Darrell Scott M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists. https://www.darrellscott.com Darrell Scott  Read More →

Courtney Jaye M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists. http://www.courtneyjaye.com Courtney Jaye  Read More →

Carly Ritter M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists. http://carlyritter.virb.com Carly Ritter  Read More →

Brian Wright M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists. http://brianwrightmusic.com Brian Wright    Read More →

Billy Bragg M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists.  http://www.billybragg.co.uk Billy Bragg  Read More →

Band of Heathens M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists. http://www.bandofheathens.com Band of Heathens    Read More →

Autumn Defense M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists.  http://autumndefense.tumblr.com Autumn Defense  Read More →

Austin Lucas M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists.  http://www.austinlucasmusic.com Austin Lucas  Read More →

Andrew Leahey M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists. http://www.andrewleaheymusic.com Andrew Leahey  Read More →

Amy Speace M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists. http://www.amyspeace.com Amy Speace  Read More →

Amilia M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists. Amilia  Read More →

Alex and Amy Otey M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists. Alex and Amy Otey  Read More →

The Lone Bellow M Music & Musicians Magazine Americana Portraits Sessions 2013 Nashville, Tennessee The Americana Music Association’s annual Festival was held in Nashville in September 2013 and for the third year our own Jeff Fasano was on hand to capture these vivid portraits showcasing a diverse array of artists. http://www.thelonebellow.com The Lone Bellow      Read More →

GRAMMY-NOMINATED JOE BONAMASSA PREMIERES OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO OF THE TITLE TRACK FROM HIS NEW ALBUM DIFFERENT SHADES OF BLUE The New CD set to release on September 23 is Now Available for Pre-Order on Bonamassa’s Website To celebrate the September 23 release of Joe Bonamassa’s new studio album, Different Shades Of Blue, the celebrated guitarist has just premiered a new video for the title track. Watch the stunning video and listen to this incredibly... 

Collings D45 Special Limited Edition Dreadnought is 20,000 Guitars in the Making After 40 years of building stringed instruments, we are excited to announce the completion of our 20,000th acoustic guitar. The number alone doesn’t signify much without context, as making guitars has never been about numbers to Bill Collings. From the time he began building his first guitars in a two-bedroom apartment in Houston, Texas, Bill has been on a life-long... 

  MARIAH CAREY The Record Industry’s Focus I’m not much of a Mariah Carey fan. I always thought she was more technique over soul, same with Whitney Houston. Then again, in Houston’s case, she had some songs—“The Greatest Love of All,” “I Will Always Love You”—that had so much soul in them that technique couldn’t blow it out. Anyway, a billboard.biz tweet did catch my eye: “How To Solve the Mariah Carey Problem: Former Record... 

Steve Weingart and the Privia PX-5S Casio visits Steve Weingart at his home studio to discuss the Privia PX-5S Stage Piano. For more information on the PX-5S visit http://www.casiomusicgear.com For more information on Steve Weingart visit:http://www.weingartjones.com  Read More →

THE ULTIMATE SONGWRITING COMPETITION. This is a competition celebrating the joy of creativity, the power of music and the craft of songwriting. Dust off your favorite song or write a new one, share it with the world and have a shot at winning big. There are about 10,000 reasons to enter. Go!  Grand Prize: Est. value $12,048 • A one-time $10,000 cash payment • A copy of the world’s number one drum production tool for songwriters, EZdrummer... 

SESAC AT HANGOUT FEST WITH THE JOHN LENNON EDUCATION BUS SESAC affiliates Diarrhea Planet and John & Jacob stop by and perform on the John Lennon Education Bus during Hangout Fest in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Students from Gulf Shores High School were invited on the bus to meet and interview both groups during the three-day music festival. The John Lennon Educational Tour bus, sponsored by SESAC, is a non-profit mobile studio dedicated to providing... 

TIME TO SHINE Life’s hard knocks stoke the creative fire for Sarah McLachlan By Russell Hall For Sarah McLachlan, life in recent years has been punctuated by loss and change. Her 2010 album, Laws of Illusion, mourned the dissolution of her near decade-long marriage. Since then she’s endured the death of her father, and—less traumatically—ended a 24-year partnership with her management team and record label. “Losing my dad, separating from... 

