George Hatcher Band - Hindsight (1985)

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Merry Christmas everybody! And ho-ho-ho, what have we here? Yes, it's the last George Hatcher Band album. How lucky do we get? Special thanks to Luc for providing the rip, and of course thanks to George Hatcher for some of the greatest Southern Rock. Yes, girls and boys, this is the last album George released. And it's here!
This album was done for the Trout Records label. Never heard of the label, but the music is still fine. Very fine indeed. A bit rough on the production side, I think, but very enjoyable all the same. Luc asked for permission to have this posted here, and it was alright. Cool! Actually you all need to go out and get in contact with the man. He's still alive and not doing anything musically? That's just too bad. We need George back. But until then, grab yourselves a beer and have some peace on earth.

Hal Ketchum - Threadbare Alibis (1989)

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Back when I used to sing in a band myself, me and my fellow musicians used to always try to turn each other on to new music. And in the summer of '94 it was Hal Ketchum that we listened to. Lots. And on acoustic sets we used to play songs from his "Every Little Word" album. We loved the songs and the voice.
But before Hal made any impact in Nashville as a bit of an alternative Country-Singer/Songwriter (though not too gritty), he was part of the Austin scene, cutting his debut for the Watermelon label. Recorded in 1986, this was eventually released in 1989? And even more than his later albums, this was more in the Singer/Songwriter category. A nice album, and one I had been looking for for quite some time. Perfect remedy for a Sunday morning...

The Cates Gang - Come Back Home (1973)

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I'm gonna keep it short and sweet this time. The Cates Gang were Earl and Ernie Cate before Cate Bros./The Cate Brothers Band. You know how much Funk and Soul these guys put in their music. But this 1973 album reminds me even more of vintage soul. I'm real happy with this find. It sounds old, but beautiful. With eleven tunes clocking in under half an hour (how's that for short?), it's still quite a treat.

McHayes - Lessons In Lonely (2003)

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Okay, this is Country. No Southern Rock to be found here. But I figured since y'all love Southern Rock, chances are you dig some Country too?
Anyway, this is not in line with what I usually post. And I won't make a habit out of it. It's way too straight for me. But it's good. McHayes were a duo: Wade Hayes and Mark McClurg. This album was supposed to be released in 2003, but it got shelved instead. And then they got off the label's roster. And the music being kept from having an audience.
Like I said, it's Country straight up. Some Honky Tonk, some New Hats, slick but well played. If you like that, then this is yours and shouldn't go to waste.
So until this gets a release, I think this would be alright to post. I hope. The only other way you might get a chance to check this out, is if you want to pay up to nearly $400 on E-Bay. And guess who's making money off of that?
Thanks to The BavarianSouthStateRocker (pastecopy) for this contribution. Ride 'em cowboy.

Various Artists - Hotels, Motels & Road Shows (1978)

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Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! It's the holiday season coming up alright. Yet another bag of goodies here. This album is the perfect example of what I dig about Southern Rock. Ladies and gentlemen: it's the jackpot!
I knew about this album for a long time, and I wanted it really bad. But I never found a copy. But how cool is that? To find it's everything I'd expected, and then some..
"Hotels, Motels & Road Shows" is a compilation album, chockful of Capricorn recording artists. But this is no cheezy-cheapo-cash-in greatest hits of the label. No, no, no, no. It's a 1978 Rebel Jam! All exciting live performances, classic Southern Rock, and a guaranteed good time. And these tracks haven't been released on albums by the artists themselves. And some artists never released a live album to begin with. The artists: Stillwater, Elvin Bishop, The Allman Brothers Band, Bonnie Bramlett, Dickey Betts, Grinderswitch, Sea level, , The Marshall Tucker Band, Wet Willie and Dixie Dregs. You get the whole spectrum of Southern Rock on one album. Well, it gets very close to that. This is really, really good. Up among the bestest. For real!

