Two Step Inn 2023: Post-Mortem Thoughts

Yeeeeehaw!  Had some good times in the Georgetown dust bowl this last weekend!  I wasn't able to go see nearly as much as I had wanted to, but we still had some good fun and laughs at the old school country action on display.

• I would definitely go back to this Festival again.  Overall, a blast.
• Zach Bryan was absolutely amazing.  Like, I get the hype on the kid now.  He pumped up the crowd and seemed genuinely in to the party that was happening.  The crowd was PSYCHED to see him, and yelled along with every word.  I loved it, especially the encore version of "Revival" that took like 20 minutes and seemed like an old time hootenanny jam session (even including dumb ass Joe Rogan wandering on stage).
• Other highlights for me were Pam Tillis, Clay Walker, and Tracy Byrd.  Byrd has a ton of good songs!  I had forgotten him.  I teared up during Clay Walker while thinking about good old Tate.
• Lowlights for me were Lonestar, Wynonna Judd, and Tyler Childers.  Lonestar were just lame - they must have kept all the hits for the end of the show because the first half hour was boring.  Judd was entertaining, and her voice is great, but I realized that I literally do not know her music at all, and no one around me seemed to know it either, which just made for a mediocre show.  Childers was very good, I would have enjoyed that show at 2 in the afternoon while lying on a blanket and chatting with friends.  But after seeing Bryan crush it the night before, the stark difference in their styles made it seem really boring for Childers to just walk out and start playing music.  No fanfare, no chatter (he did announce his band, but it had no fire), he just got after it, glaring at the crowd while wearing Satan's jacket.
• The lineup was dope.  Well, at least for me, it was amazing.  
• But I'll tell you that from chatting with other folks around me, I think the lineup crossed a pretty large line that normal people do not straddle.  The old school, classic-country folks who were here to see Lonestar and John Michael Montgomery were not on board with the headliners, who are more new-school guys who don't do the cheesy classic stuff.  One guy next to me was trying to figure out if Zach Bryan was Luke Bryan or Zac Brown, and was confused when people kept saying a third, unknown guy.  Meanwhile, the folks who were there to see Childers and Bryan were rabidly in support of those guys and gave zero shits about the old school guys.  We stood with some 20-somethings in the crowd for Wynonna, as the massed jammed in there for Childers, and one of them literally was like "who the fuck are all of these other things?"  I asked him if he liked Clay Walker, and he was like, "I don't know what that means."  I said the guy right before Judd, and he was like, "oh yeah, that sucked."
• Entry to the Fest was stupid easy (although, more on that later).
• Food options were great!
• Drink options were even better - they actually served cocktails along with the beer and wine.  Way better than the ACL Bar tents that only serve beer and wine.
• The park itself was really neat - lots of big rocks you could sit on, picnic tables with umbrellas here and there, and they even put out some little dance floors in the way back of at least one of the stages.  I thought that was a cool add-on.
• The weather.  Holy crap, the weather was amazing on Sunday.  Just the absolute best Festival weather ever with pure sunshine and temps that were cool enough to be conformable all day long.  I expect that ACL avoids April because of the possibility for rain around now, but damn that was sweet!

Thoughts about the next time:

• Parking/logistics.  I'm spoiled by how easy ACL and Zilker is - just feels like that area is ready made to handle the crowds in a way that Georgetown is not.
• The first day, I had the amazing benefit of a kid who was willing to drop me off at the show, so that half was super easy.  But then leaving on Saturday night felt like some Mad Max shit.  Cell service was spotty, so they had some signs up advertising Wifi for people to use.  Hopefully that helped folks, but the crowd there was madness.  My ride had parked a few miles away at a hotel, which meant we ended up walking on sketchy highway overpasses with no sidewalks and stumbling through construction zones with piles of other people to get over to where the car was parked.  It was definitely a mess.  As we finally pulled out, the local businesses like Whataburger and McDonalds were totally overrun.  Anecdotally, I heard of folks not getting back to Austin until 1am.
• The second day was slightly better, but the parking vendors need to do better with signage.  I saw a sign at Georgetown High School advertising "Festival Parking," and followed the long line of cars to the gate.  At the gate, the worker told me that this was only for people who had pre-paid for Festival Parking.  So, like many others before, and after, me that I could see, we all wasted time waiting in line to get that information and then do a fifteen point turn to exit that queue.  Some signs at the front end, saying that this was only pre-paid parking, would have saved a lot of people time and annoyance.  But later we found a side street with parking and only had to walk about a mile and a half down a nice walking path.  No biggie.
• I'm sure C3 did everything they could plan for, but maybe additional shuttles or agreed parking lot usage could be added for next year.  I was fascinated that some businesses just had their lots roped off, when they could have been charging money to use their lots.  But for sure, I would not recommend parking on the other side of I-35 - Saturday night was scary enough that I won't do that again.
• Security.  Minimal from what I could see. On the front end, that was awesome, because I didn't have to empty my pockets to go through the metal detector or get a pat-down, and no one looked inside of the wife's fanny pack, so the entry was quick and easy.  Should have brought my carbon fiber knife and bottle of bourbon!  No guarantee it will be lax next year though!
• Selfishly though, the lack of strong security presence was annoying because it meant that people set up chairs EVERYWHERE.  Despite all of the signage that said to keep chairs behind a certain area, folks just did whatever and it made it really hard to navigate the crowds.  Likely also a fire hazard.  That part made me uncomfortable.
• The crowd. Surprisingly dickish as a whole.  I don't know if country fans just never go to Festivals or what, but the usual manners of a festival crowd were absent and you had a lot of people being really rude.  Now, we had several great interactions with folks standing around us in the crowd (folks had come in from Florida, Mississippi, also met a guy who apparently had sex in my current house when he was in high school!), but what I repeatedly saw around me (and heard a few times during verbal altercations) were people who just refused to let other folks get by and got mad about it.  And not just someone trying to get to the front!  As we tried to leave a crowd, two ladies crossed their arms and stood in our way and as we squeezed by them one of them yelled "fuck you!" at my wife.  Folks in front of us at Tyler Childers made a literal wall with their chairs, linked together, so that others couldn't get through, and about 30 minutes later a big dude just kicked them to hell to get him and his lady friend through.  Again, felt a little scary and like security wasn't on the ball.
• The tilt of the ground.  I'm sure consideration was given to the design of the stage layout, by people who know about such things (which I do not!).  But the main stage was set up facing that river, which means that the slope of the audience went downward.  I'm pretty tall, but I couldn't really see either of the headliners without looking at the screen.

