We posted an article last year entitled We Read The Recommendations, that was apiece explaining how many times we might have missed out on an a track or an album or even artist had we not read or listened to the reviews. There turned out to be a good number of artists who crept on to our playlists in 2023 simply because, to use another favourite phrase in the lexicon of Sidetracks And Detours, their names fell out in conversation.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Ray Fulcher (left)<\/em><\/strong> effortlessly demonstrates confidence and carries a certain swag with him that he delivers in his lyrics. He\u2019s a Georgia native and has already had a number one song to his credit being Luke Combs \u201cWhen It Rains It Pours\u201d. Ray would later write eight of the songs on Combs\u2019 debut \u201cThis One\u2019s for You\u201d. When Ray wasn\u2019t writing, he opened for Combs\u2019 \u201cBeer Never Broke My Heart Tour\u201d over the summer where he debuted his single \u201cAnything Like You Dance\u201d. If you haven\u2019t given it a listen maybe you should because it is upbeat and lively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fun perfectly describes the latest release from Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real. The new album titled Sticks and Stones<\/em> uses sliding guitar riffs, animated piano melodies, and rich lyrics to showcase stories of unforgettable nights out and fast living before settling down and reflecting on the good times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The album opens with the title track \u201cSticks and Stones\u201d, a toe-tapping country twang tune that was produced by Nelson himself. With clever lyricism \u201cSometimes when I\u2019m uninspired\/I take a hit to get me higher\/Some folks might describe me as a sinner\u201d we get a glimpse into the free-spirited side of Nelson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Following the title song is the memorable track \u201cAlcohallelujah\u201d. By incorporating country with some gospel influence, Nelson proves that he is not limited to just one genre. The song starts with a choir singing the fun made-up word \u201cAlcohallelujah\u201d before jumping into a bluesy country tempo with some rocking guitar. Nelson shows his broad vocal range in this one by singing some lyrics in low keys which then lead up to higher notes. The choir is mixed in throughout, making it a unique track on the album.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMore Than Friends\u201d is the only collaboration on the record and the blend of Lainey Wilson\u2019s voice with Nelson\u2019s does not disappoint. This catchy, upbeat anthem talks of living in the moment with someone. The two subjects are just friends but for one night, they\u2019re something more. With lines like, \u201cForget tomorrow\/We can face the music then\/But I promise you tonight will never end\/If we pretend\/We\u2019re more than friends\u201d the boundaries of a friendship are ignored as both individuals pursue things further and decide to deal with the consequences later. The catchy mini guitar solo leading into a fun bass and drum cadence halfway through the song makes for an entertaining listening experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re searching for some folky piano riffs \u201cIf I Didn\u2019t Love You\u201d is the song you\u2019re looking for. It starts out strong with some striking guitar, but the dramatic piano solo played in a high key is what caught my attention the most. It is a sweet tune about loving someone and knowing them better than you know yourself. But not to worry, if you appreciate a comforting guitar solo you can find it at the end of the song \u201cOverpass.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Incorporating a ballad into the mix, \u201cLying\u201d is an intimate acoustic song where listeners simply get to hear Nelson\u2019s voice and his guitar. After such danceable and lively tracks, \u201cLying\u201d serves as a point in the album to take a pause and reflect on crazy nights out. It talks of missing someone and noting past mistakes. Nelson sings, \u201cI been lyin\u2019 all night long\/Losing love ain\u2019t worth the songs I write.\u201d There is a sense of longing and heartache with this one that sets a whole new tone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A song that is sure to put a smile on your face is \u201cAll Four Winds\u201d. This electrifying track on the album utilizes a catchy harmonica tune and plucky guitar riffs to give off a more yacht rock vibe. The instrumentals on this track make you feel like you\u2019re vacationing on a tropical island or going on a road trip. It is one of my personal favorites from the album for this reason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The album ends on a more mellow note with \u201cThe View\u201d. This sweet song is a perfect way to wrap up the fun-loving record. With some light acoustic guitar going in the background, Nelson sings of putting a life of partying behind him after meeting someone. The song recounts, \u201cI don\u2019t get no island fever, and the grass couldn\u2019t get much greener\/Made my home over you, and\/I\u2019ll never get tired of the view.\u201d The narrator has found happiness and is content with their life. The lesson of not taking things for granted is also present here with \u201cI don\u2019t take it for granted, but my plane has safely landed.\u201d With this hymn, the album wraps up with a very satisfying ending.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sticks and Stones <\/em>is an album that simply put me in a good mood. Each track is so unique, but they all fit so well together in the order they were placed. Lukas Nelson has shown that he is carving his own path in the music industry aside from his father, Willie Nelson. Several of the songs on this album had me tapping my feet and bopping my head to the beat. Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real are currently touring so be sure to check them out!