An abbreviated episode on account of C.R. Avery’s “Some Birds Walk for the Hell of It,” which I’m off to see. A preview of this and other shows, as well as some great new music.
C.R. Avery – Lemon Meringue Pie – The Great Canadian Novel
C.R. Avery – Paris – The Great Canadian Novel
C.R. Avery – Town to Town – The Great Canadian Novel
Scott Nolan – Everything to Everybody – Receiver/Reflector
Scott Nolan – Forever Is a Long Time – Silverhill
William Prince – The Carny – single
Brock Zeman – Little Details – Pulling Your Sword out of the Devil’s Back
Bob Schneider – Han Solo – King Kong
James McMurtry – How’m I Gonna Find You Now – Complicated Game
We started off with some great new music, including some fabulous female artists before taking a trip into the country. We dug ourselves out, dusted off, and had a good old dance party to round things out.
Mike Plume – Five Crow Silver – Red and White Blues – CDN
Lindsay Ferguson – Two Minds – Chameleon – CDN
Lindsay Ferguson – Apologies – Chameleon – CDN
Brindl – Love It Up – Love It Up
Good Lovelies – Slow Road – Burn the Plan – CDN
Kaia Kater – When Sorrows Encompass Me Round – Sorrow Bound – CDN
Mandolin Orange – Little Worlds – Such Jubilee
2:30 – 3:00 pm
Sam Outlaw – Country Love Song – Angelino
Sam Outlaw – Ghost Town – Angelino
Dwight Yoakam – In Another World – Second Hand Heart
Radney Foster – Lie About Loving Me – Everything I Should Have Said
Turnpike Troubadours – Whole Damn Town – Diamonds And Gasoline
The Steeldrivers – Here She Goes – The Muscle Shoals Recordings
Jason Isbell – Something More Than Free – Something More Than Free
3:00 – 3:30 pm
Whitney Rose – Chivalry Is Dead – Whitney Rose – CDN
Whitney Rose – Be My Baby feat. Raul Malo – Heartbreaker of the Year – CDN
Andrew Neville & The Poor Choices – Brand New Song – Andrew Neville & The Poor Choices
Andrew Neville & The Poor Choices – Flowers in the Dell – Let ‘r Buck
Mike Lynch – Who’s Gonna Save Country Music – Real to Reel – CDN
The Mavericks – Stories We Could Tell – Mono
3:30 – 4:00 pm
The Everly Brothers – Rip It Up – “They’re Off And Rolling” Says Archie
Webb Wilder – Human Cannonball – Tough It Out! Live Companion CD
Michel Pagliaro – What the Hell I Got – What the Hell I’ve Got – CDN
Lydia Loveless – Steve Earle – Indestructible Machine
Jon Dee Graham – Laredo ( Small Dark Something ) – Hooray For The Moon
Matthew Ryan – Guilty – May Day
The Warped 45s – Live Bait – Matador Sunset – CDN
A few great shows to preview today before we launch into another weird, wild theme show. Today I’m taking the kids (and my inner kid) to Marvel Universe Live, and the world of heroes and villains offers plenty of great song ideas, so we’ll explore the theme. These shows allow me to play things that I wouldn’t normally play on the show, so today we’ve even got some heavy metal and a song from Wussy!
Artist – Song title – Album Title – CDN=Canadian – WPG=Winnipeg artist
2:00 – 2:30 pm
Martyn Joseph – You’re the Moment – Under Lemonade Skies
Martyn Joseph – Not A Good Time for God – Songs for the Coming Home
Corin Raymond And The Sundowners – Ol’ Fort Mac – Paper Nickels – CDN
Corin Raymond – The Lonely One – There Will Always Be A Small Time – CDN
Corin Raymond – Record Lonesome Night – Record Lonesome Night – CDN
D.Rangers – Trois Rivieres – The Paw-Paw Patch – CDN – WPG
D.Rangers – Love, Lust And Loneliness – The Paw-Paw Patch – CDN – WPG
2:30 – 3:00 pm
Brock Zeman – Superman’s Song – Live at The Sunset Saloon, July 13, 2015 – CDN
Pat Robitaille – No Superman – Summer Of Love – CDN
The Kinks – (Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman – Low Budget
The Weepies – Learning to Fly – Sirens
Rodney Crowell – Still Learning how to Fly – Fate’s Right Hand
Drive-By Truckers – Daddy Learned To Fly – The Big To-Do
3:00 – 3:30 pm
Wussy – Fly, Fly, Fly – Strawberry
Ryan Adams – Defenders Of The Galaxy – Orion
Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires – We Dare Defend Our Rights – Dereconstructed
Mike Dubue – Vampiro: Angel, Devil, Hero – Kelp 16 – CDN
The Smithereens – Batman Theme – Live In Concert – Greatest Hits And More!
