James McMurtry "We Can't Make It Here"

My mother didn’t need to have a job, my father was able to support our family with just one salary. That is SO last century! Do you remember those days? Things are so different for so many people now, with two people working, sometimes needing to have two jobs to make ends meet. As I drive around the country, I see boarded up factories decaying along the rivers and train tracks bearing silent witness to degenerating buildings along their right of ways. They use to bring goods to the nation from every corner of the country. And I have to say, how do we remain a first world country when we don’t manufacture what we need?

When the song “We Can’t Make It Here Anymore,” by James McMurtry first came out in 2005 on the Childish Things CD, we were unaware of the chaos that would befall the financial world just a few years later in 2008. Upon the album’s release, Stephen King commented, "...this may be the best American protest song since (Bob Dylan's) Masters of War." I still believe that poets take the temperature of a society, and shine it back at us with white hot truth, warts and all. So you know, we were totally honored by James McMurtry’s appearance at the Spring Music Fog Marathon at Threadgill’s WHQ last month. And we were super stoked that he laid a solo version down of “We Can’t Make It Here.”

- Jessie Scott

Wheeler Brothers "Sleep When I'm Dead"

Old Settler’s Music Festival is almost upon us, April 19--22, and this week, Music Fog is featuring some of the fine folks on the line up. It takes place just 11 miles south of Austin at the Salt Lick Pavilion on the outskirts of Austin. Yes, it is the same Salt Lick that has been featured on so many of those cable food and travel shows. By the way, Salt Lick has a hint of Hawaiian influence with pineapple in the barbeque sauce. That last link is a rabbit hole of its own, if you are of a mind to go chasing down the secret recipe. Old Settlers Music Fest has camping at Camp Ben McCulloch, so if you have some vacation time coming, or just get a wild hair, or is that wild hare (sorry, another rabbit hole for you!), c’mon down to Texas for a while.

There are several artists that we have had the pleasure of filming on this year’s OSMF roster: Ha Ha Tonka, James McMurtry, New Country Rehab, Sarah Jarosz, The Bottle Rockets, Bob Schneider, Eilen Jewell, and Sam Baker. Sounds like a party, right? Austin natives, The Wheeler Brothers, will be there too. They are one of the crop of new buzz bands showing up on must-see and must-listen-to lists. In fact, they just made their national TV debut with Carson Daly on March 22nd. Brothers Nolan, Tyler and Patrick Wheeler met Danny Matthews at LSU. Once back in Austin, the group added guitarist A.J. Molyneaux, and the combustion began. Portraits, their debut album, came out in June, and they played us a song from it when they stopped by Threadgill’s for the Spring Music Fog Marathon last month. It was the day the Austin Music Awards were announced, and the Wheeler Brothers picked up Best New Band, Best Acoustic Guitar – Nolan Wheeler, Best Bass – Tyler Wheeler, Best Misc. Instrument - A.J. Molyneaux, and Best Roots Rock. Here is “Sleep When I’m Dead.”

- Jessie Scott

Shurman "Back to Texas"

Denise is road tripping, driving to the West Coast with Sharon Ely on a Holy Posole run. Sharon’s Holy Posole is taking off, from initially being something she prepared as a Christmas gift for friends, and is now starting to appear in HEB stores in Texas. It is available on Amazon, too. It is magical soup, good for what ails you.

Denise texted me from Lubbock a couple of days ago, a place where I spent a bit of time in the mid-80s. When I was there, it seemed like time had been standing still for decades. The town felt as if it was in black and white, and hadn’t gotten to Technicolor yet. An old fashioned soda fountain in a pharmacy was even still in business back then. I haven’t returned to Lubbock since I moved to Texas. One of these days, I just have to get back there.

It might be a perfect time to do just that, as the band Shurman heads to The Blue Light in Lubbock this Saturday night. More Texas dates are in store, as they are still celebrating the February release of their new album, Inspiration, which came out on their own label, Teletone Records. Cool, too, that there is even limited edition 180-gram vinyl. Aaron Beavers, Mike Therieau, Harley Husbands, and Craig Bagby were in fine form when they came to visit us during the Music Fog Marathon at Threadgill’s WHQ in Austin a few weeks ago. The release of this album is the culmination of some pretty radical twists and turns through the last few years. I am proud of their perseverance, and on top of that, congratulate the Shurman guys for just how good this CD is. Here is the Music Fog version of one of the songs on the new album, “Back To Texas.”

- Jessie Scott