Ten out of Tennessee Vol. 4
Various Artists
Ready Set RecordsSometimes they tour together and interact in each other's sets but Ten out of Tennessee is not a group; it is a collective of individual players like Trent Dabbs, Butterfly Boucher, Katy Herzig and Matthew Perryman Jones. And it doesn't mean that the music found here is country just because these are Tennessee-based acts; in fact it's overwhelmingly not. Herzig's "Free My Mind" is aimed at the pop charts, Dabbs' delicately-picked "Leave to See" recalls the work of John Martyn and Andrew Belle's "The Ladder" is very soulful despite a pop arrangement propelled by banjo. All of the singer/songwriters here already have varying degrees of success and this sampler will give you an idea of which ones you'd like to help get even bigger. K.S. Rhoads, Gabe Dixon, Tyler James, Amy Stroup and Jeremy Lister also contribute.
35 Years of Stony Plain
Various Artists
Stony Plain
This 2-CD set (plus bonus DVD) celebrates three and a half decades of music released by Edmonton-based Stony Plain Records with more than 40 cuts pulled from their archives. Disc 1 is dedicated to singer/songwriters and features gems like Maria Muldaur's cover of Dan Hicks' "The Diplomat," Jeff Healey playing acoustic guitar on "The Wildcat" and Steve Earle's Civil War tale "Ben McCulloch" where guest pickers include Norman Blake and Peter Rowan. Ian Tyson, Asleep at the Wheel, Rodney Crowell and Emmylou Harris are some of the other contributors to this half of the program while Disc 2 is a blues (and more) offering featuring Duke Robillard, Ronnie Earl & the Broadcasters, Rory Block, Long John Baldry and a previously-unreleased four song set from Robert Nighthawk.
Kenny Vaughan
(Self titled)
Sugar Hill
Vaughan is a member of Marty Stuart's Fabulous Superlatives and the group backs up his singing and guitar playing on most of this album. "Country Music Got a Hold on Me" is a super twangy burner that sounds exactly how the title indicates it would; "Hot Like That" is at the opposite end of the spectrum with the kind of swinging beat you'd expect from Asleep at the Wheel or an old Hank Williams tune. There's also some bluegrass flavored pop ("Lillie Mae") and a little Bakersfield ("Stay Outta My Dreams") and even a Duane Eddy-plays-a-samba instrumental, "Mysterium." He's already a seasoned player but this set makes a strong first impression for Vaughan as a solo player.