I sort of worry that they could even do the festival again.  It feels like they nailed the lineup so well, with a perfect mix of new and old, but that they also used up all of the old school stuff that is: (1) not too huge; (2) still worth a damn; (3) still alive and well; and (4) not racist shitbags.  Like, it feels like some 90's folks are too big for that fest - George, Garth, Shania, Reba, Alan, Brooks & Dunn, Clint Black.  Maybe they can get Leann Rimes and Billy Ray Cyrus?  Tim McGraw and Faith Hill?  Alabama and Dwight Yoakum?  Oak Ridge Boys!  I bet there are enough out there they could build a lineup around.

I also wonder if they would just move it to Austin and Zilker Park.  The Zilker experience is just so nice!  But overall, great stuff!  We had a blast.  Hope they do it again!

Two Step Inn 2023: Sunday Schedule and Thoughts

Personal preferences, I think Saturday looks like the stronger day to me.  Maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised.

A few prelude thoughts for this who may be unfamiliar with this blog:

• The comments for each band are those "One Liner" things that I added to my reviews. It helps me to remember who they are (sometimes) and provides some detail on the kind of music they play.  Every once in a while they make me giggle too.
• I've made each band name a link so that you can go read the full review and listen to some tunes if you are unswayed by the One Liner.

Here we go:

And the times are pretty staggered, in a way that ACL is not, so some of these times will get wonky.  Just trying to present it in a way to show what choices you need to make...

12:00/12:15/12:45/1:00

Country Curious (12:00)	Kathryn Legendre: Local C3 employee getting to take the stage with some classic country flavor
Big River (12:15)	Pillbox Patti: Drum machines and well-told stories from the swamps of north Florida
Showdeo (1:00)	Kaitlin Butts: Excellent story-telling Americana
Country Curious (12:45)	Madeline Edwards: Powerful voice and questionably country pop music

I'd lean towards the more traditional Americana sound of these four ladies.

1:00/ 1:45 / 2:00

Big River (1:00)	Drake Milligan: Rockin' country with a young ex-Elvis impersonator
Showdeo (1:45)	Little Texas: Heavy on the harmonies and the rock guitar, "God Blessed Texas."
Country Curious (2:00)	Elvie Shane: Ex-American Idol guy representing all the stepdads everywhere!

I think Drake Milligan is likely the best actual artist in this group, but I also lean towards the cheesy schlock of seeing the Little Texas guys tear it up.

3:00/ 3:15 / 3:30

Big River (3:30)	Mavis Staples: A Queen of classic R&B somehow on this poster
Showdeo (3)	Pam Tillis: The chameleon child of Mel Tillis doing country, soft rock, blues, and more
Country Curious (3:15)	Hailey Whitters: A mix of old-school Taylor Swift, Natalie Maines, and Kacey Musgraves

I'd like to see all three of these.  Maybe we will just do that and see a smidge of each from the back of the crowd.

4:30 / 5:00

Big River (5)	Clay Walker: Probably my favorite of the 90's rockin' Nashville stars on this poster
Showdeo (4:30)	Lonestar: The cheesiest cheese on the poster, but also a few good classics
Country Curious (4:30)	Blanco Brown: More of that drum machine/trap/country.  Is this rap?  What am I doing?

Clay Walker is one of the reasons I am going to this festival, so I'm seeing him for sure.  Maybe will do a little Lonestar beforehand...

