JP Harris & The Tough Choices "Badly Bent"

Living in Austin, it is hard to stay home. The strains of music seeping out from the clubs beckons to you. The enticement of the Austin Chronicle’s list is such, that it is better not to look at all if you don’t want to wind up out somewhere. And I am trying really hard to not be out all the time. It is counterproductive to having day things to do, and there are plenty of those too! Austin is not the only city where the muses call one’s name. Nashville would be another city with too many choices every evening. One of the more recent musts is Music City Roots on Wednesday nights at the Loveless Barn. It is an outgrowth of the Loveless Café, which first started serving its famous fried chicken and biscuits in 1951 at picnic tables in the front yard. They converted the rooms of the early 1900′s home into a dining room for folks driving on US Highway 100, and the food is well worth the trip, not far from Nashville.

Music City Roots, Live From The Loveless Cafe is a weekly, two-hour event and radio show that brings together different roots styles, from country and Americana and beyond. Today’s video was filmed there, from JP Harris & The Tough Choices, a band on the move. They hit the Northeast in support of their just-released debut album, I'll Keep Calling. They were in Nashville, then headed down to Texas. There are June and July dates in Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, Arizona, Colorado, Utah and on and on. They'll be back up in the Northeast at the end of July for the Lowell Folk Festival. Whew.

Loving the old school approach here. This is “Badly Bent,” one of the songs you will find on their new album, filmed at Music City Roots a couple of weeks ago.

- Jessie Scott

Henry Wagons "The Gambler"

It was another stellar week at Threadgill’s for my School Night Sessions series. On Sunday night, it was a double bill, with Wildflowers – Ashley Monical and HalleyAnna Finlay’s kickass band, then James McMurtry’s son Curtis McMurtry brought the whole band...and that included 4 horns! Monday night it was the folk family; Carrie Elkin, Danny Schmidt, Anthony da Costa, Raina Rose and Andrew Pressman. And then Tuesday night, Adam Carroll and Owen Temple brought great songs, and wonderfully left of center raps. I delight in the diversity, and the quirky stories and songs, so playful and inventive.

Henry Wagons is a quirk specialist. We never quite know what he will do on stage with our props. Last year, when he had the whole band in town for SXSW® 2011, he mounted and RODE our piñata Esteban. This year during our Spring Music Fog Marathon at Threadgill’s, he was solo on stage. All eyes were on him, but we Foggers were nervous. What would he do this time? Our mascot piñata this year, Miguel, was eventually drop kicked off the stage by Henry, though, thankfully, he was still in one piece afterwards. Drama! Acting! Rumble, Shake, And Tumble is the latest Wagons album, and they are on tour in Canada and the US this summer. Do yourself a favor and go see them for a fun evening out. Here is Henry Wagons solo, with the Music Fog recording of “The Gambler,” a tune from The Rise & Fall Of Goodtown.

- Jessie Scott

Elizabeth Cook "Sometimes It Takes Balls to Be a Woman"

Elizabeth Cook’s new EP came out yesterday. It was not something she had intended to do. The process for it was set in motion after she was asked to participate in the Sunday morning gospel program at the Strawberry Music Festival. She complied, though somewhat reluctantly. Halfway through the set, she realized that the music resonated with her. And her release of the 7 song EP, Gospel Plow, is the proof of that. At the end of the day, this music was part of Elizabeth’s childhood, and connected her to her Florida upbringing. Gospel Plow, features some her favorite Southern Gospel songs, and a cover of Velvet Underground’s “Jesus.” BTW, it is not the first time that Elizabeth has covered the Velvet Underground. There is a video on YouTube of her version of their song “Sunday Morning” a few years ago.

Head’s up, Elizabeth will appear on The Late Show with David Letterman tonight. Watch her, and then make sure you see her when she comes to your neck of the woods on an extensive summer tour. Elizabeth is on the road with husband Tim Carroll on guitar and Bones Hillman, from the band Midnight Oil, on bass. There will be a bit of testifying going on with songs from the new EP, sandwiched in between classics like “El Camino” and “Heroin Addict Sister.” And oh yeah, “Sometimes It Takes Balls to Be a Woman.” Let’s revisit that, from back in 2007.

- Jessie Scott