Sounds on Sunday featuring new music from Sean McConnell, Steve Hewitt and Cris Jacobs
A selection of new musical offerings to accompany a relaxed Sunday.
Read MoreDiscovering folk music via the official UK Folk Albums Chart
Growing up, the idea of listening to folk music would have been an almost ludicrous one. As a teen, I was, like many of you, obsessed with rock/pop and, in my case, hard rock. I’d been raised in a house where Elvis and country music ruled the airwaves, so with a typical teenage disregard for my parents, I was always on the lookout for noisier sounds, provided there was still a tune to be heard, extreme metal was out. Folk was almost a four-letter word. Naturally, my tastes evolved over the years. I could not and would not, thankfully, shake Elvis (Mum had done a fine job of ingraining the King into my psyche) while I found my way back to more traditional country music via Americana, or alt-country as it was back then. This brings me to folk music, like Americana, a melting pot of widely differing sounds and styles. You might well be listening to folk music and not know it. So, it seems like a good time to peruse the August 2024 edition of the UK Folk Music Charts in search of some great music.
Read MoreSilver Patron Saints - The Songs Of Jesse Malin due 20.09.24 3xLP | digital
Silver Patron Saints, a star-studded tribute and benefit album for musician and songwriter Jesse Malin, is set for release 20.09.24 on 3xLP | digital via Glassnote Records. As a taster for the set Bleachers aka Jack Antonoff (Taylor Swift, Lana Del Ray, Kendrick Lamar, Lorde etc) recently released a cover of Jesse’s ‘Prisoners of Paradise’. Jesse suffered a rare spinal stroke in May 2023 that left him paralysed from the waist down. All proceeds for Silver Patron Saints will go to Malin’s Sweet Relief Musicians Fund. More about Jesse Malin, Silver Patron Saints and the impressive range of musicians involved in the record follows:
Read MoreThe RGM Inbox March 2024
Looking for new music? We’re here to help with a quartet of upcoming/recent releases full of melody and thoughtful songwriting. We’ve the welcome return of Ruth Theodore after a long absence, blue-collar tales from Sheffield via Fargo Railroad Co, a Devon songwriter inspired by the Japanese art of Kintsugi in Small Town Jones and melancholic hopefulness courtesy of Alex Coley and Afterlove from Canada.
Read MoreHeld By Trees to release expanded 2-disc Solace LP for RSD
Record Store Day 2024, or RSD as it is known, is on April 20th. Thousands of record collectors will flock to Indie record stores, hunting for the latest limited releases by their favourite bands. I’m pleased to report that Held By Trees will issue their excellent ‘Solace’ album as an expanded 2-disc set for the event limited to just 500 copies and mastered specifically for vinyl by Denis Blackham. More about the release and Held By Trees follows:
Read MoreStatus Quo - The Early Years 5CD Box Set (1966-69) due March 15th 2024
Status Quo broke through commercially in the 1970s, but this was no overnight success story. Long before the denim and the heads down boogie, there was a band formed in 1962 by school friends Francis Rossi and Alan Lancaster, learning their craft for many years before they became the Quo we know. There would be many ups, downs and sartorial as well as musical variations into which ‘The Early Years’ a new 5CD set from BMG, takes a deep dive, including material from pre-Quo acts The Spectres and Traffic Jam as well as the first two albums credited to Status Quo with plentiful bonus tracks including BBC sessions. The full press release and track listing follows:
Read MoreThe Americana Music Association UK announces UK Americana Music Week 2024, Monday 22 - Thursday 25 January in Hackney, London
London’s Hackney will, once again, be the place to be in January 2024 when UK Americana Music Week returns to the borough. 22 - 25 January are the all-important dates, with events and artist showcases in multiple venues culminating in the UK Americana Awards Show. London fans are well served, with many more shows throughout the capitol during January and February. The full press release follows:
Read MoreArtist Showcase: Gabriella Hunzinger
In the first of an occasional series, Red Guitar Music shines a light on an artist at the beginning of their career. Although not a total newcomer, due to her work in The Paper Waits, Gabriella Hunzinger strikes out as a solo artist with debut single ‘Body Away'. The first offering from a slew of recently recorded material, ‘Body Away’ is a striking creation that feels cinematically widescreen yet, with its acoustic guitar and cello roots, has an earthbound intimacy in keeping with the aims of its creator. As an introduction to Gabriella Hunzinger, inspired at an early age by artists such as Tori Amos, Kate Bush and Beth Gibbons, 'Body Away' is a musical calling card sure to impress. Please read on to discover more about Gabriella Hunzinger and ‘Body Away’, released today, July 14th via Ameno Records.
Read MoreJesse Malin Injury update and donation links
I was lucky enough to see Jesse Malin earlier this year on the London date of the tour promoting the 20th anniversary reimagining of his impressive debut album ‘The Fine Art Of Self Destruction’. Jesse and his band delivered a blistering rock n’ roll show. My overriding memory of the show was the love Jesse has for the UK and the fans for him. After the show, Jesse made sure that if you wanted a picture, your album signed, or you just wanted to say hello, he would make that happen. A genuinely nice guy. Needless to say, it was devastating to hear of Jesse’s recent paralysing spinal stroke. More about Jesse and donation links to help with his ongoing medical care follow:
Read MoreRGM presents The Maple Leaf #29
And we’re back! “From whence?” I hear you cry, in your florid way. Back from Canada, of course. We swam all the way, on our backs, our music-loving arms filled with a freshly picked bunch of hot new songs, gifted to us from our creative compadres ‘cross the waves. Imagine that. And we did it all for you.
