E2TG 3/30/2021 - Inward Gaze - Cinnamon Mix (Behave Remix)

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One thing occurred me - thinking back on yesterday's post. Thinking about the immensity of the issues faces the world and the country and the state and the city... is that the best place to start making changes is with ourselves.  One thing I learned in a previous part of my life is that if something is bothering your about someone else's behavior is to look at where you may have a similar behavior in your own life. It isn't always easy - because your own behavior may be quiet different but often if you take the time and make the effort to look - you will something somehow related to that bothersome behavior that you can work on in yourself. And that is often more productive since it is next to impossible to change other people's behavior. 

Today - we move on in our Featured Friday recap - with songs 18-23:

18. "Looking Through the Glass" by Kieran Mercer

First up, we have the new single single from Canadian singer-songwriter Kieran Mercer - who released his debut EP in 2016.  This is his first independent release.

19. "Noyalain (Burn)" by Lisa Gerard; Jules Maxwell

Next up, we have the first single from the forthcoming (May 7) album Burn. Lisa Gerrard  is a founding member of the band Dead Can Dance.

20. "I Wanna Be a Teenage Boy" by Zoe FitzGerald Carter

Next up, we have a new track from this Bay area songwriter and memorist. This song (from the forthcoming album Waterlines) manages to be fun and intriguing, and it is worth a close listen.  

21. "The City's Coming Down" by The New Ravis

Next up, we have a song born out of the mental health strain of the last year - from this indie duo from Galway. Really strong addition to the playlist. 

22. "Collide (Bury My Heart)" by Golden Streets of Paradise

Next up, we have the lead track from the new 3 song mini-EP from this Cleveland, Ohio duo.  Really digging this. 

23. "Taming Monsters" by Stefan Prigmore

And, we close with a powerful track from the full length debut album by this Texas singer-songwriter. An excellent album - check it out. 

  

    Featured Friday Playlist

Wild Wednesday Morning Shuffle - I Know Better Mix

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I had the chance to catch Martin Scorsese's new film Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story last night at the Belcourt - Nashville being one of 10 or 11 cities hosting this one-night only big screen showing.  The film debuts on Netflix today. I highly recommend it even if you are casual Bob Dylan fan. It is a remarkable bit of film making and some magical moments captured from the Rolling Thunder Revue tour.  I won't say any more, and I recommend against reading too much about the film before you see it.

I will say that members of the theater audience applauded several times following live performances and also laughed out loud on more than one occasion.

Today, I have an opportunity to cover a show at City Winery and to write a review. It has been a minute since I have done a formal live review - so look for that soon.


On to another "Wild Wednesday" shuffle. I think this one lives up to the name...

Wild Wednesday Morning Shuffle - Trouble in Transit Mix

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Wow!  So much to talk about, and so little time.  The finale of the Brian Wright and the Sneakups residency was nothing short of spectacular.  A large crowd filled with so many amazing musicians and songwriters. All of the shows were amazing. Brian Wright is an incredible songwriter and performer. His album Lapse of Luxury is guaranteed to be in the top tier. When I named him E2TG Artist of the Year a couple of years back, he already had a long and successful career behind him.  In some ways, he didn't fit the mold of my usual artists of the year (if I even have a mold), but I did it because at that point, he was busy backing other people and working behind the scenes at Cafe Rooster Records, and yet every time he played his own music (either solo or with a band), I was completely blown away.  I am glad to see him working on his own music.  Special guests last night were Nikki Barber of The Minks who performed one of her own songs, and Aaron Lee Tasjan who covered a classic Brian Wright song.

After that, I had the unexpected but wonderful opportunity to go to the Bluebird Cafe for a round featuring Stacey Earle, Mark Stuart (who is her husband), and two people represented in yesterday's shuffle (Jason Ringenberg and Peter Cooper).  I feel compelled to point out that my shuffles are all random, so it was pure coincidence that they were in the shuffle and that I got to go to the show.  Turns out, it was Jason's first time playing the storied venue.  Kind of hard to believe that one of Nashville music's most iconic figures had never played one of Nashville's most iconic rooms.  It was also a super rare chance to see Jason play while sitting down (you could tell it took effort for him not to bounce around).  Peter Cooper demonstrated not only his incredible skills as a songwriter but also his deep understanding and appreciation for Nashville music.  Stacey Earle is a name I've been following for decades in the Nashville music world. She is an wonderful songwriter, has a lovely voice, and is - as Jason said - one of the best rhythm guitar players around.  I wasn't familiar with Mark Stuart's music before last night, but now I want to be.

