Johnny Cash has been covered by many artists in many different ways. Brian
Owens has taken the R&B route and has brought the soul out of these old
Johnny Cash tunes with his latest record titled Soul Of Cash. Some covers
are more successful than others, but they are all done with a passion that
shows Owen’s love for Cash.

There are two incredible covers on this album that makes it worth the price
of admission. “Ring of Fire” and “Folsom Prison” are some of the most
creative takes on these songs I have heard. “Ring of Fire” harkens back to
the Ray Charles version of the song while remaining it’s own thing.
“Folsom Prison” has it’s own groove. If Johnny Cash’s original was a more
somber warning about the slow pace of prison life, Brian Owens is looking
out of prison at a party train, and it’s going fast down the tracks. His
vocal still has a somber longing quality, but the music is a dance track
that you can imagine the passengers would hear in a party car.

The next handful of tracks keep the somber quality of the Johnny Cash
originals. “Walk The Line” has an amazing bass line as the focus of what
turns out to be a very smooth rendition. One of my favorite Cash songs is
his take on “Long Black Veil” and Brian Owens and Dylan McDonald do a good
version of it here. “Man In Black” brings another interesting take on a
Cash original by making it a faster and less somber track. Cash’s version
worked as a protest tune, and while Owens still retains that message, I’m
not sure if it works as a faster song.

The album closes with an original tune titled “Soul In My Country”. This
song is pretty much an explanation of why this album exists. It is Brian
Owens telling his own story about his connection to country music. Country
music and soul music have similar origins and they are both born out of the
church. This whole album bridges the gap between country and soul
successfully and it is worth a listen for any fan of Johnny Cash. There is
no physical release for the album yet, however it is out everywhere digital
albums are sold. They are planning a vinyl release in the future.

Brian Owens – Soul Of Cash

1. Ring of Fire
2. Folsom Prison Blues
3. Walk The Line
4. Cry Cry Cry
5. Sunday Morning Coming Down (feat. Austin Grimm Smith)
6. Long Black Veil (feat. Dylan McDonald)
7. Man In BlackSoul In My Country (feat. Rissi Palmer and Robert Randolph)

–Joshua Wallace
Chief Staff Writer
Gary Hayes County
http://www.garyhayescountry.com

I had the pleasure of taking ‘5 Shots’ with the very talented Erin Enderlin today & I am proud to bring you the results of that & introduce you all to this amazing singer/songwriter.

Round 1 ~ How long have you been a singer songwriter and how did you 1st get started?

Well, I was that weird kid. I fell in love with country music super early. I even took a Conway Twitty record for show and tell in kindergarten. By the time I was in 4th grade I was writing songs and performing them for my music class. Then I started playing shows in public at 16.

This girl is absolutely amazing, she is already a star but there is no limits for where her talent can take her. When I first heard her I could not believe that she was only 13 years old. I am beyond honored to have been able to talk to her today and bring you this Q&A. Guys if you’re not already a fan of hers please support EmiSunshine, it is people like her that is keeping real music alive. Enjoy #EmiSunshine 🙂

Round 1 ~ How old where you when you got your first instrument, what was it, & who taught you how to play it?

I had the honor of talking to Cole & Kendra of Porter Union right after they got home from playing the Tumbleweed festival and these are some of the most down to Earth, genuinely nice people that I know. It is my pleasure to bring you this exclusive Q&A that I did with them. Hope you enjoy. 🙂

Round 1 ~ How did you guys first meet each other?

We met at a small bar & grill in our hometown, Republic, MO, in 2010. I played there regularly and Kendra was a waitress. One night I was just hanging out up there with some buddies. They had a karaoke DJ set up in the corner. We were no karaoke pros but every now again we’d tie on a good one and give it a go. I guess this was one of those nights. We were sitting at our table when Kendra walked by. She was fairly new there and so I was asking my friends about the new waitress. They kept trying to get me to go ask her to sing karaoke with me, they were convinced it was a good pickup line. Being one of “those nights” I had plenty of courage to work with and finally agreed. She was standing at a register near us putting in an order when I decided to go for it. I asked her and she immediately answered with, “sure!”. Her confident and quick response kind of stunned me. Usually it’s like pulling teeth trying to get someone to sing karaoke and I was expecting to have to put some work in to convince her. I had no idea she could sing. We went over to the DJ to pick a song and somehow landed on “Whiskey Lullaby”. My part was first and I quickly realized I didn’t know the song very well, even with the words in front of me. I fumbled my way through my part, and then Kendra started singing. My jaw dropped. I couldn’t believe the incredible voice that I was hearing. To me, it was fate. I was pretty well hooked from that moment on.

Round 2 ~ Do you guys own any pets, if so can you tell us about them?

