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Ralph Stanley II, son of bluegrass and country pioneer Dr. Ralph Stanley, stepped out of dad's shadow while embracing his legacy as son and nephew of the fabled Stanley Brothers.

He and his group made their debut at the Narrows on Thursday night, although the 30-something Ralph had been on our stage backing his dad as one of the Clinch Mountain Boys in the wintertime. 

The show included Stanley Brothers tunes, a Fred Eaglesmith song saluting Carter Stanley, and an original or two or three.

Excellent musicianship, harmonizing and arrangements.  Note for note, one of the best shows of the year.  Look for it in the archives at mvyradio.com.

Merle Haggard: He Is What He Is

I Am What I Am--Merle Haggard--"What kind of music do you usually have here," asks Elwood Blues, in the 1980s movie The Blues Brothers.  "Oh, we got both kinds," says the waitress.  "We got country AND western."  That's what I Am What I Am is--both country AND western.  More specifically it reflects the Bakersfield Sound,  from Bakersfield, CA.  This is plain, down home C & W with few, if any, studio enhancements.  Mr. Haggard's voice is right up front, clearly articulating the lyrics so you don't miss his points.  The recording is dressed up a bit--with trumpet, piano, fiddle, backing vocals from his wife, and more--so this is far from rustic.  If you like Tom Russell, Dave Alvin or Gram Parsons but haven't listened much to Merle, I Am What I Am may be a fine introduction.

The Other Dylan

Women and Country-Jakob Dylan--Yes, he's one of Bob's kids, and, no, he doesn't sound exactly like dad (to the relief of many).  Or maybe he does a little.  More like a cross between his dad and Mark Knopfler.  And no, he's probably not going to be the "voice of his generation" like dad.  But he did make a darn good record with boutique roots producer T-Bone Burnett, with whom he worked as a member of The Wallflowers.  If you liked T-Bone's production of the Alison Krauss/Robert Plant pairing CD, Raising Sand, then you'll probably like Women and Country. Low-key rootsy hipness,  perfect for a hot summer day driving in your car with the AC on, or when you're sipping a latte at Starbucks.  The songs are likeable, hummable, not exactly memorable at first. But they grow on you. A CD worth listening to!  Narrows history fans: Narrows alum Marc Ribot contributes guitar work. 

Soul'd Out

It was blue-eyed soul night, and another sold-out show night, at the Narrows Friday as Englishman James Hunter brought his band and a sackful of catchy tunes that sounded like they could have been recorded in 1959 or yesterday.

If you're unfamiliar with his work, just stop by the Ruby Tuesday's in South Attleboro. Your humble blogger swears that he hears something from James Hunter in the soundtrack piped through the restaurant every visit.

A young fellow originally from Arlington, MA, Jesse Dee, opened the show doing his version of the retro soul man. After his set, audience members were asking us to have him headline his own show.

Nice job, Jesse (he's pictured right).

Like It Loud. Like It Blue.

 A loud, bluesy Friday night at the Narrows, that started acoustic with master blues picker Mark T. Small, playing some Charlie Patton, some Robert Johnson, some Mark T. Small.  Then the air got electric with Coco Montoya (above) and his group, sporting a new CD.

All kicked off a blues weekend that features Ronnie Earl on Saturday night.  Blues fans--take note! James Cotton, Taj Mahal, Savoy Brown, Jimmy Vaughn and Johnny Winter coming up in the months ahead!

A Jesse Winchester Kind of NIght

A lovely Friday night at the Narrows.  The weather kind of understated.  

The performer, Jesse Winchester, kind of understated, too.  Except with fabulous songs.

Kevin Connolly, who recently played the Kerrville Folk Festival, was the opener and received a more than enthusiastic response.

