Country Music People July 2016 | Page 3

Duncan Warwick meets the Californian who is Head Over Boots about his new album.

male country singers in cowboy hats. More recently, very few of the artists regularly occupying the upper reaches of the country chart are ever seen in such attire. However, for many a fan, the simple act of a singer donning a Stetson or a Resistol carries with it the implication that the singer is more likely to be more rooted in a traditional sound.

Enter Jon Pardi, a young singer hailing from California who has charted five singles, his latest being Head Over Boots- still climbing after debuting at the end of last year- and the lead single from his sophomore release, California Sunrise, released last month. At the very suggestion that his

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18 COUNTRY MUSIC PEOPLE- JULY 2016 choice of headwear might have been questioned, Pardi laughs,“ No, I won that battle. I wear my cowboy hat all the time now. It even made the cover!” But there is more substance to Jon Pardi than his chapeau. The more hard edged country sound of the West Coast has been an obvious influence, and he can be seen knocking out some Dwight Yoakam moves in videos available online. However, most telling about his country credentials is that his grandmother loved classic country and encouraged a young Pardi to use her karaoke machine. At only seven-yearsold Pardi belted out Garth’ s Friends In Low Places at his dad’ s 30th birthday.

“ I’ ve been with my grandma in the back yard singing with a broom- playing a broom and singing Hank Williams Jr.” recalls Pardi.“… Or my pre-school teacher saying that I was always saying my name was Randy Travis or Merle Haggard … She never knew what my name was until my mum told her. So, I was George Strait, Merle Haggard and Randy Travis. I’ ve had this music bug for a long time and I thank my grandma for that because she was always the one influential on that part. Definitely, I love music.”

Jon Pardi went on to also develop a fondness for the two Georges- Jones and Strait- as well as Hank Jr., Mark Chesnutt, Alabama and perhaps not surprisingly, Dwight Yoakam.

“ I could say the high energy of the California sound is something I took with me and then I kind of mixed … Because I listen to everything so it’ s hard for me to be like,‘ Yeah, you know, just in the California style.’ But I think the high energy is something I took from California. I could really say that

It’ s ten years since we lost Buck Owens. Jack Watkins looks at the career of the Bakersfield pioneer.

discarded one-time greats such as Webb to appreciate his importance. Now, of Pierce or Kitty Wells. course, there’ s not much excuse for Apart from the fact that Jerry Lee ignorance, thanks to all the books and

Lewis had done a storming version of CD reissues. This article was originally country radio shows back then it was Buck’ s Together Again which featured mooted to the editor to mark the tenth all about Waylon Jennings, quite a bit on disc one of a life-changing double anniversary of his death in 2006. Sad to of Moe Bandy, loads of Charley Pride album LP I’ d managed to pick up, say, it seems even more fitting now, with and Boxcar Wille – a late blooming The Greatest Live Show On Earth / By the recent passing of fellow architect of artist British audiences of the time took Request: More Of The Greatest Live the so-called Bakersfield sound, Merle so much to their hearts it bordered on Show On Earth, I couldn’ t have named a Haggard. a slightly embarrassing love affair- single one of his songs.

To judge from what has been written and far too much of the whimpering It was only after interviewing one or about him, Buck Owens wasn’ t Emmylou Harris. Buck Owens was two British rock musicians much later, necessarily the most agreeable, likeable seldom played, so he seemed as remote who’ d rave about Buck and his eventual country artist there’ s ever been. I and unfashionable as other apparently guitar partner Don Rich, that I started don’ t particularly care. Whatever his

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West Virginia’ s Billy Payne has been releasing records for more than 20 years and regularly plays and records with Waylon’ s former band, but, as Duncan Warwick finds out, he’ s his own kind of Outlaw.

o, you want to be an Outlaw? Well, if you’ re West Virgina’ s Billy Payne you could spend two years carving a wooden statue of your hero Waylon Jennings. That might show some commitment. Especially if once completed you get to present it to your hero. It might also help if you can remember the impact Johnny Cash At San Quentin had on the ears of a fiveyear-old, and as a kid you were so into country music that you tied a battery operated 8-track player to the handlebars of your bicycle so you could cruise your neighbourhood to the sounds of Waylon. Jeff Foxworthy might have something to say about that!

