Americana Roots

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AmericanaRoots.com celebrated our nine year anniversary this past January which is pretty amazing. Over the years we have had countless people collaborate and help post wonderful words to help support this great music we love so much.  In those nine years, I have lost count of the number of times we have migrated our platform from one blog software to another.  Most of the time it’s due to new technology, costs or boredom on my part to change things up.   Unfortunately this time, it’s due to our old platform (Posterous.com) shutting down.   Moving content from one service to another rarely works well and in the end we always end up losing the most important piece which is who wrote the content.  I tried to salvage what I could during this move but I will apologize in advance for the mess.  We are now running on Tumblr.com which is a twitter like blog platform to keep content brief which will hopefully allow us to get content out more frequently.   

With this change, we also have lost some of our ability to have multiple authors however if you wish to write, I would strongly encourage you to start your own Tumblr.com account and let us know.  We will include your posts as a part of the overall Americana Roots feed so that we can continue to spotlight great music.

Thanks,
Gregg Geil

I took off from doing a show last week, it was a short notice kind of thing. But thanks for coming back this week to see what I have in store for you. It’s kind of a chill-out week for me, so we’re just going to sit back, hang out with Boris, and listen to some great music.

Download this episode HERE

Music in this episode:

- Carolina Backroads AND Dandelions by The Deadfields
(from Dance In The Sun)
www.TheDeadfields.com

- Crowbar Hotel AND I Love Your Army by Chadwick Stokes
(from Simmerkane II)
www.ChadwickStokes.com

- Domino Effect AND Burden by Van Ghost
(from The Effect EP)
www.VanGhost.com

- Corn Whiskey AND For The Ride by Eastbound Jesus
(from Holy Smokes)
www.EastboundJesus.com

- Shackled And Drawn AND We Take Care Of Our Own by Bruce Springsteen
(from Wrecking Ball)
www.BruceSpringsteen.net

- Dirty Jokes AND Gravity And Time by Dan London
(from Happy To See Me)
www.DanLondon.net

E-Mail: Von@AmericanaRoots.com

Voice Mail: 813-458-5270

Website: www.AmericanaRockMix.com
Skype: ARockMix
Twitter: www.Twitter.com/ARockMix

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This week, even though you’re hearing the show on time, I recorded it early so that I could get a little bit of an escape from the stress of real life. And this music did the trick. Enjoy!

Download this episode HERE

Music in this episode:

- Loaded and Loud AND Who Do You Think You Are by Patton Sparks
(from Loaded and Loud)
www.PattonSparks.tumblr.com

- Mitchellville AND Gate City by Patrick’s Beard And The Rusty Razors
(from True Tales Of The Human Condition)
www.PatricksBeard.com

- Ain’t Like Knowin’ AND Bleed by Bird’s Mile Home
(from Bird’s Mile Home)
Minor Bird Records Link

- Kickapoo Riffraff AND Mending by Independence 76
(from Magpie Parables)
www.Independence76.com

- Tonight AND Motorville by Jon Gant & His Band
(from A Rough Start To The Night)
www.JonGant.CA

- Sittin’ Pretty AND Pearls And Plaid by Van Meter
(from Mess Of My Memory)
Facebook Page

- Ghost AND The Sadness of Age by Resurrection Lake
(from Quiet Despair)
Facebook Page

- Winning Without Playing AND Who You Are by The Slytest
(from Between You And Me EP)
www.TheSlytest.com

E-Mail: Von@AmericanaRoots.com

Voice Mail: 813-458-5270

Website: www.AmericanaRockMix.com
Skype: ARockMix
Twitter: www.Twitter.com/ARockMix

Outlaw Radio - Listen in on Monday nights at 6PM CST at www.BlackCountryRock.org/OutlawRadio

LifeJive Radio - Listen twice a week! 10AM Wednesdays and 5PM Sundays on the Avalon channel on LifeJive Radio at LifeJive.com

NOW BUY MERCHANDISE. Shirts, stickers, mugs, etc. CHECK IT OUT HERE!

By John Walker

A few years ago I had the pleasure of meeting and talking with the amazing Todd Snider. Todd has long been one of my favorite singer/songwriters, who I believe is one of the most talented out there today. As I try to do with each artist I speak with, I asked Todd what relatively obscure artists I should check out, since I am always looking for new music to enjoy. After discussing several musicians we both admired, he said a name which had eluded me up to that point…Willis Alan Ramsey. When I told Todd I was not familiar with that one, his face immediately lit up. He grabbed a piece of paper and wrote the name down for me (still have the piece of paper in my office too), saying do yourself a favor and get this guy tomorrow. Todd went on to say he only released one record, it may be hard to find, but it is amazing.

When I got home later that night, I immediately logged onto my computer to see what I could find. Sure enough, way back in 1972, Willis Alan Ramsey had one self titled release on Shelter Records. Just as Todd had also pointed out, several of the song titles were quite familiar, and each was written by Ramsey.

Opening the record is The Ballad of Spider John, which was covered by Jimmy Buffett. Also are songs I have heard covered by Waylon Jennings (Satin Sheets) as well as Muskrat Candlelight which was altered a bit by Captain and Tennille for their popular Muskrat Love.

The fact that Ramsey still lives today and never released another record is astounding, and has helped catapult this record into cult status. Ramsey has supposedly helped others, such as Lyle Lovett, write songs, but has not released any new material on his own. Occasionally there will be whispers of work being done, but nothing has ever materialized.

His vocal delivery contributes to his story-telling lyrics, forming the foundation for great imagery within his music. This is a mellow record you should sit down and enjoy. In a perfect world, we will be blessed with at least one more musical release from this man…until then this must do. And if you don’t believe me that this is a must hear, then just ask the guy who introduced me to the music….I think his name was Todd.

The Ballad of Spider John

01_Track_1.wma Listen on Posterous

My first job was filling and refilling the ice bin behind the bar at a local tavern at which my mother was a bartender. I was 10 years old. I grew up in a slew of bars that my mother was employed at between my ages of 5 to 18. So I’ve seen a lot of happenings varying from sad and confusing to just humorous and confusing. Because let’s face it - anything that happens in a bar that involves alcohol is always confusing.

And so, anyone else who has spent enough time in a their local pub/tavern/bar/watering hole (depending on your location) will notice some very familiar happenings thrown into this video. I’ve seen them all in real life, and I think that’s why this video is endearing to me

Maybe that says a little bit too much why I am the way I am…

Anyway, enjoy!

- Von

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