Read MoreRed Guitar Music presents Tara MacLean 'That's Me' Video Exclusive
Tara MacLean wrote ‘That’s Me’ in 1994, aged just 21, amidst shadowy times and falling through a succession of harrowing trap doors – all described in her acclaimed memoir ‘Song of the Sparrow’. The memoir is accompanied by ‘Sparrow’ an album of new material and reimagined versions of older songs, including ‘That’s Me’. From a career point of view, ‘That’s Me’ would play an important role, as it was the first song Tara had placed in a film, but from a personal point of view, things are a little more complicated. I’d imagine it’s like looking at your younger self in a mirror and wondering what might have been... Red Guitar Music is very pleased to offer this exclusive presentation of the striking video for ‘That’s Me’ and details of Tara's upcoming UK tour dates:
Read MoreThe RGM Inbox: May 2023
Welcome to our regular deep dive into quality music released by artists operating in a disparate range of genres. The goal of the RGM Inbox is to highlight artists you might not know, sending you, the listener, on a voyage of discovery to find new and exciting talents you might otherwise have missed. In this edition, we’ve a folk duo from NYC, an 80s hitmaker reinventing a classic, a striking Toronto-born singer/songwriter who found her muse in London and a Swiss-Ecuadorian duo who recorded their album in Nashville with The Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach.
Read MoreThe RGM Inbox: April 2023
Welcome to the latest edition of the RGM Inbox. For this instalment, we check out four singer/songwriters. Two are still at the start of what will be successful careers; one has an Ivor Novello award on the shelf, while our final artist has sold millions of records and earned multiple Grammy awards but is still probably best known for his skills as a guitarist. They may work in a range of genres, but the one thing they all have in common is impressive new music to share.
Read MoreTwo 1990s Steve Hackett albums set to make vinyl debut June 2nd 2023
With the resurgence of interest in the good old LP showing no signs of slowing down, it’s great to see albums from the 1990s getting the reissue treatment or being released on the format for the very first time. Those of us of a certain age can remember when you might have liked to buy an LP but a CD or even the dreaded cassette tape was your only option. Steve Hackett will see two of his 1990s solo albums make the leap to vinyl for the first time on June 2nd with newly remastered, gatefold sleeve 180g 2LP releases of ‘Darktown’ and ‘Guitar Noir’
Read MoreJoe Bonamassa releases 'Time Clocks' from new album prior to May 2023 UK tour
No artist has done more to popularise blues rock in the last twenty years than Joe Bonamassa. The singer, songwriter and guitarist has a string of chart-topping albums to his name and multiple Grammy award nominations. His latest release, ‘Tales Of Time’, is set to drop on April 14th via J&R Adventures. This epic live show, recorded at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado, will be available on CD/DVD, CD/BR, vinyl, and digital formats. As a taster, check out the video for ‘Time Clocks’, which, although rooted in the blues, has more than a hint of Pink Floyd in its construction. Joe will visit the UK in May for a run of shows as part of a European tour.
Read MoreThe RGM Inbox: March 2023 Country Edition
Country music comes in all shapes and sizes, from the traditional to what we used to call Alt-Country to pop country. We’ve not even mentioned Americana, which covers any musical style with roots in the USA, from Folk to Gospel to Blues etc. We hope the RGM Inbox Country Edition will shine a light on the variations available so that even the most hardened naysayer might find something to enjoy in the genre. And to those who love country music, you might find something you’ve missed, so please join us.
Read MoreThe RGM Inbox - March 2023
Welcome to the latest edition of the RGM Inbox, where we delve into a selection of recent and upcoming musical delights that caught our attention. We’ve scoured the globe to discover new music from Germany, Norway, Australia and back home here in the UK.
Read MoreRGM presents The Maple Leaf Roundup #28
My dear, dear, neglected reader. It’s been an entire year since I last brought you news of the finest Canadian sounds around; a lapse for which I can offer no worthy excuse. There will no doubt have been truckloads of tunes that have passed us by as a result, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned about the musicians of Canada, it is that their riches flow ever in abundance. Just for you, I’ve scooped a few prize catches from 2023’s already quickening stream. These are songs I believe deserve to be held awhile in the light; to be marvelled at; to not go unsung into that digital ocean. So, boil the kettle, read on and get ready to make some new Canadian acquaintances.
Read MoreGareth Dunlop / Lee Rogers - The Past Is Never Dead new single from William Faulkner documentary
Gareth Dunlop and Lee Rogers enjoyed a busy 2022 as the Northern Irish singer/songwriters toured heavily throughout the UK, Europe and the USA, promoting a pair of albums that will stand the test of time and are rarely very far from the RGM stereo. With a close working relationship, and long-standing friendship, it’s hardly surprising that Gareth and Lee have started off 2023 working together on a superb new song that will feature in Faulker: The Past Is Never Dead, a new documentary about the acclaimed, if controversial, American author William Faulkner (The Sound and the Fury / As I Lay Dying). More about Gareth, Lee and the documentary follows, including the new single, film trailer etc.
Read MoreKate Ellis announces Limited Edition 'Spirals' LP with bonus track due March 3rd
Kate Ellis released her second album ‘Spirals’ in early 2022 to universal acclaim. A record blessed with lyrical depth that feels deeply personal but ultimately is universally accessible. You’d think ‘Spirals’ would be all melancholy moodiness, but Kate mixes things up, even finding room for a dalliance with county rock and a dash of country pop amongst the piano balladry and pedal steel textures. On March 3rd, ‘Spirals’ will receive a Limited Edition Numbered vinyl release with a bonus track from the album sessions ‘Hurt’, the Trent Reznor song immortalized by Johnny Cash. More about Kate Ellis, the album and an upcoming vinyl launch show at London’s Green Note follows:
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