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Calexico’s New Orleans Adventure
When it came time to record their first album in four years, Joey Burns and John Convertino – the two men behind Calexico’s diverse, Latin-influenced desert rock – left their native Arizona and...
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Elvis Presley, “In The Ghetto”
Mac Davis has had a pretty productive and varied career in entertainment. He had great success as a crossover country artist, with #1 pop and country smash “Baby Don’t Get Hooked On Me” the most...
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Byron Hill Talks “Fool Hearted Memory,” Three Decades Later
(L-R, Byron Hill, George Strait and Blake Mevis – with the iconic Gene Watson photo looking over Hill’s shoulder – in 1982 at the number one party for “Fool Hearted Memory.” Photo courtesy of the...
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Ronnie Milsap’s Country Cut Contest: The 25 Finalists
This summer American Songspace hosted Ronnie Milsap's "Country Cut" Contest. The winning song will be recorded by Ronnie and has a guaranteed spot on his upcoming album. Submissions were received from...
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Strand of Oaks: A Tale of Perseverance
Even in the happiest of times, Timothy Showalter - who records under the moniker Strand of Oaks – often finds himself amongst a haze of anxiety. It’s an unusual mindset for the Pennsylvania by way of...
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Q&A: Jonathan Jones Of We Shot The Moon
One morning in the summer of 2008 Jonathan Jones and the other members of We Shot The Moon sat at my kitchen table and ate generous servings of biscuits, bacon, and scrambled eggs. I had been a fan of...
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Learning To Fly: A Q&A With Richie Sambora
Last summer, Richie Sambora wrapped up a long tour with Bon Jovi. The guys had been on the road for a year and a half, playing as many as twenty-five songs a night, and everyone was tired. It was the...
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Randy Newman, “Louisiana 1927”
This week marks the seventh anniversary of Hurricane Katrina’s landfall in the United States. In the aftermath of that tragedy, many songwriters stepped up to try to sum up all of the various emotions...
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24 Hours At Big Sky Songwriters Festival
24 hours isn't enough time to spend in Big Sky, Montana. If you visit during the summer there's Fly Fishing, Mountain Biking, The Big Sky Songwriters Festival, and millions of other activities. I only...
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Rebirth Of Cool: Inside The Billy Reid Shindig
“This place used to be cool,” said Austin, the shaggy-haired high schooler who’d shouldered his way through the crowd to stand beside me at the Alabama Shakes show on Friday night. VIEW THE PHOTO...
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Hall and Oates, “Maneater”
Their music helped to define the '80s. They had an amazing streak that ran from 1981 to 1985 which included twelve top 10 hits and five #1 singles. Yet the songwriting behind the hits of Daryl Hall...
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Songwriting 101: Steve Forbert
Steve Forbert is grateful for having written "Romeo's Tune," which reached #11 on the Billboard Top 100 in 1979. Thirty-three years later, the singer-songwriter maintains a positive attitude, still...
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Keep On Truckin’: A Q&A With Patterson Hood
Patterson Hood, perhaps the primary conductor behind the runaway train that is southern rock outfit Drive -By Truckers, is again a solo artist. For the time being, that is. Following up on his...
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It Ain’t That Heavy: A Q&A With Dylan LeBlanc
Dylan LeBlanc’s sophomore album, Cast The Same Old Shadow, is something the 22-year-old songwriter was already talking about on the eve of his Rough Trade Records debut, Pauper’s Field, in 2010....
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Bruce Springsteen, “Brilliant Disguise”
Coming off the mega-success of Born In The USA, Bruce Springsteen could have easily churned out another ten rock and roll anthems and continued down that lucrative road endlessly. Instead, he turned...
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She’s A Big Girl Now: A Q&A With Amanda Palmer
(Photo: Shervin Lainez) One day, some forward-thinking university will probably hire Amanda Palmer to teach a class about how indie musicians kept their heads above water during the early 21st...
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How Did They Write That: Dustin Lynch’s “Cowboys and Angels”
Written by: Dustin Lynch, Josh Leo, Tim Nichols Recorded by: Dustin Lynch Peak Chart Position:No. 8 Billboard Country When and where did you write “Cowboys and Angels?” Anything in particular about...
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All In The Family: Inside The 2012 Americana Honors And Awards
If ever Americana music has lived up to the recurring insider joke—and point of pride—that it’s so all-encompassing a field only a “you’ll know it when you hear it”-style broad brush will do it...
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Guy Clark And Rodney Crowell Discuss Woody Guthrie At The Americana Music...
As part of the Americana Festival, Guy Clark and long-time compadre Rodney Crowell discussed the legacy of Woody Guthrie at a panel on Thursday. The two songwriters played a few Woody songs, too....
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Nashville Songwriter Series: Blair Daly
If it were only for his country cuts, Nashville songwriter Blair Daly would have enjoyed more success than most. With songs like the Rascal Flatts number one “Stand,” Big & Rich’s “Wild West...
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