Randy Howard - Now And Then (1976)

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For those of you who enjoyed Outlaw Country singer Randy Howard, here's a treat. Thanks to the wonderful Kathleen for finding this and sending me the vinyl. The result is a sweet rip of the super rare debut album by Randy. This was released in 1976 on Utopian Records and it's more solid Country than I thought it would be. I figured since he's from Macon and this being 1976, there would be more Southern Rock influences. But that's not the case. What you do get is the kind of Outlaw Country that Hank, Jr. and Tommy Jennings produced. No sugar-coated Nashville Country here, but honest to goodness music, straight from the heart. Already you Randy possesses that rich low voice of his, and the music is all well written and played. You can play this one over and over again. Something else.

George McCorkle - American Street (1999)

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"American Street" is the one and only solo album by former Marshall Tucker Band guitarist George McCorkle. There's an undeniable MTB sound to this, but it's nothing like a regular MTB record. Instead, this is a laid back, easy going record with some excellent guitar picking. Now, George was no singer, though he's not the worst at trying. Problem is, I think, that he never comes out of his comfort zone, thus making it all sound a little lifeless at times. This is the kind of music that will offend no one, but there's still plenty going on to make it grow on you. Peace stories...

Randall Bramblett & Davis Causey - Visionary School (1992)

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Yep, this is an update. I finally got the whole thing complete, including the right track titles and artwork. No new music, though.
"Visionary School" consists of recordings made by Randall Bramblett during the 90's. It was sold on cassette at live shows. This already sounds very much like the albums he put out from 1998 on. So, that makes them Southern Rock with a twist? I guess Southern Rock fans should really go after his 70's albums, "That Other Mile" and "Light Of The Night". Momentarily out of stock, but his other albums can be bought at Randall's homepage. These recordings, however, are not available anymore. Listening to these tracks, it made me think Mark Knopfler could easily make a credible album with these songs. But I prefer Randall Bramblett any day. Some great songs on this album. Thanks go out to Craig for this. I really appreciate it. And so will you, I bet. And thanks to Richard for the artwork and for making this puzzle complete. Very enjoyable stuff here. Randall has no intention releasing this album. Maybe the masters got lost? I don't get it..

Eddie Stone - Right Tonight (1999)

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"Right Tonight' is a straight-ahead, yet commercial sounding album. Eddie Stone is, I guess, honorary member of Doc Holliday. On this, it's Doc Holliday's keyboardist on his own. But not alone. He has one tight band supporting him on a really good record. I guess this one's really for fans of new Skynryd and 80's Southern Rock. For that, it's well produced and it actually grows on me. A bit. Really, I prefer it more loose and with occasional long tracks. This sometimes feels like it was aiming for a hit record. But for havin' some unpretentious fun, this works wonders. And the music? It has good songs and it sounds good. Hey, it might be good after all. In fact, I'll have a good cry

Cowboy - A Different Time (The Best Of Cowboy)

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Cowboy was a band lead by Scott Boyer and Tommy Talton, which put out records from 1970 up to 1977. In between they released the T. Talton, B. Stewart, J. Sandlin album "Happy To Be Alive", which was pretty much yet another Cowboy piece. The music Cowboy played is a lot less rocking than contemporaries like The Allman Brothers Band, Black Oak Arkansas or Lynyrd Skynyrd. Instead, Cowboy relied on a somewhat Folk/Hippie kind of laid back Southern Country Rock. If that makes any sense. Pretty good music, though. And some great guest players along for the fun. Like Duane Allman, Chuck Leavell, Randall Bramblett, Dru Lombar, Jaimoe and Toy Caldwell. Then again, Boyer and Talton have been playing along with quite a few good folks as well, like backing up Gregg Allman in the 70's on his solo tour. And lots more, you do the searching. They are still active musically. Some of my favorite songs, some of which you may know from being covered by others, are "All My Friends", "Living In The Country" (on The Alabama State Troupers), "Please Be With Me" and"It Might Be The Rain". And they're all on this out-of-print-best-of. Everything here..

