it “f*cking”.  This made BJ crack up on stage and say something along the lines of “that is exactly the word I was trying to dance around saying in public”. This started a hilarious back and forth banter that broke up the more serious nature of the songs on the rock show.

Rhett Huffman on the keys

This set heavily featured tracks from the Burn. Flicker. Die. album which included another highlight of the night with a rocking version of local favorite with “Jacksonville”.  It ended with a psychedelic crescendo that takes the recorded version to the next level. Another track from that album was the great “Lonely Ain’t Easy” about a lover who takes everything including a prized vinyl record collection.  The country side of the band really stands out on this live version which features Adam Kurtz on the pedal steel.

BJ Barham puts everything into his songs

Another highlight of the night was the early hit “I Hope He Breaks Your Heart”.  This track was a rocking ballad with a sing-along chorus that had the crowd going.  BJ Barham sings this song with the same passion towards the subject that he recorded it with almost ten years ago.  It was the perfect lead in to the final track of the main set “Burn.flicker.die”. It was another rocker that highlights the songwriting of BJ Barham while leaving the crowd on a high note.  That prepared the small but rowdy crowd to erupt into a frenzy for an encore which lead to a finale of “Katherine Belle” that ended the night with an early track from the Dances For The Lonely album.

American Aquarium closes out the night with an encore

BJ Barham has finally created a band that is firing on all cylinders.  They can straddle the line between rock and roll and country as needed and both genres sound perfectly executed from this band.   The new lineup features Shane Boeker on lead guitar, Adam Kurtz on pedal steel, Rhett Huffman on the keyboard, Ben Hussey on bass and Joey Bybee on drums.  It should be noted that Joey is out of the band for the rest of the year for personal reasons, so Matt Alger filled in on drums. I cannot stress this enough, American Aquarium are a must see band.  If you love country, rock and roll, heartland rock, Americana or even just good music, go see this band while you can.  I love that they are still playing smaller markets such as Valdosta, GA because I feel like they will be moving on to bigger venues very soon.  As a final note, they are making their national TV debut tonight / early tomorrow morning (09/11/2018) on NBC’s Last Call With Carson Daly at 01:30 AM.  After that, they are still on tour for the rest of the month and I will post those dates at the end of this article. Go see this band, you won’t regret it.

September 10th Chattanooga, TN

September 11th Jackson, MS

Sept 12th – 14th Nashville, TN

September 15th Macon, GA

September 21st Jacksonville, FL

September 22nd Wilmington, NC

September 23rd Charlotte, NC

Last night Miss Amanda Carlon from the Facebook based Outlaw Resurgence community reached out to me to help support a HUGE endeavor she has been undertaking to benefit a young man awaiting a heart transplant. OR has garnered quite an impressive following on social media in the last year, and has turned me to a couple GREAT bands through their live feeds. As the market became more saturated OR saw that, and slightly changed their approach and direction, but THEY WERE one of the original LIVE FEED based pages. I pretty much credit them solely for that method of weekly featuring new talent on a live feed, and creating a larger reach for them. The artists resulted in merch sales, which squelched the ‘playing for exposure” from the negative people.

They do a lot of great promotional work for beginning and established artists as well, and this weekend they will raise money for this little man here. This is little 8 year old Mr. Aaron Vaughn, and he is braver than most adults I know. The next time you feel like bitching about your problems, take lessons from this little guy and put yourself in check…because I have myself.

This is the Facebook group you can join to follow his journey in the home and hospitals as he awaits his heart transplant. He is on the list, however the list is long and the wait will be expensive. Miss Amanda has been working relentlessly for MANY WEEKS doing this for him, and asking for NO credit.

What she DOES want is your bids on the items so generously donated by folks like Mr. Cody Jinks, Mr. Whitey Morgan and more! You will just have to wait until Sunday to find out what is being offered. I understand that many of the items will be lumped into small merch packages to make it easier for her.

Once you win the bid you will be contacted to Payapal Mr. Chad Vaughn’s personal account, and the winner will pay the shipping for the item they win. Down below will be the link you need to be involved in the auction this weekend.