5:45/ 6:00

Showdeo (6)	Tracy Byrd: High Cheese rating 90's Nashville country and a DWI PSA
Country Curious (5:45)	Paul Cauthen: Local-ish outlaw country style guy with humor

My initial instinct would be to go see Cauthen again, but Byrd has a surprisingly large number of good old songs that I bet the wife would enjoy.

6:45/ 7:15/ 7:30

Big River (6:45)	Wynonna Judd: [for some reason, I never reviewed her.  I wonder if she was a late addition to the poster, or if I just spaced it?]
Showdeo (7:30)	John Michael Montgomery: [same here!  What happened?  I think I thought this was the Dust on the Bottle guy?  Whoops!]
Country Curious (6)	Diplo: Electronic kingpin with generally uninteresting songs

I am totally pissed at myself for not doing these reviews - I just fired up John Michael Montgomery and he is the "Grundy County Auction" guy!  ALSO, "Life's a Dance," "I Swear," and some other good ones  Dangit!

8:30: Tyler Childers.  Great lyricist making fine Americana and country music.

I'm looking forward to seeing him again.  I wonder how large the crowd is going to be at this Festival.  Like, do I need to skip the show beforehand to be able to see the guy?  Or will it be fine to cruise up close around 8?

Two Step Inn 2023 - Guide to the Show!

I have a good guide for the Austin City Limits Music Festival that makes good sense, because I've been there many times.  It has changed over time, as the rules have adjusted and the whole Festival has shifted into a bigger deal with better food and better drink and easier ticketing.  So, I don't know much about this Festival yet, other than what I can find online, but I thought it still might be useful to try to collect some of that for everyone!

Transportation and Parking:  Definitely one of the biggest drawbacks to a festival in Georgetown.  This park is at San Gabriel Park, north of downtown Georgetown, and which is just East of I-35 near the intersection of 158 and 971.  There is no parking at the venue, and the streets around the venue will tow.  So, the Fest gives you two options:

• Barton Creek Mall to Festival shuttle.  Roundtrip tickets are $50 per day.  That actually sounds kind of nice to just remove all of the stress!
• Georgetown High School or East View High School (also in Georgetown).  You can reserve a free parking space and get a complimentary ride to the Festival.  Pretty sweet!  Sadly, everyone else was already on top of that and those are all sold out.

So, maybe the right move is to drive up to somewhere with a large an unassuming parking lot, and then nab an Uber to the festival.  Drop off spot for RideShare is 1003 N. Austin Ave.  Right across the highway there is a Walmart and a Home Depot, those look pretty close...  I also wonder if you could just park at Georgetown High and either walk from there or Uber.  It looks to be not far on the map.  No solid answer yet, but a few options.

Food Options:  They actually provided a list of vendors!  Of the items that are listed there, here are the items that are of interest:

• Classics that always show up at ACL and crush it: East Side King (Pork Buns 4 LYFE), Burro Cheese Kitchen (Hawaiian roll sammies), Southside Flying Pizza.
• Interesting things I want to try: Brotherton's Black Iron BBQ, Mama Fried, Hombre Tacos
• Stuff I do not enjoy after prior experiences: Mmmpenadas.  Bananarchy.
• Weird thing to see on this list: El Patio.  I mean, I love me some El Patio.  Classic.  But are they going to give me an enchilada plate with saltines?
• Research:
• Taconmaye is a taco truck from Georgetown with a 4.5 rating on Yelp.
• The Cavalier is an East Austin bar with a 4.1 Yelp rating.
• Golden Rule is a cocktail bar in Georgetown with a 3.8 Yelp rating.

Also, once you get your wristband, sign up for the cashless thing so that you can use your wristband to buy your food and drink.  You will be very grateful that you did!

Drink Options:  They'll have water re-filling stations, so you can bring an empty water bottle or camelback.  The map shows seven bar locations, but gives no detail on what will be served there. A closer look at the map shows that some of the bars have stars near them with other text, like "Jack Daniels 80 Proof Saloon" or "Jack and Coke Airstream" or "White Claw Shore Club."  So, I think we can expect some Jack Daniels, Tito's, Bud Light, White Claw, and Chateau Ste. Michelle wine.  But otherwise, who knows!?

Backpacks/ bags.  This works like ACL - No real backpacks!  It can ONLY be: (1) clutch/fanny pack (6 x 9 inches or smaller, and only one pocket); (2) clear plastic, but small (no larger than 12 x 12 x 6); or (3) an empty Camelback bag, but no more than two pockets in addition to the one holding the water sac.  You'll be pissed if you forget and have to go back to the car or throw away your sweet backpack.

Other gear.  They will search whatever you bring, so know that it will delay your entry, the more you pack.  You can bring chairs, blankets, binoculars, cameras, etc.  BUT, no aerosol cans (so no spray sunscreen!) Also, no coolers, no hammocks, no umbrellas, no drugs, no drones, no spiked jewelry, and no bikes.  My advice is just to wear comfortable clothes, bring cream sunscreen in one pocket and a phone charger in the other, and just roll with it.

