Sons of Bill "Joey's Arm"

The MusicFest was my first introduction to Sons of Bill, and what a celebrated intro! The guys are literally sons of Bill Wilson, and grew up with music all around them. Dad was usually pickin' country tunes, and old guitars were the family hand-me-down. That can usually lead to nothing but goooood, huh?! They each went separate musical directions before banding together, though, which you can discover if you explore their website. There's lots of bonus recordings to sample and even download for free! It's all about discovery and sharing. Dig around, then have a gander at "Joey's Arm."

-Aaron

The Trishas "Blue"

The Trishas have been together for about as long as Music Fog has existed. Maybe that's why there is electricity in the room every time we get together for a session.

Our time with them in Steamboat, CO for the MusicFest was just hysterical. They came into the condo laughing, and with no plan as to which songs to perform. Once they started to sit down in front of the lights, an impromptu version of Tom Petty's "Breakdown" busted out. But their version was different from Tom's. Their version featured Elmer Fudd on lead vocals. So it was more like "bweak down." But musically it sounded good! I think they could do nothing but covers of Tom Petty songs and do well with it.

Then came the song "Blue."  The average listener, you wouldn't notice, but lyrics were being forgotten in the song. So the version we have features "Blue is the color of the lotion" rather than ocean. Oh it's in the background, and you have to struggle to hear it, but it's there. And when the song was done, they started all over again (informally) with another Elmer Fudd version of "Blue." We all got in on the fun.

Here are "The Twishas" for Music Fog.

-Beans

Matt Morris "Forgiveness"

Last night, Matt Morris delivered an incredible performance in a duet with Justin Timberlake on the song "Hallelujah." They were featured in the benefit show Hope for Haiti Now, a telethon produced by MTV Networks, which also included Bruce Springsteen, Bono, Madonna and Sting, among others. But the runaway performance of the evening was "Hallelujah" from Justin & Matt. People started to crawl the internet this morning to find out just who this guy was singing with Justin Timberlake. It appears things are suddenly moving very quickly for Matt Morris.

When we invited him onto the Music Fog Showcase at SXSW in Austin last year, he was on the heels of a successful tour with Joan Osborne and had recently released an EP called Backstage at Bonnaroo. We also knew that he was about to record a new project with Charlie Sexton producing. Regardless, it was his voice that earned him a spot on the same stage that day as Ray Bonneville, Chuck Mead, Jason Eady, and Ben Kweller.

Now, fast forward to January 12, 2010. When Everything Breaks Open, the album he was working on, is released. There's a Letterman appearance that goes well. The CBS Morning show. Then a spot on Ellen, which sends the album and two of it's songs into the top spots in iTunes' Singer/Songwriter category. Finally, that amazing performance of "Hallelujah" on the Hope for Haiti Now benefit show. Now that's how you debut an album. Way to go, Matt!

Here's one of the new songs he did for us at Threadgill's---definitely a stripped down version compared to what he recorded for the album. If you like this one, run back to the first song we posted from Matt, too, called "Chief" which is unreleased.

-Aaron

As of tonight, the Hope for Haiti Now charity has raised $57 million and counting. Donate directly by visiting their website hopeforhaitinow.org or by purchasing performances from the telecast. Click the logo below to see the contents of the entire album, or to purchase singles.