Duke Williams & The Extremes - A Monkey In A Silk Suit Is Still A Monkey (1973)

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This album gets in by the Capricorn connection. I don't know much about Duke Williams & The Extremes, but I don't think they were actually from the South. They did however move to Macon to record two albums for the Capricorn label, this one being the first.
Released in 1973, this album is quite a soulful and funky experience. I hadn't heard this album before, and when I noticed there were some Soul classics covered here I was anxious this would be a lame Blue-Eyed attempt at playing Soul music. Well, thankfully I was wrong. This is one of the nicer surprises I had, while I have been blogging. No bland reproductions of classics here. They make it their own and get away with it very well. And there are some great originals. I'm really happy with this album. Makes me curious what the man has been doing after their second album. And if there are more recordings since. My first high of the day, today.

Buckacre - Buckacre (1978)

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Yes, it's here. Thanks to Nozmokinh for the rip, it's the second Buckacre album. And a quality rip it is too. It's still Buckacre, but they did indeed shape up for their second album, simply entitled "Buckacre". There's still a lot of Country influences, but it works real well. Like it did for The Outlaws, I guess. But it's a lot tougher than their debut. Some Boogie, some Country. But with an eye for detail, which gives the album extra depth. The playing sure feels like home, excellent songs, wonderful guitars and lovely vocals. What are you waiting for? You know you want this.

Crimson Tide - Reckless Love (1979)

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"Reckless Love" is the second and final album by Wayne Perkins' Crimson Tide. A band formed with his brother Dale after having played a lot as session guitarist. It's another good album, which may sound too slick for some, but it more than makes up by some excellent playing. The music ranges from Funk Rock to AOR to Southern Rock. Some marvelous songs too. And although this rip (done by Mawos - thanks!-) suffers from some severe vinyl damage, it's still a great listen. And quite an eclectic bunch of songs it is. So, if you're open minded about the music, this one's for you. Maybe this can serve as bait for a better rip to emerge. I hope so. So, sit you down and listen to the guitar antics of Wayne Perkins, while enjoying this great and rare record. Here you go...

Mose Jones - Get Right (1974)

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And finally we get to listen to the first Mose Jones album "Get Right". It's a great quality rip, so thanks to whoever made this available. It's quite a lovely record. First released on Al Kooper's 'Sounds Of The South'-label, this record was launched with the label, along with Skynyrd's "Pronounced" album. An important part of Southern Rock history, cause this is when Southern Rock started to become the kind of music that we know and love so well. When it became a big thing. Unfortunately Mose Jones never made it big, but it is a nice album. I prefer it to the "Mose Knows" album. It's hippy-ish rock at times, but there's some passionate singing going on. I quite enjoyed myself, listening to this album. There's a real nice interview on the Liens Sweet Home Music site, which you can find here (thank you, Luc), in which former Mose Jones drummer Bryan Cole shares some sensible points of view. The song "Old Man trouble" features slide guitar by Lowell George, and is one of the better songs. Nothing bad about this. Kiwi Stumble Boogie...

Two Guns - Balls Out (1979)

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The Two Guns album "Balls Out" is the first and last album of a talented band that were unfortunately getting signed when Southern Rock made its last stand. Released by Capricorn Records, the label was three releases away from getting bankrupt. How's that for a healthy future?Well, obviously, these guys never had much of a chance and this is where it ended to the public eye.
However, this Two Guns album is a bit of a Southern Rock classic. I find it rather hard to compare to any other band, since they definitely had a sound of their own. At times I hear similarities to The Charlie Daniels Band and Skynyrd. It's kind of heavy, but it's not dumb. Lots of interesting arrangements and fine playing. Nice vocals too. You may have seen this around already, but if you haven't picked it up yet... Balls out!

Rick Cunha - Moving Pictures (1975)

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This is the second album by Rick Cunha. It was recorded in 1975 as follow up to "Cunha Songs", though it took until 1980 for it to be released by Sierra/CBS. The style is very similar to that first album. It's Country Rock mostly, but Rick has his way with subtleties. And again he has Waylon strummin' an' hummin' along on some songs. And Jessi Colter.
This album isn't gonna blow your speakers. It's pleasant music for winding down in the evening, or outside in the sun whilst entertaining the family. You can't dance to it, can't bang you head to it, but it's a real nice record to just listen to. Good ol' days...