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Sideman"s Dream (And Other Stories) Out on 1/4/19

Eight 30 Records will release the digital collection Sideman"s Dream (And Other Stories) on January 4, 2019! The new album – featuring Verlon Thompson"s moving title track, Matt Harlan, Chris Fullerton, Walt Wilkins" previously unreleased Greg Trooper cover and more – will be available on Spotify, CD Baby, Apple, Amazon and other streaming services. “We"re so excited to release Sideman"s Dream (And Other Stories) through our friends at CD Baby,” says Jenni Finlay, who co-produced the dozen tracks with label co-owner Brian T. Atkinson. “This album shines a spotlight on some of our very favorite singer songwriters from the Lone Star state and beyond.”

Thompson"s “Sideman"s Dream,” a heartfelt tribute to Thompson"s longtime musical partner Guy Clark, anchors the album. “You held your songs up to the light and my harmonies got tight,” he sings. “We were playing strong and clean we were a musical machine. It was a perfect sideman"s dream.” Unfortunately, the story soon turns south. “In the end, it caught us unrehearsed between a chorus and a verse, between and blessing and a curse,” Thompson continues, “old friends and stuff that works. It went from good to bad to worse.” “It"s just a story about two old rod dogs that had a bunch of great years together,” Thompson says, “and then they didn"t.”

Track listing for Sideman"s Dream (And Other Stories):

• Verlon Thompson, “Sideman"s Dream”
• Walt Wilkins, “Dreams Like This” (G. Trooper)
• Matt Harlan, “What We Saw”
• Chris Fullerton, “The Last Thing I Want to Do Is Die” (K. Finlay)
• Tim Easton, “Cold and Bitter Tears” (T. Hawkins)
• Randy Weeks, “Sunny”
• Bill Chambers, “I"ll Never Let You Go”
• Noel McKay, “I See Brown People”
• Jaimee Harris, “Where Are You Going Now?”
• BettySoo, “Wake Up to the World”
• Curtis McMurtry, “Bayonet”
• Graham Weber, “Love Don"t Quit”

Matt Harlan"s Topical "What We Saw" Out NOW!
Listen up to Matt Harlan"s topical new single "What We Saw" featuring legendary banjo ace Danny Barnes and MilkDrive"s Noah Jeffries on fiddle! "I got the idea for this song - and some others I’ve been writing for the new album - from advice a songwriter friend gave me recently," Harlan says. "I was frustrated, wondering how to describe the paralyzing amount of change and division that seems to be everywhere these days, and my friend Jimmy said, "We should all probably be starting from the perspective of bringing people together."

"The whole time I was so worried about how we’ve been pulled apart, I hadn’t been thinking that way. So I scribbled down some words and brought a bare-bones draft to a weekly writing group we have and together we tapped into our own experiences to help each other form a picture of why we feel the way we do these days. Not only were we writing about coming together, we had to actually come together to write the song." Keep an eye out for Harlan"s forthcoming full-length collection featuring "What We Saw," due in spring 2019 on Eight 30 Records!

CLICK HERE to get yours today

Listen Up to J.D. Pinkus!
J.D. Pinkus has written and worked with a variety of projects starting with joining the Butthole Surfers at the tender age of seventeen. Pinkus currently performs with Melvins, Honky, Pure Luck, and solo banjo, which is a beautifully odd mixture of all above mentioned. Songs for his new Keep On The Grass (title reference: probably not a nod to the "blue" kind...) were recorded live in the studio and will take the listener on a few unique audio journeys. Warning: Objects in speakers may appear closer than they actually are. Check out these podcastsHERE and HERE!

CLICK HERE for more about J.D. Pinkus

New Chris Fullerton Digital Single Available Now!
News: Eight 30 Records released Chris Fullerton"s “All of My Good Friends” as a digital single on September 1! The new song previews Fullerton"s forthcoming Consider the Shoebill, due in the coming months on Eight 30 Records.

CLICK HERE to get yours!

“The concept of "All of My Good Friends" was inspired by Dante’s The Inferno,” Fullerton says, “wherein the story’s protagonist is unexpectedly ushered along a journey through the afterlife and finds himself traversing the depths of Hell where he recognizes the faces of friends and others once known to him in life, among those damned to their eternal suffering in death.” Keep an eye out for Consider the Shoebill soon!!