Rolling Thunder Band - Kick In The Asphalt (1997)

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On the Sea Level's last recorded release, the single "Make You Feel Love Again", lead vocals were handled by Blue Miller. I had never heard of him before, but boy, what a great singer! So, I did some searching and found (well, actually Wayne found this one. thanks!) some albums he sang on. He never made it to the big league, but for those who try, there is stuff with Blue out there. His vocal style is very reminiscent to Bob Seger's. Blue at one time worked with Bob, and apparently learned a trick or two. This album was made for NASCAR. I don't quite know how that works, since I'm not a race-car fan. I'm under the impression, nevertheless, that this was a one off thing, meant to be just that. However, it appears that this was first released as "Kick In The Asphalt", with no clue whether that was the name of the record or the band, and then it was released with a band name, the Rolling Thunder Band. At first I was somewhat shocked, thinking this was a brainless piece of 90's Nashville Country Rock, all about cars and partying. It's still about that, but the album definitely grows on me. It's a great band, enjoyable songs and magnificent vocals by Blue. This is good. No bull.

The Alabama State Troupers - Road Show (1972)

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Excellent album, this one, by Don Nix and his all-star show, The Alabama State Troupers. Don might be best well known for the fact that he wrote the classic Blues track "Going Down", but he played quite a significant role in the early Soul and Southern Rock scene. At the time of this release, Don had already released two solo albums, the first of which was "In God We Trust". That album already featured some appearances by Blues legend Furry Lewis. On this album, a live double one at that (with a very big thank you to Pete, who sent me his copy. much obliged man!), Furry Lewis (78 years old) gets to play the whole of side one. He's a funny and very endearing man, very appreciative of his inclusion on this road show. The record, in spirit, might best be compared to Joe Cocker's "Mad Dogs & Englishmen", or a Charlie Daniels Volunteer Jam avant la lettre. Put together a great bunch of talent from all kinds of musical background and take them on the road. Like the aforementioned Blues, there's Gospel, Country and Rock. The Gospel comes from The Mt. Zion Choir and The Mt. Zion Band (featuring Wayne Perkins on guitar), with some terrific vocal performances by Jeanie Greene. And then there's Don playing his Rock. This being 1972, it's Southern Rock still in its infancy and absolutely gorgeous. Just watch this video of Don playing "Amos Burke" (along with Leon Russell, not on this album but the music is pretty much what you get here as well)..



And some more great rockers, like "Asphalt Outlaw Hero" and the evergeen "Going Down". Jeanie Green, Marlin Greene along with Wayne Perkins also sing a nice version of Cowboy's "Living In The City". All in all, you can't go wrong with this celebration of life and music. Mighty time!

Shooter Jennings - Missed The Boat (2010)

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Good news for all you Shooter Jennings fans. Shooter has released an album full of goodies that never made it onto any official release. You can not order the CD, but the good news is that it's free. And you can not get it here, but the good news is that if you register on Shooter's home page, you can download it there. Yes man, free, at no cost at all! How's that for a bargain?! And even better news is that it's not just throwaways, there's some pretty good stuff here. Demos, other studio recordings, a duet with mama Jessi Colter and some live tracks, ranging from 1998 up to 2010. It's all good news! Yes, Shooter loves his fans. And I love Shooter. This ain't no Rejected Television Theme Song

Le Roux - Keep the Fire Burning (1979)

Second album by Lousiana's Le Roux, still so called on this outing, is a logical follow up to their first self-titled album. Once more we get treated to their smooth, yet highly enjoyable mixture of Southern Slickness. Maybe not as strong as the debut, this is still one of the finer albums you'll find this side of obscurity. Let's face it, if you're looking for some Raunch & Roll, look away. But if, like me, you're into R&B injected Southern Rock, sweetened up with vocal harmonies while in the meantime some cool picking is going on, then this is for you. Excellent originals and a nice cover of Otis Reddings' "Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa". Funky and fierce. And on this out of print CD reissue some great bonus tracks to go. "Ain't Nothing But A Gris Gris", which would turn up again on their 1999 album of the same name, only this time sung by Jeff Pollard (a hell of a singer, now devoting his life to that other guy), has a great New Orleans groove. I guess you get the picture by now, this is hot stuff. Keep the fire burning!

Don Bowman - Still Fighting Mental Health (1979) & On The Road Too Long (1981)

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Alright folks, this is the last I have to offer of my Don Bowman collection. And you get two for the price of one, at no cost at all. "Still Fighting Mental Health" and "On The Road Too Long" are basically the same album, apart from one song. Or two, depending how you look at it. The first one has the song "East Virginia Blues", which the second omits. It's a fairly serious song, actually 'sung', a nice bit of Outlaw Country. The second, instead, has "On The Road Too Long", a spoof on Willie Nelson's "On The Road Again". The rest of the album (we're talking both now) has some of the funniest songs of Don's recorded output. Quite hilarious is "Dear Fred", about a guy handling affairs for his friend in prison. Who needs enemies with friends like that? I mentioned Willie Nelson, and you can hear him do quite some harmonies hroughout the album.