Other random advice:

• Rendezvous point.  At ACL, it can be really hard to text your friends, and also to see them in the crowd.  So, plan ahead and just expect that your phone may die and you might need to meet back up with your friend or kid or ride at a certain predetermined spot in the park.  Be careful using the flags that people raise to mark their spots, as those move and they are also sometimes duplicated.  It is easy to get separated, so have a predetermined spot to meet.  From the map, the Red Poppy Ranch looks pretty central.
• Thievery.  I have heard a lot of anecdotal stories about folks having stuff stolen at the Fest - especially girls having their cell phones pinched out of their back pockets while they are watching a show.  WHICH SUCKS.  Asshat thieves.  So, since fanny packs are allowed in this year, maybe a little fanny pack is a good idea to store the cell phone?  Either way, just be aware!
• No COVID test requirement or anything.

This is going to be fun.  See y'all there.

Two Step Inn 2023 - Saturday - Schedule and Thoughts

A new festival!  Yeehaw!  I'm sure this won't click with much of the core audience of folks who have followed me for their ACL lineups, but I think this could still be fun anyway.  

I have no clue how transportation will be, or what the stage layout will be like, food choices, beer choices, security checks, or really anything about this festival at all.  None.  But I fully expect that the people running it, with their long knowledge of the ACL Fest, will know how to make it work out.  BUT!  I'm going to do a little research and hopefully provide a little info on another post.

A few prelude thoughts for this who may be unfamiliar with this blog:

• The comments for each band are those "One Liner" things that I added to my reviews. It helps me to remember who they are (sometimes) and provides some detail on the kind of music they play.  Every once in a while they make me giggle too.
• I've made each band name a link so that you can go read the full review and listen to some tunes if you are unswayed by the One Liner.

Playlist!

Here we go:

Poor Calder Allen (Solid singer-songwriter type with chill tunes and a good pedigree)  gets the noon slot, all by himself.  Hopefully that means he gets a huge crowd of people rabid to hear the first thing that pops off.  I have a feeling that means he'll have a handful of people out there baking in the sun and waiting for the bigger names.

And the times are pretty staggered, in a way that ACL is not, so some of these times will get wonky.  Just trying to present it in a way to show what choices you need to make...

12:30/12:45/1:00

Big River (12:30)	Nikki Lane: "First Lady of Outlaw Country"
Showdeo (1:00)	Doug Stone: Mr. Sensitive!
Country Curious (12:45)	Ben Burgess: Tough guy who has written some hit songs for others finally doing his own outlaw-ish thing

I'm a Nikki Lane fan for sure.  Her sound is more rock and roll than country, but I really like it.

1:45 and 2:30

Big River (1:45)	Charles Wesley Godwin: Zach Bryan's wingman making coal dust country
Showdeo (2:30)	David Lee Murphy: The "Dust on the Bottle" guy
Country Curious (1:45)	Alana Springsteen: Rising star with pop-forward "country" tunes that remind me of Taylor Swift

I think here I'd go watch Godwin - maybe you'll get a Zach Bryan appearance! - and then go catch the tail end of Murphy to hear "Dust on the Bottle."

3:00/ 3:15

Big River (3:15)	Tanya Tucker: She's a classic country star, but I don't recognize much of this
Country Curious (3)	Charlie Robison: An old favorite, back from the dead, for more boozy fun

BRUTAL!  My instinct is still to go see Robison, just because he is an old favorite, but then I've never gotten to see Tucker before, so that may be the right choice to expand my musical horizons.

4:00/ 4:30

Showdeo (4)	Diamond Rio: 90's Nashville country, power harmonies, supreme mullets, and that "Meet in the Middle" tune
Country Curious (4:30)	Uncle Kracker: Lite-rock semi-rapper with Kid Rock's help turned lite-country guy

Might just go get a corn dog and a beer during this hour.  I guess I'd pick Diamond Rio.  I do not care for the Uncle Kracker experience.

5:00/ 5:30/ 6:00

Big River (5)	Travis Tritt: "It's a Great Day to Be Alive" is an amazing tune, plus a bunch of rockin' originals
Showdeo (5:30)	Shenandoah: Ex-session musicians churning out 80's country gold
Country Curious (6)	Niko Moon: Trap beats and mega-generic good times lyrics with a tiny country flair

Tritt's biggest song is a killer, but I'd probably prefer to go see Shenandoah.  Not strong feelings either way, except that I definitely do not want to see Mr. Moon.

6:45/ 7:15/ 7:30

Big River (5)	Midland: Modern, good-looking purveyors of the sound of the rest of this poster
Showdeo (5:30)	Jo Dee Messina: "I'm Alright is a really nice song."  I wish I had more to say about her?
Country Curious (6)	T-Pain: The King of Auto-Tune

No thing definitely sticks out here as the one I just have to see.  I'd probably lean towards Midland just because they are kind of the up-and-coming one here who may make a bigger name for themselves.

