Oh, hell yes! Ashley Monroe's new Like a Rose offers evidence that the Nashville establishment remains capable of producing proper traditional country albums. Like a Rose is precisely the kind of honky tonk album that I'd been hoping Miranda Lambert, Monroe's bandmate in the Pistol Annies, would record.
Dozens of alt-country albums are issued every year. I enjoy a lot of them. Yet there's something about a slick major label production that adds a satisfying luster to the old-school sound that labels like Bloodshot just can't duplicate. Like a Rose successfully filters the drinkin' and cheatin' songs of Gary Stewart through Fleetwood Mac's Rumours. The title of "You Ain't Dolly (And You Ain't Porter)," the album-ending duet with Blake Shelton, reveals the era that inspired the project's rough-hewn sensibility.
Monroe's heroines keep it real. One is "a dollar short and two weeks late." Another has painful morning-after regrets. A third begs her man to spice up their sex life. "She's Driving Me Out of Your Mind" is an old-fashioned weeper. "Used", the most conventional track, possesses the low-key angst associated with Alison Krauss. The title track is one of the few positive songs.
Fans of Gary Allan, Shelby Lynne, the Mavericks, Dwight Yoakam and Randy Travis are encouraged to board this train.
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I'd forgotten how much I loved Paid In Full until I heard Rakim perform much of the seminal album Wednesday. Here's my review.
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Jazz organist Melvin Rhyne has died.
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I've spent much of my adult life embarrassing myself by confusing Alvin Lee with Albert Lee. Alvin Lee died this week.
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Tiny Horse has a video for its acclaimed song "Ride".
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Ces Cru is on fire.
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Olassa performed on a local television program.
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Is it nostalgia, brain damage or good taste that causes me to adore the new self-titled album by Dallas' Mothership? RIYL: Black Sabbath, Goblin Cock, Judas Priest.
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The video for DJ Muggs' "Soundclash Business" is amusing. My glowing review of his album is here.
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The video for bentcousin's "bent paperboy" is appropriately charming. My review of the British duo's debut album is here.
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"For Those Who Love the Lizz"! Gypsyhawk is my new favorite thing.
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Between Krokus' Dirty Dynamite and a live album by Rhino Bucket, 2013 is already a banner year for aficionados of AC/DC knockoffs. (I'm one of them.)
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I listened to the entirety of Rhye's Woman. It's smooove. RIYL: Sade, Seal, George Michael.
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Antonio Sanchez's New Life sounds like the best jazz album of 1994. It came out this week. Hey, I loved 1994. RIYL: Michael Brecker, Steps Ahead, Tony Williams.
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The trailer for a documentary titled The Power of Soul contains a couple tantalizing moments.
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I love all readers of There Stands the Glass. (Not really, but it's a nice thought.) Even so, BGO's recent comment is one of the best in the history of this blog: I'd go see J.P. Harris if I had a designated driver and I didn't have to get up early the next day. Listening to him is a real throwback and the sincerity seems authentic. Who shows up for the likes of him anyways? Hipsters? Bumpkins? Old men like me? Dime-a-dance dames in fancy dresses? Thanks, as always, BGO.
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Kansas City Click: My top picks are published here.
(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)