Any cards or mail can be sent to:

Aaron Vaughn
P.O. Box 153
East Lynne, MO 64743

This young man LOVES underground Country Music and his father Mr. Chad Vaughn travels the highways of America bringing us his music, so you can easily ascertain the struggle that the Vaughn family faces.  This is the link to bid on the merch items RIGHT HERE.

https://www.facebook.com/sfcantrell/videos/10217162315912823/?t=0

I have been doing this for many years, writing about my favorite bands and artists. Venues, festivals and everything in between. I followed many people around for many miles, and met many new friends along the way. In that time I have compiled a rather lengthy bucket list for myself, because I believe one of the keys to success is setting goals for yourself.

My right arm Mr. Joshua Wallace has always been worth his weight in gold to me, and I don’t feel I do enough for him, even though he enjoys working WITH me on this website. I used to say he works for me, but to be honest he works WITH me folks. ALL of those record reviews you read on here are all done by HIM, not me. HE GETS the material, and decides what to do, and shortly he will bring you his review of this man Mr. Whitey Morgan and his band of Outlaws called the 78’s. This website has been reporting on them for many years, since it’s RE LAUNCH in 2013, and before on my older website I started on MySpace.

To say that the band as a whole has advanced to a whole new echelon of finesse is a gross understatement. They have evolved into a gigantic well oiled machine, both in sound and stage presence. That busted up, rusty old Valvoline oil drum has stood at attention for a good while now.

Ironically, the scenario last night in town was amazing for local music, if you consider Mr. Whitey still at the local music level. To me, he is in transition from local venues to big venues, like last night where he received a high accolade for any performer..a  headline concert at the historic Ryman Auditorium. This particular event was integral for them, because of the bigger name mainstream acts that surrounded him. Now folks, many other bands would have suffered ticket sales in lieu of the other 4 major events, but not Mr. Whitey.

Look at it THIS WAY here, you got Mr. Whitey and the 78’s playing this venue, and ALL  AROUND HIM you have more larger national acts, yet the Ryman was STILL packed full of people. YOU had a choice, and a decision, and you chose wisely if you ended up at the Ryman. Right across the street you had Def Leppard and Journey, right down the street you had Taylor Swift, AND next to that you had Three Doors Down…yet WE CHOSE to be at the Ryman. It’s funny how this all works out folks, you have Mr. Whitey who is finally crossing the threshold into major national attention at the OLD venue for the Opry, and Mr. Garth Brooks, who is returning to full swing from a “Daddy Break” at the current Opry house. Not to say that the music Mr. Whitey plays is the same as Mr. Garth Brooks….ohhh no…my point is…real music is catching up AND BEATING the watered down junk…and the powers that be are pissed because they have NO CHOICE BUT to respond.

Mr. Whitey himself stood in awe, as they raised the lights up, and he bellowed “I just cannot believe all you motherfuckers showed up here tonight, and I cannot thank you enough. It’s like a party you planned nobody to show up for, and you end up with a ton of motherfuckers instead”. Tons of motherfuckers indeed, have been the case, and after Loud And Heavy Festival In Texas you can tell by his merchandise stock that people are beginning to respond to his music. EVERY style of shirt they had was out of XL sizes and 2X, hell they were out of stock on mostly everything…that’s NOT a complaint, that’s a HIGH FIVE.

The one man band that was introduced to me many years ago called Tennessee Jet opened the show tonight,my last encounter with him was at Third And Lindsley With Mr. Cody Jinks.He is truly one of my favorite one man bands equal to the likes of Mr. Scott H Biram, or Miss Molly Gene.

His stage show is a bit eclectic in itself, as he trades guitars for different set portions, there exists background narrations, and media clips from movies and television. He opened the show (and his set) with a song for veterans called “Never Forget”, that contains well written lyrics that haunt the listener with references of medications and a veteran’s struggle to return to society.

A cover of Waylon Jennings 1975 “Long Time Gone” was next from the album “Dreaming My Dreams” , which was also later played by Whitey Morgan in his set. He delved into his full length self titled album once again with a song called “Hwy 51 Blues”, and also included the dark and poignant “Dead Belles And Bones”. The later song is one of the ones that includes the one man drum kit accompanied with his guitar skills, and more Gothic lyrics than most of his originals.

