Featured Friday Morning Shuffle - Hiding In Time Mix

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Be sure to "Like" Ear to the Ground on Facebook!

All of this happened a long time ago when the world was a very different place. Of course, none of us knew that at the time.
(From The Drift - A Novel by Joe Wolfe-Mazeres) Available at Amazon.com (Kindle edition also available)

I am continuing to work on my Spotify playlists for E2TG.  So far, I have completed seven - January - July2018.  These are meant to be a cross-section of music I featured during those months - not necessarily music released in those months.   If you are interested, you can check out the playlists (links below)  and follow my personal profile to find out when new playlists are created.

E2TG January 2018
E2TG February 2018
E2TG March 2018
E2TG April 2018 
E2TG May 2018
E2TG June 2018
E2TG July 2018
E2TG August 2018 (coming soon!)


I was trying to write my thoughts about yesterday, but I was having trouble verbalizing...

I believe women (and men) who say they were sexually assaulted. Do false accusations happen? Absolutely. Do those false accusations cause me to disbelieve the next victim who comes forward? Absolutely not. Should someone be convicted and jailed based solely on the word of a victim. Of course not.  Should the matter be investigated? Absolutely.

Should someone be handed a lifetime appointment with accusations hanging over them without an investigation? Absolutely not.

The most disturbing thing of all is seeing the fundamental lack of basic humanity on display in Congress and in my Facebook feed. It is one thing to support the nomination and entirely another to shame and attack the woman who made the accusation. Those who support the nominee and believe him to be innocent should be the ones screaming the loudest for an investigation - but they are not.

Bottom line, the behavior of the nominee in yesterday's hearing should be disqualifying regardless of the veracity of the claims against him. 

And the other thing... I am a huge proponent of laughter and humor as an antidote for stressful times, and I have had some humorous thoughts pop into my head over this current stress. But, I have chosen not to post these jokes - even jokes I think of as harmless or with no bad intention. For the record, "spin the bottle" and writing notes to ask a classmate if they like you or not - have nothing at all to do with sexual assault or rape. NOTHING.

Bottom line, to anyone reading this who has been a victim of sexual abuse or rape, I stand with you. I hear you. I believe you.

Okay - I still believe music heals so let's get to the music.....

Trending Thursday Morning Shuffle - Waves of Freedom Mix

Tweet #E2TG

Be sure to "Like" Ear to the Ground on Facebook!

All of this happened a long time ago when the world was a very different place. Of course, none of us knew that at the time.
(From The Drift - A Novel by Joe Wolfe-Mazeres) Available at Amazon.com (Kindle edition also available)

I am continuing to work on my Spotify playlists for E2TG.  So far, I have completed seven - January - July2018.  These are meant to be a cross-section of music I featured during those months - not necessarily music released in those months.   If you are interested, you can check out the playlists (links below)  and follow my personal profile to find out when new playlists are created.

E2TG January 2018
E2TG February 2018
E2TG March 2018
E2TG April 2018 
E2TG May 2018
E2TG June 2018
E2TG July 2018
E2TG August 2018 (coming soon!)

I have been fortunate enough to meet and come to know many powerful, amazing women in my life. In particular (in the context of E2TG), I know a ton of incredible women who are somehow connected to the world of music.

Over the last couple of years, as the #MeToo movement has built steam, I have been dismayed to learn how many of them have their own #MeToo stories. These are stories about sexual assault and about misogyny (both overt and less overt). and I have even come to recognize behaviors I have demonstrated which run counter to my stated and intended beliefs and values.

When a woman tells us what her experience has been, we need to believe her and listen. Believing women is not as I've heard some men say, a repudiation of due process, it is a demand for fair and honest due process which has been denied to so many for so long.

 From my very personal experience, those being truthful are the ones who demand investigations, demand evidence be judged, and who demand justice. Those who have something to hide - push for a rush to judgement based upon emotion and preconceived ideas. 


Well, it's Thursday, and as we do every week, we close out the week with two days of shuffling up tunes from our "New Music" playlist.   Let's shuffle!

Wild Wednesday Morning Shuffle - Addicted to the Rhythm Mix

Tweet #E2TG

Be sure to "Like" Ear to the Ground on Facebook!


All of this happened a long time ago when the world was a very different place. Of course, none of us knew that at the time.
(From The Drift - A Novel by Joe Wolfe-Mazeres) Available at Amazon.com (Kindle edition also available)

I am continuing to work on my Spotify playlists for E2TG.  So far, I have completed seven - January - July2018.  These are meant to be a cross-section of music I featured during those months - not necessarily music released in those months.   If you are interested, you can check out the playlists (links below)  and follow my personal profile to find out when new playlists are created.

E2TG January 2018
E2TG February 2018
E2TG March 2018
E2TG April 2018 
E2TG May 2018
E2TG June 2018
E2TG July 2018
E2TG August 2018 (coming soon!)


