E2TG 1/21/2020 - Recent Live Shows - Wasted Saturdays Mix (Lavender Child Remix)

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To be honest, every since we got the news Saturday night about David Olney, that has been the most on my mind. I did want to check in about a couple of live music shows that I caught over the weekend.

Friday night, I caught another Tim Carroll Rock N Roll Happy Hour at The 5 Spot. He does this every Friday from 6-8:30 (with no breaks) and done so for several years. I was trying to remember the last Friday he missed, and I had to go back to somewhere around 2014. The remarkable thing is that the show is all originals (I think "Uncle John" which he does sometimes is a traditional song), and every show is different.  Friday's show featured several of what I consider "classic" Tim Carroll songs plus some new ones. It is all good, all loud, and a great way to spend a Friday evening.

Saturday, I headed back to The 5 Spot for another rock and roll show. This one featured Hannah Fairlight Group, Nashville Non Prophets, and The Truehearts.  Hannah Fairlight Group rocked hard. Nashville Non Prophets featuring Mitch Laney came out with a high energy assault and never let up. The Truehearts remain a favorite of mine. They rock, but in a more subtle way and together it was a great show.

I posted my review of Sunshine Boys opening for Juliana Hatfield at Basement East.

Sunday Night was the CD Release Show for John Dennis' Mortal Flames. I referenced that show in my piece on David Olney yesterday.  To expound, just a little because I am short on time.  John Dennis'  Mortal Flames is a concept album about Life and Death and everything in between. It is a bit about our immortality being tied to the light we leave with others. It is heavy at time, but it is ultimately a life affirming work, and I suspect it will be among my favorites of 2020 when the year is said and done.

2018 E2TG Earie Awards - # 1 - Recap January 2018

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For your holiday shopping: The Drift - A Novel by Joe Wolfe-Mazeres Available at Amazon.com (Kindle edition also available)


I took an unexpected day off yesterday to fight off a winter cold - hopefully sucessfully... And busy end of week and weekend ahead.   

Guess what!  It is time for the 2018 Earie Awards.  Looking back, I believe this is year 4 of the semi-prestigious awards.  For those new to the E2TG fold, The Earies (tagline: The Earies: they sound kind of odd, but they really aren't) began as a way to recap the great music featured on E2TG over the last year. I don't do Top Ten (or more or less) lists. I'm not opposed to the concept, but I know I would obsess forever about what to include and what to leave off. So, I opted for giving out a bunch of awards.

The award names are arbitrary and sometimes silly, but the sentiment behind them is sincere.  E2TG could not exist without the amazing music that comes my way every day.  The music I feature ends up being a fraction of that submitted, and those that become "E2TG favorites" are a fragment of that fragment.

This year, I am trying something new- out of necessity. As I have been receiving and featuring more and more music, it became harder for me to keep up with it all. One way, I dealt with that in 2018 is to create Spotify Playlists for each month highlighting some of the music featured that month.  See the bottom of this post for links to the Spotify Playlists. 

To kick things off, today's special "Earier" shuffle comes from the January 2018 E2TG playlist. Enjoy!

Featured Friday Morning Shuffle - 1000 Words Mix

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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)

It is always fun when talented friends share a bill. Last night, it was Chris Moyse (with Sean Quinn and Erin Nelson in his band), Andrew Adkins, and Smoking Flowers. A fun night of music.

Also, may I just say, I could live with seeing various incarnations of the Collins family every week or so. Last week, it was Justin and the Cosmics, a couple of weeks before that it was Smoking Flowers, and them Smoking Flowers again. Looking forward to the next one.


A friend of mine once described E2TG as wildly inclusive. I like that description. If I hear music that moves me in some way, I want to write about it without concern for what "kind" of music it is. I have nothing but respect for more sharply focused music sites - whether that focus be genre-specific or geographic or whatever.  It's just not what I want to do. The plain fact is that there is way more awesome music than I could ever cover. I know that because I often "discover" a band/artist that I think is awesome - and then discover that they have been awesome for years.

From day one of E2TG, I knew I could not be a comprehensive source of everything worthwhile that is new. The fact is - even with the wildly diverse song selections I present - it is amazing how connections keep happening all the time.

Onward!  We have another diverse selection of music from all over the world today.  Let' shuffle!

Featured Friday Morning Shuffle - Hey Hey Mix

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Reminded again how inspired I am by people with bold creative ideas - not only in music but in other forms of art. People who have a vision of something - regardless of their experience with that thing - and who pursue that vision with all of their heart. I think one of my weaknesses is self-doubt combined with a tendency to put too much stock in naysayers - people who tell you why you shouldn't or cant' do something.

My goal is to follow my visions no matter what. I'd rather fail spectacularly while attempting something big than succeed mildly while settling for something small. 

Just some thoughts on a Friday. 

Now, time to see what's our Featured Friday playlist shuffled up!

Trending Tuesday Morning Shuffle - U Can Do Anything Mix

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Welcome to early spring in Nashville. Yesterday, we had warm temperatures and the threat of severe weather. Tonight, sub-freezing temperatures and a threat of light snow.

Anyway, the news of the day is depressing, the weather is a bit dreary, so how 'bout we just dive in to some music... Music helps.  It always helps....

