Hallelujah! Danny Barnes is another just begun to be sung hero. His inventive take on songs and stylings is pure Renaissance Man stuff. He has marched to his own drummer walking a most creative path. He was a Bad Liver, a band which grew out of the Austin acoustic scene, drawing from all kinds of musical genres, whether they seemed simpatico or not: from blues to punk, to country, rock, fusion and jazz. And all this on the banjo, which is his weapon of choice.
Danny is lauded by a long list of luminaries like Robert Earl Keen and most recently Dave Matthews. Danny's most recent CD Pizza Box is out on ATO Records, the label of which Dave Matthews is co-founder. From Danny's website, Matthews says, "Danny Barnes’ Pizza Box is my favorite new music, my favorite rock record, and my favorite country record. From the first time he sat down and played me "Road," I knew his next record was going to be great, but I didn't expect this. The music is smart and soulful, and the lyrics are profound. It is heaven and earth. It is Americana, from the back porch to the pulpit, shattered dreams on angels wings. I can't stop listening. In the haze of over produced, "perfect" recordings, Danny Barnes spent less than two weeks banging out an album that may well save your soul."
The song TSA comes from that album, as Barnes brought an understated elegance to the stage at Threadgill's for the Music Fog cameras. No banger jokes are necessary.
-Jessie Scott