I am a bit overwhelmed with everything going on the world and in my more narrow world and in my life personally.  There always seems like there is too much that must, should, and/or could be done. I get overwhelmed when I see all these things around me and I don't know where or how to begin.  The thing is, I know it always just starts with doing one good, just, kind thing and then one more and so on.

I am trying to prepare for a move, in just over a month.  Last night, I looked at everything that needs to be done before I move, and I was overwhelmed.  But then I just started doing something. It might not be the best or most important thing, but it was something that needed to be done.

I didn't write E2TG for seven plus years all at once, I did it one day at a time.

Just some thoughts on this dreary Wednesday in Nashville.

Now, because it is Wednesday - we have a shuffle that comes from all of the songs saved to my phone's memory card.

Let's go!

Trending Tuesday Morning Shuffle - Rebirth of Sorts Mix

Tweet #E2TG

Be sure to "Like" Ear to the Ground on Facebook!

All of this happened a long time ago when the world was a very different place. Of course, none of us knew that at the time.
(From The Drift - A Novel by Joe Wolfe-Mazeres) Available at Amazon.com (Kindle edition also available)

I am continuing to work on my Spotify playlists for E2TG.  So far, I have completed seven - January - July2018.  These are meant to be a cross-section of music I featured during those months - not necessarily music released in those months.   If you are interested, you can check out the playlists (links below)  and follow my personal profile to find out when new playlists are created.

E2TG January 2018
E2TG February 2018
E2TG March 2018
E2TG April 2018 
E2TG May 2018
E2TG June 2018
E2TG July 2018
E2TG August 2018 (coming soon!)


First off, you may or may not have noticed, but I made an adjustment to the name of this blog and our associated Facebook page. Basically, I officially added E2TG as a part of the blog name.  The reason being, I am finally dealing with a problem I've been aware of for some time. Namely, that there is another music site called Ear to the Ground. I'm not even going to get into the which one came first game. Ear to the Ground is a fairly common saying, and it is not surprising that I am not the only person to think to call a music site Ear to the Ground. I have been aware of this for a long time. It was the impetus for my beginning to use the E2TG designation more and more. If that other site was covering completely different music, it would not be a problem, however, there does seem to be some overlap in the music we cover.  As a result, there have been moments of confusion - like my Facebook being tagged for their posts.  Basically, I have been procrastinating about dealing with this. What prompted me to act, is that the other site seems to have a very formalized submission process, and it appears that some people have been submitting music there thinking it was coming to me.

I don't know if this change will help with either of these issues, but it is a first attempt. For the record, E2TG is all about sharing music I have discovered through a variety of means. Most of my music comes from publicists (most often from those I've come to trust), artists themselves, or recommendations from other artists and/or other music lovers.

The bottom line is that I have nothing but positive thoughts for anyone who makes a effort to spread the word about new and emerging music. What the other site does seems to be different than what I do. My goal is to just prevent as much confusion as possible.

Enough, sorry for getting off track, I've just put off dealing with this for too long.

Last night, I added over 100 tracks to my new music playlist. I don't think any of them came up today, but they will soon.

Music City Monday Morning Shuffle - Nothing Wrong with Nashville Mix

Tweet #E2TG

Be sure to "Like" Ear to the Ground on Facebook!

All of this happened a long time ago when the world was a very different place. Of course, none of us knew that at the time.
(From The Drift - A Novel by Joe Wolfe-Mazeres) Available at Amazon.com (Kindle edition also available)

I am continuing to work on my Spotify playlists for E2TG.  So far, I have completed seven - January - July2018.  These are meant to be a cross-section of music I featured during those months - not necessarily music released in those months.   If you are interested, you can check out the playlists (links below)  and follow my personal profile to find out when new playlists are created.

E2TG January 2018
E2TG February 2018
E2TG March 2018
E2TG April 2018 
E2TG May 2018
E2TG June 2018
E2TG July 2018
E2TG August 2018 (coming soon!)


I appropriated a Todd Snider lyric for today's subtitle - even though I had a different Todd Snider song in the today's Music City Monday Shuffle.  Today's shuffle is a nice reminder of why Nashville is the best place to live for this music fan.   Time is short - so I'm going to get right to it!

Featured Friday Morning Shuffle - Keepers of the Gloom Mix

Tweet #E2TG

Be sure to "Like" Ear to the Ground on Facebook!

All of this happened a long time ago when the world was a very different place. Of course, none of us knew that at the time.
(From The Drift - A Novel by Joe Wolfe-Mazeres) Available at Amazon.com (Kindle edition also available)

I am continuing to work on my Spotify playlists for E2TG.  So far, I have completed seven - January - July2018.  These are meant to be a cross-section of music I featured during those months - not necessarily music released in those months.   If you are interested, you can check out the playlists (links below)  and follow my personal profile to find out when new playlists are created.