His version of “I Saw The Light” was unique point in the show for me, for the simple fact that many years ago Country Legend Hank Williams Sr. performed that very song on that same stage. There is no denying that Country Music was alive and well in this institution tonight, in every aspect.

Mr. Alex Williams was next up to open the show, touring right now for his “Better Than Myself” album that graced many a TOP 50 lists of it’s year. Even he displayed tremendous growth since my last report of his in Glasgow at the Plaza Theater, he was also sporting a new haircut.

“Hellbent Hallelujah” opened his set tonight, as he riled up the crowd with his band.  His next song was called “Strange Days” which was a song that addresses modern day struggles of life. You can interpret this as a religious issue song or modern day struggle song as well, both of these songs came from his album.

His next song was a GREAT cover of Texas Country Legend Mr. Terry Allen, as he played the great “Amarillo Highway” from 1979. I thought he played a superb version of that song tonight, and it received quite an awesome response from us tonight. He returned back to his original music with the song “Freak Flag”.

The best song on his album was a song some of us can relate to called “Little Too Stoned”, which is a down right awesome party song that set up the mood for Mr. Whitey quite well. “Old Tattoo” was a song he wrote about his grandfather. It’s a very personal song for him, and you can tell the lyrics came from his heart. It talks about time don’t heal, and the passing of an old soul.

Mr. Whitey arrived after some intro music. The 2010 self titled album ushered in the first song called “Bad News” which set up the mood for a perfect night of Honky Tonk Country Music for us. His facial expressions tonight made me aware of the immense appreciation he has for this iconic venue, and how he got to this pinnacle in his career. I have been reporting on Mr. Whitey Morgan for SO MANY years, and it’s fun to watch these artists grow.

“Buick City Blues” was next, which in it’s own right represents his Motor City area origins. Unlike many of the artists of his current ilk, he hails from the northern region of Flint Michigan. This man and his band plays an easy 250 plus shows a year, and has been working the local circuit for a long long time.

The lead steel guitar intro to the next song called “Cocaine Train” has always been one of my favorites, despite the fact of it being a classic Johnny Paycheck song from the 1979 album “Everybody’s Got A Family, Meet Mine’. Mr. Brett just always hits every note with precision and grace. Next up was “Low Down On the Main Streets” and one of my favorites about torn up love called “Back To Back”…after the loving. For those lovers that have drifted apart and are together for sexual desires and no longer connected any other way.

His new album called “Hard Times And White Lines” wasn’t represented as strongly as I had initially anticipated upon arrival, but the two that were included were truly fine teasers of what is to come. Honestly, right now I already know what is to come…but I cannot totally divulge that information accept for the track listing. His first single off the forthcoming album entitled “Honky Tonk Hell” displays some truly fine production work, and I’ll say it honestly…this album is BY FAR his BEST offering to date.

Next up was a bunch of classic Whitey Morgan songs that I have enjoyed for many years now, including “Honky Tonk Queen”, which garnered a huge response from us tonight as he referenced all the awesome local bars we have been in this weekend. All over town within this scene I enjoyed pics of my friends at various bars and venues. Mr. Whitey also played “Long Time Gone” and the song that was also cut by Mr. Scott H. Biram “Still Drunk, Still Crazy, Still Blue”..

He covered the hallowed anthem of Mr. John Prine called “Paradise” which was followed by Dale Watson song that he wrote about Outlaw Legend Mr. Billy Joe Shaver. “Where Do You Want It?” was not necessarily a cover song per say, but a song both artists have always played since the beginning. Also later on down the line he played the Marshall Tucker Band “Fire On the Mountain’, and a version of Merle Haggard’s “Swinging Doors”.

“Me And The Whiskey” was another wonderful drinking song included in his set tonight, as he proclaimed to have assembled a “Perfect Ryman Drinking Set” for us tonight. “Goin Down Drinking” was a prime example of this statement, as was “I Ain’t Drunk”, and many more.

