Today’s session at the Hangover Cafe is probably the “hardest” entry to date. Gary Clark Jr.’s “This Land” is a blues rock song with tempered anger and a “take that” attitude. Apparently, the song was inspired by the casual racism Clark faced from neighbors. Some of them couldn’t believe that HE could own 50 acres…
I very nearly shared the video of Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit playing “If We Were Vampires” live on Austin City Limits, but I changed my mind. The studio recording just can’t be beaten. Maybe if I had been in the audience during the ACL recording I’d feel differently. Or seeing them perform the…
City and Colour is the stage name of Dallas Green (get it?) and he is one of those happy discoveries. “Two Coins” was on a shared playlist I created a long time ago with my wife and I thought she added the song. She thought I did. Eventually, I proved it was me. I just…
What is the first thing you think of when someone mentions ZZ Top? Okay, now that we’ve acknowledged the chest-length beards, what do you think of next? I imagine that casual fans perhaps think of mid-1980s classics like “Legs” and “Sharp Dressed Man.” Maybe you also think of Ford coupes and sheepskin-covered guitars as seen…
Fact: it’s not hard to sing a song better than Ozzy does it. I love Black Sabbath—particularly the first five albums—but the strength of that band lies more in Geezer Butler and Bill Ward than anything. That’s not a dig on Tony Iommi or Ozzy Osbourne. At any rate, Charles Bradley doesn’t just do a…
After Lara got her Stage IV cancer diagnosis, one song she often requested was Blue Öyster Cult’s “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper.” She even asked my dad’s band to play it at her fundraiser. My dad wanted to even though he didn’t think he could through the lyrics. But the only other guy in the band…
Not every song grabs me the first time I hear it and Joshua Burnside’s “Whiskey Whiskey” is one such song. “Oh, another song about booze and the reason I want to dull the pain,” I think I thought to myself. But as it came up in the rotation more and more, it began to grow…
I don’t know how I found “Day by Day” by Old Sea Brigade (Ben Cramer). It could’ve been the magic of Spotify or it could have been the result of the innumerable times a friend and I have shared similar songs back and forth. Either way, I’m happy I found it. My favorite version is…
I haven’t been able to find a video of John Mellencamp’s “Longest Days” that I love. Any real videos have a slightly different version than the one he released on his Life, Death, Love and Freedom album in 2008. For me, it gets no better than the album version. Most of the live versions have…