We have a dog, Dolly Porter, and a cat, Loretta Lynn. Dolly is a 3 year old Australian Shepherd / Corgi mix and Loretta is the spawn of Satan.

Round 3 ~ When your not playing or writing music what is your favorite thing to do?

We really love spending time with our families. We like to hangout by the water and go hiking when we get the chance, but we’re also really good at watching Netflix. We definitely like to get out and catch live music, that never fails to inspire.

Round 4 ~ If you had to say one person, who would you say influenced your musical style the most?

For me, Jason Boland is probably my biggest influence. I found his music at an important time in my life and it really lit a fire in me. For Kendra (she’s driving) it’s Lee Ann Womack. That was the first cassette tape the she every owned. She fell in the love with her story telling and the way she sang.

Round 5 ~ Are you guys sports fans, if so what teams do you support?

We are sports fans but the only team that I’d say we’re passionate about is the Kansas City Chiefs. Arrowhead Stadium is one of the greatest places on Earth.

Last Call….Open message to your fans

2017 has been one of the best years of our lives thanks to everyone that has shown us so much love. It’s really a crazy feeling to see all your hard work start to pay off and we couldn’t be more thankful for all the people that have stood beside us. That’s the kind of thing that keeps you moving forward even during the tough times. We love you guys.

I was both surprised and very happy when I heard back from him and Brent Cobb wanted to do ‘5 Shots’. I enjoyed talking to him and am proud to be able to bring you this 1 on 1 exclusive interview.

Round 1: I know you have done many music collaborations, can you tell us about some of your favorites so far and also maybe some that you would love to do in the future?

So far, my favorite has been with Miranda Lambert on a song she, Adam Hood and I wrote for her called “The Good Ol Days”. I sang the harmony with her on her track recorded for the Southern Family album.

I love that I am able to bring you all this week’s ‘5 Shots’. It is heartfelt & real because that is just the kind of person Josh Morningstar is. I consider this guy family & I am very happy that I am able to be a small part in spreading his story and his music. I hope you guys enjoy this read as much as I did.

Round 1 – You have a new album about to be released can you tell us a little about it?

The new record, “Whole Lotta Crazy” comes out Sept. 29th. It’s the culmination of the last few years of my life-ups, downs, etc. All the songs except for one (“Memories Cost A lot” written by Billy Don Burns) were written by me and brought to life by the excellent group of musicians I’m lucky to have not only as my band but as my friends. They are:
Bobby Miller-lead guitar
Greg Johnson-steel guitar
Michelle Lucas-bass and background vocals
Eric Avey-drums and background vocals
This is EASILY the best record I’ve ever made. The musicians are all top notch and I feel the songs are as well. I write my life-if I’m singing it, I lived it, simple as that. To quote the great Harlan Howard, “three chords and the truth.”

Round 2 – You openly mention your past issues with drugs in your songs, Could you tell us some about you past and your story so maybe hearing it will help someone else out there that is in the darkness find the light?

I’m a recovering heroin addict. Good Lord willing I’ll have 6 years clean October 17th. I was bad on the shit-at my worst I was shooting up 2 grams of heroin a day, which for those unfamiliar is a lot of dope. I was the worst kind of junkie-I lied, I stole, I did anything I could to get my next fix. I was a bad person and a bad father. Rehabs, NA, none of that worked for me. I woke up one morning, dope sick as hell, looked in the mirror and made up my mind that I was either gonna overdose and kill myself that day, or I was gonna get clean. I chose to get clean. Still deciding if I made the right choice (that’s a joke lol). I talk about it openly bc I like helping those who are where I was. I risk being labeled “the drug guy” by those that don’t understand where I’m coming from, and sometimes that bothers me, but it would bother me more if I didn’t help others. That’s the main reason I’m so open about it-I want to show people that you CAN make it out, that you CAN change, that it CAN be better. There is light at the end of the tunnel.

Round 3 – I know that you just got married to your wife Tess, can you tell us how you guys met and the story there?

Tess and I met after she stalked me on Facebook lol. She waited til I was single, when she saw that I was she sent me a msg that said “hey.” I thought she was beautiful so I asked her out. She agreed, then she cancelled the day we were supposed to go out-turns out a friend of hers knew me and knew my reputation and had convinced her that I wasn’t right for her. Luckily she ended up not listening, apologized for cancelling, and we went out the next night. I’ll spare you the details, but let’s just say I sang her “Blues Man” by Hank Jr., and the next morning when we woke up we went to church together lol.

Round 4 – Most of your fans know that you love Billy Don Burns can you tell us about that relationship and who some of your other major musical influences are?