The encore they played was rowdy and hardcore, and included the songs ‘Sinner” and the song “Waiting Around To Die”. As they exited the stage, they left the Ryman Auditorium on another level in their careers as they join an elite few of artists that can draw several thousand people now. Traditional Country Music is indeed catching on and becoming a viable alternative to pop country now, and it is rapidly growing at an alarming rate!

It sure was an absolute pleasure to eat that yummy Spillway food, and catch up with everybody tonight. I cannot stay too long tonight, due to work but I shall write about what I see tonight. He has been closed on Sundays, but when he gets good lineups he opens for them. Tonight we have Mr. Chris Moondawg Hall, Mr. Pat Haney and Mr. Shannon Lawson.

I have not had the pleasure to catch up with Mr. Moondawg for several weeks now, and I got some information about his third album Troublador. He gave me the very last physical copy he had, and I am always grateful to see him. Mr. Pat Haney tells some really funny stories, while he plays his songs.

What I do is move from artist to artist as they rotate one song per person. Once I throw all the information together, it makes up a wonderful article for me.

Mr. Moondawg Hall began his set with the song “Breckenridge County” which a song he wrote about his youth outside of Louisville Kentucky. This song contains some really fine lyrics and displays well crafted wordsmith talents, and I understand that he was well received at Tumbleweed Festival.

“Overheated In Austin” was next, which was a nice song. “The Best Ones” was his next song off his album Troublador.

Mr. Haney is playing songs called “Adeline” about a place called “Little Kentucky” which talks about the hillbilly migration from the coal mines, coming up to Detroit for better work. I recall this song from the last series we had him on, which talks about the mailman being afraid to deliver to the area. This story is about a man that received his letter too late.

Pat Haney is telling stories about how he is watching us, and he knows what you are doing at all times. However he played my all time favorite song here called “It Won’t Be Over No Coal”.

“Come On Back To Bowling Green” was his next song he blew us away with. He said it was actually a Tommy Womack song.

Mr. Shannon Lawson opened with a song called “Rainy Day Whiskey” which was a song about his grandfather who used to hide little pint bottles in the barn from his grandmother. His kinfolk has deep roots ties with the civil war, and some stories about J.D.Crowe.

Mr. Shannon is telling about Spencer County right now, and the Heaven Hill fire. When they would drive around as kids and drink, this song is called “Heaven Hill’s On Fire”.  This Bardstown song displayed some truly precise guitar licks and some TRULY FINE vocal abilities of high notes and Traditional Bluegrass structure.

He is playing a song he wrote from seeing a televangelist once, called “Jesus Is A Guarantee”. Another song with powerful lyrics and equally powerful guitar playing.

FROM THE EVENT PAGE:

Sammy Kershaw LIVE in concert!! Come join us for a night of great music, fun, and spirits as we close out our annual Guntoberfest event!! An outdoor event for the whole family! Gates open at 6pm, Opening Act (TBD) takes the stage at 7pm, and Sammy Kershaw will take the stage at 8:30PM!! Rain or shine! Food & Beer will be available for purchase! Cash Only!

VIP Tickets include: VIP ONLY seating, Stage Front access, VIP only bar, complimentary snacks, VIP bathrooms.

General Admission- Bring a chair or a blanket (large hill side with a great view).  Contact: 270-229-4304 or 270-228-0190 or info@whittakerguns.com. TICKETS ON SALE NOW!

Now folks YOU KNOW that I especially love the late 80’s and 90’s Country the likes of Sammy Kershaw, his finest album in my opinion was his 1993 release “Haunted Heart”. That’s when the more mainstream Country wasn’t so bad, and you could actually bare with some FM radio time!

Mr. Sammy has released sixteen studio albums, with three platinum albums, and two gold. He has gathered twenty five top 40 singles on the Billboard charts, one number one hit, and ten top 10 hits in his career.

His 1991 debut album called “Don’t Go Near The Water” went platinum and produced four hit singles, all co-produced with the Legendary Mr. Buddy Cannon at the helm. His second album was the aforementioned “Haunted Heart”, and his third album called “Feelin’ Good Train”.