"Coward At The Alamo" from "Fresh From The Funny Farm" and "Hello D.J" from "The All New Don Bowman" we already knew in the bleeped versions. Well, here they are again, both bleeped and un-bleeped. Go wash that mouth with soap, Don! And one of the highlights is Don, with Willie and Waylon Jennings harmonizing, singing his biggest hit that never was, "Willon And Waylee". That's all folks. If you have more Don Bowman, let me know. List-in to this!

The J.J. Muggler Band - New Ruins (1999)

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I learned about The J.J. Muggler Band only a couple of months back. But boy, what have I been missing?! This is easily one of the best Southern Rock bands of later years. Though that may not be quite true. They did release their first album in 1994, but they actually started out in the early 70's. This is their third album and it's no longer available. And it's a scorcher. Classic Southern Rock with a NOLA twist (yes, these cats hail from Louisiana), excellent songs, excellent playing. There's something about this music, like a warm coat in the winter. It just makes you feel right on. They do a terrific version of "Dreams". Or "Dreams I'll Never See". They start off with the Molly Hatchet 4/4 version, then halfway shift to the Allman's 3/4 version and then back to 4/4 again. I thought that was a treat. And the vocals are pretty solid as well. You should check out their last album, "Hard Luck Town", which you can still buy. And that one is even better than this one. Grab this guys! Mojo Comin'!

Joe Sun - I Ain't Honky Tonkin' No More (1982)

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"I Ain't Honky Tonkin' No More", another great album by Outlaw Country hero, Mr. Joe Sun. And thank God he's lying through his teeth. Cause here he is, doin' some serious honky tonkin' alright. This was where Joe started label hopping, cutting this one for Elektra Records. It sounds like a slight attempt to sort of fit the mainstream Country at that time. But that's just a slight attempt, don't you worry. Still plenty of rocking out on this excellent piece of vinyl, nicely concerted for you convenience into a sweet sounding rip. Well, what can I say that I haven't already said in previous Joe Sun posts? The man is one of the finest Outlaw Country singers, making some of the finest Outlaw Country music. And this album is as good as any he's done. Gimme Some Lovin'.

Sea Level - Make You Feel Love Again (1982)

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This is the last official recording by Sea Level, released in 1982 on the Arista label. And this was a major departure from the Sea Level we know and love from the 70's. They sure sound like they were aiming for a hit record. Maybe it wasn't but it had all the quality to be one. This has "Make You Feel Love Again" on the A and B side, one in stereo and the other mono. The song was also on the unreleased album "After The Dance", and this sure got me confused. I'm not familiar with Blue Miller as a vocalist, but if this is him, then who was singing the other version? Anyway, thanks to Luc, we can now enjoy this beautiful version of a great Southern Soul track. Sure made me feel love again.

Illusion - Illusion (1985)

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Ok, some loud Southern AOR for you. Illusion has two former Mother's Finest members in the band, Gary "Moses Mo" More on guitar and Barry "B.B. Queen" Borden on drums. Barry went on to play with Molly Hatchet, The Outlaws and The Marshall Tucker Band. But let's not get ahead of ourselves too much just yet. This is the mid 80's, when big hair was the big thing, and every song you had to be able to shout along. Very few albums of that period have stood the test of time, most sound dreadfully outdated. Yes, that's me speaking my mind. But there were some memorable albums. And I think this is one of them. Virtue of this album is, it has some actual songs. Sometimes very reminiscent in sound to the Mother's Finest "Iron Age" album. Squeaky but powerful vocals by some guy named Jay, and a true fine Rock duet with former Small Faces front man Steve Marriott on the song "She Weighs A Ton". This is in your face, loud & sleazy Rock & Roll with just a touch of Southern. Though you've got to strain to spot that. Still, I love it lots. This is not the vinyl rip already circulating (I did steal their artwork, however), this one is new and done by yours truly. And I did a hell of a job, if I say so myself. And why not?! Oh well, Won't You?