Joy Kills Sorrow "Jake"

Man, oh man, I can’t believe Thanksgiving is upon us. This year has flown, you know? And so the season changes, bringing new eras to us, to savor for the stasis. But sometimes, a seed you planted before surfaces in the new day. Particularly appropriate as we just got approached by YouTube to commend us on the views that Music Fog still continues to do, even though we haven’t been out to film in a very long time. Having curated these artists, I am happy that they have had traction, and that some of them are enjoying more light in the spotlight, like Lake Street Dive, whose video “You Go Down Smooth” just entered our Top 25, joining another song of theirs, "Got Me Fooled."

We pulled one out of the mist for you today from Joy Kills Sorrow, back before the bass player, Bridget Kearney, left to forge a new path with Lake Street Dive. She has been replace by Zoe Guigueno on bass, who played on the 2013 Joy Kills Sorrow EP Wide Awake. Also, I had the honor of doing a show with Jacob Jolliff in my previous gig, yes, seasons come and go, don’t they. Jacob is out on the road in an eclectic and erudite duo configuration with Wes Corbett, delivering evenings of transcendent music.

But I am getting ahead of myself. Today we bring you Joy Kills Sorrow with the song “Jake,” from the Music Fog Marathon at Threadgill’s in 2012, during SXSW music week. Here's Emma Beaton on vocals, Bridget Kearney on bass, Jacob Jolliff on mandolin, Wesley Corbett on banjo, and Matthew Arcara on guitar.

- Jessie Scott

Tommy Womack - Now What!

Happy Mardi Gras. Party up today, for lent is nigh. It is the season of discipline, not indulging in something you love until Easter. Can you give up meat or cigarettes, or a luxury of some sort, for the forty days of the Lenten season? Yikes, discipline, my dear! But today, you have to get it all out of your system. Party until midnight, when Cinderella’s coach turns into a pumpkin at day’s end. Have you ever been to Mardi Gras in New Orleans? They take this revelry thing mighty seriously, ya know. And you can go from a refined dinner with the family; pearls and dinner jackets; to frontal nudity in the street. To each his own.

Tommy Womack would be fun to take to New Orleans. His eccentric observations would be quite worth the price of admission. His might even be the voice of reason, the counterpoint to the debauchery. Tommy’s new CD comes out today. It is the sequel to There I Said It!, and is called Now What! Music Fog had the great good fortune of doing the intro video for it, which you can watch above. And we had the honor of filming Tommy at Folk Alliance in 2010, which you can enjoy below. (By the way, the Folk Alliance is just kicking off in Memphis this week.) So we bring you the Music Fog recording of one of the songs that you will find on the new album. “On & Off The Wagon,” one from the Fog Bank, with Lisa Oliver-Gray. Maybe the “wagon” starts at midnight. Forty days, huh…?

- Jessie Scott

Keep The Light Alive "Weight of the World"

Wow. The year is off to a very fast start. January is almost gone, and I have two quick trips coming. First up is the Bastrop Wildfire Benefit on Monday night at Hill Country Barbecue Market in Washington, DC with Sons of Bill. The Deep Dark Woods, Dallas Wayne, Chris Berardo and The DesBerardos and Ruthie & The Wranglers. Then coming up the next weekend, I head to Corpus Christi, Texas for a Wounded Warrior benefit, as The Pear Ratz will be performing. You will be able to watch that on their website. Later in February, I am contemplating trips to New Orleans, and then maybe Memphis for Folk Alliance.  It is certainly hard to return to these events that were once attended by Music Fog’s whole crew, but I carry on.

One of my primary reasons for going is to this year’s Keynote Speaker, Bob Lefsetz. He is a brilliant observer and acerbic critic of today’s music landscape, and it will be a fired up speech, for sure.  So for today, we take you back on the Music Fog bus from Folk Alliance 2010 for a song from Dan Navarro, Freebo, and David Glaser in salute to Eric Lowen, Keep The Light Alive, Celebrating The Music of Lowen & Navarro. On the album, the song “Weight Of The World” is performed by Jackson Browne, for the Music Fog version, we  were honored to have Dan, Freebo, and David. Eric, as you probably know, retired in 2009 because his ALS made performing and travelling too much for him, but I am happy to report his kids just celebrated their 18th birthday, and he was there to share it. With love to carry on, here is the Music Fog recording of “Weight Of The World.”

- Jessie Scott