Somewhere on the musical map, where the twang of Classic Country meets the grit of Southern Soul, Hank Wonder marks a detour down a sonic stretch of unpaved road. Together since 2013, the Boston-based trio of Annie Bartlett (fiddle and viola), Darren Buck (vocals), and Michael Loria (guitar) continue to craft a soulful blend of Americana that’s equal parts down-home and gussied up. The trio’s debut album, Little Mysteries was produced by Charlie Rose (The Mammals, Elephant Revival, Railroad Earth, Barnstar!) and released in 2017. Two years later, they returned to the studio with Zachariah Hickman (Josh Ritter, Rodney Crowell, Ray LaMontagne, Mark Erelli, Barnstar!) at the helm. Initially stalled by a global pandemic, the 10-track Waylaid was released in 2021.
During their twelve years together, Hank Wonder has performed at Club Passim, The Cabot Theatre, Cary Hall, The Center of the Arts in Natick, Paradise Rock Club, The Burren, Lizard Lounge, Toad, Portsmouth Music Hall Loft, and the perennial Fresh Grass, Falcon Ridge, and Back Porch music festivals. Concert reviewer James Gerke once described Hank Wonder’s live show as “a musical journey that zigzags across geographic and metaphorical locations”, and Boston radio host Perry Persoff wrote that Waylaid’s songs will make you “feel like you are loading up the camper van for a trip.” Songs from both albums have been streamed over 47.5K times, and enjoy regular airplay on independent radio stations across the United States.
Brent Baxter grew up writing short stories in his small hometown of Batesville, Arkansas. However, it wasn’t until his sophomore year at Arkansas State University that he first discovered songwriting. Back home over Christmas break, a friend put a melody to a poem Brent had written, and he was hooked.
Brent sharpened his songwriting skills while earning both a bachelor and masters degree in business (MBA). During that time, he was also active in his local NSAI (Nashville Songwriters Association) chapter. Following college, he joined the local songwriting community while working his day job at a telecommunications company in Little Rock, Arkansas. In March of 2002, Brent traded his cubicle for a rented room in Nashville. When he wasn’t waiting tables or working in the royalty/administration department of Bluewater Music, he was writing songs and meeting with publishers.
Brent’s first cut came in early 2004, as “Monday Morning Church” was recorded by Alan Jackson. The song went on to become a top five hit. In early 2005, Brent signed his first publishing deal, becoming a staff songwriter for Major Bob Music. That deal yielded cuts by Randy Travis, Lonestar, and Lady Antebellum, among others.
In 2009 and 2010, Brent wrote for a joint venture of Peer Music and RPM Music, and that deal has yielded cuts by Ray Stevens, Randy Kohrs, Lathan Moore, Kal Hourd and others. Currently, Brent is the flagship writer for the newly formed Infinity Music Group.
Johnny Bulford, the name behind a man that has gained notoriety in and around Music City over the last 10+ years. Bulford, a native Floridian who grew up in a family surrounded by rich music history and influence, was able to naturally hone his craft from a young age.
One of the first signs he was going to turn his love of music into a career happened after Bulford attended a Garth Brooks concert at the tender age of 12 and told his mom, “That is what I want to do with my life”. Putting that statement into action, Bulford performed all throughout high school and college, opening for the likes of artists Blake Shelton and Gretchen Wilson; garnering a win at Colgate Country Showdown, a national singing competition, which landed him a publishing contract at Warner Chappell Music soon after. After many years and countless songs penned under the Warner label, in 2018 Johnny branched out on his own as an independent songwriter.
Since 2011 Bulford has earned multiple achievements; obtained his first album cut “Flashlight”, co-written with Chris Young, that landed on the RCA recording artist’s 2011 album “Neon”, secured his first #1 hit with Lee Brice’s “A Woman Like You” (2011), “Lonely Eyes” a single cut by Young topped the charts at #2 (2014), invited to play “Lonely Eyes” on the famed Ryman Stage with Young during the 5th Annual YPO Southern 7 “Evening At The Ryman” (2015), “What If I Stayed” another album cut by Young (2015), garnered title track on Young’s “It Must Be Christmas” (2016) and wrote “Holiday” which Young co-wrote and cut on his 2017 “Losing Sleep” album. Bulford’s passion of writing has taken him beyond the confines of Music Row, as he spearheads projects to bring the Nashville “Listening Room” experience to his beloved upbringings and stomping grounds of Central Florida and beyond.