One final note, I was a huge Atlanta Brave's fan back in the 1980s and early 90s.  I watched almost every game on TBS and knew all the players. Turns out that the daughter of the Braves' centerfield and base stealing phenom from those days - Brett Butler - was working the door at the Bluebird.  Peter Cooper announced that and then did a song he wrote that mentioned the double play combination of Ramirez to Hubbard to Chambliss.   He also performed possible my all time favorite baseball song - "Opening Day".

Onward into the shuffle!

Featured Friday Morning Shuffle - Such a Jerk Mix

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Well, this post will wrap up the first full work week of 2019.  For those new here, I typically post shuffles every day I'm at work (with a few exceptions). The shuffles are just the random song shuffles of what I listened to on my way to work.

Here is a run down of a typical week at E2TG:

Monday - Music City Monday - a shuffle from a special Spotify playlist of music from people who live or have lived in Nashville. It is the only shuffle that comes from Spotify. I created this just to give a glimpse into Nashville's musically rich past, present, and future.

Tuesday and Thursday - Trending Tuesday and Trending Thursday - a shuffle of the newest of the new songs to the E2TG playlist. This is new for 2019.  I am going to try to keep this playlist fairly small and rotate music in and out more often.

Wednesday - Wild Wednesday - a shuffle of ALL the songs saved to my phone memory card. This shuffle can be anything from new stuff, classic songs, rare/weird tracks, songs ripped from CDs I've owned for up to 30 years.

Friday - Featured Friday - This shuffle comes from the "Featured Friday" playlist.  This list is also kind of new. It is basically the old "New Music" playlist (music submissions from late 2017 to 2018, but it also includes all music from the Trending playlist, plus any new to me music I get which doesn't fit the "Trending" designation - for example - I got a mix CD for a friend over the holidays - that is included here, I received a CD as a gift - that is included here.


The Video Playlist - every day there is a shuffle, I create a Video Playlist (a YouTube Playlist) as a representative playlist for the daily shuffle.  The approach I generally take is,  if I find an "Official Video" in my cursory search, I include that video, if not, if there is one of those automatically generated videos, I include that, otherwise, I include interesting live clip of the song or at last resort - I will include a "fan-made" video.  If I cannot find a video of the song at all - which sometimes happens - especially if the song is from an upcoming release, I pick a different song to represent. Rarely (although it happened yesterday), I cannot find any video by the artist in question, in which case I just skip the song.

The video playlist is really just a convenient way for E2TG readers to hear a playlist similar to the one I listened to on my commute.


Now, let's shuffle!

2018 E2TG Earie Awards - # 8 - Recap August 2018

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HOLIDAY SHOPPING ALERT!!!!: The Drift - A Novel by Joe Wolfe-Mazeres Available at Amazon.com (Kindle edition also available)


I realize that I never actually stated this, but clearly December has been solely about recapping the first eleven months of 2018.  I have a ton of new music ready to go in January.   Today, we are up to August 2018.  Back in August, we didn't think summer would ever end.  And it didn't completely end until sometime in October (or at least that is how I remember it).

More Earies and some previous Earie winners return.

Trending Tuesday Morning Shuffle - My Mission Today Mix

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ICYMI:  Earlier today, we posted our first ever E2TG Election Day Special with some new election day releases from Paul Maged and Flying Buffaloes. Read it HERE.

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)

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!)
E2TG October 2018  (coming soon!)


Well, it is Election Day 2018.  I hope you checked out our Election Special post (link up top of this post).

I'm definitely going to need music and lots of it to get me through the anxiety of the day...

Let's start with a shuffle filled with tons of first listens (including some new releases from some E2TG faves).  Plus some returning favorites.

Featured Friday Morning Shuffle - Keepers of the Gloom 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)

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 Tuesday Morning Shuffle - Extended 12 inch 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)

I am continuing to work on my Spotify playlists for E2TG.  So far, I have completed seven - January - Junly2018.  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 NEW!
E2TG July 2018 NEW!


There is something about Tuesday... I know it is cliche to hate Monday and love Friday.  I don't "hate" Tuesday, but here's the thing.  When it is Monday, there is a faint (if false) sense that if you don't like the week, you can turn around and be back in the weekend.  But Tuesday... well, on Tuesday, you are fully embedded in the week, and that glimmer of (false) hope is gone. There is nothing to do but power through...

