Happy Birthday America...Happy 4th Weekend! Hopefully you're enjoying some Q and bourbon and beer and maybe even some music. I gotta say, for us ex-XM folks, it was a little weird NOT being at Willie’s Picnic, which was broadcast on XM12 X Country for many happy years. It still airs on SiriusXM, so here's a shout out to the folks at Outlaw Country and Willie’s Roadhouse for keeping the dream alive. Many of the artists that played Willie’s 4th of July Picnic at the Austin 360 Amphitheater are staying in town for another very cool event on Monday, to benefit the victims of the Central Texas Memorial Day flooding.

I want to make sure that is on your radar, OUTLAW: Celebrating the Music of Waylon Jennings at ACL Live at The Moody Theater this Monday. There are just a few tickets left for this once in a lifetime show with Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Kacey Musgraves, Ryan Bingham, Sturgill Simpson, Jamey Johnson, Lee Ann Womack, Chris Stapleton, Shooter Jennings, Jessi Colter, and Billy Joe Shaver. And they just added Alison Krauss and Robert Earl Keen to the line-up too!.

If you are a ticket holder, you can purchase admission to the OUTLAW AFTER-PARTY FOR TEXAS FLOOD RELIEF. 100% of your ticket purchase to the Outlaw After-Party will go to the United Way for Greater Austin and be earmarked for Memorial Day Central Texas flood victims.

Unfortunately, this time some of our friends, The Midnight River Choir, were impacted by the rising water. All their vehicles were damaged along with most everything they owned. Give if you can. I know you will join me in wishing to have order again and peace of mind for all the folks impacted by the devastation from the flood waters.

The MRC carry on. They were just out west on tour and are back in Texas now. That is one way to take one’s mind off it. And of course there is always bourbon. “Jim Beam,” can be found on 2008’s Freedom Wine CD. We caught up with The Midnight River Choir during SXSW© in 2012 during our Music Fog Marathon at Threadgill's.

- Jessie Scott