Todd Albright is a country blues, twelve string guitar player and vocalist based in Detroit, Michigan. Grounded in the pre-war era of the blues tradition (1880-1939), Todd is a mindful purveyor of blues history. His repertoire upholds musical pillars such as Blind Willie McTell, George Carter, Blind Lemon Jefferson and Leadbelly. His life’s work continues the distinguished tradition of the very roots of American music as told by the African American musicians who created it.
Todd’s vigorous, gritty and soulful performances are accompanied by stories of the masters and a deep intuitive sense of respect for craft, providing audiences with a meaningful experience while creating a transcendent moment. One of the top blues guitarists in the world, Todd is the only contemporary twelve string player in his genre.
Todd began playing the blues while still a teenager, some twenty-five years ago. Initially, he was drawn to the sound of the finger-picked style and has since immersed himself in the foundational music and narratives of American culture. Over the years, Todd has shared the stage with artists such as Roy Book Binder, Charlie Parr, Paul Geremia, and Dakota Dave Hull.
Todd’s first full-length LP, Fourth Floor Visitor, was released by Jett Plastic Recordings out of Detroit, Michigan (2017). His latest album, Detroit Twelve String: Blues & Rags, is out now on Third Man Records (2017).
Byron Hill is from Winston-Salem, NC. He moved to Nashville and signed his first publishing deal in 1978. Byron’s songs have generated more than 700 recordings, and have been released on ninety-one industry certified Gold and Platinum albums and singles.
His songs have earned ten ASCAP awards, thirty-four U.S. and Canadian top-ten chart hits, and have become hits in many other worldwide markets. His recorded catalog spans four decades and includes songs recorded by Ray Charles, Alabama, George Strait, Connie Britton & Charles Esten (from the Nashville series on CMT), Jason Aldean, Mark Chesnutt, Kenny Rogers, Don Williams, John Michael Montgomery, Anne Murray, Juice Newton, Joe Nichols, Randy Travis, Keith Whitley, Gary Allan, Rhonda Vincent, Johnny Lee, Toby Keith, Reba McEntire, Sammy Kershaw, Conway Twitty, The Oak Ridge Boys, Mo Pitney, and many others. Byron is a 2015 Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame nominee, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI), and is a staff songwriter at Dan Hodges Music LLC.
Three songs. That is all it took for Atlantic Records chairman and CEO, Craig Kallman, to sign Jesse Lee at the ripe age of 20. Kallman credits the gifted Lee for inspiring him to take a plunge back into country in a major way. “She reminds me of a modern-day Patsy Cline, with an amazing voice, a magnetic personality and, of course, a tremendous gift for songwriting.”
It seems that Kallman was onto something. Her time at Atlantic Records allowed Jesse to develop her raw talent, molding her into the gifted writer she is today. She has since perfected the ability to put her personal life experiences onto paper, crafting them into lyrics that are relatable to an entire audience. “Writing has and always will be, my first love,” she says. “My ideas and lyrics are inspired by everyday life. Heartbreak, second-hand stories, love, tragedy. There’s a song in everything.”
With a fierce determination to see her dreams and aspirations come to life, Jesse is now enjoying the success she has worked so hard for. In 2016, Jesse co-wrote Kelsea Ballerini’s #1 hit, “Peter Pan”, Keith Urban recorded her song “That Could Still Be Us” on his platinum selling album Ripcord, and her song “Feels Like Christmas” was recorded by the acapella group, Straight No Chaser for their ‘I’ll Have Another…Christmas Album.’ In 2017, Jesse was awarded “Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year” by Music Row. This same year, at the annual NSAI Awards, “Peter Pan” was voted as one of the ’10 Songs I Wish I’d Written’ by her fellow songwriter peers. As if this year couldn’t get any better, Jesse saw her song “Like I Loved You”, co-written with and sung by Brett Young, soar up the charts to the #1 spot for 3 weeks. This became Jesse’s second, back-to-back #1.
Born in the cornfield community of Hillsboro, Ohio, from the early age of 8, Jimmy Yeary began singing in churches with his family. This became a way of life as well as income for the family. Jimmy played 200 plus dates a year singing Southern gospel music and began discovering that music was his passion. Jimmy dreamed that one day he would be singing and writing songs in Nashville, TN.
Soon after graduating high school, Yeary moved to Virginia where he ended up meeting and playing with some of Nashville’s finest musicians. In 1994 Jimmy made the move to Music City, and soon after landed a full record deal on Atlantic Records. When Yeary’s record deal fell through due to a corporate staff change that came with a new regime, Yeary knew that songwriting would continue to be his passion and now his main focus.
