Ryan Adams "Ashes & Fire"

We are setting up today for the start of tomorrow’s Music Fog Fall Marathon. Arranging furniture, blacking out windows, rearranging objects so they float away in the picture. We come on site with our feminine genes at the ready, and we get busy. I am not talking about Denise and me, the guys are the ones who do the heavy lifting on this process. We want to get everything ready tonight, so we can hit the ground running on Wednesday at 11:20 for our first set, from the Blind Boys Of Alabama. Our three day webcast will be a veritable smorgasbord of musical flavors to sample. We always enter these events with too little sleep to begin with, and proceed to compound that by long workdays which run into the night. In truth, we wouldn’t have it any other way.

So today we'll showcase a stripped down song, for after all, that is where it all begins. The song in question is from the new Ryan Adams CD, which comes out today. It is called Ashes and Fire, and was produced by the legendary Glyn Johns. We were happy to find a Ryan Adams channel on YouTube. Because he is the CEO of his own PAX-AM label means that he bypasses the commercial impediments that most labels attach to their videos. We salute him for that, and bask in the high lonesome flavor in this, the acoustic version of the title cut “Ashes & Fire.” 

- Jessie Scott

Chatham County Line "Let It Rock"

Today the Big Blue Crew truck departs the DC area for a drive across I-40 west to Nashville. Denise and Dave and I are making our final preparations for our departure tomorrow morning. The Americana Fest holds such promise as a meeting of the tribe, and as an opportunity to recharge batteries. So much music, so many incredible people getting together for fun, work, and time to explore, plan and learn. If there is one thing that all these years ‘in the biz” has taught me, it is that things are continually changing, and one needs to grow and adapt… and think differently. Yes, I am still mourning the loss of Steve Jobs, and if you haven’t read the text of his commencement speech to Stanford University in 2005, it is well worth pondering. It is an explanation to why we do what we do at Music Fog. We are dreamers, we are following the path we love. It will take us to Nashville for a three day webcast, and we can’t wait. So shall we say, “Let It Rock”? Yes, I think so.

Photo By Bergen Paul BernhardWe will encounter all the Americana sonics; the bluesy, the bluegrassy, the western swingy, the rockabilly, the folk, the gospel, and the alt. The good stuff. We have had an incredible run of artists “in the zone” for our cameras. We are so lucky to be flies on the wall for these amazing performances. They are the perfect marriage of tech and soul. And especially so for this song, from Chatham County Line, taped at Threadgill’s in March of 2009, around one mic. Their ballet is impeccable, the song’s message belies the instrumentation. We are not talking Marshall stacks here, but mando, banjo, guitar and upright bass. “Let it Rock,” indeed! Here are Dave Wilson, John Teer, Chandler Holt, and Greg Reading. Catch them this week in Virginia, before they head to the UK. 

-- Jessie Scott

Brigitte DeMeyer "Say Big Poppa"

Luck and love and work. Days and nights. Stress time and down time. We will reveal our artist lineup tomorrow for this week’s Music Fog Fall Marathon from Nashville, during the Americana Music Festival. You will be able to enjoy the music live here on the Fog, as we will video stream the three day event, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. You might have noticed a new addition to our website, in the upper right corner, it's the Fog Feed Fund. A long time ago someone wondered if we were a cult. Actually the line was, "are you guys a cult or a pyramid scheme?" Sadly, we are neither, but we are looking for your help to defray the cost of traveling and producing this event, since sponsorship was ever elusive this time around. So your contributions are welcome, large or small. And whether you donate or not, we will be bringing you some amazing stuff to watch, and that’s a promise.

Last year at Americana, we filmed our recording sessions behind closed doors, as we will do again this year, and presented single song videos to you one day at a time; our usual setup. But this past March, we decided to stream our sets from Threadgill’s for the Spring Music Fog Marathon, and discovered that we love the immediacy of bringing it to you right then and there. This time around, it should be very interesting for you to "sit in" on our studio recordings.

One of the artists we featured in March was Brigitte DeMeyer. Her new CD, Rose Of Jericho was released at the end of August, and on Thursday night, there was a gala event to celebrate it at rhinestone studded couturier, Manuel in Nashville. For the uninitiated, he is the artistic heir to Nudie, and has elevated the form to pop culture ubiquity. Manuel was the one who created those famous logos for The Stones and The Dead.

Brigitte is fairly new to Nashville, a San Francisco Bay area transplant. It is the first time she has recorded since moving, and it is the first time she co-produced, though Rose Of Jericho is her fifth release. There is the loveliest New Orleans lilt to the song we bring you today, “Hey Big Poppa.” Herewith, is the Music Fog version of an easy, breezy, gambling tune, the original of which can be found on the new album.

- Jessie Scott