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Reviewed by Carmen Zdanis<\/p>\n\n\n\n Vocalists and songwriters Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney (right)<\/em><\/strong> work so well together, they seem like they\u2019re brothers. Bigger Houses<\/em> is their fifth studio album that is still the iconic country pop from the two that you\u2019d recognize. But this time, it\u2019s about relationships from bad to good and great, sound advice and philosophy in 12 tracks, while the music has more choruses and somehow feels even more like a joint effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you took a boy band and made the boys into two men with life experience for maturity but with more instruments for refinement, you\u2019d have Dan + Shay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSave Me The Trouble\u201d is the second song on the album. It\u2019s perfect for playing anywhere \u2013 at any country venue, on the radio, or at home. Dan Smyers and Scott Hendricks produced this lead single and both wrote the song, while Shay Mooney sang it. In his young-spirited tenor voice, Shay makes an addictive chorus with \u201cWhy don\u2019t you save me the trouble? Keep those pretty blue eyes to yourself\/Why don\u2019t you save me the trouble? Give that heartache to somebody else.\u201d The lyrics are about a woman who loves and leaves and how he\u2019s not willing to be with her anymore. He\u2019s done and doesn\u2019t want to go through the pain she puts men through, and we get it. It\u2019s deep-feeing without being angry, sad but poppy and even triumphant in its straightforwardness. This is the hard line an unserious woman cannot cross, and Dan adds his baritone voice to the chorus for a deeper feel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat took you so long? Where you been all my life? What road were you on that led your heart to mine\/Who were you before you were in my arms? Baby, I gotta know\u201d is part of \u201cWhat Took You So Long\u201d about halfway through. It\u2019s a song about wanting to know who and what a woman was before they met and fell in love. That\u2019s proof of how much he\u2019s into her \u2013 he wants to know what she was doing before she eventually came to him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The last song, \u201cBigger Houses,\u201d makes you assume that\u2019s literally what it\u2019s about from the title. Actually, it\u2019s the opposite. The lyrics are about the dissatisfaction that comes from materialism and being a workaholic to stack money and afford an even bigger house. \u201cThere\u2019s always gonna be a higher high\/You could chase for the rest of your life\/Greener grass in the yard next door\/[…] You\u2019re never gonna fill an empty cup if what you got\u2019s still not enough.\u201d The guitar is especially catchy with a simple, steady rhythm with the chorus, \u201dThe thing about happiness I\u2019ve found is\/It don\u2019t live in bigger houses.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bigger Houses<\/em> by Dan + Shay is a beautiful album from the duo with plenty of sweet-hitting songs. Although it\u2019s country pop and there are times when it\u2019s a little more country, a little more poppy, it\u2019s also got elements of progressive rock and a few instrumentals that with the choruses make the lyrics really linger. It\u2019s inspired by a range of emotions in relation to the ups and downs of being with someone else. If you already enjoy Dan + Shay, love country pop, or want to explore beyond traditional country music, you should give it a listen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Maryland natives T.J. and John Osborne make up the popular country duo Brothers Osborne (left)<\/em><\/strong>. The brothers signed a recording contract with EMI Records Nashville in 2012 and have had a grand impact on the music industry ever since. This Grammy award-winning duo recently released a self-titled album. Named one of the most anticipated albums of the year by The Los Angeles Times, Brothers Osborne<\/em> incorporates country, blues, and rock genres into a collection of eleven songs about life, relationships, and love.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The album begins with \u201cWho Says You Can\u2019t Have Everything\u201d\u2014an upbeat optimistic song about being happy with the way your life has turned out. This opening tune starts us off on such a positive note with lines like, \u201cI hit the mother load far as life goes, this is livin.\u2019\u201d The lead vocalist T.J. Osborne shares that he is \u201calive and kickin\u2019, laid back and living the dream.\u201d As the title suggests, the message of the song is to not let anyone tell you that you can\u2019t do something or can\u2019t make your dream a reality. Continuing with the upbeat, cheerful melodies, \u201cNobody\u2019s Nobody\u201d is the second track on the album. The message shared is that everybody is important in their own way. That no one should be considered a \u201cnobody\u201d because everyone is a somebody.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Both are such bright songs to get listeners into a good mood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From incredible instrumentals to low octave vocals, \u201cMight As Well Be Me\u201d is quite a memorable song from the album. This country-rock track with a heavy drum beat and a catchy chorus including \u201cSomebody gotta shake things up\/Somebody gotta shut things down\/Somebody gotta strike a match\/Break the ice and buy the first round\u201d will have you tapping your boots right from the start. The higher backing vocals from John put emphasis on T.J.