While signed to Atlantic, Jimmy met Paul Worley, who had been one of the producers on his project along with Tom Shapiro. Jimmy began writing for Paul’s publishing company, Skyline Music Publishing that he owned with songwriter/producer Wally Wilson. During his time at Skyline, artists such as Rascal Flatts, John Michael Montgomery, Craig Morgan, Brooks & Dunn, Jeff Bates, and Steve Holy recorded his songs. The Top 10 hit “In Another World” by Joe Diffie was also written by Yeary during this time.
In 2010, Jimmy signed with THiS Music, which joint ventured through EMI Music Nashville. His song “Why Wait” spent 2 weeks in the #1 position with country super group Rascal Flatts. During this time, Jimmy continued to get cuts with artists such as Easton Corbin, Martina McBride (“I’m Gonna Love You Through It”), LeAnn Rimes, Jake Owen (“Anywhere With You”), Bucky Covington, Heidi Newfield, and James Otto.
Whetherman is the music of 33 year-old independent troubadour Nicholas Williams, who has self-produced eight full-length albums since beginning the project in 2007. By artfully bridging the gap between folk, blues, country, soul, and bluegrass with a timeless tinge, Williams is earning his keep amongst the vast pool of independent American talent in the Americana scene. His songs aim at the heart center, emboldened by the moral struggles of modern man with earnest and poetic lyrics that accompany infectiously melodic vocals, under the current of percussive guitar and rolling harmonica.
Williams’ most recent album, the critically acclaimed ‘This Land’ released in June of 2017. The Alternate Root hails “Over the course of the last decade, Williams has been a student, immersed in the varied styles available in the American Roots songbook. ‘This Land’ introduces the man who has staked out claim in its territory.”
Living on the road for the better part of the last five years, Williams has remained completely independent from labels and management, having taken a grassroots approach to spread the songs he’s created. As Whetherman, he has had the opportunity to open for Taj Mahal, The Wood Brothers, The Wailers, Howie Day, Kim Richey, Donavon Frankenreiter, and Anders Osbourne among many others.
Slaid Cleaves releases his latest album, TOGETHER THROUGH THE DARK.
Twelve new songs amid the 100,000 that get uploaded to Spotify every day (according to hypebot.com). Will any of them rise above the din enough to be heard? So far, a few of them have been hanging out with the likes of young Americana superstars Charlie Crocket and Margo Price on the Americana Music Association album and singles charts, as well as the popular Spotify playlist, The Pulse of Americana.
It’s Cleaves’ second release on Candy House Media, which consists of himself and his wife and manager, Karen Cleaves, with hired gun Angela Backstrom promoting to Americana radio. It’s one of the rare self-releases on the charts, and the early success of the first few singles is a testament to the consistent quality of Cleaves’ output over the past 25 years, and to the bond he’s built and maintained with the dedicated music lovers at Americana radio since its inception in the mid 1990s.
Slaid teamed up with producer Scrappy Jud Newcomb for the third time in early 2022 to record a new batch of songs, Slaid’s first in five years. Familiar themes of struggle and resilience will be a surprise to no one. TOGETHER THROUGH THE DARK digs into the crucial moments and experiences that shape our journeys. A kind word when it’s needed most, the effort to act honorably in dark and violent times, the wisdom of a barfly, the majesty of rock and roll, the dignity of work and the enduring grace provided by true love.
As Scrappy puts it, “This album speaks to the hopeful, the hard working, the battered, confused, and the sad. But above all to the believers in the city of freedom that we heard in the stories of our youth and all those FM radio hits.”
With each of Brian Molnar & the Naked Heart’s last 3 albums peaking out over fixtures of their genre on radio play charts all around the country, it would not be surprising to have an overwhelming feeling of comfort and familiarity when experiencing their music for the first time. For nearly a decade Brian Molnar has been carrying his acoustic guitar and wrought melodies back and forth across the United States connecting audiences with a feeling of American tradition and unique thoughtfulness that has been too often diluted in recent memory. Now with a full supporting band behind him, sharing the stage with contemporaries such as Ralph Stanley, Chris Hillman, Bernie Worrell, Garth Hudson, and Neal Cassal, it seems that a genuine Americana resurgence is upon us, with each new Naked Hearts’ release setting its tone.