Bob Schneider – Batman – Live At The Paramount Theatre
Lee Hazlewood – Batman [Instrumental] – These Boots Are Made For Walkin’: The Complete MGM Recordings
Parker Millsap – The Villain – Parker Millsap
Ana Egge – Evil – Bad Blood – CDN
Jon Dee Graham – The Great Battle – The Great Battle
3:30 – 4:00 pm
Sean Rowe – Flying – The Salesman And The Shark
Alison Krauss and Gillian Welch – I’ll Fly Away – O Brother Where Art Thou
The Flaming Lips – Fight Test – Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots
John Bottomley – Battle Of The Trees – Blackberry – CDN
James McMurtry – Fight (Tonight’s the Night) – The Man of Somebody’s Dreams: A Tribute to the Songs of Chri
Guy Clark – The Cape – Dublin Blues
Today we preview some more exciting upcoming shows, and we reveal the truth behind some lies that we told on this show last week, exposing the true list of most played songs in TTBTGH history. Lastly, it’s National Ice Cream Day! Did you know that there was a day for that? That’s plenty reason to celebrate in song!
Artist – Song title – Album Title – CDN=Canadian – WPG=Winnipeg artist
2:00 – 2:30 pm
Lynn Miles – My Road – recorded live on UMFM – CDN
Brock Zeman – Superman’s Song – live recording – CDN
Barney Bentall & The Legendary Hearts – U Shook Me All Night Long – Greatest Hits 1986-1996 – CDN
Mike Lynch – Hard Times on the Left Hand Trouble on the Right – Transitions – CDN
2:30 – 3:00 pm
George C. W. Douglas – I Am – Music from Big Muddy – CDN
George C. W. Douglas – I Remember Willie – Music from Big Muddy – CDN
Scott Nolan – Drive Day – Canadian Amplifier: Official Bootleg Series Vol.2 – CDN – WPG
Corb Lund – It’s Hard To Keep A White Shirt Clean – Losin’ Lately Gambler – CDN
Willie P Bennett – One Vessel – Heartstrings – CDN
Willie P Bennett – Willie’s Diamond Joe – Tryin’ To Start Out Clean – CDN
Oh Susanna – Home Soon (The Cherry Song) – Johnstown – CDN
3:00 – 3:30 pm
NQ Arbuckle – Huntsville Affair – XOK – CDN
Kaizers Orchestra – Whiskey Rabbi – Festival Man
Carolyn Mark – It’s All Just A Matter Of (Where You Draw The Line) (with Geoff Berner) – Just Married: An Album Of Duets – CDN
Geoff Berner – Volcano God – We Shall Not Flag Or Fail, We Shall Go On To The End – CDN
The Decemberists – This Is Why We Fight (edit) – The King Is Dead
3:30 – 4:00 pm
Corin Raymond & The Sundowners – Don’t Spend It Honey – Paper Nickels – CDN
Corin Raymond – I Wish I Was in Love – There Will Always Be a Small Time – CDN
Tom Waits – Ice Cream Man – Closing Time
Jenny Orenstein – Ice Cream – Astroturf – CDN
Brock Zeman returns to The Sunset Saloon, Monday, July 13!
Tell the Band to Go Home & Steel Belted Radio proudly present:
Brock Zeman Monday, July 13 7:30 pm.
Suggested donation: $20 (but pay what you think is fair!) brockzeman.com
If you wish, bring a drink for yourself, and/or a snack to share, but we’ve always got plenty of all of those on hand!
All are welcome (bring the kids, friends, family, people off the street, whatever)! Our house is family friendly (we’ve got 3 kids, a trampoline, and plenty of room, so feel free to bring the family), easy-going, friendly, and open to all! If you don’t know us yet, come on down and make some new friends!
Questions? RSVP? Fill out the contact form below! Forward this to a friend!
