E2TG 2/16/2021 - Ice and Snow and Life - Long Time Gone Mix (Liverwurst Remix)

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I have always tended to like snow and icy weather. When I was a kid, it meant we were out of school and I loved playing in the snow. I guess, overall, I still do like snow- at least in theory and at least when I can stay warm inside and watch it... but I really don't like the cold or the inconvenience of it all - places closed, roads dangerous, people dangerous.  But, lately, here in Nashville, we don't get much snow, so it is kind of exciting - at least at first. 

This particular winter weather event is, I guess, a little more annoying that usual. This is supposed to be my week to "get on with life" and the snow and ice makes it feel like I am being hampered from getting on with life... 

Featured Friday Playlist (Songs 12-15)

12. "Better Days" by Jennifer Tefft

The new single from this singer-songwriter based in New England. Tefft is a cancer survivor who underwent an unexpected divorce and was just emerging into a new life of teaching music and touring around New England when the pandemic hit. This beautiful song is her response and it offers hope to many of us who have faced our own versions of her story. 

13. "Waiting on You Tonight" by Beth Lee

The debut solo album from this Austin, Texas based singer-songwriter who has released albums previously with Beth Lee & the Breakups.  This album was recorded in the East Bay area of California. Wonderful stuff. 

14. "Stars" by Brian Falduto

Next up, we have a recent single from NYC based queer country singer-songwriter Brian Falduto. A great introduction to this artist. 

15. "WFTWTE" by Arrlo

 We close out this segment of music with a recent single from this Riverside, CA indie band which is fronted by transgender male singer-songwriter Sunni Suede. An awesome song and a great way to close out this part of the playlist. 

 

    Featured Friday Playlist

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E2TG 3/13/2020 - The New Abnormal - Featured Friday - Time is Now Mix (Losing Form Remix)

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I hate using the word unprecedented, but here we are.  With major festivals being cancelled or postponed, major sports tournaments and even whole seasons being cancelled, music venues closing down, schools closed - this is not something I have ever experienced in my lifetime.  I am someone who likes to help when people are in need - as I am able - but lately the need seems so overwhelming.  Nashville is still recovering from last week's tornado, and now this...

Right at this moment, I don't have a solution, except to love each other and help when and where you can, exercise caution...   And be creative.  We are in difficult times, and people I care about are suffering from loss of income and other losses.  But, we are creative people, and maybe, just maybe, we can find a creative way to get through this time of crisis - together.  In the meantime, if you love music (and if you reading this), you can support your favorite independent artists by buying physical copies of their music or buying merch, viewing and tipping for virtual shows, and maybe other ways, I haven't thought of.  If you are choosing or forced to stay away from seeing live music, consider donating the money that you would have spent - door cover, drinks, tips, etc. to The 5 Spot GoFundMe or some other cause supporting artists.

I love you all, and I still believe we will get through this.

Now, it is Friday and that means two things: New Release Day and a new Featured Friday Playlist.

Taken from my New Release listing below - here are the albums, EPs, and Singles being released today - March 13, 2020

Today!:

3/13 - The Flatmates - The Flatmates (LP)

3/13 - Kleenex Girl Wonder - Ponyoak (20th Anniversary Edition) + BLP (demos and out-takes) (LP)
3/13 - Sandwick - Reconstruct (LP)
3/13 - Foley and the Fire - "Springsteen on the Radio" (single)
3/13 - Kalee Smyth - The Ceiling (EP)

3/13 - Sha Davis - Songs I Wrote When You Left (EP)

3/13 - The Losing Touch - "Through the Night" (single)

3/13 - Gerry Gareau - Feet Off The Brakes (EP)

3/13 - Ayla Brook and the Sound Men - Desolation Sounds (LP)

3/13 - The Academy of Sun - "The Parts That Need Replacing" (single)

3/13 - Sunday Morning - Consequences of Love (EP)

3/13 - Rosemary Fossee - "Tu me manques" (single)

The Flatmates, Kleenex Girl Wonder, Kalee Smyth, The Losing Touch, Gerry Gareau, Ayla Brook and the Sound Men, and The Academy of the Sun are all in the new Featured Friday Playlist - joined by Nathan Kalish, Marco Bonvicini, Telepathic Teddy Bear. Terry Presume, and Vega Maestro.

Check it out below and on Spotify - where you can Follow the playlist for all your weekly updates.

    Featured Friday Playlist

Trending Tuesday Morning Shuffle - Born in Tennessee Mix

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Crazy day, and I am a bit rushed, so let's get right to today's Trending Tuesday shuffle.

