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Rich Kienzle
Doyle Bramhall II
In the 15 years since his debut album, Welcome, Doyle Bramhall, II has been in great demand. Along with a decade working with Eric Clapton in the studio and onstage, he’s has collaborated with a lengthy list of artists including Elton John, Roger Waters, Sheryl Crow, and on the Tedeschi-Trucks Band’s last three albums. This
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Rich Kienzle
Willie Nelson
Soon after arriving in Nashville in 1960, Willie Nelson signed a songwriting contract with Pamper Music, co-owned by Ray Price, one of the era’s biggest stars. It launched a friendship that endured until Price’s death in 2013. Spending much of ’61 playing bass and singing with Price’s band, the Cherokee Cowboys, Willie worked alongside guitarist
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Rich Kienzle
John Pizzarelli
McCartney Memo
John Pizzarelli wasn’t surprised to receive a FedEx package from Sir Paul McCartney in 2014, given that he (and his dad, Bucky) had played on Kisses On The Bottom, McCartney’s album of pop standards. Since he appeared with McCartney on the 2013 Grammys, Pizzarelli assumed the box contained photos or video from that event. Instead,
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Rich Kienzle
Bobby Rush
Bobby Rush launched his career in Little Rock, singing and playing with Elmore James. He blossomed in Chicago in the ’50s, sharing gigs with Muddy, Willie Dixon, Little Walter, and Jimmy Reed, and sharing the stage with Luther Allison and Earl Hooker. With a style blending southern R&B and raw blues, he built an edgy,
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Rich Kienzle
Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters
On this latest album, Ronnie Earl and his band freely and unabashedly mourn and honor the late David Maxwell, the Broadcasters pianist who died in 2015 at age 71. While Earl and his musicians express their grief by playing the blues simple, straight, and emotional, the opener, “Mother Angel,” offers a gorgeous, uplifting instrumental theme
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Rich Kienzle
The Time Jumpers
Time Machine
The Time Jumpers formed in ’98 as a lark for a group of A-list Nashville sidemen who loved Western swing. Eighteen years later, they’ve become a local institution, energetically presenting the vintage music of the Southwest and California with forays into Texas honky-tonk. Instrumental breaks are fast and furious, and nearly every member sings. The
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Rich Kienzle
Kris Kristofferson
Nearly a half century ago, a longhaired former Army chopper pilot named Kris Kristofferson was Nashville’s hottest new songwriter. Today, after decades of success, the 80-year-old singer/songwriter and actor is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame. This 16-disc collection captures his recorded sides from 1966 to ’92 through 11 Monument and Columbia
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Rich Kienzle
Chet Atkins
In July 1958, Chet Atkins and his half-brother, singer-guitarist Jim Atkins, a member of Les Paul’s original 1930s trio, recorded six songs at RCA’s Nashville studio for this LP, conceived as six of Jim’s Bing Crosby-style vocals and six Chet instrumentals. It made sense, since Jim was one of Chet’s most important early role models.
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Rich Kienzle
Kris Kristofferson
Kristofferson, who turned 80 in June, recorded this 25-song retrospective focused on his most enduring original compositions, in Austin in 2014. Behind him is songwriter Shawn Camp’s acoustic guitar, upright bassist Kevin Smith, keyboardist Michael Ramos, and drummer Mike Meadows, whose spare backing effectively frames Kristofferson’s weathered voice. Kristofferson covers a wide range of his
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Rich Kienzle
The Highwaymen
Country’s first supergroup emerged from a 1984 Johnny Cash Christmas special taped in Switzerland. Along with Marty Stuart, the guests were longtime Cash pals friends Kris Kristofferson, Waylon Jennings, and Willie Nelson. The concept made sense to veteran Memphis producer Chips Moman, who supervised the music for the show. The quartet soon had an album