8:30: Zach Bryan.  Excellent low-key singer-songwriter Americana.

I'm looking forward to seeing him again.  I wonder how large the crowd is going to be at this Festival.  Like, do I need to skip the show beforehand to be able to see the guy?  Or will it be fine to cruise up close around 8?

Hailey Whitters

One Liner: A mix of old-school Taylor Swift, Natalie Maines, and Kacey Musgraves

Wikipedia Genre: Country

Home: Nashville (originally from Shueyville, Iowa)

Poster Position: small Type 
Sunday.

Thoughts:  Huh, I figured she would not be the most popular "Hailey" on Spotify, but she definitely popped up first.  Her first song brings a combined vibe of Taylor Swift with Natalie Maines all rolled up into one.  I also get a lot of Kacey Musgraves vibes in here.  I've enjoyed it for sure.

She got her start by writing for others - Alan Jackson and Little Big Town - as well as others.  She's also toured in support of some bigger names - Maren Morris and Jon Pardi.  But I think she sounds like she could do her own thing.  3 albums, 2015's Black Sheep, 2020's The Dream, and 2022's Raised.  And another from 2021 called Living the Dream that is a deluxe version of The Dream (and has several bigger tunes on it than the original).  The big hit in her catalog is from that new album, this is the tune that I think sounds like Natalie Maines singing on a Taylor Swift song.  "Everything She Ain't" has 38.9 million streams.

That opening lick is so very classic, early Taylor Swift.  I'd say that some of those lyrics in the chorus are a little too obvious.  "Lime to your Corona," etc.  It is a nice little tune, even with those little nits.  

"Dream, Girl" sounds like a John Mayer song.  Her top three other songs all feature someone else - Little Big Town, Ernest (?), and Jordan Davis.  Her first album is not a high stream counter, looks like it took her a little while to get her stride on that second album.  She also has two Christmas songs, and I like them.  But we'll do "Heartland" from The Dream for the other tune for you to hear.  4.7 million streams.

I don't know what the vocal quality is that she shares with Maines, but I definitely hear it when she sings.  And lyrically, this one makes me think of Musgraves.  Nice nostalgia tune.  She kind of looks like Miranda Lambert - even the cover of their most recently two albums has them in a similar position and wearing a big dumb hat.

I like her.  I'd go check this one out for sure.

Pam Tillis

One Liner: The chameleon child of Mel Tillis doing country, soft rock, blues, and more.

Wikipedia Genre: Country
Home: Nashville (but originally from Plant City, Florida)

Poster Position: small Type 
Sunday.

Thoughts:  Pamela Yvonne Tillis is the daughter of Mel Tillis, a country singer who was part of the outlaw country movement, and was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Obama (as well as many other awards).  

Literally none of these songs ring a bell at all.  Not even a little glimmer of remembrance.  But she has three platinum albums and one #1 song under her belt, so she's got some action.  Her biggest song is called "Maybe It Was Memphis," with 21.6 million streams.  I don't recognize it, and I don't love it either.  From her 1991 debut called Put Yourself in My Shoes.

Less country and more like soft rock.  Feels like just because she mentions the south and Memphis that they called it country.  Cheesy as hell.  The Internet says this is her "signature song."

At age 16, she was nearly killed in a car accident, and had to go through five years of surgeries, including facial reconstruction.  She went to the University of Tennessee, but then dropped out and moved to San Francisco, where she was in a jazz/rock band called Freelight.  She worked with her dad some, singing background vocals and helping write songs.  Her first solo releases were pop and disco songs, before shifting into country music in 1989.  But she got to sing with her dad, on stage at the Grand Ole Opry, at age eight, so that's pretty sweet.  While she was trying to break into the country music scene, back in Nashville, she sang advertising jingles for Country Time powdered drink mix, Coca-Cola, and Coors beer.

Her sophomore album included a hit as well, although with considerably less streams, called "Shake the Sugar Tree."  Which sounds like a euphemism.  8.5 million streams.

Kind of a violent message here, Pam.  "I'll shake the sugar tree / Till I feel your love falling / All around me / You've got to tend to what you've planted / And if you take my love for granted baby / I'll shake the sugar tree."  So, if I don't give you enough attention, you're going to beat me up?  Also, those first three lines definitely sound like a euphemism.  If this was a Red Hot Chili Peppers song, those three lines would have a different understanding.

Later albums continued to drop in stream counts, many sounds are just in four figures.  But several greatest hits collections gather up those two songs above any some others that crack a million.  None of those are particularly good though.  The duets disc with Lorrie Morgan is actually pretty good - sounds like actual country music.  Her most recent album, 2020's Looking for a Feeling, has a little country flair at times, but sounds a little more like a bluesy lounge singer disc.  Like a Susan Tedeschi thing.  "The Scheme of Things" is the most emblematic of that sound on here.