KORBY LENKER HOMETOWN: Twin Falls, Idaho INFLUENCES: Neil Young, Paul Simon, Doc Watson ALBUM:Korby Lenker, out now WEBSITE: korbylenker.com The son of a mortician and an educator, Americana singer-songwriter Korby Lenker began taking piano lessons at age 8. He spent his teen years as the leader of alt-rock band Clockwork Orange, singing cover tunes in coffee shops around his hometown. “We covered ‘Under the Bridge’ by Red Hot Chili Peppers,”... 

KAYLEE RUTLAND HOMETOWN: Dallas, Texas INFLUENCES: Reba McEntire, Carrie Underwood, Sara Evans ALBUM: Kaylee Rutland EP, out now WEBSITE: kayleerutland.com Singer-songwriter Kaylee Rutland’s first gig in front of a live audience happened in an unlikely place—the Dallas Zoo. “Aside from my family, I think there were more animals watching than people,” she says, “but it was a great first experience.” Later appearances at the Hard Rock... 

THE BRIGHT SMOKE HOMETOWN: Chicago, Ill. INFLUENCES: Junior Kimbrough, the National, Patti Smith ALBUM: Virginia Et Al. EP, out now WEBSITE: thebrightsmoke.bandcamp.com A former classical ballet dancer, the Bright Smoke (née Mia Wilson) abandoned her career plans following a serious injury in training.  So she shifted her interest to music, and credits her parents with encouraging her to explore artistic avenues beyond the barre. “Growing up,... 

TOKYO POLICE CLUB    A new creative focus raises the bar for the seasoned indie rockers  You can tell a lot about an indie rock band by how they spend the Monday following South by Southwest (SXSW). The young and crazy ones nurse hangovers and search “removing burrito stains” on Google. The annual Austin festival is about excess—lots of showcases fueled by lots of beer and Mexican food—and it’s easy for “buzz groups” to get burned... 

KARMIN After online fame and chart hits, the quirky duo finally releases an album Covers of songs by Nicki Minaj and Chris Brown found Karmin an Internet following and a record deal, and songs like “Brokenhearted” brought chart success, but it has taken the duo three years to produce an album. For the couple behind Karmin—Nick Noonan and Amy Heidemann, both 28—that time was spent developing a personality outside social media. “Everything... 

BOY GEORGE The colorful ’80s icon returns with a new perspective “When you’ve lived a dramatic life, you’ve got a lot to draw from,” Boy George says with a laugh. As the lead singer of Grammy-winning band Culture Club, he’s sold more than 20 million albums powered by megahits like “Karma Chameleon” and “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me.” But after dominating radio in the mid-’80s, the band’s red-hot streak cooled as the decade... 

SUZANNE VEGA The eclectic folkie samples hip-hop and explores her spiritual side In the seven years since Suzanne Vega released Beauty and Crime—her last studio album of original material—she released four collections of her songs in reworked forms as the Close-Up series. For her latest album, Tales From the Realm of the Queen of Pentacles, she changed her tack. “The focus of the new album is wider than the Close-Up series,” says Vega. “We... 

KEB’ MO’ Life’s challenges inspire the multi-instrumentalist’s latest set “I’m a control freak,” Grammy-winning blues artist Keb’ Mo’ declares flatly. Indeed, the Nashville-based musician had a hand in every aspect of making his latest album, BLUESAmericana, including playing many of the instruments. But, he confesses, “When I couldn’t make something sound as good as I wanted it to sound—sometimes my touch wasn’t strong... 

NICKEL CREEK The bluegrass trio reunites with a new album that defies categories   Grammy-winning Nickel Creek took an indefinite hiatus in 2007 to pursue solo projects. Now the trio—mandolinist Chris Thile, fiddler Sara Watkins and her brother, guitarist Sean Watkins—has returned with a new album, A Dotted Line, which coincides with their 25th anniversary. Featuring eight originals and two covers—Sam Phillips’ “Where Is Love Now” and... 

JAKE E. LEE The ace guitarist gets back in the hard rock game with a melodic new set  Veteran guitarist Jake E. Lee hadn’t recorded an album of original music since his acclaimed solo A Fine Pink Mist in 1996. Like a proverbial metal Moses, the ex-Ozzy Osbourne axeman wandered in a self-imposed musical exile. “I outlived my shelf life as far as being cool,” says Lee, 56. “The only calls I got were from bands that loved Ozzy and wanted his... 