Craig Marshall"s Turnaround Available This Month!
CLICK HERE to purchase!

“Craig weaves a bit of rockabilly with a twang and a rock beat. This winning combination showcases his solid songwriting and guitar skills.” – Guitar World

The latest entry into Marshall’s discography is Turnaround, produced by Robert Harrison, leader of the critically acclaimed band Cotton Mather.

Tour Dates:
Wed Oct 3 – Hard Luck Lounge (Austin) 8:30 pm
Sat Oct 6 - Caracara Brewing Company (Lockhart) 8-10 pm
Sat Oct 13 – Texas Beer Company (Taylor) 8-10 pm

>>Tues Oct 30 – CD Release at The Townsend (Austin) with BettySoo 7 pm<<

CLICK HERE for more about Criag Marshall

Listen Up to Greg Hawks" I Think It"s Time
It’s been more than three decades since Greg Hawks kicked off a career as a critically-acclaimed songwriter, frontman and multi-instrumentalist, leaving his mark on everything from alt-country to bluegrass music. He casts a wide net with 2018’s I Think It’s Time, his fourth album inspired by the twang of classic country, the hooks of 1970s pop/rock, the rhythmic soul of old-school Stax records and Hawks’ roots in the American South. With influences that veer from Big Star to Buck Owens, I Think It’s Time shines new light on an enduring, eclectic musician who was making Americana music before the genre had a name.

I Think It’s Time holds a mirror to the modern world and its swirl of partisan politics, social media debates, and maddening echo chamber of the 24-hour news cycle. Hawks shares his struggles, torn between his desire to defy our leaders — as with “ King of Hate,” one of the album’s most sharply-worded tracks — and his need to preserve his own sanity. I Think It’s Time also marks the most musically inclusive work of Hawks’ career. The sunnily strummed “Hope I Never Know” evokes Tom Petty’s award-winning work with Jeff Lynne, while “Nothing Matters Anymore” channels the dark, impactful work of Johnny Cash’s final albums. Together, the songs on I Think It’s Time do more than examine the personal and political struggles of a divided country — they show the full range Hawks’ passions and songwriting talent.

CLICK HERE for more about Greg Hawks

Nichole Wagner Garners High Praise!
CLICK HERE for the steller review in FATEA.

“…Wagner’s first full-length record establishes her as one of Austin’s most promising young singer-songwriters…” – Peter Blackstock via Austin American Statesman/Austin 360

“…delectable piece of folk music…then there is that voice—world-aware, conscious, and with just a tinge of twang…” – Jonathan Frahm via For Folks Sake

“And The Sky Caught Fire is one of the ‘must listens’ from 2018” – The Next Gig

“…tremendous debut album…” – Gerald Stanbury via 3 Songs and Out

“a ‘keeper’ that you’ll want to listen to for a long time.” – David Arnsberger, Host of Texas Radio Live on Sun Radio

Available in stores NOW. Purchase your copy of And The Sky Caught Fire HERE.

Check it out on Spotify HERE

Nichole Wagner"s new album casts more than a hint of gorgeous color and light through its confessional prism — more than enough, at least, to illuminate her way forward as a determined performer primed and ready to catch fire herself. Seeing as how it’s only been three years since her first time braving an open-mic, the stellar singer-songwriter really now gets to live out her lifelong dream.

CLICK HERE for tour dates!

CLICK HERE for more about Nichole Wagner!

James McMurtry Hits the Road in October
10/12 MIGHTY MISSISSIPPI MUSIC FESTIVAL GREENVILLE, MS
10/13 MOONSHINER"S BALL - ROCKCASTLE RIVERSIDE LIVINGSTON, KY
10/14 OLD TOWN SCHOOL OF MUSIC MAURER HALL (SOLO) CHICAGO, IL
10/25 PROUD LARRY"S OXFORD, MS
10/26 THE GREY EAGLE ASHVILLE, NC
10/27 THE FOUNDRY ATHENS, GA
10/30 CAPITAL ALE HOUSE MUSIC HAL RICHMOND, VA
10/31 CREATIVE ALLIANCE BALTIMORE, MD
11/1 CLUB CAFE PITTSBURGH, PA
11/3 BLIND PIG ANN ARBOR, MI
11/5 SHANK HALL MILWAUKEE, WI
11/7 20TH CENTURY THEATRE CINCINNATI, OH
11/8 3RD AND LINDSLEY NASHVILLE, TN
11/9 GEORGE"S MAJESTIC LOUNG FAYETTEVILLE, AR