Because an associate in my firm claimed that this song was a banger, I'm also going to give you "Let That Pony Run," from 1992's Homeward Looking Angel.  1.6 million streams, so not in her top ten by any means, but it's pretty solid.

Not so sure about a banger, but it is for sure catchy and a good story-song.

A little disappointed here.  Nothing sounds vital to add to my collection, nothing sounds timeless like some of the other groups and artists I've discovered or re-discovered on this poster.  I don't think I'd go out of my way to see it.

Mavis Staples

One Liner: A Queen of classic R&B somehow on this poster.

Wikipedia Genre: R&B, Soul, Gospel, Americana

Home: Chicago

Poster Position: LARGE Type 
Sunday.

Thoughts:  Another deeply weird addition to this poster right here.  Wedged between a bunch of Nashville acolytes hollering about beer and hot chicks and red dirt, you get one of the Queens of R&B and gospel wandering in here.  83 years old!  She was part of the Staples Singers, and since then has collaborated with everyone from Ray Charles to Prince to David Byrne to Hozier to Aretha Franklin to Arcade Fire to Van Morrison to Dan Auerbach to Bob Dylan.  She has a freaking Grammy Lifetime Achievement award, for crying out loud.  One of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time, per Rolling Stone.  In the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  A Kennedy Center Honoree.  Gospel Hall of Fame and Blues Hall of Fame, respectively.  She is legitimately a huge act, and yet she's tucked among the Clay Walkers and Tracy Byrds in some weird world.

So, obviously, she got started with the family band, The Staples Singers.  If you don't immediately recognize the name, you absolutely know some of their top songs.  They originally were performing at churches and a local radio show in Chicago, before they scored a hit in 1956 with "Uncloudy Day."  That old album absolutely sounds like a gospel family band, recorded in a shed somewhere.  After a handful of gospel and cover albums of folk songs (?!?), they became the soundtrack for the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s with several of those folky tunes, like "For What It's Worth," "A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall," and "The Weight."  They hit the top forty eight times in this stage, including two number ones.  "I'll Take You There" is the top one of those, released in 1972, and rolling up 135.1 million streams since then.

Absolutely classic.  And it has been used in countless movies, commercials, samples, shows, and everything else since then.  Rolling Stone ranked it as the 276th best song of all time.  That funky groove in the back is money in the bank.  "Let's Do It Again" was their other top hit.

Her 1969 solo debut is a powerfully sung mix of soul and R&B songs, and it doesn't appear that she wrote any of them.  It's the immediately recognizable tunes that have the most streams - "Son of a Preacher Man," "You Send Me," and "A House is Not a Home."  It is a really nice album - solid musicianship behind her and a voice that is immediately noticeable.  1970's Only for the Lonely has a great cover, with a closeup on her eye with a teardrop rolling down her face.  That album also boasts her top streamer until her later career renaissance, with "I Have Learned to Do Without You."  3.8 million streams.

Rolling along with that bass line and those strings, this is a lovely one that again showcases her voice.  Big gap after that one, until 1979's Oh What a Feeling, which has more of a disco flair than the first two albums, it is pretty groovy!  Then another ten year break before 1989's Time Waits for No One, which legit has no streams.  Two tracks have barely over 1,000, and the others have no listed streams.  Weird.  After that, a few albums of religious songs (and also, it looks like some of her albums are not on Spotify, likely some label issues or something) before some more gospel/civil rights tunes.  In the midst of that, she sang the theme song for National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.

Nice!  In my opinion, her resurgence happened in 2010 with You Are Not Alone, when she kind of leaned into the elder Stateswoman of soul thing.  She won the Best Americana Album Grammy with that album, which was a product of a collaboration with Wilco's Jeff Tweedy.  It has a little bit of the Americana rootsy sound of Wilco, but with Staples' weathered voice on top.  The top tune is the title song, with 4.4 million streams.

Lovely, right?  After this one, she did another album with Tweedy on the instruments again, 2013's One True Vine, which ended up as her highest charting album.  The top tune on there is great, funky and soulful while sounding like something from a Wilco and Black Keys influenced band.  "Can You Get to That."  Just over 2 million streams.

[Deepest voice of all time except for the Oak Ridge Boys]: "I wanna know."  Next, she shifted her indie rockers and worked with M. Ward on 2016's Livin' on a High Note.  A good album - very enjoyable tunes and her voice is still nice (even if not as powerful as it once was).  She apparently wasn't into it though, and went back to Tweedy for 2017's If All I Was Was Black.  Then she must have thought better about Tweedy, because she hooked up with Ben Harper for 2019's We Get By.  Most of the songs on these albums are chill, a little slight funkiness to them, but mostly relaxed Adult Alternative type tunes. And they are very good - I don't know of another 83-year old former R&B/soul/gospel singer who is out here making music like this right now.  Dolly is 75, but she is still generally doing country stuff.  Same with Willie.   Finally, Mavis put out Carry Me Home, with Levon Helm (of the Band) on every song.