Where to begin. Billy Don tells the story of the first time we met like this (these are his words):
“I was playing at some little honky tonk down on Lower Broadway in Nashville. Before the show started, I was onstage tuning my guitar. This kid walks up to me, doesn’t say a word, just opens up his shirt. He had the name of one of my songs, “Honky Tonk Singer,” tattooed across his chest. I knew right then and there that that kid had heart and that I liked him.”
That story is true, and that’s exactly how we met. I’d known BD’s music long before I’d ever met him-the first song of his I heard was “Dark Side of the Spoon.” As a junkie at the time that song hit me like no other song ever had before. I immediately dove into his catalog. I studied every song he had recorded, and to this day have every one of them memorized-it makes me smile that when he can’t remember how a song starts or what key a certain song is in he calls me. He’s taught me so much-not only about songwriting and the music business, but about life. We’ve done a lot of the same stuff right, but maybe more importantly, a lot of the same stuff wrong. He’s been the best teacher a guy like me could ask for-aside from that, he’s the best friend a guy could have. BD is one of a kind, and if I never receive any other “accolades” from the music business, knowing that Billy Don Burns told me were cut from the same cloth is all the praise I’ll ever need.
Other than BDB, some of my other musical influences are guys like Hank Sr., Waylon, Dale Watson, George Jones, Lefty Frizzell, the Hag, Kristofferson, and Keith Whitley. I’m a student of the history of country music and try to add a little from each person I look up to into my own music. I try to write honestly like ol’ Hank and Kristofferson; I try to be smooth vocally like Haggard, Jones, Keith and Lefty; I try to purvey the same kind of energy onstage as guys like Waylon and Dale. Obviously those guys are in a league of their own and I’m not even on the same field, but I do my best to make my heroes proud.

Round 5 – What is some of your favorite things to do outside of the music World?

I really don’t have a lot of things I do outside of music-it’s pretty much my whole life. If I’m not writing songs I’m booking shows; if I’m not booking shows I’m trying to think of creative marketing strategies; if it’s not that it’s something else. It goes on and on. I guess studying the history of country music would be something you could say I do for fun-I can talk for hours and hours about where our kinda music came from. We can go back to Jones and Haggard, or further back to Hank and Lefty. We could go all the way back to Jimmie Rodgers and The Carter family. I’ve only met three people that know more about country music than I do: Gary Hayes, Sara Leann Turner, and Owen Mays. Sadly Owen is no longer with us. I’m not saying there aren’t more people out there than that that know more about the history of our kinda music than I do-obviously there are-just that those are the only ones I’ve personally met. Aside from my wife and kids, country music is my life.
PS-
Oh yeah, we watch “It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia” and “The Office” in the tour van. I like those shows.

Last Call – this is an open message to your fans.

I don’t have “fans,” I have friends. It’s bc of the people that enjoy my music that I’m able to feed my family and put a roof over their heads. That’s not something a “fan” does-that’s what friends do. I’m not a “headline” act-I’m not selling out shows, or selling all kinds of records. I’m a road dog-we do 300+ shows a year. We play the bars, the joints, the honky tonks. We roll into town, have a good time with our friends, then we head to the next one and do it over again. It’s bc of the people that enjoy my music that keep me going. If you like what I do, tell someone else about me. Come to a show. Tune into “Good Morning Live” Monday thru Friday at 10am Eastern on my Facebook page. I make music for my friends, but I also do it bc I have to. I do it bc if I don’t, well, I’ve been down that road-it ends with me dying a broken down junkie. Country music is my whole life, and I love it. It’s what I do, and it’s what I’ll always do. However, without you guys there’s no me. So from my heart, from my family and myself, thank you. I love you all.

I first met Tennessee Jet on Dec. 2nd 2016 in Nashville Tennessee at 3rd & Lindsley, he was opening for Ward Davis and Cody Jinks. I was highly impressed by him and have been a fan ever since. I contacted him and asked if he would be interested in being on the page and his response was “It would be an honor” which really meant a lot to me and I felt the same way so I will say it is an honor to bring you all this ‘5 Shots’ with my friend TJ McFarland. If you enjoy please like this page for future interviews and share so we can help spread Tennessee Jet’s music. Thanks!

Round 1 ~ I’m always amazed when I watch you perform because you do it all by yourself. How many intruments are you able to play and how many do you normally play at the same time on stage?

TJ ~ My typical setup gives me the option to play drums, guitars, and harmonica with a couple mics set up for vocals…one distorted and one clean. There are a few songs I’ll play guitar with my left hand and the drums with my feet and right hand while singing and taking solos with the harmonica. My style was born out of necessity…trying to make the biggest sound possible as a one-man-band.

Round 2 ~ I have always been impressed by the lyrics in your songs. How old were you when you wrote your first song, do you remember any of the lyrics to it?

