11 MP3 Songs in this album (42:51) !
Related styles: Country: Bakersfield Sound, Country: Americana, Solo Male Artist

People who are interested in Buck Owens Dave Alvin Merle Haggard should consider this download.


Details:
Stephen David Austin / A Bakersfield Dozen
The honest and unadorned images in his lyrics open a window into the life and times of Americana singer-songwriter Stephen David Austin.

Neon motels, brown Bakersfield skies, tobacco-stained fingers and a womanâs whiskey eyes reveal the veteran musicianâs vision of a town, a world, or simply a state of mind where the ground is shifting beneath our feet faster than we can regain our balance. With a keen eye for detail and a strong sense of place, Austin paints his images in sepia tones darkened by the fine brown dust of the San Joaquin Valley.

Itâs all here â ready to be experienced â on Austinâs first solo CD release, âA Bakersfield Dozenâ.

Even as the raw, Telecaster-laden rhythms and crying pedal-steel guitar cling to a musical tradition born of the Bakersfield Sound, Austinâs lyrics make it clear the world he inherited from Buck Owens, Tommy Collins, and Merle Haggard is being transformed before our very eyes.

âIâve always been drawn to stripped-down, raw roots music and great storytelling,â Austin said of his influences, who, in addition to the aforementioned icons, include Dave Alvin, Steve Earle, Guy Clark, Rodney Crowell, Townes Van Zandt, and Gram Parsons. âIf you canât tap your feet to it, or tap your beer bottle against the tabletop, youâve missed the target.â

While these musical traditions are hugely important to Austin, songs like âKansas Ainât in Kansas Anymoreâ and âThe Cageâ immediately signal to listeners that even our dearest traditions may not survive the forces of change surging toward us like a record Sierra snowmelt on a summer afternoon.

Inspired by a popular quote from âThe Wizard of Oz,â Austinâs âKansasâ takes Dorothyâs iconic line a step further, suggesting that even the Kansas that exists in the American Heartland of our imagination canât claim to be in Kansas anymore.

Drawing his lens inward to reflect a more personal perspective, Austinâs âThe Cageâ is penned in the storyteller tradition. Itâs about a man hitch-hiking toward his hometown after spending decades in prison. But like Kansas, the manâs home is sure to bear little resemblance to the place he once knew.

In his song âThe Day Buck Owens Died,â Austin mourns the loss of the Bakersfield Sound pioneer, and at the same time, dedicates an unabashed homage to the music of Owens and the Buckaroos. Austin said he still remembers being stunned by the news of Buckâs passing in March 2006 â and when Buddy Blue, a founding member of The Beat Farmers, died a few days later, Austin dealt with the loss the best way he knew how, by writing about it.

Austin is the first to recognize that his view of the world is anything but rose-colored. His lyrics have focused on broken dreams, endless nights and the inevitable fall from grace so many of us face at some point in our lives. Fortunately, his sense of humor remains hilariously intact in songs like âBest Ex I Ever Hadâ and âDance With No Pantsâ.

Americana music is a lyricistâs domain, the perfect vehicle for a storyteller-songwriter like Austin. And the southern San Joaquin Valley, the setting of John Steinbeckâs âThe Grapes of Wrath,â is a central character in much of Austinâs writing.

âIf Steinbeck had been a musician,â Austin said, âI think heâd still be in Americana"

Musicians on the album include...
Marty Rifkin - Pedal and lap steel, dobro, and electric guitar (Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Jewel, Glen Campbell, Elton John, Dwight Yoakam, Shawn Mullins, Uncle Kracker, Weird Al Yankovic, LeAnn Rimes, Leah West, etcâ¦)
Paul Marshall â Bass and background vocals (I See Hawks in L.A., Strawberry Alarm Clock, George Highfill, Kathy Robertson, Hank Thompson, Johnny Rodriguez, Johnny Lee, Rose Maddox, Jeannie Pruitt, etcâ¦)
Shawn Nourse â Drums and percussion (I See Hawks in L.A., Dwight Yoakam, Garth Hudson, Rosie Flores, Big Jay McNeely, Mike Stinson, Tonya Watts, James Intveld, etcâ¦)
Teresa James â Background vocals (Reba McIntire, Levon Helm, Delbert McClinton, Bonnie Raitt, Marcia Ball, Tommy Castro, Asleep at the Wheel, Lee Roy Parnell, Randy Newman, Walter Trout, etcâ¦)
Brantley Kearns â Fiddle (Dwight Yoakam, Rick Shea, I See Hawks in L.A., Dave Alvin, Billy Joe & Eddy Shaver, Mike Ness, Katy Moffatt, Big Sandy, Ray Campi, etcâ¦)
Skip Edwards â Piano, accordion (Johnny Rivers, Keith Moon, The Monkees, Chris Hillman, Dave Alvin, Dwight Yoakam, Gene Clark, Roger McGuinn, Lucinda Williams, Michelle Shocked, Eddie Money, Desert Rose Band, Buck Owens, Steve Forbert, Rosie Flores, Flaco Jimenez, Joe Ely, Bastard Sons of Johnny Cash, Tom Russell, Jim Lauderdale, etcâ¦)