Country Music Month: The Texas Connection - Steve Earle

The story of Steve Earle is one of "what could have been". Here's a guy with so much talent to offer as a singer and a songwriter. Unfortunately, Earle also had an affinity for drugs and what could have been, never was. Very sad.

During my radio days, I remember playing a new song and I said to myself, "This guy is the next great Outlaw of Country Music". That song was Guitar Town. Whoa! "I love to hear the steel belts hummin' on the asphalt' and "a two pack habit and a motel tan". To a guy like me who spent most of my adult life single and ready to hit the road at a moment's notice, this song was written for me. I was a Steve Earle fan, hook, line and sinker. He released a few more songs (I'll get to those in a minute) that kicked ass and then POOF!, he was nowhere to found, except jail. I don't want to get into Earle's drug and legal problems, so if you want to learn a bit more about him wikipedia has more. One thing, however, I would like to say at this point is Steve appeared on the HBO show The Wire in which he was an addict addressing a 12 Step program, "I pawned my bike, my pickup truck, a National Steel guitar, a stamp collection that my grandpa left me; lost a good wife, a bad girlfriend, and the respect of anyone who ever lent me money." Autobiographical perhaps?

These are a few songs that made Steve Earle a star and the tunes that "could have been" the foundation of a brilliant and prosperous career for the man who grew up in Schertz, Texas.

• Someday - Good solid song. 
• Copperhead Road - Brilliance.
• I Ain't Never Satisfied - Damn good.

Steve Earle was a rare talent who succumbed to the demon of addiction and a prime example of "what could have been".

Country Music Month: The Texas Connection - Jerry Jeff Walker

You've no doubt seen the t-shirts or bumper stickers that say, "I Wasn't Born In Texas, But I Got Here As Fast As I Could". One such transplanted Texan is Ronald Clyde Crosby. Who? These days, he answers to the name Jerry Jeff Walker. Before getting to Texas as fast as he could, Walker was born in Oneonta, New York, where he introduced to music by his grand parents. After high school, JJ joined the National Guard, but the lure of the music business was so strong, that he went AWOL from the Guard and roamed the country, eventually ending up in Austin, where the freedom to do his music his way was exactly what he wanted.

You can probably name a dozen Jerry Jeff Walker songs, but not one that was a "hit". A loyal following, however, has been the backbone of Walker's audience for the better part of forty years, them and of course new fans picked up along the way. My first taste of JJW's music came in the early '70's when I listened to an album called Viva Terlingua. The album included these songs: Gettin' By, Up Against the Wall Redneck Mother, and the classic Gary P. Nunn song London Homesick Blues. The album also contains probably the only song in the history of the English language that pays homage to wine and Mexican food in Sangria Wine. Viva Terlingua is one of the most fun albums ever. Buy it if you can or at least give it a listen or re-listen. Jerry Jeff also wrote on of the most familiar songs ever recorded, Mr. Bojangles.

Let me toss out a few more Jerry Jeff Walker tunes to you:

• Navajo Rug - ay ay ay Katie!
• LA Freeway - Clip from an old Dinah show. Features Dandy Don Meredith with the intro of JJW.
• Jaded Lover - About an undercover Queen for a Day.

Jerry Jeff's home page is here if you wanna get some tour information and the like. A good bio of JJW can be found on wikipedia as well. The music of Jerry Jeff Walker is great on a roadtrip or at a poker game or bar b que. Crank it up when you get the chance! ay ay ay, Katie!

Country Music Month: The Texas Connection:Two Words - The Possum

George Glenn Jones, The Possum, was born seventy-nine years ago in Saratoga, Texas, destined to be one of the greatest, if not the greatest, country singers in history. My only argument with that is a man named Hank Williams. Still, Jones is easily in the Top 5 of the Greatest All Time Country Singers. Jones has the God-given gift of interpreting a song like few others can. A prime example is He Stopped Loving Her Today. Please take about four minutes of your time to listen to that performance. In my lifetime and during a fifteen year radio career, I have NEVER heard someone sing a song with such power, emotion and the feel of experiencing the song as it's being sung. Pretty much everybody who has listened to Country Music for any length of time, knows about the personal demons in George Jones' life - alcohol, drugs, so on and so forth. Jones finally beat those demons, thanks to his fourth wife Nancy. One quick story, then on to his music. During his marriage to Tammy Wynette when he was a booze hound, Tammy took the car keys away from George so he couldn't go to the liquor store. But, the Possum is a crafty creature and can find ways to do things that others can not. The solution to Jones' dilemma? The riding lawnmower! Liquor store here I come! Jones was nothing if not an inventive drunk on this occasion. There's a hell of a lot more I could write about George Jones' life, but I'll leave that to Wikipedia. I want to delve into his music.

• She Thinks I Still Care - C-O-U-N-T-R-Y!!!
• Still Doin' Time - In a Honky Tonk Prison. This one's in my personal Possum Top 3. Frakkin' awesome!
• If Drinkin' Don't Kill Me (Her Memory Will) - The hurtin' song to end all hurtin' songs. Incredible.
• The Grand Tour - Step right up, come on in...
• Choices - Just because I like it.

For over fifty years, the man called The Possum has been crankin' out hits, so any effort to list them here would prove futile. I, therefore, highly encourage you to pay a visit to this YouTube page of George Jones songs. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a date with a riding lawnmower.

Country Music Month - The Texas Connection: Alvis Edgar Owens, Jr.