And stay tuned for updates on a brand new album by McMurtry. “I"m tired of the road, but I wouldn"t want to be denied access to it,” McMurtry says. “I"m always writing new material one line at a time on the iPhone. I don"t know when there will be a new record, but Ross Hogarth will produce it whenever it happens.”

CLICK HERE for the recent feature in The New York Times

CLICK HERE for more about James McMurtry

Listen Up to The Footnotes!
The Footnotes, based in Austin and Houston, are releasing their third self-titled CD on November 16. Their music is rootsy, high-energy rock "n" roll that embodies the unpretentious attitude, catchy songcraft and high-energy abandon of the vintage classics that originally inspired them to make music.

Rick Eakens has led The Footnotes, on and off, for most of his life, crafting the sound in his head into rootsy, high-energy rock "n" roll that embodies the unpretentious attitude, catchy songcraft and high-energy abandon of the vintage classics that originally inspired him to make music. Based out of Austin and Houston, The Footnotes" feisty, uplifting live gigs are performed by, Rick Eakens (vocals, electric guitar), Allan Gill(bass guitar, vocals), Ric Furley (drums, percussion, vocals), and Jim Hemphill (guitar, vocals). The Beatles and Buddy Holly act as touchstones, and garage-rock combos like the Seeds and the Standells as role models for The Footnotes.

Special Guests on the self-titled CD are Yvonne Washington (Little Richard, Aretha Franklin, The Rolling Stones), Paul English (Willie Nelson, Ray Price, Dizzy Gillespie), Brian Thomas (Willie Nelson, Ray Price), and the late Kenny Cordray (guitarist/songwriter, Billy Gibbons, John Mayall, John Lee Hooker).

CLICK HERE for more about The Footnotes

Floater on Spotify
CLICK HERE to check it out!

CLICK HERE to purchase Floater: A Tribute to the Tributes to Gary Floater now!

Floater: A Tribute to the Tributes to Gary Floater offers a veritable who"s who of singer-songwriters with their takes on Floater"s solid gold country classics. A short list – The Band of Heathens (“The Dirty South”), James McMurtry (“Grandpa"s Promise”), Jason Eady (“Stand Back Boys I"m Fixing to Care”), Rod Picott (“That"s What I"m Gonna Do”) – gives a glimpse. Floater himself will embark on his 40-city “Drink a Forty for the Fortieth” tour later this year celebrating the 40th anniversary of his unforgettable 1978 landmark album Denim on Denim, which features several songs on the new tribute (to the tributes).

CLICK HERE for more

Steve Finlay"s The Wall Out Now!
CLICK HERE to purchase your copy TODAY!

Steve Finlay crafts songs personal (“Life in a Song”) and political (“The Wall”) with an everyman"s grace (“A Dog Chasing Cars”). Evidence: The Wall. The Waco-based songwriter"s new collection spotlights a late blooming but rapidly rising troubadour in peak form (“Lovesick Serenade”). The Wall simply spotlights straightforward country music in its finest fashion. After all, the best can be expected from the brother of legendary Cheatham Street Warehouse owner Kent Finlay. “I attended Texas State University in San Marcos during Cheatham Street"s first few years and developed a closer relationship with Kent then,” Finlay says. “That"s when I grew more interested in songwriting.”

The Wall highlights Texas music like few others (“Match That Lights My Fire”). Imagine Ernest Tubb holding court at an East Austin beer joint and you"ll frame the picture. Finlay"s background steered the course. “I was born and raised near the geographical center of Texas in the small community of Fife,” Finlay explains. “I was the fifth of five children. Music was a big part of family life with all of the children being involved in music to some degree. As a child and adolescent, I was involved in working sheep, working cows and participating in all the farming operations in raising cotton, wheat and oats.”

The Wall proves the point. The album"s worth the wait.

Jenni Finlay Promotions

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