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Local Releases |
The Dallas Morning News..."Songs this well-crafted never sound dated.."www.cdreviews.com..."Listen closely to the majority of the songs and there's a hint of a stripped down old Stones sound.. "This is one of those discs that benefited from a lot of listens..."Buddy Magazine..."The Sole Poets have a rockin'sound that is tighter than the Stones and a little looser than the Beatles..."
Shocking Mary - Close to the Edge
The long awaited debut CD from Shocking Mary is finally here. Close to the Edge was released this March at the SXSW Music Conference in Austin. With a blend of electric and acoustic guitars, strong vocal harmonies and exotic percussion, Close to the Edge is an adventurous record for a “rock” band. The album is full of a diverse selection of songs. While the first track, Betrayed, seems to be the most popular from the “radio” perspective, the CD should be listened in its entirety to get a feel for the overall impact and diversity of the songwriting. Shocking Mary is currently out promoting the record on radio, in press and on stage with a variety of shows and festivals throughout the region.
Check out www.ShockingMary.com or www.FentonEntertainment.com for retail and online locations.
Contact : Fenton Entertainment. 972-504-8801. www.FentonEntertainment.com
John Cleghorn
Freetown Johnny - J-Bird Records
Texas Folk Rock Artist Releases Solo CD
Somewhere between the truth and unreal defines
the music of John Cleghorn. One listen to this Texas Singer/Songwriter’s
music and you’ll agree it’s destined for drive time rotation. John
Cleghorn’s first solo CD, “Freetown Johnny”, is driven by strong
lyrics, jangly guitars and vocal harmonies. “Freetown” is a perfect example
of everything that is missing from today’s top 40 list. John’s brand
of folk rock combines the passion of Steve Earle with the sensibility of
Tom Petty and is Texas Music at it’s best.
A former member of the acclaimed band Junk Poets, John
has performed at a variety of Dallas venues including Club Dada, Hard Rock
Café and The Cottonbowl’s Freedomfest and Texas clubs too numerous
to mention. John’s music has also been featured in the motion pictures
Black Snow and Ghostrider.
With the release of “Freetown Johnny”, John Cleghorn
joins the J-Bird Records’ roster of artists which includes Billy Squier,
John Entwistle “The Who’s” legendary bass player, renowned vocal sensations
Rockapella, Lee Rocker original founding member of the Stray Cats, Harlem
Gospel Choir and Duke Ellington.
For additional information, interviews or booking John
Cleghorn please contact Jeffrey Wells of Outa’ the Boat Promotions
by phone: (972) 641-4868 or e-mail: Outatheboat@aol.com.
J-Bird Records, the world’s first Internet Record label, can be found at
www.j-birdrecords.com.
No Jumper Cables Needed
Crushtexas, "Acid for the Battery"
Independent Release, 1999
Band: Trey Carmichael, vocals + guitar, Chris Carmichael, drumset,
Jeff Thomas, guitars, Chief, bass
Recorded at The Firestation, San Marcos
There's a new band rolling down the north Texas tracks, chugging along at breakneck speed, headed right into your living room. Picking up where the great bands of the seventies left off, churning and smoking and cracking like a wild prairie fire, Crushtexas offers up its first independent CD release, "Acid for the Battery," a collection of eight songs sure to get your motor running.
Crushtexas is a Metroplex band that's been around for a couple of years now, and really starting to come into its own in 1999. Crushtexas takes its name from a town established solely for a promotional stunt orchestrated in 1896 by William George Crush, passenger agent for the MKT Railroad Company, in which two locomotives faced off on the same track and barrelled headlong into each other, colliding in a fiery explosion. Passengers came from all over Texas to witness the staged event - in fact, Crush, Texas was the second largest city in the state, if only for one day. Scott Joplin even wrote a song about it.
"Acid for the Battery" comes at the listener from all directions, arriving at the centerpointjust as those two railroad engines did over a century ago. From the opening strut of "Caught Under Your Wheels," with its driving grooviness and dynamic changes, Crushtexas serves up reminders that guitar is still the reigning king of rock and roll. "Dirtylowdown" kicks with all the restraint of a tidal wave, Jeff Thomas' stringbending riffing whipping you into submission. "Make You Smile" introduces a different flavor, bringing elements of R'n'B and reggae into the mix, setting up nicely for a good ol' Texas rocker, "Unwritten Song," featuring some tasty slide work and a buttshakin beat. "Second Chance" illustrates a quieter side of Crushtexas, with seductive chord structures and elegant bass lines courtesy of Chief. "Once a Kingdom" gets the boogie going again, while "Bluesky" shows off a pop sensibility akin to the great acoustic works of Page and Plant. The climax of the collection is an alternating jazz, blues, metal jam called "Talkingsong," featuring perhaps the coolest solo section you'll hear all year. All in all, "Acid for the Battery" leaves a great first impression of a band concentrating on songwriting and stylemaking, and should get you all juiced up waiting for the next release.
The CD is available directly from Crushtexas, PO Box 850341, Richardson, Texas 75085. Cost is $8.00 + $2.00 shipping. Make checks payable to Jeff Thomas.
Pete Barbeck &
7th Son
"Rio Bravo"
Arms of Venus Records
Fatt Traxx
Studios - Carrollton, TX.
Crank up your stereo & slide in this CD! It's time to go Butt Rockin'!
The new CD from this power house trio is here. It's full of the original
7th Son cuts that have kept their followers rockin' for years. You won't
find a weak
moment on this CD.
Pete Barbeck - Guitar & vocals...
Wayne Marchand - Bass & vocals & Rob
Menary - Drums have rocked the Dallas area music scene for years. You
will totally forget that this is only a 3 piece group when they start rockin'.
Pete's fiery & brilliant guitar work is tastefully original and his
signature ability of being able to go from soft & sweet to all out
"In Yo Face" is captured on this CD. The complete & full rhythm
section of Marchand & Menary tighter than a cheap T-shirt and
as full as anyone could want.
Recorded at Fatt
Traxx Studios in Carrollton & produced by Greg Frye & engineered
by Mitch Anderton, John Reed, Greg House & Greg Frye. mastered by Anderton
& Frye. Selections include: Sweet Little Thing - I Don't Know
Why - Yesterday's Blues - These Last Few Days - Wasted Life - The Stomp
- This Rock Is Cold & Rio Bravo.
If you are truly a supporter of the local Artist music scene you need
to add this CD to your collection. It's Texas Blues like it "oughta
be done".
Ordering info:
Pete Barbeck email
Arms of Venus Records - p.o. Box 110741 - Carrollton, Texas 75011-0741
Also available at CD World: 5706 E. Mockingbird Dallas,
TX & 5000 Beltline, Addison, TX
Earl Musick
has been a mainstay of the Texas music scene for more than thirty years.
In addition to being a
prolific songwriter, he is also an accomplished left-handed guitar
player, vocalist and performer. In 1987 he
released his first album, APROPOS, with the Unsung Heroes, on his own
label, Reload Records. His 1995 solo
release of DONE DEAL was met with great acclaim.
Music City Texas Publisher/Editor John Conquest wrote, "Just to show
that Austin has no monopoly on
unclassifiable or "what the hell do you call that" music, along comes
a Fort Worth singer-songwriter and his
"river bottom boogie". With an instrumental line-up that includes pedal
and lap steel guitars and mandolin along
with synthesizers, organ and congas, Musick is clearly doing things
his own way, and the end result could be
called country-funk, which sounds awful but is actually rather effective
and interesting. He has a big, clear
country voice, and some strong philosophical material, notably Endless
Winds, American Dreamer and Time
Keeps Slipping Away, married to a chunky, intricate beat, wailing rock
guitar and, at least in the hands of Darlina
Musick, surprisingly tolerable synth."
Fort Worth Star Telegram 's Dave Bryant wrote, "Cowtown's Reload Records
has released Earl Musick's
eclectic DONE DEAL, and it's easily one of the most exhilarating new
albums heard in a decade. It has
everything, from country to rock to blues. Call it Pure Texas. Earl's
vocals are amazing, and the album is
enriched by Gene Scott's wizardry on the steel guitar..."
You can hear RealAudio clips of DONE DEAL and even purchase the CD online!
Over the past 37 years, Amos
Staggs has recorded numerous singles and albums. His style of music
ranges all
the way from folk to country, rock to the blues, and even a little
reggae. He just finished recording a new CD,
'Scattered', at RockHouse
Studio in Fort Worth, Texas. The new album includes some of his old
favorites as
well as brand new material. You can hear RealAudio clips on the
RealAudio
page and even buy
the CD
directly from the Web!
Artists that Robinson has played music with and for include Janis Joplin,
Gatemouth Brown, Tom Schiffour,
Benny Rowe, Curtis Massey, Ray Sharpe, Doug Kershaw, Willie Nelson,
Night Watch, Earl Musick, James Pennebaker, The Blues Movers, 'T-Bone'
Burnett, Rick Nation, Johnny Winter, Boz Scaggs, Freddie Powers, George
Smid, Bill McDavid, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Jerry Jeff Walker, Edd Lively, Whistler,
Joe Ely, Bill Ham, The Unsung Heroes, Don Edwards, Ronnie Tilson, Steve
Miller, Mark C. Merritt, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Walt Redding, Commander Cody,
Santana, Delbert McClinton, Lightnin' Hopkins, Benny Barnhart, Steve Fromholtz,
The Kinks, Cross Country, Eddie Bammer, Stephen Bruton, Rollo Smith, Willie
Dees, L.E. 'Gene' Scott, Bobby Potter, Pat Trimble, Phil White, Keith Ferguson,
Vaughn Bean, Preston Dunlap, Garth Brooks and Red Stegall.
Robinson's music was greatly influenced by such artists as Bob Dylan,
Hank Williams, Mississippi John Hurt and
Little Feat.