The Wolfa Guffa Cares

Midnight Souvenirs--Peter Wolf--The former J. Geils frontman is working hard for the money. This is a finely crafted recording that shows, despite decades on stage and in the studio, the Wolfa Guffa Mamma Tuffa still cares.  For example: he wrote more than half the tracks with song doctor Will Jennings--which may bother some purists (Hell, Jennings wrote with freakin' Barry Manilow!  But, hey, with Clapton too.) I suspect he wanted the best and was willing to bring in the talent.  It paid off--the tunes are the absolute bedrock of this CD.  

Lots of Narrows connections, including a duet with Narrows alum Shelby Lynne on the opener, "Tragedy" (the photo was taken of Wolf at the Narrows' Shelby Lynne concert in November, 2008); Narrows alums Kris Delmhorst and Catherine Russell sing back up, and the CD was co-produced by Kenny White, who's performed at the Narrows as Cheryl Wheeler's pianist.  And Narrows fave Chuck Prophet helped in the writing chores for "Overnight Lows," lest I forget.  

Midnight Souvenirs deserves the light of day.  Nice job.

Slim News and More

Narrows alum Watermelon Slim has released a new CD. It's called Ringers, and you can read a write up here.  That's him in the photo at the Narrows in 2008.

In other news:

--Jimmie Vaughan is debuting at the Narrows in October. 

--A second show has been added to Richard Thompson's late summer return to the Narrows.

--Should be up on the website any minute now: the Narrows will be holding a golf tournament! 

--Speaking of golf, Seth Walker, who played the Narrows Saturday night, is a huge fan of the game.  Word was he was slated to hit the links before his Sunday show in Boston.

--Nice recent article about the Narrows in the Herald News. Read it here.

Let the Four Winds Blow!

There was a tornado watch or warning or something Saturday night.

But the Seth Walker show blew some cool blues into the atmosphere and the show went on as scheduled!

Bettye LaVette Interpretations Machine Rolls On!

Narrows fave Bettye LaVette seems to be everywhere--doing a Tiny Desk concert on NPR, getting her new CD "Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook" reviewed in Entertainment Weekly etc.

It's paying off: She's debuting at #56 on Billboard's Top 200.  She debuts at #1 on Billboard's Blues Chart.

No more Bettye who?  Congrats to the new Queen of Soul!

The Storyteller

Tom Russell brought his songs, his stories, his reflections, and his hot recent CD Blood and Candle Smoke to the Narrows Thursday night.

If you missed the show, you can watch him on Letterman here.

It Ain't Coming Easy: Bettye LaVette Channels Ringo Starr

Narrows alum Bettye LaVette continues taking the nation by storm--this time with an NPR "Tiny Desk" concert in which she completely reworks Ringo Starr's "It Don't Come Easy."  Ms. LaVette has just released a CD of her interpretations of a variety of British rock songs.

"Tiny Desk" concerts take place in the NPR offices, literally at a desk with minimal accompaniment.  Ms. LaVette is backed only by an acoustic guitarist.

See the brief concert by clicking here.

Darrell Scott Travels a Crooked Road

Narrows alum, and fab hit songwriter, Darrell Scott has a new CD, a double set in which he reportedly plays all the instruments.

If you're unfamiliar with him, learn more here.

If memory serves he last played the Narrows about 5 years back, but was one of the first artists who played our beloved venue in the early years, teaming up with bluegrasser Tim O'Brien.  By the way, in July Darrell will be touring in Robert Plant's band.

The new release is called A Crooked Road, and you can read a review right here.

Congrats and best wishes to a wonderful talent, brilliant songwriter and musician, and good guy.

Bettye Interprets

Narrows alum Bettye LaVette's new CD is now out.  

It's called "Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook."  She covers The Beatles' "The Word," Paul McCartney's "Maybe I'm Amazed," George Harrison's "Isn't It a Pity," Ringo Starr's "It Don't Come Easy," Led Zep's "All My Love," and others.

Congrats to a great lady!  More info here.