Wild Wednesday Morning Shuffle - I Begin to Roll Mix

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Man this sure is an interesting time to be alive.  Interesting is a good word because it is kind of neutral. Things being interesting may be good or they maybe bad or maybe just interesting. The thing is, I am of the philosophy that we cannot really ever know in the moment if something is good or bad. Meaning that we don't know the bigger picture.  Something happens which we view as bad, but as a result of that thing - something else happens (or doesn't happen) which we then interpret to be a good thing.  But even then, we don't really know...

All that to say, that for today, I am choosing to just take in all of the "interesting" things, to act and/or speak when I feel I must, but to stop trying to pretend I know everything or actually much of anything...

I will hopefully have some exciting announcements soon. Ironing out the final details of the June Anniversary Residency at The 5 Spot, and I hope to have a show announcement soon for April.  And who knows what else.

Meanwhile, it is Wednesday - the day we get "Wild" at E2TG.  Actually, we get wild everyday, but Wednesday, we shuffle from all the songs on my phone - so you never know what will come up... so it's like a wildcard. Thus, Wild Wednesday!

Trending Thursday Morning Shuffle - The Nothing Party Mix

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My two cents... actual value may vary... End Citizen's United (doublespeak if I've ever heard doublespeak - and I have).   Vote against any candidate who accepts money from the NRA or the gun lobby. Pass and enforce common-sense gun control.  Increase funding for our children. More teachers, more counselors.  Begin to have conversations about the role of guns in our society. The change in culture will take time and it will not be easy.

If you want to offer "thoughts and prayers" for the victims and their families, that is fine, but add some thoughts and prayers for effective and meaningful change in law and attitudes.

These are just ideas. What we are (and are not) doing is clearly not working. Shouting at each other on social media every time there is a mass shooting is clearly not working.   Protecting the lives of our children should not be partisan or divisive issue. How we go about doing that may be, but surely there is common ground.

I don't know... I'm once again heartbroken and numb and angry and frustrated. I've read that 80% of Americans - across party lines - support some kind of reform of gun laws. But our lawmakers ignore the 80% in favor of large donors who represent the gun lobby. That's why I think electoral reform - beginning with an end to Citizen's United is the place to start. Corporations are not people. People are people.  People are fallible, flawed entities, but in the end, I think most people want to keep our children safe. Corporations, by definition, only want to increase the profits of the corporation. That is their purpose.

Okay I'm done....
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It's Thursday - Let's see what's "Trending" at E2TG. As I left for work, I hit shuffle on the "New Music" playlist of my phone's music player. Here is what happened next...

Trending Thursday Morning Shuffle - Duplex Castle Mix

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I AM  BACK!  Thanks everyone for your patience.  I should be back to a normal posting schedule now.

I am a bit behind on adding new music to my playlist and answering e-mails, but we'll get there. 

In the meantime, after today's post, there are still 428 tracks in my New Music playlist including some awesome songs that haven't popped up yet in a shuffle- so stay tuned! 

Last night, at Dee's Country Cocktail Lounge - the amazing Kevn Kinney (Drivin' n Cryin') played a awesome set of music backed by the equally amazing Laur Joamets (aka Little Joe - previously from Sturgill Simpson's band and currently of Drivin' n Cryin').  As an added bonus/surprise, due to Mr. Kinney being delayed by car troubles, Jon Latham played a set that included two covers - "Thirteen" by Big Star and "My Hometown" by Springsteen.  Plus of course, some of his great songs from Real Bad News and his current album Lifers.  Dee's co-owner, Daniel Walker led a wonderful house band who rounded out the night.

Now, let's jump right into this Trending Thursday Shuffle!

Featured Friday Morning Shuffle - Feedback Downerzzz Mix

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Well, we've reached the end of another work week and another week of shuffles.  I haven't had a normal five day work week in almost a month, and I am going to be taking some time off at the end of January, first part of February - more on that later....

I've been thinking about E2TG quite a bit. It has been a part of my life for going on seven years. In the beginning, I stated a philosophy and even though much has changed in those seven years, I still try to stick as close to that philosophy.  I recognized early one that I could never "compete" with some of major music sites in terms of covering all the "hot" or "hip" or whatever music. So, I set my sights on featuring music you may not be reading about in those brand x blogs. What that has meant has changed somewhat but not entirely. In recent months, I have had the opportunity to feature some artists that would have never thought possible before.

What thrills me more than anything is the diversity of music that I am able to feature and write about. For me, that is more than a philosophy or modus operandi, it is an imperative. Since I first got interested in music, I have had an almost insatiable appetite for more and different music - always aware of the sometimes obscure thread that runs through it all.

With that being said (whatever it was I said), I have a wonderful and diverse set of songs that came up randomly in my shuffle of my new music playlist. Yesterday - there were only six songs in the shuffle - today, we have twelve.

Trending Thursday Morning Shuffle - Rise Above Mix

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So, it's Thursday.  In the past, I have done a Throwback Thursday shuffle (songs at least 10 years old or maybe it was twenty).  Later, I came up with Topical Thursday - where I created a special playlist of songs that closely (or loosely) fit into a special theme or topic. 

At the end of 2017, I preempted Topical Thursday - to add one more day of "new music" to deal with the backlog of songs in my "New Music" playlist.

And I have decided to make that change permanent (or at least for the foreseeable future) to reflect the large volume of new music that is coming my way,  For want of a more clever term, I'm calling it Trending Thursday (to follow Trending Tuesday).

As I stated on Tuesday, I started the year with over 400 songs in my new music playlist - which included a ton of brand new music plus some holdovers from 2017. 

Let's shuffle: