VA - Austin, Texas Rockin' The Crossroads

Size: 108.7 MB
Time: 45:54
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 1994
Styles: Electric Blues, Blues Rock
Art: Full

01 Luther Tucker - You Got What You Wanted (3:46)
02 Doyle Bramhall - Too Sorry (2:44)
03 Sue Foley - Open Up Your Eyes (2:30)
04 Lewis Cowdrey - Itchy And Scratchy (3:48)
05 Kim Wilson - Tigerman (3:41)
06 Candye Kane - Don't Blame It On Me (3:18)
07 Snooky Pryor - Bury You In A Paper Sack (4:35)
08 Steve James - Railroad Blues (2:19)
09 David Halley - It's Just As Well (3:36)
10 Loose Diamonds - Downtown (4:09)
11 Stephen Bruton - This Train Is Gone (3:43)
12 Pat McLaughlin - Better You Get Ready (3:12)
13 Glen Clark - Old Enough To Know Better (4:26)

In the 1980s and 1990s, Austin, Texas became more and more of a hotbed of roots music -- everything from electric blues, funk, and soul to Tex-Mex, country, rockabilly, americana, folk, and jazz. One of the independent labels that popped up in Austin was Antone's, which provides a variety of roots music on Austin, Texas: Rockin' the Crossroads. This good-to-excellent sampler offers a generous dose of high-energy electric blues, including Snooky Pryor's "Bury You in a Paper Sack" and Luther Tucker's "You Got What You Wanted." But it also contains everything from the acoustic country blues of Steve James' "Railroad Blues" to Lewis Cowdrey's "Itchy and Scratchy" (which brings a rock edge to James Brown-like funk), Sue Foley's moody soul number "Open Up Your Eyes," and earthy roots-rock/americana tunes like Pat McLaughlin's "Better You Get Ready" and David Halley's "It's Just As Well." Not all of the artists on the album are natives or residents of Austin -- some are Californians, some Midwesterners. Nonetheless, Austin, Texas paints an honest and enjoyable picture of the variety of music one could expect from the Lone Star city and from the Antone's label. ~Alex Henderson

Austin, Texas Rockin' The Crossroads MP3
Austin, Texas Rockin' The Crossroads FLAC

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Delbert McClinton & Glen Clark - The Delbert & Glen Sessions 1972-1973

Size: 170,0 MB
Time: 72:25
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2004
Styles: Blues Rock
Art: Front & Back

01. Old Standby (3:22)
02. Ain't What You Eat It's The Way You Chew It (2:20)
03. I Received A Letter (2:53)
04. I Fell The Burden (Being Lifted Off My Shoulders) (2:54)
05. 'B' Movie Box Car Blues (2:14)
06. Every Day Will Be Like A Holiday (3:07)
07. All Them Other Good Things (2:03)
08. Sugar Daddy (4:45)
09. Here Comes The Blues Again (4:06)
10. Rosie's (The Working Girl's Hotel) (3:19)
11. C.O.D. (4:57)
12. Oh My (2:11)
13. If You Don't Leave Me Alone (I'm Gonna Find Somebody Who Will) (2:55)
14. Lucky Boy (You're Ramblin' Days Are Through) (3:37)
15. Too Much (2:37)
16. Sidewalk Diploma (2:50)
17. Cold November (3:31)
18. I Don't Want To Hear It Anymore (3:35)
19. Let Me Be Your Lover (2:40)
20. Bless 'em (2:27)
21. California Livin' (2:26)
22. You Gonna Miss Me (3:07)
23. To Be With You (4:21)