Artists who have recorded Staggs' songs include Santana (Straight Razor),
Blues Movers (Jimmy Reed's
Mama) , Earl Musick (Sad Affair), Shawn T. Pabst (The Truth About You,
co-written by Roy Robinson, Freddie
Powers and Bill McDavid), Don Edwards (The Cowboy Song), Mad Mary &
Frank (The Cowboy Song), Garth
Brooks (The Cowboy Song) and Dry Branch Fire Squad (The Cowboy Song).
Artists who have Robinson's songs
on "hold" include Willie Nelson (Old Cowboy Blues) and Dan Roberts.
Roberts is currently recording at Ray
Benson's (Asleep at the Wheel) studio in Austin, Texas. The album will
contain several Amos Staggs songs.
Alex Whitmore - Not At Home On The Range
As a songwriter, Alex can hold his own with the best. His music is eclectic with an emphasis on music with a humorous touch. It keeps the interest of the audience, but allows him to sneak in a few serious songs every now and then. His Texas honed folksy voice leaves no doubts here his roots are. As a live entertainer, his personality can crack the ice of the most distant audience. When Alex does do cover tunes, it is usually some of the best of other songwriter friends that fit the types of humor and music that he likes.
>From the age of 13, playing the guitar and singing has always been
a big part of his life. He played the coffee houses during the 60’s and
worked his way through collage playing and singing. Alex is now partners
with Brent Mitchell and manages The Brent
Mitchell Band which includes his daughters, Bonnie and Eleanor, who
are fine musicians in their own right. Being immersed in the music scene
again has resulted in his own CD project last year and Alex has ended up
with a record that is outstanding. All the band members played on the disk
which gives it
that full band sound. With a unique blend of country, blues, folk and
humor, the CD is making a big impression on all who hear it. Just the titles
of some of the songs peak the interest... “Not at Home on the Range,” “Where’d
I Put That” and “Chiggers.”
The advanced copy is available through Alex. You may reach him at alphawhiskey@worldnet.att.net or by telephone 940-321-2711.
Alex has also begun a songwriter oriented program on Thursday evenings
at 7pm at a local coffeehouse, “The Coffee Connoisseur,” in Highland Village
(Lewisville). The Coffee Connoisseur (2250 FM 407 at Highland
Village Rd 972-317-5599) promises to be just the thing for talented
songwriters who would like to share the evening with Alex and have a chance
to have their music heard in a setting outside the “bar” environment. Alex
selects his songwriters from friends that he has made doing open mike nights
and programs around the area. He invites
writers and supporters to come and check it out.
The Ackermans-Real Live
The Ackermans have been described as the international Texas Music ambassadors.
Their second CD captures the Ackermans in their natural habitat, totally
live with no over-dubs, at The Balcony Club and The Y.O. Ranch in
Dallas, Texas. The Ackermans deliver straight forward interpretations
of their extremely original music.
The Life is Hell Convention at the Yellow Dog Saloon is a true life depiction of every beer joint you’ve ever been in.
The Witch of Waikiki is a feature length tale of a Rod McKuen impersonator who haunts a Hawaiian resort. In glorious Technicolor.
>From the days of Michelangelo carving naked statues for the Pope to the days of Baywatch babes selling breakfast bars, the first rule of the art world is Nothing Sells Like Tits and Ass.
In the mood for a madcap European Adventure? A Girl Needs a Pair of Sensible Shoes fits the bill.
Not for the faint of heart, Vampires documents Deep Ellum night life in the nineties.
The CD closes positively with the anthem Keep On Keepin’ On, “You’ve got to keep on keepin’ on, oh boy, you’ve got to keep on singing your song. You’ve got to keep doing right when the world thinks you’re wrong. You’ve got to keep on keepin’ on.”
Contact The Ackermans
CLIMATE - Special Friends Records
Description:
"Combining influences from The Fall, Tortoise, and Tom Waits to Webern
and Bach, Climate has
created "Live For Success!", a release that uses the concept of "album"
as its own art form. This 74-minute CD is available from the Dallas micro-label,
Special
Friends Records.
Climate
lyrics and writing can be found on their web site "
Here's a quote:
"I started out with the 1997 edition of Climate's "Friends Have Names"
when I was fresh out of college, and I have followed Climate's guidelines
ever since. Their advice in "Live For Success!" has saved me tons of money
on useless 'whimsical fashions' that no one really needs. Now I am a banking
executive."
-Omer Hassan, banking executive
Blondie takes on Collective Soul in this up-and-coming Dallas band. Their new CD "Earthly Pleasures and Erotic Delights" is sassy and fun and the high energy live shows will leave you breathless! Check out their web page for more info and the latest shows! CDs, T-Shirts, Stickers, and Temporary Tattoos available at all shows! Send an email to be added to the mailing list!
FAITHBOMB - "The American Jesus"
This is Texas sized Ultra-Heaviness!!!
Nine songs of Heavy Ultra-Groove.
Cd only available direct from the band for $13 postage paid. Send check
or money order to: Rob Colwell,
6997 FM 121, Van Alstyne, TX 75495