\u2019s main vocals that makes for a perfect sing-along type of song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Moving on to one of my personal favorites from the album purely due to the guitar riffs and bluesy sound, \u201cGoodbye\u2019s Kickin\u2019 In\u201d is a song about a breakup and convincing yourself that you\u2019re fine but the truth is you\u2019re not really over it. The \u2018goodbye\u2019 in this case is the breakup and the narrator is starting to feel the heartbreak. The lyrics paint a picture of this feeling with, \u201cWent from feelin\u2019 right (aha)\/Just the right amount of tipsy (aha)\/To the wishing you were with me\/Yeah, the goodbyes kickin\u2019 in.\u201d He doesn\u2019t want to miss the person from the breakup but can\u2019t help it and hopes that they are also feeling the same way. The choir singing of \u201cSayin\u2019 goodbye\u201d and the sharp strings near the end only add to this sad yet beautifully produced track. Similarly, \u201cWe Ain\u2019t Good At Breaking Up\u201d has the same theme of breaking up with someone but then wanting them back. In this case, both parties want to get back together\u2014the two songs could be related but even if they\u2019re not they certainly are good additions to the album that listeners can relate to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The album ends with a love ballad titled \u201cRollercoaster (Forever And A Day).\u201d The soft piano playing, acoustic guitar, and beautiful strings accompany touching lyrics such as, \u201cWhen I am winter, you are summer\/When I am autumn, you are spring\/When I\u2019m high and dry, you\u2019re my drop of rain.\u201d Osborne sings of being in a relationship with someone and even though sometimes they drive you crazy, you would never leave them because they mean the world to you. This wistful song gives the album a very satisfying ending.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In their fourth studio album, T.J. and John Osborne sing about their newfound freedom and being proud of who you are. This long-awaited release produced by Mike Elizondo shares so many stories of life experiences and incorporates different sound elements that we haven\u2019t seen from them before. The brothers will be on tour this fall to promote their music and share their musical journey with fans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Reviewed by Carmen Zdanis<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, great reviews of a new work remind us of those artists we might have neglected recently. There were a couple of artists I re-discovered in 2023 through the enthusiasm of others for their work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dave Rawlings\u00b4 Machine is a collaboration between American guitarist and singer David Rawlings<\/a> and his longtime musical partner American singer-songwriter Gillian Welch<\/a>.(right<\/em><\/strong> and on our cover<\/em><\/strong>) <\/p>\n\n\n\n The only album to date is A Friend of a Friend<\/a>, released in November 2009. Rawlings recorded the album in Nashville, and produced it himself. Co-writers and musicians on the album include Welch, members of Old Crow Medicine Show<\/a>, Bright Eyes<\/a>, and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “It’s hard to believe A Friend Of A Friend is David Rawlings’ first album under his own name.” Tom Russell, (left,<\/em><\/strong> born in Los Angeles in either 1947 or 1948)<\/em><\/strong> is an American singer-songwriter<\/a> from California, currently living in El Paso, Texas. For reasons that are beyond me I had fallen away from his music somewhat over the last decade or so, but our American correspondent Peter Pearson always speaks well of Russell and so too, last year, did a couple of other writers in other outlets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Russell\u00b4s music incorporates elements of folk<\/a>, traditional country<\/a> & western<\/a>, border<\/a> and cowboy<\/a> music of the American West. Russell’s songs have been recorded by artists such as Johnny Cash<\/a>, Ian Tyson, Nanci Griffith<\/a>, Dave Alvin<\/a> and others. In addition to his music, he is also an artist and published author.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the 1980s Russell made four albums credited to the Tom Russell Band<\/a>. These featured Andrew Hardin<\/a> and accordionist Fats Kaplin<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the 1990s Russell made a number of solo albums, collaborated with blues singer Barrence Whitfield on two albums, and also recorded an acoustic album mixing original material with his favorite cowboy-themed songs. His albums include several guest appearances from other folk, country, and Americana artists, such as Chris Gaffney and Dave Alvin. His song “Outbound Plane”, co-written with Nanci Griffith, became a Top Ten country hit for Suzy Bogguss. His most significant album from this period is the 1999 folk opera, The Man From God Knows Where.<\/p>\n\n\n\n His more recent albums include “Blood and Candle Smoke” (2009) and “Mesabi” (2011).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" There turned out to be a good number of artist who crept on to our playlists in 2023 simply because, to use another favourite phrase in the lexicon of Sidetracks And Detours, their names fell out in conversation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":19303,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[71,45,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19297","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture-and-tradition","category-music","category-performing-arts"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19297","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19297"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19297\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19543,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19297\/revisions\/19543"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19303"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19297"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19297"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19297"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/aata.dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/1-10.jpg\")
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