Brock Zeman embodies everything I love: He’s a super hard-working, genuine, decent human being who happens to put on engaging and amazing live shows and he writes powerful songs. It’s all there, and it amazes me that more people don’t see it. Somehow, 11 albums in, Zeman is still flying under the general radar, and playing places like some joker’s living room.
Well, on the strength of his new album, I hope that will change. Zeman is a bit of a musical chameleon – he’s put all kinds of sounds and backup configurations on his albums, and he’s written many different kinds of songs. The ones that I like best are the songs that are straightforward, straight from the heart tales of real feelings and real experiences. I love it when those get wrapped up in memorable, accessible melodies, and when the production allows for the lyrics to shine, and the band provides just the right accentuation. Brock’s new album does that, and so much more. It is without a doubt my favourite album of the year (and I honestly don’t see how anything in the second half of the year could come close.) I like it so much, I wrote a glowing review of the album, which Brock was so pleased with, he’s using it as his bio. A real honour. It’s below.
Brock will once again be joined by his most valued sidekick/friend Blair Hogan. You’ve seen what Hogan can do and what he brings to the show. He’s indispensable. This time out, they’ve added singer/songwriter Tom Savage to the band, playing bass and making beats with his feet. This should be neat!
Friends, believe me. Zeman is the real deal. He needs to be seen and heard. This is your chance. I sure hope you don’t miss it!
Here’s that review/bio:
Over the course of 11 albums, Ottawa area singer songwriter Brock Zeman has built a reputation as a writer of great depth and passion, through his thoughtful, often personal songs. But he’s got a rough, rockin’ side as well. Joined on relentless tours across Western Canada and down to Texas and back by his ever present collaborator, Blair Hogan, and often drummer Dylan Roberts, Zeman and crew can put on a powerful show that has attendees rocking as much as feeling the stories that he tells in song. He could easily be the bastard son of Lucinda Williams and Steve Earle, with a gravelly Tom Waits voice.
On his last couple of albums, Zeman had been experimenting with dense sound scapes that told as much of the story as his words. On the newest, “Pulling Your Sword out of the Devil’s Back,” the words and melody are at the forefront, and with a batch of songs as strong as these, they certainly should be. The melodies on the record are his strongest yet. Many are instantly memorable, and could find a home on commercial country or rock radio. If those tired formats played powerful songs like these, “Dead Man’s Shoes” could be a strong country hit, and “Little Details” or “Some Things Always Stay” would be blaring out of car windows all summer long.
Although the songs and the album sound fun, there is some deep emotion spilled out. Zeman tells some sad stories of heartbreak and love gone wrong on this one. One of the most sad and powerful songs is “10 Year Fight,” where he recounts seeing the father of a former lover, who has been struggling after “Daddy’s little girl, she’s gone wrong.” After the meeting Zeman says, “I finally lost the battle of a 10 year fight. I broke a promise to myself that you would never get a song. Don’t it look like I was wrong.”
In the powerful title track Zeman speaks more than sings, “I live in a house full of ghosts that just won’t let me be. I let ‘em in myself, but now I can’t get ‘em to leave. I’m haunted by love…” and now he’s exorcising those ghosts inside of these songs. For him, writing songs is “Juggling words and chiseling lines to tell a story, to tell the truth… It’s just heart to tongue, tongue to hand, blah, blah, blah, and struggle.” Later in the song, Zeman says, “And when you really knock it out, and all the planets align, it’s like pulling your sword out of the devil’s back and saying ‘No! Not this time!’” before building to a powerful crescendo finish.
With this record, the sword has obviously come loose, and there’s no doubt that Zeman will use it to battle other ghosts, demons and devils in song. The prolific writer has already written the bulk of another album, and has a wealth of other material still awaiting recording or release. This is a mature, powerful album from a writer who truly needs to be heard. Here’s hoping that many new ears will be tuned to this one.
It’s our 600th episode today, and so we took a look back at the past 599 episodes to see how we’ve been doing. We’ve compiled some facts and figures about our most played albums, songs, and artists, and we’ll run down those lists today! Plus, a brief look ahead to the Winnipeg Folk Festival, which kicks off this week!
