Randy Weeks & Stonehoney "Transistor Radio"

Transistor radios are such an iconic reminder of times gone by. An earlier era when radio was important. It no longer holds the same magic in these corporatized days. But once upon a time, the radio connected you to your society, to your peers, to your community. It was where you went to become a part of the tribe; when John Lennon, or Elvis died. When music was a common language that was shared by all your classmates. When The Beatles broke, we knew about it because of radio, and when The Beatles broke up, we heard that too.

Transistor radios were the last of the "Made in America" era. They were the beginning of multinational parts being incorporated into an object. The beginning of global commerce. Back in the day, these radios imparted sheer magic, though. They were tucked under our pillows, secreted away after bedtime. The content was too exciting, the music, the DJ talking. I ate it all up, and couldn't wait for the next night as I fought sleep.

We are dancing on the dying embers of mass communication. We are no longer wired together, but wired separately on our iPods. We are starting a new "Tower of Babel" era. Not broadcasting any longer, but narrowcasting, to a party of one. One to one to one. That is why it is so hard for new acts to break through. The apparatus is broken, the platform is gone, and the new one hasn't developed yet. Let us revisit an earlier time with Randy Weeks and special guests Stonehoney.

- Jessie Scott

Stonehoney with Jimmy LaFave "I Shall Be Released"

You want to talk iconic songs? The ones that are burned into our brains; where we know every nuance, every lick, every lyric. You know, the songs that are always covered by other artists. At the top of that list is the 1967 Bob Dylan tune, "I Shall Be Released." Golly galoshes, it even has its own WIKI entry! It was on the legendary Music From Big Pink, The Band's first album, issued in 1968. Add to that a long list of other folks who have recorded it including, Joan Baez, Bette Midler, Melissa Etheridge, U2, Big Mama Thornton, even the Beatles, though their version has never seen light of day.

While we are talking Bob Dylan, there are two projects coming out on October 19th, The Bootleg Series Vol. 9 - The Witmark Demos: 1962 - 1964; these are the original recordings for his early music publisher, done before he hit the tender age of 24! This 2-CD set, 47 songs, is the first addition to the aclaimed Bootleg Series since 2008. Also out the same day: The Original Mono Recordings, an 8-CD boxed set of his first eight long-playing albums, reproduced from their first generation mono mixes. Among the tunes on The Witmark Demos are 15 songs that Bob recorded solely for these sessions, some of which are just now being released to the public. These include “Ballad For A Friend,” “Long Ago, Far Away,” “The Death Of Emmett Till,” and “Guess I’m Doing Fine." Many of the other early songs did appear later on Bob Dylan’s own albums, as well as having been recorded by others; including Peter, Paul and Mary and Stevie Wonder (“Blowin’ In The Wind”), Judy Collins (“Tomorrow Is A Long Time”) and The Byrds (“Mr Tambourine Man.”)

It is simply amazing that this crop of songs has been covered by more than a thousand artists in the nearly fifty years since these demos were created. And Dylan continues his amazing legacy, with important new releases of his own, as well as by continuing to have his songs interpreted today. At WoodyFest 2010 in Okemah, OK this past July, we had the occasion to film Stonehoney, with Jimmy LaFave and Red Molly. They stopped time with this version of "I Shall Be Released."

- Jessie Scott

BettySoo "Things Are Going to Get Worse"

I hear a distant and far away Buddy Holly singing in my head, taking a bit of liberty with his own lyrics, as if the song was banging off the ionosphere from some distant place, "BettySoo, BettySoo, pretty, pretty pretty pretty BettySoo." We were happy to have had a return bout with BettySoo, as she came aboard the Music Fog bus last year during 2009's Americana Festival & Conference in Nashville. The performance we bring you today happened last month in Okemah, Oklahoma during WoodyFest. BettySoo's voice is entrancing, clear as Carillion Bells at Christmas, and just as mysterious.

Photo Credit: Todd V WolfsonI visited BettySoo's website, only to be regaled with an essay about pet peeves on her blog. She writes, "I’ve recognized I have more pet peeves than one person should ever possess." Read the rest here. She calls the blog "bettysoo's ramblings," and they are literate and relatable. The most recent one is titled "The Unbearable Weight Of Our Grievances." She ends this posting by referencing a friend who says, "Nothing ticks me off more than negativity." Ah, but it is a fact of life. I wonder if reality TV would so captivate the populace if it didn't make you feel better that your life isn't as messed up as what you are watching on TV. Jerry Springer syndrome.

So let us stop a while, count our blessings, feel the warmth of the sun, the warmth of our loves, our memories, our little victories. And though BettySoo has four albums for sale up on her website, let us listen to an as yet unreleased tune, "Things Are Going To Get Worse." Before they get better, that is. My son Trevor, ever the jaded, cynical twenty something, greets people with a handshake along with the answer to 'how ya doing' with "It could always be worse." Yes, that is the truth. Hope springs eternal.

- Jessie Scott