Trending Thursday Morning Shuffle - Twisted Up Mix

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It is just over two weeks until the Magnolia Roads American Roots Hoedown IV (April 26 and 27) at The 5 Spot.  I am excited to officially announce that I will be acting as Co-MC for this mini-festival.  Great music, beer specials, a silent auction, a community canvas art project, and so much more. This is a don't miss event!

I am working on getting a ton of new music added to my playlist - I may have to move some songs off of  "Trending" playlist. That's never an easy decision for me to make.

Anyway, let's dive right into to today's shuffle because time is tight!

Trending Thursday Morning Shuffle - Another Way Mix

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Any show that starts with a former E2TG Artist of the Year followed by the reigning E2TG Band of the Year - sure has something going for it.  I ended up at The 5 Spot (I know! It's shocking!) for the late show last night. Darrin Bradbury kicked things off. It was one of his best solo sets (that I have seen). Many of his newest songs are emotionally powerful - continuing to walk that line of humor and brutal honestly (brutal but delivered with heart and charm).  The Big Dumb were up next, and I continue to be blown away by this band. In my view they somehow manage to be a tight unit while still be incredibly loose.  They are all multi-talented artists, and something magical happens when they come together.  Chicago band Half Gringa were next. This was my first time seeing them, and I was very impressed.  I really dug their set.  Ryan Sobb closed the night with a full-band set. It was my first time seeing Sobb with a band, and it was great hearing his wonderful songs - fleshed out. It was a high energy rocking set of music.

Whew!  We have to get going!  It's Thursday - time to head back to the Trending playlist. Interestingly, this same playlist on Tuesday brought up a mix that was heavily weighted toward experimental and/or noisy music. Today, we get more roots, singer-songwriter type songs. It's all good. Let's go!

Trending Tuesday Morning Shuffle - Primitiv Mix

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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 nine - January - September 2018.  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.

JUST ADDED!  August and September 2018 Playlists!

E2TG January 2018
E2TG February 2018
E2TG March 2018
E2TG April 2018 
E2TG May 2018
E2TG June 2018
E2TG July 2018
E2TG August 2018 (NEW!)
E2TG September 2018  (NEW!)
E2TG October 2018  (Coming Soon!)

WXNA thanks you  — our generous listeners — for helping us not only meet but exceed our fundraising goal for our fall pledge drive. Your support will help make sure this station continues to grow and thrive. We are so grateful that you are the people in people-powered radio.


Day 2 of my 3 day work week....   I went out last night for Madison Guild Monday at Dee's.  Mark Robinson, Grace Adele, Davis Raines, Megan Palmer with Bob Lewis, Conrad y Skordalia, and Maynard and the Musties all played excellent sets. Lots of cool folks in attendance. All in all a fun night.

It's Tuesday - so let's see what is trending at E2TG this fine mid-November day...

Trending Tuesday Morning Shuffle - To the Bone Mix

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Words No Music A Reading coming Thursday, November 15, 2018 6:30pm Radio Cafe Nashville. No Cover, tips accepted and books will be for sale. We have an incredible line-up featuring David Olney,  Rod Picott, Luke Powers, Rebecca Weiner Tompkins, and yours truly. All but me are incredible musicians and songwriters, but for this show - they will let their words speak for them without music.  I will be reading from The Drift plus some selections from a forthcoming book.   FACEBOOK EVENT HERE!

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 nine - January - September 2018.  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.

JUST ADDED!  August and September 2018 Playlists!

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


I'm back. I was off work yesterday for Veteran's Day.  So, we are back with a Trending Tuesday shuffle of our "New Music" playlist.  Today's shuffle is heavily weighted with singer-songwriters - with some "not singer-songwriters" rounding out the shuffle.  To me that is what is fun about the random shuffle - the same mix of songs/artists/albums can produce such wildly different shuffles. Another day, we might have virtually no singer-songwriter type songs - and instead the shuffle may be more electronic/experimental/punk oriented.  Well... let's see about today's shuffle!

Trending Thursday Morning Shuffle - Día de los Inocentes 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)

If you have read The Drift, please consider writing a review on Amazon. If you haven't read it, you can get your own copy through Amazon or if you are in Nashville, you can get them from me.

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!)
E2TG September 2018  (coming soon!)

Words No Music A Reading coming Thursday, November 15, 2018 6:30pm Radio Cafe Nashville. No Cover, tips accepted and books will be for sale. We have an incredible line-up featuring David Olney,  Rod Picott, Luke Powers, Rebecca Weiner Tompkins, and yours truly. All but me are incredible musicians and songwriters, but for this show - they will let their words speak for them without music.  I will be reading from The Drift plus some selections from a forthcoming book.   FACEBOOK EVENT HERE!