His train album produced four hits, and his next album “Politics, Religion, And Her” produced a few hits, however toward the early 1990’s the more pop country began to infest the more traditional sounding mainstream country and took the airwaves over. The more real Country sounding stars began to slowly fade out to the crowd that was being targeted by the pop country people.

When:

By Joshua Wallace

Lucero are back for their ninth full length studio album titled Among The Ghosts.  This album comes as the band marks it’s 20th anniversary and it shows a band still growing and expanding it’s sound.  Among The Ghosts goes for a more straightforward alt country rock sound than previous records which often featured some country or Americana elements.  This record was recorded live in one room with the band looking to capture their live sound on an LP. Have they succeeded? Let’s take a look into some of these tracks to find out.

The album kicks off with the title track “Among The Ghosts” which has a nice little guitar riff that echoes in the background until the song kicks in. Ben Nichols’ snarly growl finds a home whether he’s doing Americana or rock material and here it’s more of a rock n roll snarl throughout the vocals on this one.  Elsewhere, “To My Dearest Wife” is one of the more country / Americana tunes on the record with Nichols crooning over an acoustic guitar and sparse instrumentation throughout the track until it crescendos into the alt country sounds we love Lucero for.

I love the track “Back To The Night” which has some southern Gothic undertones and features a spoken word interlude from actor Michael Shannon who you might know from shows like Boardwalk Empire.  Finally, I really dig the new alt country anthem “For The Lonely Ones”. This track leans heavily on the rock influences and could easily get toes tapping and the dance floors going in any local honky tonk or dive.  This track closes the album out with a mix of the new sound and a flash of the band’s old sound mixed in.

Lucero haven’t slowed down on their 9th album Among The Ghosts.  Instead of sticking to things that work, the band has branched out and explored new sounds.  In an attempt to streamline their approach to new records Lucero have opted for a more rock focused record with less of the Americana and alt country influences of their past albums.  It’s a sound that works for the band and I hope they continue to see success for another 20 years. Among The Ghosts is out everywhere you can buy, download or stream music now.   

Favorite Tracks : Among The Ghosts, Back To The Night, For The Lonely Ones, To My Dearest Wife

Lucero – Among The Ghosts (2018)

1. Among The Ghosts
2. Bottom Of The Sea
3. Everything Has Changed
4. Always Been You
5. Cover Me
6. To My Dearest Wife
7. Long Way Back Home
8. Loving
9. Back To The Night
10. For The Lonely Ones

By Joshua Wallace

Jason Eady’s new album I Travel On is a follow up to his 2017 self titled release.  It also marks the first time Eady has brought his all acoustic road band into the studio with him.  It creates a different kind of sound from his previous efforts. The familiarity between Eady and this band shows on this album as they are very road tested. This record has all the makings of a career highlight for Eady. Let’s dive a bit deeper into it.

The album kicks off with “I Lost My Mind In California” and right off the bat you can tell something is different here.  It’s an all acoustic jam that is sure to get the dance floors from Carolina to Texas going. I love the acoustic guitar solo on this one.  Another favorite is “That’s Alright” which is a nice traveling tune that rambles from New Orleans to Fort Worth and it is always looking at the positive side of things.

Elsewhere, “Pretty When I Die” is a co-write with Justin Wells.  It’s a bluegrass inspired tune with some amazing dobro work. This will likely be the fan favorite from the album.  It’s a barn burner for sure. One reason I keep going back to Jason Eady is for his amazing ballads and the track “Happy Man” does not disappoint.  I will just let the song speak for itself when you hear it and just say that it’s another highlight of the record that you should not miss.

Jason Eady has turned in another great record that feels like a new start.  This is the first album he has ever recorded with his road band and I think it will not be the last.  There is a bit of a different style going on here with some obvious bluegrass influence and a heavy focus on acoustic guitar.  There are a few killer solos and some amazing dobro work throughout the album.  There are more up tempo numbers sprinkled throughout the album, but it is still very much a Jason Eady record. The strong songwriting and amazing voice are still there 100%, if not even made better by having a tight band behind him.  Get yourself a copy of Jason Eady’s new I Travel On album everywhere music is sold today.

