This year's Thanksgiving Playlist is a mix of up-tempo songs to keep us energized during Thanksgiving dinner cleanup plus lots of new songs that I played on my radio shows. Here's the Spotify link. I've been doing these playlists for about 20 years and rule #1 is never to repeat a song although I broke that rule for American Girl after Tom Petty died.
My wife Leslie suggested we start with Start Me Up by The Rolling Stones. Somehow I've never thought of that!
Next is the badass Bruce song, Man's Job, featuring both Sam Moore and Bobby King on the backing vocals.
I have always loved Jennifer Johnson & Me from Robert Earl Keen and Heard It in a Love Song by The Marshall Tucker Band.
How 'bout some new Reckless Kelly? Keep Lookin' Down The Road.
Joe Ely's Fingernails will bring the energy level up. Keep those air piano-playing fingers high!
Of all the great songs from the Twisters soundtrack, I keep coming back to Wall of Death by Wilderado, Ken Pomeroy and James McAlister. You can see the three of them playing it in the scene where a bunch of storm chasers are hanging out by a camp fire, grilling, throwing a football around.
Morgan Wade's new album, Obsessed, contains the powerful Time to Love, Time to Kill.
Next are two from Sierra Ferrell's Trail of Flowers album, nominated for the Grammy in Best Americana Album, I'll Come Off The Mountain and Lighthouse, which was nominated for Best Americana Roots Performance. There is more Sierra Ferrell to come.
I had never heard of Jesse Malin until I heard his haunting Broken Radio '22, dedicated to his late mother who died when he was a teen. This song was originally released in 2007 and features a voice you will recognize. Watch them play it here. And I recently read that Jesse Malin is recovering from a stroke and Springsteen and others have put together a tribute album of his songs called Silver Patron Saints.
Texas Tornados - Doug Sahm, Augie Meyers, Flaco Jimenez and Freddy Fender - tear it up on (Hey Baby) Que Paso, with Augie singing the lead.
The classic Volver, Volver from Los Lobos is for my son Gary, who wrote a paper about these guys for college!
Californian John Stewart was a member of the Kingston Trio and sang on Bobby Kennedy's presidential campaign. His, July, You're A Woman has always been one of my favorites and now is a favorite of my California girl Dara!
Just Outside Of Austin, by Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real, refers to his dad Willie's ranch on the Pedernales River, where Leslie and I have been to several of Willie's Luck Reunions. "It ain't so bad a place to raise a kid". Check out the video and while you're at it, check out Lukas's video for his dad on Willie's 90th birthday.
Austinites The Band of Heathens and former Austinite Hayes Carll are touring as Hayes & The Heathens. Here's Nobody Dies From Weed, which also has a fun video.
Let's stick with Hayes Carll for a minute with Nice Things. "This is why I gave you empathy".
Billy & Beau is a beautiful song by North Dakotan Brennen Leigh. "The heart wants to go where the heart wants to go".
The late Chris Wall wrote the great song, I Feel Like Hank Williams Tonight. Jerry Jeff Walker had a great version of it. Here's Sunny Sweeney's.
I can't get enough Turnpike Troubadours. I saw them this year at Georgetown, TX's Two Step Inn Fest, which is rapidly becoming my favorite music festival. Here's Whole Damn Town and Every Girl.
Next come three of my candidates for 2024 Song of the Year.
Sierra Ferrell's American Dreaming, also from Trail of Flowers, has been nominated for Best Americana Performance and Best American Roots Song (co-written with Melody Walker). (Don't ask me to explain how the Grammys differentiate between "Americana" and "American Roots"!). I think this record is best appreciated from the video which shows her playing the song starting in her tour van to bigger and bigger audiences as the song builds to its crescendo. Yes, she's been majorly successful in chasing her American Dream but she reminds you of they price to be paid. I got to see Sierra at the Luck Reunion last year and at both the Two Step Inn Fest and at Stubbs in Austin this year!
Kacey Musgraves' musings on life and free will, The Architect, was nominated for Best Country Solo Performance, Best Country Song (written with Shane McAnally and Josh Osborne) and the album it's from, Deeper Well, Best Country Album.
Does it happen by chance? Is it all happenstance?Do we have any say in this mess?Is too late to make some more space?Can I speak to the architect?This life that we make, is it random or fate?Can I speak to the architect?
The beautiful duet between Raul Malo and Sierra Ferrell, Moon & Stars, from The Mavericks new album, rounds out my candidates for 2024 Song of the Year. Sierra's soaring vocal makes this song for me.
Room at the Top is right up there with American Girl as my favorite Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers songs. Then there's this classic from Stevie Nicks with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Stop Draggin' My Heart Around!
Your taste of Jason Isbell is If It Takes a Lifetime.
I keep on showing upHell bent on growing upIf it takes a lifetime
The Bob Marley biopic, One Love, came out this year. Kingsley Ben-Adir is incredible as Brother Bob, and bassist Aston "Family Man" Barrett's son plays his dad. Here's Family Man's biggest moment: Stir It Up. Kacey Musgraves recorded Marley's Three Little Birds on Deeper Well.
We lost a great songwriter, singer and actor, Kris Kristofferson, this year. Here's his To Beat the Devil.