We'll see how the schedule shakes out, as I have to see Clay Walker over anyone but Tyler on this day, but if I could see Staples do her thing, I'd love to witness it in person.

Madeline Edwards

One Liner: Powerful voice and questionably country pop music

Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, but I'd call this country pop and R&B

Home: Nashville (originally from Houston)

Poster Position: small Type 
Sunday.

Thoughts:  I had this thought as I was working my way through Pillbox Patti yesterday, about what exactly makes music considered "country."  Because this similarly does not sound like country to me.  She's got the powerful voice of an R&B singer, singing rock songs and pop ballads.  So, just for fun, let's dig in to that question.

The dictionary says: "a form of popular music originating in the rural southern US. It is traditionally a mixture of ballads and dance tunes played characteristically on fiddle, guitar, steel guitar, drums, and keyboard."  Another definition, which I think is better, says this: "a style and genre of largely string-accompanied American popular music having roots in the folk music of the Southeast and cowboy music of the West, usually vocalized, generally simple in form and harmony, and typified by romantic or melancholy ballads accompanied by acoustic or electric guitar, banjo, violin, and harmonica.”

But there has to more to it than that, because I remember some hubbub last year when the Grammys said that Kacey Musgraves newest album couldn't be considered in the Country Music genre, or when Lil Nas X's "Old Town Road" shot up the Hot Country chart only to get stripped from the charts by Billboard.  On the other hand, one of the most popular country chart songs of 2019 was Florida Georgia Line's "Meant to Be," which doesn't sound country in any way.  Taylor Swift shifted from pure country to arena pop, but the Billboard Country chart still let songs like "We Are Never Getting Back Together" reside in the charts.  Some of the articles I have pulled up today are blaming this on racism or sexism.  That Lil Nas X was yanked because he's black, or that Musgraves lost out on a potential win for Country Album of the Year because she had won two times before and the powers that be wanted a male to win (despite one of the album's songs somehow being up for Country Song of the Year).  Not sure I buy that last one, women won album of the year in 19, 20, and 21, and 3/5 of the albums nominated this year are women.

Anyway, regarding young Madeline, know that these songs are not especially simple, and while some of them have electric guitar, there isn't much in the way of fiddle, banjo, or harmonica.  I don't really get the idea of calling this country music in any traditional sense of the word.  And if you search for her name on Wikipedia, you get a Canadian ice dancer.  Which, it would be really funny if this singer was an ex-Canadian ice dancer...

She appeared on a single by the Highwomen, which feels like some country bona fides.  She also just recently sang at the CMAs.  An article I just read in the Tennessean claims she is in "country's mainstream."  SO maybe I'm just the one who doesn't hear it.

Her top song is "The Road," which comes off like a new-school Evangelical number over the top of a keyboard's jenkiest beat.  6.6 million streams.

Like, nothing in that at all makes me think country music.  Not the lyrics, not the instruments, not the style, just nothing at all.  It is a pretty song - I'm all about God helping me carry the load when I can't do it on my own.  But I'm still just confused how this is in the country mainstream.  

A couple EPs and singles, but just one real album, 2022's Crashlanded.  Some of the old stuff is straight R&B.  The big tune from it is "Hold My Horses," with 1.2 million streams.

Okay, guitar and lyrics about horses.  That seems like country!  I don't know why I am hung up on this issue, but yeah, this one sounds like country in the way that some of Chris Stapleton's soaring rock ballads do.  I could see this tune being used on Yellowstone while the cowboys try to break some new ponies.  Rock and roll, baby.  But yeah, that one is much more country-styled than most of those Pillbox Patti tunes that got me thinking about this in the first place.  "Why I'm Calling" is a lovely little piano ballad.  "Spurs" is a brash little threat of a song.  The album is up and down, but overall it is good.  Just not really my style of music that I'd aim for - like country pop & rhythm.

Elvie Shane

One Liner: Ex-American Idol guy representing all the stepdads everywhere!

Wikipedia Genre: Country

Home: Nashville (but originally Kentucky)

Poster Position: small Type 
Sunday.

Thoughts:  When I clicked on this name, I mentally asked myself if I thought this would be a guy or gal.  I was incorrect.  I figured that Elvie must be the female derivative of Elvis.  

My man is trying to corner the market on all step-father songs here, with his biggest hit "My Boy" followed up by "My Boy - My Girl Version."  Which I'm sure is lovely for the stepdads and mothers of stepchildren and maybe even the stepchildren out there, but it more reminds me of those shirts that say, "I'm Not The Step-Dad, I'm The Dad That Stepped Up."  Is that proper English?  Shouldn't it be the dad "who" stepped up?  Yep, I KNOW things!

Anyway, here is that big hit.  46.1 million streams.

Could this dude look any more like a hipster affecting a country lilt in his voice to try to change a style?  The sentiment of the song is lovely.  Same with the girl one - it is nice to think of a stepdad who cares that much about the stepson (even though he's definitely going to break up with your mom and leave you, despite all of those things he is saying in this song.  Sorry kid.  Thems the breaks.)

