The Winner Is ....

Earle Freeman of Carbon Hill, Alabama

Based on Earl's comment Naked Willie is the pre-ponytail Willie that has all of the element sof Outlaw Willie.

Earl contact me and get me your address and I will put it in the mail.

Congratulations!!

Jay Bennett - RIP

Sad news to report here is the lead from CBC:

Musician Jay Bennett dies at 45
Last Updated: Monday, May 25, 2009 | 3:11 PM ET CBC News
Jay Bennett, a former member of the band Wilco, died Sunday at his home in Urbana, Ill. The multi-instrumentalist was recording this fifth studio album when he died at age 45.

An announcement from Undertow Music Collective, which released one of Bennett's solo albums, reported the musician died in his sleep, adding, "Jay was a beautiful human being who will be missed."

The cause of Bennett's death is not yet known.

With Wilco, Bennett played on the albums Being There, Summerteeth, and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, as well as their Mermaid Avenue collaborations with Billy Bragg, all between 1994 and 2001.

Free Naked !!!! - Naked Willie Giveaway

No I am not trying to convert this sight to Porn. I'm giving away the Naked Willie album. The folks at Apex Exposure are graciously supporting a giveaway of the album I featured right here on AWT a few weeks back.

Just leave a comment about your favorite Willie song or concert moment and I will announce the winner one week from today. Check back on Saturday May 30th and if you are the winner you can e-mail me your address.

I'll get the conversation started. My favorite Willie song is "Whiskey River." It may seem to be a strange selection, but I saw him play it live almost 20 years ago and it just embodied what makes Willie so unique. It was the highlight of that show.

Check out the EPK TV Player

AWT Fave Donna Ulisse on Sirius XM

Pres Release from Hadley Music Group:

Donna Ulisse's in-studio visit with Kyle Cantrell for the taping of his popular new Bluegrass Junction show "Track by Track" will air for the first time on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. EST.

Ulisse and Cantrell discussed and played all thirteen tracks off of her current release WALK THIS MOUNTAIN DOWN and also talked about Donna's early career in country music while on Atlantic Records. The broadcast schedule is as follows:

Wednesday, May 27, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. EST

Thursday, May 28, 2009 at 9:00 p.m. EST

Sunday, May 31, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. EST

The show will air on SiriusXM's Bluegrass Junction which can be found on channel 14 on XM and channel 65 on Sirius

Red Stick Ramblers - My Suitcase is always packed

The Red Stick Ramblers derive their name from where their hometown, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Their music is also derived from the cultural influences of their native region. Baton Rouge is located along a corridor that runs from New Orleans to Houston. Consequently the Red Stick Ramblers deliver an eclectic mix of Zydeco, Country, Bluegrass and Swing. They also deliver a shindig that is a festive Jamboree whether it is in Cajun country or anywhere else in the country for that matter. Their new album My Suitcase is Always Packed was released this week on Sugar Hill Records, and it is a perfect example of the diversity of influences that dwell in the collective soul of this band.

The album is aptly named as it takes the listener on a road trip of Honky Tonks, Cajun dances and Southern countryside. Along the way they find love and lose it and they get happy and get the blues. The Ramblers are accomplished musicians. In fact, Linzay Young, better known for his smooth vocal styling, has been nominated for fiddler of the year by Offbeat Magazine and he may not be the best fiddler in the band. In the end on the final song of the journey, “The Barnyard Bachelor” the Ramblers give us the moral of the story, “There is only room in the barnyard for just one rooster and that means no chicks for you.”

Check out Lazy Summer day from the new album:

Webb Wilder - More Like Me

Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard, grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em." This is the Webb Wilder credo. It is a credo that I have lived by since my college days in the late 80s when I first heard Webb Wilder. Back then Webb was doing the college bar circuit that included bands like Jason and the Scorchers all of which are to blame for my mis-spent youth. Nothing has changed since then for Webb though. Webb is the self-proclaimed last of the full grown men. His humor can take things like circus freaks and make a song about them (As he did in his early classic “Human Cannonball”). His music is Rock and Roll with a mix of Blues and Rockabilly. He is also the epitome of cool. In addition to being a prolific musician, Wilder is a filmmaker. He made a collection indie shorts collectively known as the Corn Flicks in the spirit of 70s B-movies. These movies are as hilarious as they are demented. Wilder was also a DJ for XM Cross Country before it became a fatality of the Sirius merger.

Mostly though Webb likes to Rock Hard, and his new album More Like Me has plenty of examples to prove it. The album begins with the Rockabilly throw down “Ju Ju Man.” It is no secret Webb is a fan of Link Wray and that influence is apparent on “Don’t Slander Me,” a song in which space aliens make an appearance. “Honky Tonkin’ (in Mississippi.)” is an electric blues number that will no doubt get the crowd moving. The ballads on the album are a mixed back. “Sudden Stop” is a very good number and a very unique song for Webb, but “She’s Nor Romantic” frankly could have been left off the album. Another notable cut is the Southern Boogie of “Still Water Runs Deep.” More Like Me is Wilder’s first album in five years. It is safe to say he hasn’t forgotten his credo and still knows how to have a good time. Look for him on tour and I promise you will have time worthy of a full grown man.

Sample at his Website