E2TG January 2018
E2TG February 2018
E2TG March 2018
E2TG April 2018 
E2TG May 2018
E2TG June 2018
E2TG July 2018
E2TG August 2018 (coming soon!)

Sometimes, I wonder if people really believe my shuffles are totally random - based upon the songs I have saved to a particular playlist...   My new music playlist has 619 songs currently - with more waiting to be added - as I slowly dig myself out of the AMA week hole. So, on Tuesday, Thursday, and Fridays, I pull up that playlist and hit shuffle. The shuffle has a mind of its own, but I have decided to trust the shuffle.  Anyway, so some albums I have loaded take longer to show up in a shuffle, and some show up seemingly every day or every other day.

It's Friday - let's get to the shuffle.  These past two days, we have had some fairly long songs show up. Since my commute is more or less the same every day, longer songs means few songs. Yesterday, we had five, and today we have six. On average, we have eight or nine most days.  Again, I trust the shuffle - it all works out.  Let's go!

Trending Thursday Morning Shuffle - Nineteen Thirty-Two Mix

Tweet #E2TG

Be sure to "Like" Ear to the Ground on Facebook!

All of this happened a long time ago when the world was a very different place. Of course, none of us knew that at the time.
(From The Drift - A Novel by Joe Wolfe-Mazeres) Available at Amazon.com (Kindle edition also available)

I am continuing to work on my Spotify playlists for E2TG.  So far, I have completed seven - January - July2018.  These are meant to be a cross-section of music I featured during those months - not necessarily music released in those months.   If you are interested, you can check out the playlists (links below)  and follow my personal profile to find out when new playlists are created.

E2TG January 2018
E2TG February 2018
E2TG March 2018
E2TG April 2018 
E2TG May 2018
E2TG June 2018
E2TG July 2018
E2TG August 2018 (coming soon!)

A few years ago, it was a big thing for me to hit several different venues in one night. I even saw it as a point of pride one night when I hit four venues in one night (or was it five?). Please understand, I don't mean to put down anyone who does that - or even myself - I was trying to see as much music as I could and see as many friends play as I could in one night - and it was fun and a bit exhilarating. I would like, however, to explain why I no longer do this very often - a big reason I stopped actively doing that is that my approach was to figure out approximately when my friend or friends were going on and time my arrivals and departures accordingly.  In doing this, I rarely saw an entire set and more importantly, I rarely saw any "new to me" music. 

A couple of years ago, I went to see a friend play - I got there when the show started and I think I stayed until the end. And I "discovered" a couple of "new to me" artists that night who have become favorites. One of those is Josh Gray. I remember being immediately impressed by his songs. When he he did a cover of the Dead Milkmen song, "Punk Rock Girl" - the deal was sealed and I was a fan. I know it may seem silly to listen to an original songwriter - who writes wonderful songs - and then to say that the clincher was a cover, but to me, it was an indication that his musical roots ran deeper than the typical singer-songwriter genre. I have been fortunate enough to see him perform live a number of times since, and he never fails to impress.  Gray released an EP in 2015, and he is preparing to embark on making his first full-length album now, and he has started a Kickstarter campaign to help fund the project. He has a ton of great incentives, and he seems to be off to a strong start.

If you feel so moved, check out his campaign. HERE 


We have only five songs in the shuffle today. My drive was not any shorter than usual, but there were several longish songs included. Today's shuffle has a couple of "first listens".  Check it out!

Wild Wednesday Morning Shuffle - Krokodil and Lions Mix

Tweet #E2TG

Be sure to "Like" Ear to the Ground on Facebook!

All of this happened a long time ago when the world was a very different place. Of course, none of us knew that at the time.
(From The Drift - A Novel by Joe Wolfe-Mazeres) Available at Amazon.com (Kindle edition also available)

I am continuing to work on my Spotify playlists for E2TG.  So far, I have completed seven - January - July2018.  These are meant to be a cross-section of music I featured during those months - not necessarily music released in those months.   If you are interested, you can check out the playlists (links below)  and follow my personal profile to find out when new playlists are created.

E2TG January 2018
E2TG February 2018
E2TG March 2018
E2TG April 2018 
E2TG May 2018
E2TG June 2018
E2TG July 2018
E2TG August 2018 (coming soon!)


In the seven plus years that I have written E2TG, there have been more than a few days that I didn't really feel like writing.  Days when the world and/or life was getting me down. The reason E2TG persists when other blogs go dark, is that I write anyway. The reason I write even when I don't really feel like it, is because of the music. I turn to music when I am down and out, and it always helps.