I am short on time so, we will get right to the Trending Thursday shuffle!  Let's go!

Trending Tuesday Morning Shuffle - Mixed Emotions 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)

If you have read The Drift, please consider writing a review on Amazon. If you haven't read it, you can get your own copy through Amazon or if you are in Nashville, you can get them from me.

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!)
E2TG September 2018  (coming soon!)

SAVE THE DATE!!!!!  Thursday, November 15, 2018 - We have a pretty cool event in the works.  More to come! I can tell you this isn't really an E2TG event.  It is connected to my novel, The Drift, and we have some super cool guests lined up.  Announcement soon!


It is Tuesday. We are marching toward the end of the month and toward election day. I honestly go back and forth between hope and despair. Mostly, I have a great sadness for this divisiveness of these times. This an issue that has been brewing for years, but it has reached critical mass. I think the 24 hour news cycle and social media and extremism are all part and parcel of the problem, but ultimately it is the collective "US" that owns the majority of the responsibility. Collectively, we have the power to reject what is happening.  It is us that fall for the Russian interference that share and post - unreliable "news" stories - that watch highly partisan "news" programs that merely provide confirmation for our beliefs.  It is "US" that disapproves of Congress but keeps re-electing the most egregious members again and again. 

The problem is that "We the People" have shirked our responsibilities. Voting rates have been shamefully low, we allow ourselves to be distracted from the things that matter by manufactured divisive "issues" created by special interests who pay off the politicians we keep re-electing.  The problem isn't "conservatives or liberals" - there is room in this country for all sides of the political prism. We don't seek out common ground as a place to begin to hear and see one another.  And neither do our elected officials.

I wish I had solutions and the power to carry out those solutions, but I don't. The fact is, though, no matter the outcome of the mid-term elections (and I know the outcome I want), the fundamental problems of our society will still exist.  And until, we find a way to deal with those issues, our democracy will continue to be in danger.  Practically, I think ending Citizen's United is the most important first step. Then, comprehensive campaign finance reform. 

I wish our country had a history of more than two parties. I think the binary notion of beliefs is so limiting for us. Not every one who votes "Blue" or who votes "Red" believes all of the same things. Unfortunately, until changes are made, a third party candidate will only steal votes from the "side" that they most closely fit. A strong left-leaning third party will split the "blue" vote and a strong right-leaning third party will split the "red" vote.  "Blue or Red" should not be the only choices but until something vital changes in our systems, that is the reality.

For the reasons I enumerated yesterday, I plan to vote straight blue. Not because I think the Democrats are perfect or that they 100% represent my values. For the alternative has become toxic. There was a time when I would have considered voting for a moderate right-leaning candidate if the left-leaning candidate was not favorable to me. But, not this time. Not even a slight hesitation.


Music though!  We have a cool, diverse mix of songs to carry us through another day....

Trending Tuesday Morning Shuffle - Famous to Me 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)

If you have read The Drift, please consider writing a review on Amazon. If you haven't read it, you can get your own copy through Amazon or if you are in Nashville, you can get them from me.

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!)
E2TG September 2018  (coming soon!)

SAVE THE DATE!!!!!  Thursday, November 15, 2018 - We have a pretty cool event in the works.  More to come!


The other night, I found myself, lamenting my lot in life or at least some aspects of my lot in life. Almost automatically, I started to mentally tick off a list of things that are good about my life. This wasn't always an automatic response. It literally took me years, and it's still not always automatic - but it often kicks in fairly quickly.  In religion, they call it "counting your blessings", in the recovery communities, they call it "a gratitude list". The thing is, more often than not, it works for me. 

An aside, I am aware that for some with serious issues of clinical depression or other conditions, the solution is rarely this simple. But, it is one tool (among many) that just may help.

Regardless of all the hard times, bad decisions, pain, and struggles that it took for me to be where I am, the fact is, I am a music fan - who has a choice to go see great live music anytime I want to.  I have a music blog that allows me to meet all sorts of cool people from all over the world.

I also have a radio show that I have been doing for over two years with one of my favorite people in the world (Sue Havlish) on the BEST RADIO STATION in Nashville (as voted by the Readers of the Nashville Scene - for the second year in a row!!!!!!!). That is amazing.

So, while my life is so far from perfect that I can't even imagine what perfect looks like, it is still pretty damn good.

Onward, we move back into the "New Music" playlist.  We have a few "first listens" and overall, a pretty wild and diverse shuffle - so, let's do it!