All posts by Jeff McCord
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Big Station
A new album by Alejandro Escovedo.
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Mary Karr and Rodney Crowell
On their new album, Kin, and more.
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Heroes
A new album by Willie Nelson.
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Sacred
The multiplatinum success of their debut made San Angelo’s LOS LONELY BOYS one of Texas’s biggest musical exports. Small wonder. The Garza brothers—Henry, Ringo, and JoJo—oozed charisma and played a melodic, amped-up brand of rock and roll. There are a few embellishments sprinkled about—keyboards, percussion, Willie Nelson—but the formula remains unaltered for their follow-up, SACRED …
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Here We Go Again: Celebrating the Genius of Ray Charles
A tribute album by Willie Nelson, Wynton Marsalis, and Norah Jones.
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Two Men With the Blues
“Overexposed” doesn’t begin to cover it. After innumerable recent releases, not to mention all the seventy-fifth birthday hoopla, Willie Nelson again? You’d think no one else made records in Texas. Actually, Two Men With the Blues (Blue Note) was recorded in New York City. What distinguishes it from the others? Willie’s partner, for one—esteemed New …
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Woke on a Whaleheart
Recording for almost two decades under the name Smog, BILL CALLAHAN attracted an intensely devoted fan base as his work grew from lo-fi origins to a more orchestrated sound. Over a chugging rock beat, he juxtaposed his sad, narcissistic poeticism with a vocal range a notch above monotone, making his music unique and instantly recognizable. …
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Apocalypse
A new album by Bill Callahan.
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Sometimes I Wish We Were an Eagle
Early on, when he was still calling himself Smog, indie rocker Bill Callahan buried his baritone voice beneath chugging, repetitive beats. Since he began recording under his own name, his rock drive has dissipated somewhat, but the thing that has continually made Callahan’s recordings so fascinating—a complete abhorrence of convention—hasn’t faded. Like the previous two …
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Edie Brickell
On two new albums, Edie Brickell and The Gaddabouts, and more.