Every year, as Music Fog heads into the great white north for MusicFest at Steamboat, Delbert McClinton takes a merry band of swashbucklers south for the Sandy Beaches Cruise. This year, they'll be sailing from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on Sunday, January 8, 2012, with two stops to visit three ports: St. Barts, St. Kitts and Nevis. And the roster? Well hell, that would be Al Anderson, Marcia Ball, Bruce Channel, Nick Connolly, Bob DiPiero, Fred Eaglesmith, Joe Ely, Jimmy Hall, Tom Hambridge, Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps, J.T. Lauritsen & the Buckshot Hunters, Colin Linden, Big Joe Maher, Raul Malo, Clay McClinton, The McCrary Sisters, Mingo Fishtrap, Jonell Mosser, Lee Roy Parnell, Jill Sobule, Paul Thorn, Wayne Toups & Zydecajun, Seth Walker, Kevin Welch, Mike Zito, Miles Zuniga, Chuck Cannon, Matraca Berg, Eric Lindell, Danny Myrick, Gretchen Peters, Lari White, and Delbert’s longtime friend and songwriting partner Gary Nicholson. For ticket information, check here.

Gary Nicholson came before the Music Fog cameras at Americana Fest last month in Nashville. We were honored to have him, and the added bonus was that he brought Colin Linden and David Roe along with him. His life is a chronicle of the American Music scene dating back decades.  It is an impressive array of sights and sounds, as Gary has explored the roles of performer, songwriter and producer in his illustrious career. The song we bring you today is a classic, and if you remember, was in the movie Crazy Heart, performed by Jeff Bridges and Colin Farrell. It was co-written by Gary and the late Stephen Bruton. You can find Gary’s version on the album Texas Songbook, which came out back in June. Here is the Music Fog recording.

- Jessie Scott