There is a lot in the world that has me down lately - both in the wide-world and closer to home. Bullies.  That's what gets me down. I am sick and tired of bullies, and I am sick and tired of having a bully in the White House. I just a clip where an 18 year old woman asked a Republican candidate for Governor (don't remember what state - it doesn't matter) a legitimate question about climate change. He called her "young and naive" and refused to answer the question. Whatever else that man is, he is a bully. This week, I found out that the 17 year old son of a high school friend of mine - who had been bullied for years - died tragically in an incident either directly or indirectly caused by bullies.

Since I was younger, music has been an escape and a refuge for me. One of the reasons, I don't put down forms of music that aren't my thing - even if I may think they are lame - is that I know that any kind of music can be that refuge to someone who needs it.  I just choose to write about the music I dig and the music that helps me get through the days when I don't want to write about music.

Here's today's shuffle. It's Wednesday and as we do on Wednesdays, we shuffle up all the songs saved to my phone - so we get some new tracks, some older tracks, and who knows what all. It's often a wild ride, so we call it Wild Wednesday.

Trending Tuesday Morning Shuffle - Poppycock Mix

Tweet #E2TG

Be sure to "Like" Ear to the Ground on Facebook!


All of this happened a long time ago when the world was a very different place. Of course, none of us knew that at the time.
(From The Drift - A Novel by Joe Wolfe-Mazeres) Available at Amazon.com (Kindle edition also available)

I am continuing to work on my Spotify playlists for E2TG.  So far, I have completed seven - January - July2018.  These are meant to be a cross-section of music I featured during those months - not necessarily music released in those months.   If you are interested, you can check out the playlists (links below)  and follow my personal profile to find out when new playlists are created.

E2TG January 2018
E2TG February 2018
E2TG March 2018
E2TG April 2018 
E2TG May 2018
E2TG June 2018
E2TG July 2018
E2TG August 2018 (coming soon!)

Whew!  Trying to shake these post-Americanafest blues... headed out to Dee's last night for a great set of songs by Bob Lewis, Erica Blinn, John Thursday, Tom House, and Jason Quicksall.  Tom House has been an E2TG favorite for a while, we featured Bob Lewis' last album here a while back, and he is also a favorite.  we premiered a song for Erica Blinn last year, and I think she could easily be the next "big thing" to emerge from the fertile East Nashville music community, it was my first time seeing John Thursday and Jason Quicksall, but they both impressed me greatly.  A fun night, hanging with friends in a relaxed atmosphere, and I got home before too late.

I'm going to start sharing some impressions from Americana Fest 2018:

Overall - one impression from last year still stands, the festival has grown so much - with so many official, unofficial, sanctioned, and unsanctioned events popping up all over town. Catching everything is impossible - deciding what to see and what to miss is difficult. Logistics of getting from one venue to another, dealing with parking, shifting schedules, and surprise pop-up events that blow your conceived plans... well it's all just part of the experience now. However, the variety of the musical offerings, the overall inclusiveness of the festival, and the general good vibes make it certain that I will be back for more next year.

As it does every year, discussions popped up about "What is Americana?" and complaints about what are some peoples ideas about Americana (that it's basically country music that doesn't get played on country radio), that it's bad pop bands who add fiddles and banjos... and while I am sure there is some of that present, there was a festival worth of music that doesn't any of those preconceived notions.

Anyway - more to come.  Time to dig back into our Trending Tuesday shuffle - today's six song shuffle is a bit of a palate cleanser from Americana Fest. Let's go!

Music City Monday Morning Shuffle - Trying Not to Barf Mix

Tweet #E2TG

Be sure to "Like" Ear to the Ground on Facebook!

All of this happened a long time ago when the world was a very different place. Of course, none of us knew that at the time.
(From The Drift - A Novel by Joe Wolfe-Mazeres) Available at Amazon.com (Kindle edition also available)

I am continuing to work on my Spotify playlists for E2TG.  So far, I have completed seven - January - July2018.  These are meant to be a cross-section of music I featured during those months - not necessarily music released in those months.   If you are interested, you can check out the playlists (links below)  and follow my personal profile to find out when new playlists are created.

E2TG January 2018
E2TG February 2018
E2TG March 2018
E2TG April 2018 
E2TG May 2018
E2TG June 2018
E2TG July 2018
E2TG August 2018 (coming soon!)

Well another Americana Fest is in the books.  Once again, it was a wonderful experience (and there are so many ways to experience it). It is overwhelming, but when you accept that you can't do everything and just enjoy what you can do, it all works out.  I am still recovering and have not yet processed everything, but I can say, it was great to meet some out of town friends, see and hear some E2TG favorites - including four past E2TG Artist/Band of the Year winners: Brian Wright, Darrin Bradbury, Jon Latham, and Ladies Gun Club. I also saw some potential 2018 artist/band of the year contenders.

It's time to get into the shuffle. It's Monday, so we dig into our Music City Monday playlist to get a random shuffle of great artists who do or have called Nashville home.  Let's go!