At least, here at E2TG Tuesday means we dig into our "New Music" playlist and celebrate some of the awesome music that has been sent my way in the recent and sort of recent past.

Trending Thursday Morning Shuffle - Village and Wall 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)

I am continuing to work on my Spotify playlists for E2TG.  So far, I have completed three - January - March 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.

E2TG January 2018
E2TG February 2018
E2TG March 2018
E2TG April 2018 (NEW!)


In case you missed it, last Friday, we premiered a new song, "Gloria" by Nashville singer-songwriter Benjamin Jason Douglas from his album First World Blues which is being released this coming Friday.  Check it out HERE !

Last night, I was alerted to a last minute show add at The 5 Spot.  It was a fun hang with some friends.  On the bill was the one and only Booray, Bob Lewis, and Benjamin Jason Douglas (who's song "Gloria" we recently premiered.  It's always a pleasure to see Booray, Bob Lewis is getting set  to release an album - and he gets better every time I see him, and it was my first time seeing a full-band set from Ben Douglas - and he was incredible. Plus there were great sets from   two "new to me" artists: Noah Jackson and Baby Velvetron. 

Tonight, I will be heading back to The 5 Spot for a show that features the awesome Erica Blinn (you may recall we premiered a song for her a while back), a band called Wanderers, plus Patrick Kinsley and a Fistful of Dollars - plus a closing set (and live album recording) by Adrian + Meredith.  You may recall Kinsley and Adrian + Meredith were on the bill for our 5th Anniversary show in May 2016.

Anyway, it is Thursday - and we dive back into the "New Music" playlist for our Trending Thursday shuffle.

Let's go!

Trending Tuesday Morning Shuffle - Foghorn Mushroom Mix

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Just two days away!

Week 2 June 14: The End Men, Ted Drozdowski's Psychedelic Circus, Ben de la Cour

Here is a little taste of the wacky awesomeness that you can expect this Thursday!  

Later this month!

Week 3 June 21:  Brian Milligram, Microwave Mountain, The Coal Men

Week 4 June 28: Joanna Barbera, Bee Taylor, Eli Cook

Seven years in, and E2TG is still about keeping an ear out for what is out there.... today's "Trending Tuesday" shuffle has FIVE (5) first listens.  Let's jump right in!

Featured Friday Morning Shuffle - Seasons Songs Mix

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Well Week 1 of the E2TG 7th Anniversary Residency is in the books!  Thanks to all who came out. Special thanks to The 5 Spot, Clark Paterson and his great band, Rayvon Pettis, and The Big Dumb.  Inspiring music and good times.

We turn our attention to Week 2 coming up next Thursday, June 14th!

One of the best songwriters in Nashville, Ben de la Cour - who's most recent album is The High Cost of Living Strange will be stopping by to open the on his way to begin a Canadian tour.  Long time E2TG favorites, The End Men will be making a rare Nashville appearance. I believe this will be there first Nashville appearance since playing the Post-Americana all-day thing at The Basement a few years back. I am so excited for some of my Nashville friends to see and meet my Brooklyn friends.  Ted Drozdowski has recently started playing shows under the Ted Drozdowki's Psychedelic Circus moniker. He is a blues man - steeped in the traditions and yet willing to use those traditions a jumping off point for his otherworldly experimentation.  He has been hard at work on a new album, and I hope we hear some of his new music Thursday.

It is CMA and Bonnaroo weekend which means the temperatures have soared into the 90s.  Stay hydrated no matter what you do.

It's time for our Featured Friday shuffle. Currently, this shuffle comes from the "New Music" playlist - the same one I use for Trending Tuesday and Trending Thursday. I'm thinking of creating a Featured Friday playlist - with the idea that I can chose to "Feature" music that isn't technically "New" - which I already do - but I always feel like I have to disclaim.

Featured Friday Morning Shuffle - Neon Revolution Mix

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My novel, The Drift is out now!  Paperback or Kindle (Buy the paperback and get a Kindle version for just $.99)

E2TG 7th Anniversary Residency is coming in June to The 5 Spot!

One of my hopes in releasing The Drift into the world was to free up my head-space to write some new things.  Last night, I wrote about 1,800 words on what may end up being the follow-up book.  It's an old idea, but for a lot of reasons, I've decided to just start it from scratch.  I'm excited. Very different from The Drift.

Looking forward to a long weekend.

But first, we have a Featured Friday Shuffle - that includes a couple of first listens.  Let's do it - shall we?