Favorite Tracks : I Lost My Mind In Carolina, That’s Alright, Below The Waterline, Pretty When I Die, Happy Man, I Travel On

Jason Eady – I Travel On (2018)

1. I Lost My Mind In Carolina
2. Now Or Never
3. Happy Man
4. Calaveras County
5. Always A Woman
6. That’s Alright
7. Below The Waterline
8. Pretty When I Die

Tonight as I write this I find it no more fitting and urgent to write about Miss Wanda Jackson and her announcement to release BRAND NEW music in 2019. She has been called the First Lady of Rock And Roll, and the Queen Of Rockabilly in her sixty year career span, and here recently she has returned to Nashville to begin the record.

After decades of recording covers she actually hit the writing room for original music with some heavy hitting co writers the likes of Pistol Annies member Miss Angaleena Presley and Miss Elle King. If you’ll recall correctly she contributed to Miss Angleena’s album Wrangled on the song “Good Girl Down”.

This album will also be co-produced by four time Grammy award winner Vance Powell, who helped Mr. Jack White record her 2011 collaboration album called The Party Ain’t Over Yet. It also comes at a perfect time as it precedes her new autobiography called Every Night Is Saturday Night A Country Girl’s Journey To The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, where she discusses the challenges of her integrated band The Party Timers.

She talks about her relationship with Elvis, being discovered by Hank Thompson, and addresses why she never returned to the Opry for more than fifty years. She last appeared on the Opry in 2011 appearing with Mr. Jack White and others. On June 17th she made a triumphant return to the institution and received a standing ovation.

She has also secured booking management to support this upcoming album, which is great to see. My friend Jon Hensley used to manage her and Shooter both, and through brands like Muddy Roots Miss Wanda has maintained relevance within the music scene.

I write this with great urgency today because last night we lost Miss Lorrie Collins leaving Wanda Jackson one of the last true female Rockabilly Legends left. I shall report more on this subject as I discover the facts.

Well I’m going to be honest with you friends a LOT of you will be disappointed about this edition of my festival series… WHY…because THIS ONE IS ALREADY A SELLOUT. Hell the director, and his wife informed me via phone that they COULD HAVE SOLD every ticket PRE SALE! I’ll be honest with you ONLY Muddy Roots could boast that right now, and rightfully so. This is a REALLY relaxed atmosphere event here, and I understand it’s one big family.

Now, granted they DO cap it off at a thousand tickets per year due to limited space.. And that’s OK folks…really it is…but here is a nice survival guide for those that DID get a ticket. I always got the whole spectrum covered, maybe you don’t know the people involved like Mr. Jimbo Valentine who designs the posters, or Mr.J.J. Waters who runs the group Honky Tonk Heros in the West Virginia area, who actually turned me onto almost all of these artists.

I’m going to be relentlessly covering this event with MUCH MORE little bells and whistles side projects coming, trust you me. This event needs no embellishment from me, it has exploded on it’s own and now I am SO EXCITED to have been invited to partake in this. I’m going to bring you the BEST coverage from a professional point of view…I been doing this a LONG TIME people and I do it from the heart.

‘

As many of you know I have indeed been covering MANY of these artists that are involved with this event here. Each of these names will direct you to their link for you to study, in case you bought tickets and didn’t know all of the artists involved.

You know I want to tell you what differentiates this festival from ANY OTHER across the United States. This one is on a family farm property, it’s THE FURTHEST one from a corporate festival you will EVER FIND. I mean even other DIY fests have them at a campground or venue…THIS IS NOT A VENUE. This is a family area. This festival is VERY VERY special, and has grown into an epic pinnacle of it’s scene.