RALPH STANLEY The bluegrass legend’s latest album is a family affair  Ralph Stanley comes right to the point when asked about his legacy. “I’m proud of it,” he says of his iconic near seven-decade career. “I’m really thankful the good Lord has kept me around and shown me what to do and all. I’m real proud of that.” Renowned for his distinctive vocals and banjo technique, Stanley, 87, formed his first band, the Clinch Mountain Boys,... 

KAISER CHIEFS                         With a new lineup, the British rockers set out to get an Education     It would have been easy for Kaiser Chiefs to simply call it quits. Following the departure of drummer and primary songwriter Nick Hodgson in late 2012, the remaining four members had doubts about carrying on—before deciding to prove to their fans, and to themselves, that they were capable of continuing. The result is Education,... 

DOLLY PARTON A country treasure showcases her many colors on her latest album Dolly Parton wears many impressive hats: singer, actress, producer, musician, author, entrepreneur, philanthropist. But first and foremost, the Tennessee native is a songwriter, penning more than 3,000 compositions, including smash hits “I Will Always Love You,” “Jolene” and “9 to 5.” “I love writing songs—I always have,” she says. “Telling stories... 

JONNY LANG A former guitar prodigy shows he’s all grown up with a sharp new set By Jeff Tamarkin At 33, Jonny Lang has been recognized as a master guitarist and vocalist for nearly two decades. A teen prodigy with a 40-year-old voice when he cut his debut album Smokin’ in 1995, he’s grown up in the public eye—and so has his music. In his early years Lang made his mark playing and singing blues-rock. He was so gifted he was taken under the... 

GLEN BALLARD The acclaimed producer favors artistic relationships over one-hit flings By Michael Gallant Glen Ballard’s resume is stuffed with big names. He’s collaborated with everyone from Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones and Alanis Morissette to Dave Matthews, Annie Lennox and Christina Aguilera. His production and songwriting chops have earned him six Grammy Awards, worldwide sales of more than 150 million records, and a reputation as one of... 

“Jive Talkin’” BEE GEES Thank the public works department of Biscayne Bay, Fla. One of their bridges—the Julia Tuttle Causeway—inspired the song that redefined the Bee Gees’ career and became the first of their disco-era No. 1 hits. Barry Gibb recalled that he and brothers Robin and Maurice were working on the Main Course album. “We were trying to make a comeback. It was 1975—and we were sort of out of vogue at that time,” said... 

“Heartbreak Hotel” ELVIS PRESLEY  A suicide note was the unlikely inspiration behind the song that became Elvis’ first No. 1 hit and million-selling single. Steel guitarist and session musician Tommy Durden read a newspaper article about a man who had killed himself, leaving behind a note with the haunting words: “I walk a lonely street.” Durden brought the article to his friend and co-writer Mae Boren Axton. A 41-year-old high school... 

ISAAC HAYES HAD JUST WRAPPED A CONCERT WHEN photographer Norman Seeff shot this session for the soul legend’s 1977 album, New Horizon. “We rented a beautiful studio in San Francisco,” recalls Seeff, “and didn’t begin shooting until 1 a.m. I told him, ‘I’m concerned; you must be exhausted.’ He said, ‘No, no, I’m fine.’” Hayes sang for Seeff and his team. “Everyone was transfixed,” says Seeff. “There was an energy in the... 

“Crying”   ROY ORBISON  Roy Orbison’s ultimate aria of love and loss had its roots in a real-life episode. “I was dating this girl and we broke up,” the singer recalled. “Two or three years later, I went to the barber shop to get a haircut and looked across the street, and there was the girl I had split up with. I wanted to go over and say, ‘Let’s forget about what happened and carry on.’ But I was very stubborn. So I got in... 

NORMAN SEEFF HAD RECENTLY MOVED TO NEW YORK from South Africa—with dreams of becoming a photographer—when he shot this session for the Band’s 1970 album, Stage Fright. “I bought six rolls of film, borrowed a car and a strobe, and set out for Big Pink—their house in Woodstock,” he recalls. “But I got lost and arrived more than two hours late. The guys were furious.” Seeff tried to make the best of the situation. “I rearranged the... 