The Waylon influence is apparent in much of Payne’ s work( even though he suggests that George Jones is ultimately his favourite singer), but Billy Payne is so much more than a Waylon wannabe and insists that even from an early age he“ Didn’ t want to be them,” he“ wanted to be a part of it.”

Achieving his goal of being‘ part of it’, Payne has been independently releasing records for nearly 20 years, and frequently works, both live and in the studio, with Waylon’ s band, and oh, Jessi

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Colvin & Earle talk to Spencer Leigh

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Colter still has the woodcarving of her late husband.

Payne picks up the story,“ Well, when I started carving it I used a 4x4 piece of wood. It’ s not something I do on a regular basis but back then when I was doing this kind of stuff I was doing it to pass the time. A friend of mine was carving a statue of Hank Williams out of a 500 pound log and he said,‘ Billy, won’ t you carve one of Waylon? Use a 4x4 piece of wood.’ And I said,‘ That would be a lot easier for me to handle.’ So I made the statue and I did it basically out of wanting to, and I just wanted to give it to Waylon just as a friendship thing, you know, and that’ s how we became friends. We didn’ t get to correspond with each other too much after that because when I gave it to him in’ 95 he was starting to feel bad and everything. But he always spoke highly of me and to this day Jessi Colter still has it.”

“ I’ ve always had such respect for Waylon and his music and he’ s always been a hero of mine,” says the hugely likable West Virginian before explaining how he hooked up with The Waylors.

“ I’ ve been listening to Waylon ever since I can remember. It really happened by fate that I got hooked up with the band because Waylon knew about me prior to recording. To start with because I made Waylon that fifteen inch tall wooden statue that I carved for him. It took me two years to do it and I gave it to him in 1995. He said he would help me in any way he could. So when I started recording with them on records in 1999, Waylon was gonna do liner notes for my No Limit On Love CD and well, some things happened and, of course, Waylon ended up taking me on and he wasn’ t able to do it due to a deal he had with Lucky Dog, I think.

“ So anyway, he had to decline but he said he would help me any way he could. Well, you know, unbeknownst to all of us that he was going to pass, unfortunately, and so I was contacted by the band because they were coming to The Spirit Of The Outlaws tribute show. And so the band came out of retirement and I went to Nashville and I got hooked up with Richie Albright( drums) and Fred Newell( steel and harmonica) and Jerry Bridges( bass). And Jerry and I rekindled our friendship from the time I met him with Waylon in 1995. He said,

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Mentored by Willie Nelson, Kimmie Rhodes has gone on to write multi-platinum songs for the likes of Wynonna and Trisha Yearwood, and she’ s become an Austin institution with more than 30 years of recordings to her name. She talks to Michael Hingston.

Photos by Christopher Durst

immie Rhodes is a talented The Apple Tree” stage at Country To songwriter and warm

Country. She was really enthusiastic performer who has had a about The Country Music Hall Of Fame. long and fascinating career. She has‘ The Country Music Hall of Fame been at the heart of the Austin country was a great place when it was in that scene for many years and has also little building on Music Row, but now worked extensively in Nashville. it is a gorgeous big building. [ At the She experienced the Outlaw Country moment ] they have an exhibit called movement at first hand, worked with Nashville Cats. Jon Langford from here Waylon Jennings and is a friend and [ Welsh musician based in Chicago ] said regular collaborator with Willie Nelson.“ I didn’ t have any idea how cool the Rhodes was married to Austin stalwart Country Music Hall Of Fame really is, Joe Gracey and they made music I thought it was just a place where they together for thirty years until his death ensconced Garth Brooks’ underwear”. in November 2011.