Artist – Song title – Album Title – CDN=Canadian – WPG=Winnipeg artist
2:00 – 2:30 pm
Papa Razzi and The Photogs – Jeff Robson, Tell The Band To Go Home! – The Maniac Genius Piano Song Person Again
Nathan Wiley – Black Bones – Bottom Dollar – CDN
Geoff & Maria Muldaur – New Orleans Hopscop Blues – Pottery Pie
Songs we love & play a lot:
The Warped 45s – Live Bait – Matador Sunset – CDN
James McMurtry – Choctaw Bingo – Live in Aught-Three
Bruce Springsteen – Pay Me My Money Down – We Shall Overcome; The Seeger Sessions; American Land Edition
2:30 – 3:00 pm
Blaze Foley – Election Day – Cold, Cold Wold
Gurf Morlix – Clay Pigeons – Blaze Foley’s 113th Wet Dream
Willie P Bennett – Lace And Pretty Flowers – Hobo’s Taunt – CDN
Townes Van Zandt – If I Needed You – Legend
Geoff Berner – Light Enough to Travel – Light Enough to Travel – CDN
3:00 – 3:30 pm
Some albums that we play from a lot:
Del Barber – Running On A Wire – Headwaters – CDN – WPG
Del Barber – If I Told You That I Loved You – Love Songs For The Last 20 – CDN – WPG
Nathan – Stone – Jimson Weed – CDN – WPG
Jim Bryson – Somewhere Else – The North Side Benches – CDN
And some of our most played artists:
Leeroy Stagger – Slowly Sinking – Dear Love – CDN
Skydiggers – A Penny More – Restless – CDN
NQ Arbuckle – Punk Rocker – Hanging the Battle-Scarred Piñata – CDN
3:30 – 4:00 pm
Scott Nolan – This Time – Postcards – CDN – WPG
David Francey – Border Line – Torn Screen Door – CDN
Fred Eaglesmith – Water In The Fuel – Lipstick Lies & Gasoline – CDN
It’s Winnipeg Folk Festival time again!:
Steve Poltz – Some Things About Me You Should Know – Noineen Noiny Noin – CDN
Steve Poltz – Salt Suit – Noineen Noiny Noin and a Haff – CDN
Wilco – Outtasite (Outta Mind) – Being There
It’s our last show before Canada Day, and although we celebrate great Canadian music every week on this program, a few special songs in honour of the day. We also look ahead to the return of Washboard Hank, and play a bit of a 4th of July tribute for our American friends. Most excitingly, we’ve got some very special live guests today, as Texas based singer/songwriters Mike June and Jess Klein dropped in to chat and play some of their great songs!
Artist – Song title – Album Title – CDN=Canadian – WPG=Winnipeg artist
2:00 – 2:30 pm
Mike Plume Band – So Long Stompin’ Tom – unreleased band version – CDN
The Wailin’ Jennys – The Parting Glass – 40 Days – CDN – WPG
Del Barber – O Canada (with The Profiteers) – live recording – CDN – WPG
Kathleen Edwards – Oh Canada – Asking For Flowers – CDN
Jason Collett – Love Song to Canada – single – CDN
2:30 – 3:00 pm
Washboard Hank and the Country Squires – Donut Shops of Ontario – Hoorah for Washboard Hank – CDN
Washboard Hank – Love Song of the Dump – Sweet Mysteries of Life – CDN Washboard Hank – Chompy the Headbiteroffer – Sweet Mysteries of Life – CDN
Fred Eaglesmith – White Trash – Official Bootleg Series Vol. 2 – CDN
Willie P Bennett – Mighty – Scenery/Sharpen the Plow – CDN
Del Barber – Queen Of July – Headwaters – CDN – WPG
Spirit Of The West – July – Spirituality: 1983-2008 – The Consummate Compendium – CDN
Early Winters – 4th Of July – 4th Of July
David Francey – Fourth of July – The Waking Hour – CDN
3:00 – 3:30 pm
Danny Barnes – Get It While You Can – Dirt on the Angel
Bad Livers – Love Songs Suck – Blood & Mood
Guy Forsyth – Should Have Been Raining – The Freedom to Fail
Jon Dee Graham – Faithless – Swept Away
Doug Sahm & Band – Texas Tornado – Country Outlaws: Renegade Country Music
3:30 – 4:00 pm
Mike June – never going back to San Antone – live performance
Jess Klein – Kids – live performance
Mike June – Fall from Grace – live performance
Jess Klein – Open Road – live performance
Mike June – I’ve Got the Darkness – live performance
