JON BYRD'S HARD, POST-PUNK COUNTRY
One of Nashville’s best hard-country artists, Jon Byrd also seamlessly incorporates 1980s and 90s jangle rock, alternative, and even...
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By Alan Richard
Mar 418 min read
CHANGE MAKERS: MY FAVORITES FROM 2023
Something changed in roots music in the past year. If many artists hadn’t yet turned their focus to social-justice issues, the attacks on...
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By Alan Richard
Aug 24, 20238 min read
QUEEN ESTHER SHINES ON STAGE, PREVIEWS SONGS ON NEXT ALBUM
NEW YORK — Queen Esther’s remarkable voice and musical range was on full and splendid display at her album-release show here at Joe’s Pub...
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By Alan Richard
Jun 3, 202314 min read
QUEEN ESTHER'S RHAPSODY OF LOSS, LOVE
I’ve never met an artist quite like Queen Esther, and I bet you haven’t either. The, vocalist, musician, songwriter, producer, solo...
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By Alan Richard
Feb 27, 202315 min read
NASHVILLE HONORS PETER COOPER
NASHVILLE — Some of the most talented musicians and artists in Nashville or anywhere gathered on the night of Feb. 24 to share songs,...
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By Alan Richard
Feb 24, 202316 min read
MY MUSICAL MEMORIES OF PETER COOPER
When Peter Cooper died in December, Nashville lost a major figure in the music community, hundreds of us lost a good friend, and one of...
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By Alan Richard
Jan 12, 202319 min read
QUEER YEAR: MY 2022 FAVORITES
Black women ruled American roots music in 2021. The beautiful, striking, courageous presence of singer-songwriters Allison Russell, Queen...
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By Alan Richard
Nov 6, 202216 min read
WILLIAM BELL BACK TO BRING SOUL HOME
ATLANTA — The title song from William Bell’s forthcoming album, One Day Closer to Home, opens with a blues guitar riff that sounds at...
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By Alan Richard
Jul 19, 202222 min read
JON BYRD FINDS COUNTRY'S SOUL
NASHVILLE — Jon Byrd is one of Nashville's best pure country singers and gut-string guitar players. He’s surely the only one to have...
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By Alan Richard
May 26, 20226 min read
MIKO MARKS MAKES HER WAY 'HOME'
DECATUR, Georgia — Miko Marks has played music for a long time, but her first show at Eddie’s Attic showed why the talented...
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By Alan Richard
May 21, 202220 min read
ROY ROBERTS: STILL COUNTRY COOL
Something different was afoot one night in 1980 when Roy Roberts took the stage. The veteran R&B singer had toured for years on his own...
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By Alan Richard
Apr 19, 20225 min read
MARSHALL CHAPMAN COMES HOME
More than 50 years after she left Spartanburg, South Carolina, for Nashville, Marshall Chapman returned to her hometown to share her...
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By Alan Richard
Mar 6, 20222 min read
END OF THE GROOVE
Howard Grimes died in February. The former drummer for the Hi Rhythm Section that backed so many greats at Royal Studios in Memphis had a...
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By Alan Richard
Feb 2, 20228 min read
COUNTRY MUSIC AROUND THE WORLD
From his home in Amsterdam, Jamal Khadar’s online radio program, Reimagining Country, is an exploration of his family’s cultural roots —...
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By Alan Richard
Jan 9, 202222 min read
QUEEN ESTHER: RECLAIMING HER COUNTRY
Queen Esther lives in New York City — but don’t you dare tell her she’s not a Southerner. Her very presence will prove you wrong. Then...
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By Alan Richard
Dec 30, 202122 min read
BLACK WOMEN RULE: MY 2021 FAVORITES
I began writing my list of favorite music from 2021 several weeks ago, and I must confess that I came to the same conclusion as NPR music...
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By Alan Richard
Dec 20, 20215 min read
ERIC SCHROEDER: SEARCHING FOR HOME
Eric Schroeder is a young rock ‘n roller with something to say. On his memorable and edgy new album, The Crucifixion of Eric Schroeder,...
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By Alan Richard
Dec 10, 20217 min read
COUNTRY, RAP, BLUES: ONE NIGHT IN MEMPHIS
MEMPHIS — It took a great cause to bring some of America’s finest musical artists and their range of music together. It’s the kind of...
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By Alan Richard
Dec 5, 20217 min read
'SACRED SOUL' SHOW BRINGS MUSIC TO LIFE
MEMPHIS — Gospel artists Elizabeth King and Elder Jack Ward gloriously returned to live performances here this weekend for the first time...
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By Alan Richard
Oct 24, 20214 min read
MICKEY GUYTON'S RYMAN MEMORIES
NASHVILLE — Country singer Mickey Guyton shed some real tears from the Ryman Auditorium stage on October 17. While not the first time...
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