Even I had some fun researching a few of them here, I know for a FACT I had fun at Master Musician’s Festival covering some of these folks and also at W.B.Walker’s five year anniversary show.. Also, many of them I have covered at other venues and events this year. READY here is your lineup:

Tyler Childers

town Mountain

The Wooks

The Tillers

Arlo McKineley And The Lonesome Sound

Buffalo Wabs And The Price Hill Hustle

Joseph Huber

John R. Miller And The Engine Lights

Justin Wells

Laid Back Country Picker

Wayne Graham

Brother Smith

William Matheny

Short And Company

Angela Perley And The Howlin Moons

Magnolia Boulevard

prison Book Club

ONA

The Local Honeys

Josh Nolan

Vintage Pistol

Senora May

Luna And The Mountain Jets

Joe’s Truck Stop

Grayson Jenkins

Geno Seale And The Porch Front Gospel

The Jenkins Twins

If Birds Could Fly

Chelsea Nolan

Sean Whiting And The Handsome Bastards

Bryan Minks And The Kentucky Sons

Belle Plaine

Blake Berglund

Aaron Boyd

Darrin Hacquard

Eric Bolander

Derek Spencer

Tim Lancaster

Grits And Soul

Owen Reynolds

Madison Lewis

Flatracker

Ethan Wayne

Don Rogers

Charlie Brown Superstar

Clay Case

The Winetree

Skeeter Ranch Crew

Coby Langham

Jen Richardson

Jack Smith

Ed Hughes

***FESTIVAL INFORMATION & DO’S AND DON’TS***

*Kickin’ It On the Creek is SOLD OUT!!
*If you do not have a ticket, you are not permitted on festival
grounds.
*You must have your wristband on at ALL times, if you lose
your wristband, you may not re-enter the festival!
*Must be 21+, We will be checking IDs.
*Gates open on Wednesday, September 12th at noon.
*NO PETS!
*This is a dry county so BYOB!
*Do to limited space, we do encourage carpooling. Please
pass this on with your friends.
*We are sold out of RV passes. If you have a RV pass, we do
not allow RV’s over 16 feet.
*Ice and water will be available on site!
*We have 8 amazing food vendors on site.
*There will be pay showers.
*With no ATMs or internet service to swipe your card, you
must bring CASH for food trucks, craft vendors, band merch
etc.
*We are 30 min from stores, hotels, etc. Please pack
accordingly for your stay!
* Primitive camping is free, we encourage everyone to stay.
*Please keep your camp site as minimal as possible due to
limited amount of space. Save room for your neighbor!
*Small campfires are permitted, we just ask for you to clean it
up before you leave!
*No ATVs are permitted on festival grounds! If that is your
mode of transportation, you must park it at the entrance.
*WE WILL NOT TOLERATE ANY DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIOR
OR DISREPECT TO ANYONE ON OUR PROPERTY.
*We will not hold tickets for anyone at the gate!
*If you plan on camping with your friends, you must arrive
together. We will not hold any spots.
*This is a rural national forest location. GPS will not likely
direct you to the proper location. Route to festival will be well
marked with green dots, black arrows and signs from
Irvine. Directions can be found at
www.kickinitonthecreek.com.
*The amazing Hargett Fire Department will be doing our
parking again this year. These heroes save lives for free,
please tip them generously to park your car!
*We will provide shuttles if needed.
*If you are caught sneaking in Kickin’ It On the Creek, It will be
considered trespassing and you will be barred for life from
our festival.
*We strive hard to provide you with a safe, friendly, loving
environment to watch 56 of the most amazing acts on the
planet!
All we ask is that you love your neighbors, treat everyone
with respect, take out what you bring in, and to treat our farm
as if it were your own.
*Please arrive with a smile, make yourself at home, and
tighten up your dancin; shoes cause it’s gonna be a good
one!
*Ticket purchase and attendance is personal acceptance for
liability for all actions while on site!

THURSDAY Music starting at 1:00 pm
Clay Case
Madison Lewis
Jack Smith
If Birds Could Fly
Darrin Hacquard
Derek Spencer
Eric Bolander
Bryan Minks and The Kentucky Sons
The Jenkins Twins
Grits and Soul
Ona
Angela Perley and The Howlin’ Moons
Buffalo Wabs and the Price Hill Hustle
Charlie Brown Superstar

By Joshua Wallace

Last week, a story surfaced about Jamey Johnson calling a couple of unruly concert goers on stage and before they knew what happened he had his belt off and was swinging.  If you think this story sounds a bit far fetched, you wouldn’t be alone. Many have called the story questionable and have pointed to a couple of facts about the coverage of this story.  First, there is only one country music website covering the story and that website has a questionable reputation in some circles. Second, the author of the story only uses anonymous sources in the article.  Finally, there is no video or photographic evidence of Jamey Johnson taking his belt off on stage.