TJ ~ I’ve written as far back as I can remember, not always songs…a lot of little short stories and what I guess you could call poetry…not really knowing why, writing was just something I always did. I started putting words to music when I was probably 15 or 16. Really traditional country stuff.

Round 3 ~ Your real name is TJ McFarland, where does your stage name ‘Tennessee Jet’ come from?

TJ ~ I was living in Nashville when I came up with the name…that’s where the “Tennessee” part comes from….and ”Jet” is the name of James Dean’s character in the movie “Giant”. That’s the movie dialogue you hear in the background of “Please Come to Austin” from my ‘Reata’ record.

Round 4 ~ Most people think that being a musician is an amazing job and for the most part it is but those of us that are around it all the time know that it also has it’s negitives. What is your favorite thing and least favorite thing about being a musician?

TJ ~ Favorite thing: Creating and pushing myself to learn a new way to write or play.
Least favorite thing: I think the worst days of this gig pale in comparison to the worst days of most other jobs like being a soldier or a cop…and I HATE
it when musicians whine.

Round 5 ~ What are some of your favorite things to do outside of the music World?

TJ ~ I watch westerns…usually Clint Eastwood…and drink…usually Jim Beam.

Last Call ~ This section is an open message to your fans, so you can tell them anything you would like them to know.

TJ ~ Thanks for asking me to do this Josh. I’m glad to know you and people like you that have such a passion for music and the musicians that they dig.

Video Credit goes to Lynn Hillis

I first saw The Steel Woods when they opened for Blackberry Smoke in Montgomery Alabama. I was highly impressed and then their debut album ‘Straw In The Wind’ was released shortly after and I was blown away all over again. These guys are so talented and some of the nicest guys you will meet. If you have never been to one of their shows, do yourself a favor and buy a ticket you will not regret it. Once again thanks to everyone who takes time to support my page and read about all these great musicians, please remember to like this page for future interviews and share this post to help spread the word about The Steel Woods music. I hope you enjoy!

I have been a fan of Dallas Moore‘s music for a long time. I have been trying to get out to see him live for a couple years now but every time I got tickets something would come up in my life to prevent me from going. I finally got to see him on September 16th 2017 in Bowling Green Kentucky. I was blown away and can’t wait to see him again. Him and his band were amazing but beyond that they we so friendly and treated you like part of the family. I love artist like that and I will continue to recommend him to anyone that will listen. Thank you for taking the time to do this brother, I will see you again soon. Please remember to like this page for future interviews and share this article to help spread Dallas‘ music, Thanks!

Round 1 ~ How many shows do you usually play each year, do you enjoy all the traveling?

Dallas ~ I play over 300 shows a year between solo, duo and full band shows. This year (2017) finds me playing 327 shows total. I keep the roads hot!

Round 2 ~ If you could hand pick one artist today who would you want to cut a song with and why them?

Dallas ~ Willie Nelson of course! I’ve toured with Willie in the past but never recorded with him. The late, great Jody Payne (Willie’s guitarist of nearly 40 years) was my Godfather and we recorded my Hank To Thank Live album together and Mickey Raphael (Willie’s Harmonica player of 42 years) played some tracks on my upcoming album. Now if we could just get Willie that’d be awesome!

Round 3 ~ What is your favorite song that you have written so far and why?

Dallas ~ I don’t know that I have a favorite song that I have written. They’re all my creations and I love them all in their own way. My favorite song by another songwriter would be Live Forever by Billy Joe Shaver.

Round 4 ~ Can you tell us about Victory? How is she doing

Dallas ~ My daughter Victory Lee Moore was born on June 14th, 2017. She just turned 3 months old and is doing great. She’s such a happy little baby and her Mama, Jenna Danielle Moore and I are blessed beyond measure!

Round 5 ~ What is your favorite thing to do outside of the music World, what other hobbies does Uncle Dallas have?

Dallas ~ I ride my Harley Davidson Road King every chance I get. Whenever I can get my knees in the breeze it’s a great day for Ol’ Uncle Dallas. It’s also when I come up with most of my lyrics to write new songs. Out on the road it’s the best way to clear my head and beats the Hell out of therapy!

Last Call ~ This is an open message to your fans so just tell them whatever you want to.

Dallas ~ I can’t wait to get my new album Mr. Honky Tonk out for y’all to hear! We recorded this one at OmniSound and Beaird Studios in Nashville with Dean Miller (son of Roger Miller) producing. I believe it’s by far the best recording I’ve ever made and we got really great cuts on all of these songs. The album will be released on SOL Records in February 2018 and we’ll be touring all over the country in support of it. Limited Edition Preorder Packages are available now at www.dallasmoore.com