“American Pie”   DON MCLEAN When Don McLean wrote “American Pie” in 1971, he was thinking far beyond the usual scope of a pop song. “I was conscious of the fact that I was trying to create a rock ’n’ roll dream sequence,” said McLean. “But it was way more than rock ’n’ roll. It was about an America that was coming apart at the seams. I was trying to create this song that connected with parts of America that mattered to me,... 

THE FACES OF CHICAGO WERE UNKNOWN TO MANY when photographer Norman Seeff shot this L.A. session for the band’s 1978 album, Hot Streets. “All their previous covers featured graphic renditions of their logo,” he says. “No one ever saw the band.” When a “mob of guys” arrived at his studio, Seeff feared he had his work cut out for him. “When you have a large group—and a square album cover—one challenge is how to squeeze everyone in,”... 

SMOOTH BLEND Robin Thicke scores by blurring the lines between pop, soul and hip-hop By Russell Hall Although many artists become more serious with age, Robin Thicke sees himself on a reverse course—shedding youthful intensity in favor of a more freewheeling aesthetic. “I started out with very lofty ambitions,” says the 37-year-old. “The guys I admire got more serious as they got older. John Lennon went from ‘Help!’ to ‘Working Class... 

JENNA TORRES HOMETOWN: New York City INFLUENCES: Sheryl Crow, Dolly Parton, Bruce Springsteen ALBUM: A Woman’s Touch, out now WEBSITE: jennatorres.com To some, singer-songwriter Jenna Torres is a study in contrasts, but she doesn’t see it that way. “I guess being a New York City girl and a country music artist might seem like a contradiction,” she says, “but to me the big city is the heartland. Every day I’m surrounded by 8 million stories... 

J RAND HOMETOWN: Delray Beach, Fla. INFLUENCES: Eminem, Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway ALBUM: As-yet-untitled LP, due out 2014 WEBSITE: jrandmusic.com As a teenager, J Rand groomed himself for the spotlight by singing Michael Jackson songs at a local karaoke bar in his hometown. “When I was a kid I was always fascinated by entertainers,” he says. While pursuing a solo career, he performed with various local cover bands. In 2010, Rand signed with... 

SKATERS After paying dues separately, the punkers find overnight success together Band bios are notoriously filled with bunk, but Michael Ian Cummings’ story checks out. Ask the singer and guitarist where in New York City he and his fellow Skaters tended bar, and he’ll list a string of watering holes where young rockers actually congregate, swill Pabst, and tell stories that might inspire an album of crackling indie-punk jams, as the group’s... 

SHARON JONES Not even cancer can stop this funk-soul powerhouse   “I thought I was going to die,” Sharon Jones declares bluntly. The  57-year-old soul dynamo was diagnosed with bile duct cancer just weeks before the release of Give the People What They Want, her new album with longtime backing band the Dap-Kings. Everything was put on hold as Jones, who was still mourning the loss of her mother from cancer, underwent a seven-hour surgery and... 

NENEH CHERRY Musical inspiration has been a long time coming for the ’80s hit-maker   It’s been 25 years since Neneh Cherry’s megahit “Buffalo Stance” from her debut Raw Like Sushi invaded U.S. airwaves, and nearly 18 since she released her last solo album. But the Swedish singer-songwriter is back with a new album, Blank Project. “I’ve been saying I’d do it for 17 years, but it became, ‘I need to do this now,’” she says.... 

A GREAT BIG WORLD A great big hit propels the melodic pop duo to the top of the charts Piano-pop duo A Great Big World’s debut album, Is There Anybody Out There?, includes two versions of their recent haunting smash, “Say Something.” Christina Aguilera, who fell for the song when she heard it on TV’s So You Think You Can Dance, asked the duo—Ian Axel and Chad Vaccarino—if she could record the tune with them for The Voice. No surprise,... 

LOS LONELY BOYS A new songwriting process leads to fresh inspiration for the Texican trio JoJo Garza’s got a good excuse for not hearing his phone ring. As often happens when he has tour downtime with brothers Henry and Ringo Garza, he takes the opportunity to jam. That is, after all, how Los Lonely Boys’ eighth studio album Revelation first poked its head into the world. “Songs are born on the road—they just come,” JoJo says. “We’ve...