As a small child, I spent many a Saturday night at my Grandparents' house. After one of Grandma's home cooked meals like only a Grandma could make, the evening's entertainment consisted of crowding around the black and white TV, tuned to Channel 11 in Fort Worth. Saturday night's TV fare in the Shoemaker household was all about Country Music. We watched Porter Waggoner and Dolly Parton, The Wilborn Brothers, Live shows from Panther Hall in Fort Worth, where Willie Nelson was a regular guest, and a show from the Longhorn Ballroom in Dallas. Another regularly featured singer of the day was Alvis Edgar Owens, Jr, Buck to his fans. I saw Buck Owens on TV a thousand times before Hee Haw was ever thought of. I knew all the words to almost every one of Buck's hit songs like Tiger By the Tail, Love's Gonna Live Here, My Heart Skips a Beat and Together Again before I was even in school.

In my opinion, the harmony between Buck Owens and his guitarist, Don Rich, is unmatched by anyone before or since. Their connection to the music and the story of the song should be the standard by which any musical performance is measured. If you want to spend about an hour listening to honest-to-goodness country music and the emotions that go with it, go to this link to a Buck Owens YouTube page. The man from Sherman, Texas and his Buckaroos won't disappoint you. Guaranteed.

Wikipedia has a pretty good bio on Buck Owens if you'd like to check it out. As for me, I am gonna get a pocket full of imaginary quarters and drop them into an imaginary jukebox and fall under the musical spell of Alvis Edgar Owens, Jr. and the Buckaroos.

Maine Minutiae: More Fall Fun!

Fun Times!**

I was looking at the weather radar for Maine a little while ago and for the first time this fall, I saw the Dreaded Light Blue Images on the radar map. The Dreaded Light Blue Images, DLBI for short, represent SNOW! It's already October 10, so we could conceivably get snow at any time now, though October snow in Augusta tends to be light and sporadic. I bring this up because, despite the cooler weather, there are still plenty of festivities going on here in New England. The one that caught my eye reminds me of my home state of Texas. It's a Chili Cook Off! The Great Western Maine Chili Cook Off  takes place this coming Saturday, October 16, at the Waterford Town Square. For more information you can call (207) 647-3472. Waterford is only seventy miles from Augusta, so a day trip is certainly a possibility and I do have some home grown jalapenos to take with me.
More autumn action in Maine includes:

• The Hallowell Fall Festival - Friday and Saturday (Oct. 15 & 16) More info at the link.
• Saco Pumpkin Harvest Festival - Make plans for Saturday the 16th
• 8th Annual Waterville Harvest Fest - Saturday and Sunday just up I-95 from my house

There's plenty more going on in October throughout the state, so click here to find an event near you that fits into your schedule. Have fun and be safe, y'all!

**Photo from Tabletofashion.com**

Country Music Month - The Texas Connection: Clint Black

I was driving through the Metroplex in about 1990 on my way to Puerto No One Knows when I heard this song. I thought to myself, "Damn, Haggard's done it again." One problem. It wasn't Merle Haggard singing that song. It was some new guy named Clint Black. Whoa! This guy was good and I was hooked. As Clint cranked out the hits, I was amazed at the way he told a story with the lyrics of his songs, like the phrase "Puerto No One Knows" (from When My Ship Comes In) That's great stuff.

Clint was born in New Jersey, but moved to his Dad's hometown of Houston when he was less than a year old. The story from there is a familiar one where boy teaches self to play guitar, writes songs, gets recording contract. But unlike many others who traveled a similar path, Clint went on to become a star. His first album Killin' Time was a smash, selling over a million copies. Black was consistently in the Top 10 with his albums and singles, when, in May, 2001, he became a Daddy to a little girl and took a three year break from the music industry. People in the industry told Clint he was committing career suicide, but he stood by his decision saying, "..it ended up not being a smart career move, but it was a real smart Dad move..." Now, I like this guy even more.

Here are some of my favorite Clint Black tunes:

• Like The Rain - probably my favorite CB song.
• Good Run of Bad Luck -  from the movie Maverick
• Untanglin My Mind - co-written by Merle Haggard. Enuff said.
• Cadillac Jack - Good deed gone bad.

With over twelve million albums sold, I am in good company with 11,999,999 other Clint Black fans who really like the man's music. If you wanna flash back to an earlier time, here's a Clint Black YouTube page for your viewing and listening pleasure. Until next time, I'm off to Puerto No One Knows.

Country Music Month Review...So Far

As some of you may have read, my oldest little girl is not feeling too well and she needs her Daddy. So, here's the deal: We are nine days into our salute to Texans (and others) who have made Country Music what it is today. We have assembled thus far a collection of names that anyone would be hard pressed to argue with, and there's still more to come. Below, you'll find a list of the artists we have covered and just in case you missed out on them the first time around, here's another chance to see what we said about each one on the list. In addition to a short bio on each singer, I have embedded links to some of their greatest hits as well. It is truly a walk down Memory Lane. Grab a cold one and some popcorn, hop into The Country Music Time Machine and feel like you are twenty-five again with our review so far of Country Music Month.

• Waylon Jennings
• Willie Nelson
• John Denver
• Garth Brooks

By Invitation Only

If you've been away from your computer and missed the last couple of days, we've got some great stuff on Tanya Tucker and George Strait !

Have a great time looking back on yesteryear and two steppin' around the room! Oh, yeah, pull the shades down...the neighbors may not understand. On second thought, invite 'em to join in!