Colin Linden "Rich In Love"

I moved back to Nashville recently, because I believe the folks in the music biz here are the ones who are birthing the future of the industry. Amongst them is Joe Kelly, who has worked hard for the last three years building a new way to monitor airplay at radio stations. This week, CDX TRACtion announced that I will be joining them as the chart director of a brand new radio chart, TRACtion Texas, serving the Texas Red Dirt radio stations in Texas, Oklahoma, and beyond. I am so excited to be launching this new venture, which will provide a home for the music of many artists we have filmed for Music Fog through the years. The chart debuts on Wednesday, July 6th, less than a week away!

In a lifetime of being a tumbleweed, I can’t count all the times that people have asked me where the best place I ever lived was. I can narrow it down to two states, Texas and Tennessee. Difficult to say for sure, because I have lived in some mighty beautiful places!

Don’t know if you have been following the drama caused by ABC dropping the show Nashville. Happy to say the new season will indeed happen, as Nashville moves to CMT. That is especially good news for our friends in the cast and crew, including Colin Linden. He plays the tasty music parts that you hear on the show, as he is the Musical Director. His career is the stuff of Renaissance Men: he has recorded solo and with his band, Blackie & The Rodeo Kings, which Music Fog was honored to capture in 2011 at AmericanaFest. Colin is a prolific record producer, and guitar slinging sideman for the likes of Bob Dylan, Bruce Cockburn, Emmylou Harris, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss. He is badass.

Here is the Music Fog recording of the title song to his latest album, Rich In Love, filmed in January at Backstage @ 3rd & Lindsley in Nashville.

- Jessie Scott

Stephanie Urbina Jones "El Camino De Mi Vida"

A weekend in Texas. Wheels down at DFW, and a drive down I-35 to Waco for yesterday's Wade Bowen MusicFest and the Bowen Classic Golf Tournament today. Lots of friends here to raise money for the Bowen Family Foundation, who have named March of Dimes as their 2016 beneficiary. Young and old running around with cool "Wade Bowen Loves Babies" T-shirts. Stoney LaRue, Reckless Kelly, Micky & The Motorcars, Cody Canada & The Departed, Jamie Lin Wilson, Courtney Patton, Jason Eady, Randy Rogers, .38 Special, Parker McCollum, Pat Green, Ray Benson, and more, on hand at Indian Springs Park on the banks of the Brazos for a beautiful day. And of course, the catering came from my two favorite foods groups, Texas Barbecue and Tex Mex. There is something mystical that happens wherever I find myself in Texas. I don't know if it's the endless sky, the wide open spaces, or the warmth of the folks I get to hang out with, but it is mighty special.

Today we salute Texas daughter Stephanie Urbina Jones, whom we filmed with Patterson Barrett back in January at 3rd & Lindsley Backstage. Though she makes Nashville her home now, her music cuts a wide Lone Star State swath, combining singer songwriter traditions with fiery Tex Mex. She is celebrating a birthday this week, as well as doing a show during CMA Fest this Thursday at Manuel's. And always, always, she is working on new music. Our Music Fog video today is "El Camino De Mi Vida (I Want You There)." Powerful stuff indeed!

- Jessie Scott

Michael Fracasso "Here Come the Savages"

Nashville has been rocking hard this past week! It has been a joy to behold the likes of Boz Scaggs, Ann Wilson, Wynonna Judd, and Emmylou Harris at DylanFest last Tuesday, The Hard Working Americans block party on Monday and Tom Petty and Mudcrutch a couple of nights ago at The Ryman. It has been a celebration of sorts for me as well, as it was 45 years ago that I started working in the music industry. I think 45 is a nice music biz milestone, it should come with a small disc , 45 RPM, and one of those adaptors that looks like it is a symbol from another civilization.

Being up close to watch careers take hold, it always amazes me about the lottery that leads to the grand prize, becoming a household name. That is ever more difficult to do these days, with limited radio airplay from city to city. It used to be different when rock was new.

We have a premier for you today from someone who should be a household name, Michael Fracasso. His new album comes out next Friday, June 10th. Here's what Michael had to say about writing the title song:

'Here Come the Savages' was written after we heard the news that Davy Jones had died. I wrote it in a stream of consciousness thinking of all the pain this world can inflict on you. It was initially written on mandolin but when we went to record it, the instrument no longer held any mystique. We tried guitar with the same result. Then producer Jim Lewis said play it on piano (where I had to now rewrite the song) and everyone but George Reiff and myself went to lunch. George heard me working on it and said to me it was time to put it down. It was one take and we knew we were finished. —Michael Fracasso

Today, Music Fog brings you the title track, “Here Come the Savages." 

- Jessie Scott