Wild Wednesday Morning Shuffle - Nylon Kisses Mix

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My novel, The Drift is out now!  Paperback or Kindle (Buy the paperback and get a Kindle version for just $.99)

E2TG 7th Anniversary Residency is coming in June to The 5 Spot!

Week 1:  Clark Paterson, The Big Dumb, Rayvon Pettis
Week 2: The End Men, Ted Drozdowski's Psychedelic Circus, Ben de la Cour
Week 3:  Brian Milligram, Microwave Mountain, The Coal Men
Week 4: Joanna Barbera, Bee Taylor, Eli Cook

Last night, I caught the Bruce Springsteen tribute at The Basement East. A suburb band performed Born in the USA and a ton of other songs.  Singers included Charles Esten (Nashville, Whose Line is It Anyway?), Smooth Hound Smith, J. Marco, Andrew Leheay, Bill Eberle, and many more).  Jon Latham closed the show and as per usual brought down the house.  Fun show!

Tonight is night three of the Darrin Bradbury, Jon Latham, and Nick Nace residency at The 5 Spot.  The first two weeks were awesome, and I expect nothing less than awesome tonight.  It's an early show so you have plenty of time to catch other shows after or get home if you need to call it a night early.

It is Wednesday - and that is the day when we shuffle through all the songs on my phone memory. Anything can happen and usually does... let's go!

Trending Thursday Morning Shuffle - Trouble By the Score Mix

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Always a good night, when I get to see two former E2TG Artists of the Year share a stage.  Darrin Bradbury and Jon Latham along with Nick Nace opened up their residency which will run every Wednesday for the rest of May.  Ryan Sobb opened the show.  It was my first time seeing this recent arrival in Nashville, and I was highly impressed.

Coincidentally, on this date in E2TG history 2017, Jon Latham was scheduled to play week 2 of our sixth anniversary residency, but he ended up in the ICU - so we made the night a benefit and raised some money.  That night both Nick and Darrin played.

It's Thursday, and time to delve back into the "New Music" playlist.  I'l running a little late today, so let's jump right in!

Trending Tuesday Morning Shuffle - Blood on my Sleeve Mix

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Well, I have to say yesterday was much better than last Monday.  A week ago, I had spent 7.5 at the dentist office. Yesterday, I took in an afternoon baseball game, recorded a future Double Shot show, found out my proof copies of my first novel The Drift will arrive today, and I got my ticket in the mail for next week's Kris Kristofferson show at The Basement East.

Let's dive into the New Music playlist for what we like to call Trending Tuesday.  As usual, we have a crazy eclectic mix of music.  These are all relatively new releases or in a couple of cases recent to E2TG that we wanted to feature. 

Trending Tuesday Morning Shuffle - Bring Me Down Mix

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At long last, I am ready to start revealing the line-up for the E2TG 7th Anniversary Celebration.  Like last year, we are hosting a residency.  This year, it is every Thursday in June!  There are four weeks in June and four more days in this week, so the plan is to reveal the line-up for a different week each day. I thought we would be linear and start with Week1 - June 7, 2018!

Rayvon Pettis is the reigning E2TG Artist of the Year, he is great guy, and an incredible songwriter. I am so stoked to have him as part of my residency.  Yesterday, when I was on my way to my epic dental appointment, I listened to the title track of his awesome album, Dying Light, and it straight up gave me goosebumps.





Rayvon will be backed The Big Dumb. The Big Dumb features Javi Jones, Anna Harris, Griffin, Stephen Nicholas Roberts, and Daniel Dolive.  Besides being great musicians and a super tight backing band, The Big Dumb features several great songwriters and they are one of my favorite bands.  They stay pretty busy backing other people and doing other cool things, but when they play their own set, they totally rock. So, I am thrilled to have The Big Dumb doing a set of their own.

When I first heard about Clark Paterson, all I knew was that he was really tall (keep in mind I'm not really all that tall, so most people are tall to me) and he had a big beard. On his album The Final Tradition, he cuts a pretty intimidating figure. When I finally met him, he turned out to be a really nice guy. As for the album, it is among my favorites. I am excited to have him and his band opening the night. 

The line-up is stacked and full, so we will try to start close to on-time - so make plans to arrive.  Thursday June 7, 2018 6:00pm, at The 5 Spot. 

On to our shuffle!  We start with a #TwoferTuesday which we do every time it Tuesday and our random shuffle brings up two songs in a row by the same artist.