News/Thoughts

Tag Archives: Americana Music Profiles

Straying From The Mainstream

While the three members of the Nashvillains—Troy Johnson, Scott Lindsey, and Brett Boyett—are each accomplished Music City veterans, with many song credits for major artists (Keith Urban, The Chicks, James Taylor, Lauren Alaina, among many more) and media placements (Friday Night Lights, Everybody Loves Raymond) in their individual resumes, they have come together to create a record that defies the ...

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Kevin Slick; Coming Home

Coming Home, the new album by Kevin Slick, which was recorded over several years, is a collection of songs drawing from the folk, singer-songwriter and Americana traditions. The title arose as the artist began performing solo once again after a ten-year stretch of playing primarily in bluegrass bands on Colorado’s Front Range. The songs on this recording, whether original or ...

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In Tune With The Seasons

Like many a budding musician, Graeme James’ first exposure to playing an instrument took the form of violin lessons, starting at the age of seven. (He had asked his parents at age five, but, as he puts it, “…they kind of let that slide…Two years later I still wanted to, so they said let’s give it a go…”) Unlike most, ...

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Dutch Master of Americana

In the words of Marino Serdons of Belgium’s Keys and Chords (www.keysandchords.com), “You wouldn’t expect a Dutch singer-songwriter with the talents of a real American country musician. In Belgium and France they would say ‘chapeau.’ Respect!” He was referring to Eric Devries, a lifelong resident of of the Netherlands and one of that country’s most prominent Americana singer-songwriters. He has ...

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A Troubadour Carries On

Born in Missouri and pursuing music in LA and Texas, Dana Cooper is now based in Nashville. Along the way, he has made 28 albums and won numerous awards. It all started very early for Dana, with his earliest memories including his father taking him to popping a coin in the jukebox and listening to Dana sing along with Hank ...

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The Tribal Magic Of Tuatha Dea

From its beginning, from Gatlinburg, Tennessee-based band, Tuatha Dea, has embraced its Celtic heritage and meshed the traditional music of Scotland and Ireland with their own bold blend of mainstream rock, mountain drumming and Appalachian blues to produce a truly unique sound. Family patriarch, band co-founder/leader and Tennessee native Danny Mullikin says, “We’ve been celebrating that heritage for years and ...

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Val Storey

Val Storey grew up steeped in country music from day one. Both of her parents were singer-songwriters originally from Roanoke who moved close to Nashville to pursue their dreams of country music success. Her dad even opened a recording studio. It took some trauma trigger her instinct to start making her own music. “My mom and I were in a ...

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Bluegrass Brotherhood

Drawing their name from Jimmy Martin’s 1958 done-me-wrong song, Rock Hearts came together in 2013, fusing the talents of a bunch of southern New England bluegrass veterans “who love to sing and pick bluegrass, old country tunes, and seek out newer tunes from other genres to ‘bluegrass-ify’.” From the moment they got together, they all knew they had something special ...

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Songs Of Grace

Pat Berlinquette had pursued music from a number of angles (punk as a youth, electronic later on) far from the world of Americana. He had also put music aside for a while to build a successful career in marketing. The music never let him go completely, however. After spending about five years of “messing around, picking up the guitar once ...

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Honor In A Namesake

Growing up in rural Kentucky, about 45 minutes from Nashville, but now somewhat of fish out of water living in Los Angeles, Michael Monroe Goodman’s roots run deep in the Americana soil. “We knew about life, maybe more than city people,” he says. “I’m proud of my home state of Kentucky. You need that strand of where you’re from or ...

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