The Howlin' Brothers "Watermelon Bucket Band"

Can we trust that summer is almost here? I dunno, the weather has been so tentative, warm one day, and then there is a chill in the air again. But I think it is ever closer, and I welcome the idea of summer, though I suspect this one will be unlike any we have ever experienced. Of course, we are all wishing to be back in those easy pre-quarantine days.

Back before things got nuts, I was on the Delbert McClinton Sandy Beaches Cruise with lots of fine artists and friends. We disembarked in Ft. Lauderdale, the home of one of my favorite restaurants, The Rustic Inn. The Howlin’ Brothers had played on the ship, and I convinced them to accompany me for a midday feast of garlic crabs, served waterside on a canal. Now this was back in January, but it was a wistful taste of the season changing.

Today we feature a carefree summer-feeling tune from The Howlin’ Brothers. Music Fog filmed them doing “Watermelon Bucket Band” during a private session in Nashville last year. The original can be found on their most recent album Still Howlin’. Not sure when we will be able to gather, but you can roll the rug up and dance around the room anyway!

- Jessie Scott

The Shootouts "Who Needs Rock & Roll"

I dream of simpler times from not that long ago. Back in those day we danced cheek to cheek, or we two-stepped the night away to our heart’s content. Doesn’t that feel like another lifetime? Seriously, I hope your shut in time is not too hard to bear. I have been growing a vegetable garden in my spare time. I can’t wait for the harvest, but I gotta say it just makes me feel better to look at the greenery of it.

Photo Credit: Aimee Lambes

Before everything got shut down, we had Ryan Humbert and Emily Bates over to the house for dinner. Even that seems quaint! The band was in Nashville, working on a new record with Chuck Mead producing, and we don’t yet know the release date, since things are so weird. Ryan and Emily, along with Brian Poston, Ryan McDermott, and Dylan Gomez are The Shootouts, and they are spiffy dressers...and we like that when we film. They were recently nominated for an Ameripolitan Award, for Best Honky Tonk Band, and yeah, they like the Western Swing, too. That is evident on this tune originally found on their 2019 Quick Draw album, “Who Needs Rock & Roll.” This here is the Music Fog recording, from a private session last year in Nashville. Yee haw!

- Jessie Scott

Chuck Mead “Tap Into Your Misery”

Thursday, April 16th, was the first ever Public Radio Music Day, and some 70 stations in 30 states took part in it. Every station did different specials, and ours, WMOT Nashville, was a radio festival. We broadcast 15 sessions from different events that took place in the last year. 15 hours is a lot of live music, and I was living vicariously through it. I actually tried to feel what it is like when we presented these events which is very physical. By the end of the day, I felt like I had run a marathon and danced through all the sets. I would say that is “Mission Accomplished” in the new normal. We presented amazing music all day long, including from The Wood Brothers, Yola, Sierra Hull, The Mavericks, Robert Randolph & The Family Band and ten more. Can’t wait until we can present live music again, in person.

Photo Credit: Joshua Black Wilkins

Ah, the virtual will have to do for now. Me, I am loving how much live music is bubbling up all the time on the socials. Chuck Mead, of BR549 fame, is doing a series of shows. The Lil’ SOB Jamboree is happening again today at 5pm CDT. Well worth your time to grab a libation, roll up the rug and get busy. Cause, you gotta get your exercise, so why not dance? Today we bring you “Tap Into Your Misery” from a private session Music Fog did with Chuck last year in Nashville. Not that he is talking about tap dancing, but hey, why not?

- Jessie Scott