Three Chords and the Truth UK

  On Jason James’ third album, CUT THE CHAIN, characters lament, ache, want to stay, want to leave or at times are just totally mixed up. Either way it’s a country crooning cracker putting sad songs at the heart of the writing. Throw in a rich voice, acres of fiddle, steel, piano and electric guitar and the result is a ten-track emotional rollercoaster. Built for the barroom, dance floor and staring forlornly into a whiskey glass, this album doesn’t attempt any redefinition, just plying a route of plain revivalism. Anybody with a nous for the epitome of ‘three chords and the truth’ will find solace in this archetype collection. Texas-based James has sought overseas attention with previous releases, notably 2019s SEEMS LIKE TEARS AGO, and landing in the right sphere will enlist admirers for this effort. The title track doubles up as the album opener with ‘ Cut the Chain’ portraying the quintessential break up song to a tee. Maybe cutting the chain was the right thing to do when list...

  On their latest album, My Girl The River up the ante to serve a collection of well-crafted songs awash with smokey vocals and prime musicianship. MANIFEST GOOD THINGS clearly reflects the influences of its creator who in turn is neck deep in the upper echelons of A-list Americana music. If only a smidgeon of effect filters through then value is offered. Indeed there is much to enjoy from dedicated personal lyrics to melodies piquing an intriguing interest.  Kris Wilkinson Hughes is the driving force behind My Girl The River - a Louisiana exile long settled in Bedford. She has written and produced the album alongside providing lead vocals and acoustic guitar on all ten tracks. The core band is also a family affair with husband Joe on bass and daughter Rue helping out with backing vocals and occasional piano. However the album is further enriched by a raft of guest musicians adding keys, horns, strings, electric guitar and lap steel to the overall mix. The production is deli...

www.ellesbailey.com Stories were the theme of the night. For two minutes before the band took to the stage, Lichfield Guildhall echoed to the soaring chimes of Brandi Carlile’s definitive classic ‘ The Story ’. Moments after the five-strong supporting cast assumed position, instruments in hand, Elles Bailey bounded into the spotlight launching straight into her memoir of 2026, the hugely personal ‘ Can’t Take My Story Away ’. This is a story of ordinary charm, no fanfare or distorted narrative, just one person pouring her heart into a craft of connective majesty and a music presentation primed wth passion and soulful eminence.   The sold out sign went up days before a return to this historical venue in one of England’s blossoming cultural cities. The audience was reminded from the stage that it was five years since the Guildhall last hosted an Elles Bailey concert. A period where three imposing album releases   have projected an artist past the established stage to one of...

  Dean Owens has had many different performing and recording entities over the years. The latest one when viable and accessible is the assembly of a four-piece outfit known as the Sinners. You can be a long term Dean Owens live admirer and only ever see the solo or duo format when he comes to town, so any opportunity to savour this recent band construction is welcome. OUR FAVOURITE SINS shines a light on a fresh sound created with the special recording of sixteen existing songs plus the unveiling of a brand new one.   The Sinners went into the studio under the commission of Dutch record boss Bert Pijpers with the aim of recreating a single take live experience for release on his label Continental Record Services. The result is a different slant to many well-loved songs without losing the Owens' kitemark of distinctive vocals and explorative lyrics. The new song ‘ Road of Diamonds’ opens with Owens’ trademark whistling before gently easing out a thoughtful tune crafting a refle...

  The music equivalent of football’s famous saying ‘but can they do it at Stoke on a wet Wednesday night’ has to be ‘Bilston on a wet Thursday’. The odds weren’t exactly stacked in favour of Robert Vincent as he made another stab at playing a West Midlands venue. Joining the Kitchen Garden, Sunflower Lounge, Actress and Bishop and Stourbridge Town Hall, we can now add Bilston Town Hall. Vincent is not alone among his compatriots in finding it tough to establish a foothold in this 2 million strong conurbation. Undoubted interest in an artist of his calibre has yet to be harnessed. The answer lies in innovative promotion, engaging venues and the forging of a community. On the upside, each prospective venture brings a local glimpse of the qualities of one of Britain’s foremost singer-songwriters. An artist weaving Scouse insight onto a Laurel Canyon canvas. We are in the formative stage of Vincent’s next phase. ‘The best so far’ he impishly boasts. Trajectory is in his favour across f...

Plain and poetic, Sally Jaye lyrically harnesses the basics of life in a collection of songs oozing with sweet connective melodies. This Georgia native may not have hogged the limelight as a solo singer-songwriter, preferring other performing routes, however all the credentials are evident to place her at the pinnacle of this craft. YOU’LL BE OKAY, BABY is a tight array of cleverly mastered songs shining a light on ordinariness in a style only a fabled songwriter can convey. Working with accomplished musician Brent Cobb, who undertook a co-production role, has handsomely paid off with an optimum sound spilling out of ten lean songs smoothed without a lack of substance.  Jaye’s principle playing partner is Brian Wright who co-wrote nine songs with her and plays guitar on the full set. The outlier in a writing context is perhaps the one track that burns the brightest. ‘ Love on the Road’  is a recent song written by Aaron Lee Tasjan packed with guile capturing the essence of sev...

What’s not to love about a jangle guitar band operating on the fault line between US alt-country and British pop rock. From the often undiscovered outpost of Carlisle emerges an outfit with the sound to travel far and the chops to etch another mark on the great tree of like-minded bands stretching back from the mid-60s to modern day architects. The Dead Religion made a long journey in English terms to play the Maverick Festival in Suffolk on a hot July afternoon. Amidst the dust, heat and plethora of competing sounds, they left a most adorable calling card in a song going right to the core of what makes music special. The good news is that song is not alone as the band send a further gift into the wider world with the release of THE GREAT UNKNOWN. The track in question, ‘ Guitar Pickin’ Man’ resides in the latter stages of this debut record formed of ten songs and lavishly decorating a precious 38 minutes of your valuable listening time. It provides a conduit to a raft of similarly ap...