He grew up in Kentucky, singing at his church.  He attended Western Kentucky University, but ended up dropping out to follow his music dream.  That dream got him onto American Idol in 2016, and although he was eliminated in the first round, he got a record deal and started firing songs up onto the radio.  Just one album - 2021's Backslider - a 15 song album that almost gets to an hour long.  As an aside, I find his voice abrasive and don't love it - a little whiny, a little affected, a little purposely strained in the wrong ways.  Sorry if you love it, I find it annoying after a few tracks.  Most of the songs on his album are under 250k streams, with just a few that have popped with over 2 million.  The second-biggest is "County Roads," with 8.6 million streams.  NOT "Country Roads."

That one reminds me of Eric Church, trying to get a little rock and roll in a song dripping with nostalgia.  Something about it makes me think of when Kid Rock is trying to seem like a tough country bumpkin.  I don't love it.

Kathryn Legendre

One Liner: Local C3 employee getting to take the stage with some classic country flavor

Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, but I'd call this Country

Home: Austin!

Poster Position: small Type 
Sunday.

Thoughts:  Very classic country sound - heavy on the steel guitar, fiddles, etc.  And that is a good thing in this case.  One album and two EPs - 2013's Old Soul, 2016's Don't Give a Damn EP, 2019's Making It Up EP - so not a lot of output over the years.  Very few streams for those tunes either (I mean, a ton more than I have!) but her top song is a 2020 single called "One Long Sad Song."  437k streams, and her only one with more than 100k.

Bluesy country tune.  Feels like something that would have been made in Austin, like someone who plays at Antone's one night and then the Spoke the next.  Let's dig in to who she is...  

Oh, wow.  She actually works at C3!  That is pretty sweet - they run the Fest and she gets a spot on stage!  She is the "Festival Marketing Manager + Production Lead" at C3 Presents.  So, she lives in Austin and is fully immersed in the music scene, and works a normal job in addition to pushing out some nice tunes.  Cool!  She's been able to play a few other festivals like Shaky Knees in the past, which is also beat to me.  I wish I was a side-hustle musician!

Her other top tune is from that 2019 EP, called "Sit Here & Cry."  71k streams.

There is that classic sound I was talking about.  The rim shots with the drums, the plucked bass line, the steel guitar moaning in the background, the intermittent fiddle bits.  Reminds me a little bit of an old Kelly Willis song.

Yeah, sure, I'd go watch this happen live.  Certainly more my speed than whatever Pillbox Patti is going to do on the stage in April.

Kaitlin Butts

One Liner: Excellent story-telling Americana

Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, but I'd call this Americana

Home: Nashville (but originally from Tulsa, OK)

Poster Position: small Type 
Sunday.

Thoughts:  I ran across her one time several years ago, when I was listening to an album by Flatland Cavalry.  She was featured on that album, and I was kind of enamored with her name.  "The hit on here is the one featuring the excellently named Kaitlin Butts.  Who is either an heir to the HEB fortune and therefore it makes sense that she kept that surname, or was hoping for the old Beavis and Butthead crowd to find her and push her into stardom, or has a fantastic seat.  I'm going to imagine it's number 2.  Huh huh, cool.  Butts."

She's not on Wikipedia, but she is mentioned in the Flatland Cavalry post because she is married to the vocalist for the band, which was formed in Lubbock in 2012.  That post says that she is a frequent collaborator with the band and an "oft-seen part of their live shows."

I've pretty much just let these songs play for the past two days.  I really like her stuff.  Good lyrics, strong voice, fine instrumentation.  It all sounds really good, like a more Americana version of Kacey Musgraves.  "blood" is an excellent song, that she does two ways in her Spotify, a regular version with full accompaniment, and then a stripped-down version.  Lot of soul in there.  That is the top song from her new album - 669k streams.  This is the stripped version.

Just a killer set of lyrics about trying to measure up to your family and the things you do for your blood.  Makes me think of the way my sister-in-law treats my wife, and then the way my wife hides her feelings about it.  Really good.  She also does a cover of Leadbelly's "in the pines" that is pretty killer.  "It Won't Always Be This Way" is another well-composed tune about tough times.

2 albums.  2015's Same Hell, Different Devil and then 2022's What Else Can She Do.  She also released an EP in 2022 called Sad Yeehaw Sessions, where that stripped-down "blood" is from, that also includes a cover of Miley Cyrus's "Angels Like You" that sounds really good.  Her top single, by quite a bit, is a 2021 single called "Marfa Lights," wityh just over 3 million streams.

(1) nice tune.  (2) I was really hoping for a real video that would have been set in Marfa.  (3) that highway on the cover looks nothing like Highway 90.  Have you ever seen the Marfa lights?  They're pretty damn cool.  I've seen them a few times, and even with really good binoculars, I have no clue what is going on out there.  And her analogy is pretty good - "I'll chase you around, low and high, we're just out of reach, we're just out of sight."

Dig it.  I'd love to see her play.