The two albums compiled on this single disc, Delbert & Glen from 1972 and Subject to Change from 1973, were both issued on Warner Bros. under the stewardship of Mo Ostin and Lenny Waronker, at that time easily the most adventurous and nurturing of all the major labels. Delbert McClinton and Glen Clark understood something about the amalgam of country and rock -- as well as soul and blues -- that eluded the Eagles entirely: that the roots of those musics were gritty, unpolished, immediate, and raucous. Therefore, in listening to these two long-lost gems, one feels as if the Faces were playing with Waylon Jennings and Booker T. & the MG's simultaneously. Fans of McClinton will no doubt hear the sheer raucous roots of his solo career in these sides -- the first of which was produced in Hollywood by T-Bone Burnett, the second in Birmingham, AL, by Geoffrey Haslam. McClinton and Clark were perfect foils for one another and surrounded themselves with monster talent: from Rick Cunha and David Jackson to Stephen Bruton, Sammy Creason, and Jon Faddis. McClinton wrote all the songs on the first album, and half on the second, while Clark wrote the remainder. But these records were collaborations right down the pipe. Clark brought the tough blues and R&B credentials as a session man, and McClinton had the voice, the soul, and the hillbilly country. Some of the songs that came from this period were "Ain't What You Eat But the Way That You Chew It," "Here Comes the Blues Again," "To Be With You," "Lucky Boy," "If You Don't Leave Me Alone (I'm Gonna Find Somebody Who Will)," "I Feel the Burden," "Sugar Daddy," and many others. This set is completely inspired; it's greasy, funky, roiling Southern wildness at its best and it provides the missing chapter in McClinton's discography . No jive "early years" detritus, this is the real thing and is essential listening for fans of Southern rock and R&B. ~by Thom Jurek

The Delbert & Glen Sessions 1972-1973

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Delbert McClinton & Glen Clark - Blind, Crippled And Crazy

Year: 2013
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:14
Size: 93,1 MB
Styles: Modern electric blues
Scans: Full

1. Been Around A Long Time (3:39)
2. Whoever Said It Was Easy (2:54)
3. Oughta Know (3:09)
4. World Of Hurt (3:44)
5. More And More, Less And Less (2:53)
6. Just When I Need You The Most (3:19)
7. Somebody To Love You (4:09)
8. Sure Feels Good (4:24)
9. Tell My Mama (3:15)
10. Peace In The Valley (2:50)
11. Good As I Feel Today (3:09)
12. If I Could Be Your Lover (2:44)

According to Delbert McClinton, Blind, Crippled and Crazy has been discussed between him and singer/songwriter Glen Clark for a decade. The pair recorded two terrific records in the early '70s: Delbert and Glen in 1972 and Subject to Change in 1973. These set a blueprint for the paths both artists would follow separately. McClinton, of course, created his own genre, seamlessly melding country, blues, funky Texas R&B, and rock in his singing and songwriting. Clark would become a major songwriter - Rita Coolidge, Wynonna Judd, Etta James, Bonnie Raitt, the Blues Brothers-touring and session player.

Blind, Crippled and Crazy feels like a logical third step for this pair. The only thing giving away the breach in time is their voices, which are naturally older and more seasoned; this doesn’t mean there isn't plenty on offer: there is more than enough range, swagger, humor, and emotional depth to set any juke joint on fire. After four decades, that trademark blend of phrasing and harmonizing is still seamless. Co-produced with McClinton's songwriting partner, guitarist Gary Nicholson, the three each wrote or co-wrote about half the tracks here in various combinations, covering most of the record. The sound is immediate, gritty, and warm - unlike most records cut in Nashville these days.

Standout tracks include the good-time, self-deprecating, honky tonk blues of "Been Around a Long Time" with a great fiddle break by Stuart Duncan. The strutting, funky R&B in "World of Hurt" resembles Syl Johnson's Hi sides with Willie Mitchell, with McClinton's harmonica offering some tasty fills. Clark's "Just When I Need You Most" is a moving country love song that would have been great for the Eagles in their prime. McClinton's solo vehicle, "More and More, Less and Less," is a midtempo rocker almost smoldering with wisdom and world-weariness. "Tell My Mama" is a rocking R&B burner with honky tonk piano and razor-wire guitars. "Good as I Feel Today" is a stellar country rocker tinged with blues and soul; it's so timeless, it could have come from the duo in Austin in the early '70s.

For any fan wary about the particular brand of rugged, raucous, soulful magic these duo created being recaptured, have no fear. Blind, Crippled and Crazy is solid, lyrically, vocally, and musically, top to bottom. /Thom Jurek, AllMusic

Blind, Crippled And Crazy mc
Blind, Crippled And Crazy zippy

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