The things they are doing are just

Rhodes continues to record and amazing.’ perform great music, but has recently I have been to The Country Music taken some time out to write a memoir Hall Of Fame twice and saw the titled Radio Dreams, and put together Nashville Cats exhibit on my last trip. a retrospective compilation CD.

It is a fabulous place to visit and is She is also associate producer for a doing great work in education and documentary titled They Called Us documenting the history of country Outlaws: Cosmic Cowboys, Honky Tonk music. Heroes And The Rise Of Redneck Rock; Kimmie has made many visits to the which is being made in collaboration UK and has enjoyed playing over here. with the prestigious Nashville institution One time, her and her band played The Country Music Hall Of Fame. two very contrasting gigs in the same

I spoke to Kmmie shortly after she evening. had played a wonderful set with her“ Years ago, we used to come over and son Gabriel at the Bob Harris“ Under play a place that everyone loved called

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Photo: Mel Petrey / WillaDawn Photography

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magical place. On June 13, I travelled there to see Americana’ s new star duo, Colvin & Earle, or more specifically, Shawn Colvin and Steve Earle.

The red-brick church is visible from the Highbury and Islington tube station and is a short walk away. It opened in 1877 but it was damaged during the war and by the 1980s was scheduled for demolition. Thanks to ardent campaigning from local residents, the building was saved – it is now Grade I listed and has been lovingly restored. It still functions as a church but is also a centre for charitable causes and is largely funded through being used as a concert venue.

Colvin & Earle were scheduled to play two dates in June and I went to the first. Seating is unnumbered which means first come, first served and so the church was almost full by 7.15pm for a scheduled 8 o’ clock start. The more experienced ticket holders brought their own cushions. By 8.15pm, we were a little impatient but Colvin & Earle then opened with Wake Up Little Susie.

I was intrigued. Many years ago I had seen Steve Earle in Liverpool with the celebrated bluegrass band led by Del McCoury. I interviewed Steve and thought I would chat to Del before I left. He gave me an insight into how difficult the tour was for him and his band. They came from good Christian stock and though they loved playing with Steve, they couldn’ t stand him swearing in between the songs.

I’ ve seen Steve a couple of times recently and the strong language is still there. Not that it bothers me – I love Billy Connolly – but I wondered what would happen in Union Chapel. As I should have guessed, Steve confronted the issue straight away:“ We’ re in a church, wow, fuck me!”

They performed all 10 tracks of the

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contents July 2016 cmp

Features

12 Jon Pardi

The Californian who is Head Over Boots about his new album talks to Duncan Warwick.

18 Buck Owensn

Jack Watkins looks at the career of the Bakerfield pioneer ten years after his death.

24 Kimmie Rhodes

Michael Hingston meets the Texas troubadour.

48 Billy Payne

Duncan Warwick discovers Billy Payne is Way More Outlaw.

54 Colvin & Earle

Spencer Leigh talks to Shawn and Steve.

60 Rob Heron

Definitely not a pastiche, discovers Duncan Warwick.

Reviews 30 CD Reviews Regulars

4 News 8 Tour Guide 11 This Month In Country Music 17 The David Allan Page 53 Americana Roundup

Charts

64 Americana & UK Country Charts 65 Billboard Country Charts

Courtesy of Billboard Inc.

JON PARDI California Dirt Roads

omewhere along the way since 1990 the phrase‘ hat act’ became

Sa derogatory term used to imply a Nashville production line of young

BUCK OWENS

Buckerooing it!

f you first started out listening to country music circa 1979 / 1980 as

II did, you wouldn’ t have picked up much Buck Owens. Tuning in to BBC

BILLY PAYNE

WAY... MORE... OUTLAW

S

Colvin & Earle

EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE HAPPY AND FREE

Kimmie RHODES

K

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ver the years I have seen several concerts which have

Obeen broadcast from Union Chapel in North London and it seems a

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