Jimi

Valleys of Neptune--Jimi Hendrix--Not sure if there's a need for another Jimi Hendrix release--he kissed the sky 40 years back--but if there's going to be one, Valleys of Neptune is most worthy. A project of Janie Hendrix, Jimi's stepsister, and Experience Hendrix, Valleys of Neptune consists of recordings mostly made a year or so before his death in 1970, a time rock 'n' roll was becoming rock--the post-Sgt. Pepper era, when solos got long and guitarists became gods. Valleys of Neptune, for those who are more mainstream listeners, has alternative takes on familiar Hendrix work, such as "Stone Free" and "Red House" and a reading of Cream's "Sunshine of Your Love." But it's the groove, the feel that make this release special and remind all who care that this is where a lot of the jam bands, or more closely, stoner rock groups such as Kyuss, Fu Manchu and Monster Magnet or, to an extent, Queens of the Stone Age, got their mojo.  The world has changed plenty since Jimi left us, but his music, forever frozen in the late 1960s, sounds like he could have recorded it yesterday.

New Stuff from Narrows Artists

Some recent releases from artists who have played the Narrows, in addition to the much blogged Crooked Still release Some Strange Country. Release info from allmusic.com and other sources.

Susan Cowsill--Interesting little story on this new release, Lighthouse, the 2nd solo from this daughter of Newport and the singing Cowsill family, and a particular fave at the Narrows, because she's a hugely talented singer and songwriter and too often gets overlooked. This release is on Threadhead Records out of New Orleans. The organization is less a record label, and more a vehicle by which New Orleans musicians affected by the great flood can fund recording projects. Susan has long been associated with New Orleans, and she lost a brother in the disaster.

Mary Gauthier--She's a former Boston restaurant owner who sold the establishment as things picked up musically. That's only part of a backstory that no doubt informed her latest, The Foundling. Your humble blogger is particularly fond of her 2005 CD Mercy Now and suggests you check that one out too. BTW, she just played the Narrows in April.

Crooked Still's O'Donovan: "We're Not Playing Bluegrass"

Crooked Still's leader Aoife O'Donovan talks about their new CD in an interview with No Depression.

As you may know, Crooked Still is a Narrows fave roots group, playing our beloved venue from their earliest days.

Find out why Crooked Still is not playing bluegrass here.

Passionate Paula Cole

The North Shore's Paula Cole--Grammy winner, hitmaker, Berkley-trained, Peter Gabriel protege, Dawson's Creek theme song writer, pianist--brought her passion to the Narrows Friday night for the first time.

Backed simply by an acoustic guitarist and a drummer, her sound was nevertheless rich, empowered by her strong vocals and depth of emotion in every note.

Still--she knew how to have a bit of fun too, rapping "Oh Mickey you're so fine, you're so fine you blow my mind, hey Mickey" over the rhythm lead into her late '90s smash "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?"

She closed the night out with an inspired version of Dolly Parton's "Jolene."

The show was streamed live on mvyradio.com and should be in their archives soon.

Jimmy Buffett Digs Jesse Winchester

Jimmy Buffett's latest Buffett Hotel has a song from Jesse Winchester, coming to the Narrows June 11.  It's called "Rhumba Man," and Buffett has some commentary about it on his website.

"In my little corner of the universe, I am blessed with many wonderful comets which pass through my orbit. When it comes to songs and songwriters, it seems the region from which my melodic meteors arrive is just across the border in Canada, where when album creation time comes due, the words and melodies of Jesse Winchester and Bruce Cockburn come flashing my way.

Rhumba Man, like several other 'song comets' from Jesse Winchester orbited around me for a long time, since I first heard it on his 'Nothing But A Breeze' album. If a song can make you dance and have you singing the chorus half way through the first time you hear it, then you have a pretty damn good song and that is what Rhumba Man does for me and I hope will do for you.'

Cheryl Wheeler in October

Fab local songstress, and very funny person, Cheryl Wheeler, returns October 8.  We think of her as a local 'cause she lives a stone's throw from the Narrows, but as you probably know she's celebrated nationally and beyond.

Jonathan Edwards also on deck in October.  He lives on some island.

More at www.ncfta.org.