Saturday dawned bright and hot, and after a four hour drive north, we were at the fabled Ft. Worth Stockyards, yes, the very place from which we aired Willie's 4th of July Picnics. I had wanted to broadcast the Red Dirt Roundup since its inception, but September is such a busy event month, we (X Country) were never able to make it happen. Heck, I could never even get to attend it, so this was my first time!

Great to see the Smith Music Group people and just super to partake of an amazing lineup handpicked by CCR. Missed the folks at the beginning of the day: Bart Crow Band, Brandon Jenkins, Johnny Cooper, and Stephanie Briggs,  We got there at the end of the Seth James set. He has a smokin' new CD out, That Kind Of Man, a break-out for him.

They bounced from the North Stage to the South stage all day, so there was continuous live music. Next up were the Band Of Heathens. This is release week for their new CD, and they are playing a bunch of dates in support. Then it was Charlie Robison, who is in fine form- his new CD is Beautiful Day, reviewed here when it came out. The Gourds were up next….oh what fun they are. Multiple instruments, trading off, Kevin dancing, that roots bad-ass delivery, and yes, they ended the set with their Snoop cover of Gin and Juice, a crowd pleaser that precipitated a joint being thrown from the audience.  As they danced around, they never stomped on it….I won't say who picked it up, but it didn't go to waste.

Then it was DFW band Jonathan Tyler and TNL, rocking,' dense, tight. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit were welcomed to the North Stage, he was a Drive By Trucker before going it alone, now having put two CDs out. A band I used to play from Memphis, Lucero, was up next, they are deep and rich and alt. Randy Rogers Band continues to be on the ascent. They are a Texas Music treasure, and they always BRING IT! The audience was primed all day for Jakob Dylan and The Wallflowers; we all sang along! Then Robert Earl Keen delivered a stellar set, and Cross Canadian Ragweed took the stage, the final act of the night, and cooked in the white hot love of the crowd.

No doubt an exhilarating day, a cool hang back stage, and a fun time for all!

- Jessie -