Peter Case & Sid Griffin hit the road together in March!

Peter Case and pal Sid Griffin are going out on tour together in March. No Toronto date but they're playing Buffalo on March 9th.

Here's the scoop...

Get ready for an unforgettable night of folk music as Peter Case and Sid Griffin hit the road for their "Sings Like Hell" tour! This tour showcases two legends of Americana and roots music bringing their rich histories and unparalleled artistry to the stage. 

With Peter Case’s Grammy-nominated songwriting and groundbreaking work in bands like The Plimsouls and The Nerves, and Sid Griffin’s trailblazing Americana legacy with The Long Ryders, audiences will be treated to an evening of raw, soulful performances steeped in tradition and innovation. From Case’s emotionally resonant piano melodies to Griffin’s bluegrass mandolin and clawhammer banjo stylings, this tour is a celebration of the enduring power of folk music. 

Don’t miss this rare chance to see two master storytellers share the stage! Here's a list of tour dates: https://www.sidgriffin.com/tour-dates/ So far there are no Canadian shows planned so Toronto-area fans of Peter & Sid might consider a road trip to Buffalo for the show at The 9th Ward in Buffalo. 

Watch the video for Scott B. Sympathy's "I Remember Again"

"I Remember Again" is off Scott B. Sympathy's classic debut Neil Yonge Street just reissued by Curve Music. 

Stax soul great William Bell grabs Grammy for "Best Americana Album"

Watch the amazing William Bell sing a few songs from his fantastic "This Is Where I Live" on NPR's Tiny Desk Concert. 

Ray Davies backed by Jayhawks on new Americana album due in April

Here's the press release...
On April 21st, Ray Davies will release Americana, his first new album in over nine years via Legacy Recordings, a division of Sony Music Entertainment. The 15-track collection of originals serves as a master-crafted return for one of the most acclaimed and iconic songwriters of the past 50 years, and follows Davies’ 2013 memoir of the same name, using the book as both source material and creative catalyst.  Davies enlisted The Jayhawks as backing band, and recorded the album in London at Konk, the studio founded by The Kinks in 1973.

Americana was written, conceived, and arranged, by Davies, and co-produced with Guy Massey and John Jackson.  The album is an autobiographical work, chronicling the inextricable role America has played in Davies’ life. From his earliest days touring the U.S. with the Kinks and subsequent blacklisting by the American Musicians Union, to his years playing stadiums and eventually settling in New York and New Orleans for a time, America has served as both muse and tempest to Davies.

The songs on Americana dig into the rich American musical tapestry, through the lens of Davies’ own wholly unique American experience. The music swerves from the open-road manifesto of “The Great Highway,” to a delicate duet with The Jayhawks’ Karen Grotberg on “Message From The Road,” to “Poetry,” which offers a vital reminder of Davies’ ability to spin small detail into penetrating truth.  The album also features a number of short spoken-word passages from Davies’ memoir. A second volume to Americana will be a released later in 2017.

Listen to the song “Poetry” courtesy of NPR's All Songs Considered...

Americana will be released on CD, LP and digitally and is available for pre-order now right here

Tracklisting:
1. Americana
2. The Deal
3. Poetry
4. Message From The Road
5. A Place In Your Heart
6. The Mystery Room
7. Silent Movie
8. Rock 'N’ Roll Cowboys
9. Change For Change
10. The Man Upstairs
11. I’ve Heard That Beat Before
12. A Long Drive Home To Tarzana
13. The Great Highway
14. The Invaders
15. Wings Of Fantasy

Neil Young reappropriates God Save The Queen

Neil Young revisits kindergarten for Americana

It was announced yesterday that Neil Young's new album Americana would be released on June 5. The good news being that for the new project Young has reunited the entire Crazy Horse line-up of Billy Talbot, Ralph Molina and Frank "Poncho" Sampedro – which hasn't happened since 1996's Broken Arrow. However, the bad news is that he got everyone together to record traditional tunes like Tom Dooley, My Darlin' Clementine, Oh Susannah and oh yeah, God Save The Queen. It should make  Greendale look like an epic work of creative genius by comparison.

Assuming that this isn't some kinda contractual obligation ruse, you have to wonder just how tapped of original song ideas Neil must be at this point for an absurd concept like cutting an album's worth of "songs we all know from kindergarten" to seem like a viable option. This being a crucial election year in the US at a time of global economic turmoil and catastrophic environmental upheaval, there doesn't appear to be a shortage of relevant subject matter. Yet perhaps Neil figures the world could really benefit from hearing him reprise She'll Be Comin' 'Round The Mountain with a children's choir.

On the upside, Bob Dylan beat Young to the studio with Froggie Went A-Courtin' (for 1992's Good As I Been To You) so that one won't be on Americana (see track listing below). So far there's no word about whether the other record Young is reportedly working on with Crazy Horse will be Canadiana – a bi-lingual collection of Canadian traditional songs, but I'd enjoy hearing what Neil could do with I's the B'y, Ah! Si Mon Moine Voulait Danser! and that old Klondike fave When the Ice Worms Nest Again.

Americana  –  Neil Young & Crazy Horse

Oh Susannah
Clementine

Tom Dooley
Gallows Pole
Get A Job

Travel On

High Flyin’ Bird

She’ll Be Comin ’Round The Mountain
This Land Is Your Land

Wayfarin’ Stranger

God Save The Queen