Charleston Girl Tyler Childers is often described as a “neotraditional” country artist. His soulful, Appalachian sound blends elements of bluegrass, folk, and even R&B. Childers’ lyrics often explore themes of rural life, and the human experience. While I love nearly all of his music, “Charleston […]

I Remember Everything Zach Bryan is one of the biggest artists in America blending anthemic roots music, poetic lyrics, and a raw, bare bones delivery. His sold out live performances are literal revivals — with concert goers singing so loud, that they drown out the […]

[Updated from 2019] Like Real People Do Irish singer/songwriter, Hozier, is an extraordinary talent, and visionary musician. His voice is a breathy, rounded baritone. His guitar playing is comprised of an avant-garde, alternate tuned fingerstyle. If Hozier’s lyrics were stand alone poetry — he’d be […]

The Star Spangled Banner The Star Spangled Banner is the national anthem of the United States of America. The lyrics come from a poem written on September 14, 1814, by a then 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet, Francis Scott Key. He wrote the piece after […]

Tim & The Bears I’ve always loved this piece by the legendary British folk guitarist, Richard Thompson. Tim & The Bears is from Werner Herzog’s quirky documentary, Grizzly Man. The film is about Timothy Treadwell, a nature enthusiast who lived with Alaskan Grizzlies for 13 seasons […]

Silver Joy Silver Joy was a perfect choice for The Holdovers. This song was used through the film as a motif. The simple E minor to F progression has a tenderness to it, without being too overly sentimental. When I heard the “Cat Stevens-like” tune […]

Into the Unknown Into the Unknown is a quirky Americana piece by multi-instrumentalist composer, Mark Orton. This piece is played at the end of Alexander Payne’s film The Holdovers (starring Paul Giamatti). Mark Orton is most famous for composing ‘Their Pie’ the theme to Payne’s […]

Killers of the Flower Moon Directed by Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon is set in the heart of 1920s Oklahoma, where the Osage Nation, having discovered vast oil reserves beneath their tribal lands, finds themselves thrust into immense wealth. Their newfound prosperity comes […]

Deadwood Deadwood was an American Western HBO series (2004-2006) set in Deadwood South Dakota. The series starred Timothy Olyphant and Ian McShane — whose acting reached a zenith with Deadwood. His performance is amazing. I dig the main title theme and I wanted to flesh […]

Amor y Paz On March 24th (2020), at the beginning of the pandemic, Gustavo Santaolalla posted this short piece to his Instagram and YouTube channel. So far as I can tell, he’s calling it Amor y Paz (Love & Peace). It was a musical offering […]

I Get to Love You As I write this post, I’m sitting in a hotel room in Harrisburg PA on New Years Eve. I’ll be performing ‘I Get to Love You’ as a bride processional this evening for my wife’s cousin’s wedding. I guess that […]

Cowboys & Aliens Cowboys & Aliens is a 2011 American space Western film directed by Jon Favreau. It stars Daniel Craig, Oliva Wilde, and Harrison Ford. The film is based on the 2006 graphic novel of the same name. The plot revolves around an amnesiac […]