Some excellent new additions above.
@reubent’s "Thinkin’ Problem" by David Ball, an absolute Hard Country classic in the tradition of Merle Haggard. I became an instant fan of David’s upon hearing it and him for the first time. Carrie Rodriquez & Chip Taylor (he’s the writer of "Wild Thing"!) made a coupla albums together, good stuff.
@ricpan: Cornell Hurd! He’s an Austin Texas institution, a great songwriter and live entertainer. He has the wit and humour of Dan Hicks, and has written some doozies. Junior Brown included one of them on an album of his, and Springfield Missouri’s The Skeletons (a great Roots Rock band) recorded his "If You Play With My Mind You’re Gonna get Your hands Dirty". The Skeletons’ drummer Bobby Lloyd Hicks was later a member of Dave Alvin’s (The Blasters) band. Hurd band drummer Lisa Pankratz was a member of Alvin’s band The Guilty Women.
Guitarist Paul Skelton plays on Hurd’s Fruit Shack album, and a bunch of others. He’s the guitarist of the first two albums by Wayne "The Train" Hancock, another Austin institution. Paul played in Hurd’s band when we were all still in San Jose, and then Paul and I moved to L.A. together in ’79 to seek our fame and fortune. When that didn’t pan out ;-) Paul moved to Austin to rejoin Hurd, living there until his death (a 2-pack a day man) in 2009.
To show you how small the music world is: Skelton played on those two Hancock albums, but didn’t go on the road with him. Guitarist Evan Johns did, which I didn’t know when a few years later my services were engaged for the recording of Evan’s Moontan album. Six degrees of separation!
Jessie Winchester’s debut album is a beaut, produced by The Band’s Robbie Robertson. It’s on Bearsville Records, started by The Band and Dylan manager Albert Grossman. Other Bearsville artist include NRBQ, Todd Rundgren, Foghat, Bobby Charles, and The Butterfield Blues band. Great label!
In the very late 60’s The Dillards did an album with Gene Clark of The Byrds, an album that was part of the late-60’s/early-70’s longhair Country movement, which also included Dylan’s John Wesley Harding and Nashville Skyline albums, the first two by The Band, The afore-mentioned Sweethearts Of The Rodeo by The Byrds and The Gilded Palace Of Sin by The Flying Burrito Brothers, Poco, Asleep At The Wheel, and Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen (with steel guitar wiz The West Virginia Creeper and guitarist Bill Kirchen), a great live band.