With all of the questions surrounding this story, I decided to do a bit of internet journalism myself and track down some corroborating accounts and maybe even find that elusive video.  Well, I have yet to be able to track down a video or photo of the incident, but I have obtained 3 independant reports from individuals who were there that night. I searched Facebook for people who either checked into the event on Facebook or showed interest in the event before it happened.  I also got one account from someone who said they were there after the story surfaced. These accounts all confirm that the incident took place, but the details somewhat differ between accounts on various things. The one thing I could confirm from my three accounts is that it might not have been as sensationalized as the original report made it out to be.  

I am going to reprint the three accounts as they were told to me via Facebook messenger.  I have cleaned up some spelling and removed parts of the conversation that did not relate to the story :

____________________________

Shawn T. Kelly :

I am kind of a conspiracy theorist.  I think it was staged personally because there was a large drunk guy in the upper deck Jamey was trying to send a message too that got escorted out 2 songs later for being loud.

Jamey called the guy up and it look like to guys getting called to price as right helping each other up on stage, no security was there, Jamey talked to a roadie just prior to it… when Jamey swung the belt the guys were already retreating. Jamey addressed the crowd that where he is from you don’t yell at the singer. Like I said. I think it was pretty well planned…

The two guys didn’t engage and I am thinking most intoxicated people would have tried fighting back, especially 2 in 1

____________________________

Carol Mae Davis :

I was a few rows back. It went by fast to be honest the whole place was singing In Color the song was done he asked the guy in the stands to come up pulled his belt off then pushed him down and told him to leave the concert. The guy was being disrespectful towards Jamey

____________________________

Mark Hoffman :

I noticed Jamey waved them to the stage they were sitting in the front row just off of Center. It happened relatively quickly the first one jumped up on stage leaving his friend still seated. Jamie then flag both of them to come up onto the stage. When the second individual walked up like a flash Jamey had his belt off gave them a couple of lashes they fell to the floor in shock. Then security grab them and dragged them off stage. Unfortunately about 50% of the audience got up and left after witnessing that. I myself stayed till the end it was probably the best concert I have ever been too.

To be fair to Jamey it was purely a drunken debauchery during event. People were screaming yelling at the bands and drunk.  Up in the balcony after the incident, I half a dozen guys begin a fight that lasted for about 30 minutes outside in the parking lot.

With that being said the venue may not have been the best for the crowd that showed up. Also if they would’ve had any type of security removing these types of individuals that were intoxicated, it never would’ve went this far.

just remember this venue, I would have a hard time believing holds more or even 500 people.

____________________________

I also contacted the venue who offered no comment on the incident and I contacted Jamey Johnson’s press contact who has not returned my email at time of publication.

While there are some differences in the stories, each individual confirms that it happened.  It is up to you, as the reader to decide where to take this story from here. My own take on the event is that it happened very fast and it was probably a long time coming for the individuals who were called out.  We have all been to a concert with someone who got a little too drunk and does nothing but yell at the stage the whole night. It seems to me that Jamey had an overly unruly crowd and he picked a couple of individuals who stood out to send a message to some other folks who were there too.  This event will add to the legend of a singer who is slowly building a legacy of being non conformist and lashing out against what he sees as wrong.

I have personally been in crowds when musicians have called out unruly behavior from stage and had security deal with the issue they had a unique vantage point of seeing.  It is always a bit comforting to know that they can see what is going on and won’t stand for it. Jamey Johnson’s response was a bit over the top, but sometimes you have to be over the top if you’re in a rough room. 

I will close with a word of advice to concert goers.  You might not think it because they will tend to ignore you, but musicians can hear you from the stage.  They can hear your insults, your constant requests for that one song on that one EP that the band doesn’t know and will never play, they can even hear your loud drunken coversations.  They can hear you and are probably as annoyed at you as the people around you are, even if they don’t show it. Please be respectful to musicians and those in the crowd around you when you attend a concert, and maybe next time you go to a concert,  you won’t have someone try to whip you with a belt.