Category Archives: Country Swing

Hillbilly Fever

Hillbilly Fever
Hillbilly Fever

The sound was simple, fun, and certainly influential. It evolved from ancestral celebrations…finding its groove by the mid 1930s and playing itself out as a popular voice well through the early days of what was termed the Golden Age of Country Music, the 1950s. The entertainment industry collectively shunned the hillbilly term by the mid-50s, choosing the more sedate “Country and Western” moniker and certainly the even more narcoleptic sound of Nashvile going into the coming decade and beyond. Hillbilly music lives today only as splinter and special edge-case Americana. Listen and find out.

No.Artist Title Album Buy
1The Delmore Brothers Hillbilly Boogie 26 All-Time Country Classics Amazon
2Sons of The Ozarks Plantation Blues Hillbilly Blues Amazon
3The Lone Star Cowboys Deep Elm Blues Hillbilly Blues Amazon
4Ernest Tubb & Red Foley Don't Be Ashamed Of Your Age Hillbilly Fever [Disc 2] Amazon
5Bill Carlisle Bell Clappin' Mama Hillbilly Blues Amazon
6Al Dexter Hi-De-Ho Boogie On A Saturday Night Stompin' Singers & Western Swingers ([Disc 4] Saturday Night Rag) Amazon
7Al Dexter Pistol Packin' Mama Pistol Packin' Mama Amazon
8Curly Williams Southern Belle Country & Western, Vol.2 [Disc 5] Amazon
9Cliff Bruner's Texas Wanderers Bring It On Home To Grandma Theme Time Radio Hour – Season 3 – [Disc 1] Amazon
10Cliff Bruner's Texas Wanderers I Was A Gambler In Texas Stompin' Singers & Western Swingers ([Disc 4] Saturday Night Rag) Amazon
11Faron Young If You Aint Lovin' (You Aint Livin') Hillbilly Fever – Vol. 3: Legends Of Nashville Amazon
12W. Lee O'Daniel & His Hillbilly Boys There'll Be Some Changes Made Okeh Western Swing Amazon
13Clyde Moody 08 – Nobody's Business The Hillbilly Waltz King Amazon
14Little Jimmy Dickens Hillbilly Fever Roughneck Blues 1949 – 1956 Amazon
15Grandpa Jones It's Raining Here This Morning (Remake) Hillbilly Bop 'n' Boogie: King/Federal Roots of Rockabilly 1944 – 56 Amazon
16Ocie Stockard & His Wanderers Bass Man Jive Western Swing: Hot Hillbilly Jazz & Blues – 1935-1947 Amazon
17Joe Maphis & Rose Lee Dim Lights, Thick Smoke (And Loud, Loud Music) Hillbilly Fever: Vol. 4 – Heroes Of Country Music – Vol. 4: Legends Of The West Coast Amazon
18Hank Penny Hadacillin Boogie King Of Hillbilly Bebop [Disc 2] Amazon
19Hank Penny Hillbilly Jump King Of Hillbilly Bebop [Disc 2] Amazon
20Billy Jack Wills & His Western Swing Band Troubles (Those Lonesome Kind) Hillbilly Fever! Vol. 1: Legends Of Western Swing Amazon
21Redd Stewart Brother Drop Dead (Boogie) Hillbilly Bop 'n' Boogie: King/Federal Roots of Rockabilly 1944 – 56 Amazon
22Charlie Gore I Put My Britches On Just Like Everybody Else Hillbilly Bop 'n' Boogie: King/Federal Roots of Rockabilly 1944 – 56 Amazon
23Speedy West & Jimmy Bryant Bryant's Bounce Swinging Hollywood Hillbilly Cowboys Amazon
24Red Foley Choc'late Ice Cream Cone Hillbilly Fever [Disc 2] Amazon
25The Light Crust Doughboys Little Hillbilly Heart Throb Stompin' Singers & Western Swingers ([Disc 1] Hot Mama Stomp) Amazon
26Skeets McDonald Scoot Git And Begone Swinging Hollywood Hillbilly Cowboys Amazon
27Jimmy Bryant Jelly Beans Daddy Swinging Hollywood Hillbilly Cowboys: The West Coast Indies Amazon
28Luke Wills Four Or Five Times Swinging Hollywood Hillbilly Cowboys: The West Coast Indies Amazon
29Rose Maddox & Her Brothers Sally Let Your Bangs Hang Down Swinging Hollywood Hillbilly Cowboys: The West Coast Indies Amazon
30Robbie Fulks We Live A Long Time To Get Old 13 Hillbilly Giants Amazon
31The Ranch Girls & Their Ragtime Wranglers Hillbilly Jive With a Boogie Beat Can You Hear It? Amazon
32Larry Nolen & The Bandits Hillbilly Love Affair Bear Family "Perfect for Parties" Highlight Album Amazon
33The Osborne Brothers Hillbilly Fever World's Hottest Bluegrass Amazon
34Bill Kirchen Hillbilly Truck Drivin' Man Tied to the Wheel Amazon
35Junior Brown Hillbilly Hula Gal 12 Shades of Brown Amazon
36BR5-49 Little Ramona (Gone Hillbilly Nuts) BR5-49 Amazon
37BR5-49 Cherokee Boogie BR5-49 Amazon

Dark Moon

Deeper Roots on KOWS
Deeper Roots on KOWS

We’re going to go pretty deep this coming Saturday morning here in Western Sonoma County. It’s a mix of old time and tradition with a few themed sets including social sciences, the labor blues, calypso rhythm, minstrelsy, and some special sounds from Ira and Charlie Louvin. Performers this week include Darby  & Tarlton, Riley Puckett, Fern Jones, Arizona Dranes, and a pair each from Ry Cooder and Harry Belafonte. It’s a “Great Dream From Heaven” for KOWS listeners on an August morning in Occidental. Broadcast on KOWS 107.3 FM on August 22, 2015.

No.Artist Title Album Buy
1Little Jimmy Dickens May The Bird Of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose Columbia Country Classics, Vol. 3: Americana Amazon
2Ry Cooder Great Dream From Heaven Into The Purple Valley (Remaster 2013) Amazon
3Del McCoury Fireside Chat, Part 1 (feat. Franklin D. Roosevelt) Moneyland Amazon
4Bob Miller The Rich Man And The Poor Man [Rematered 2003] Poor Man's Heaven – Blues And Tales Of The Great Depression – When The Sun Goes Down Series Amazon
5Frank Crumit A Tale of the Ticker [Remastered 2003] Poor Man's Heaven – Blues And Tales Of The Great Depression – When The Sun Goes Down Series Amazon
6Uncle Dave Macon All In Down And Out Blues [2003 Remastered] Poor Man's Heaven – Blues And Tales Of The Great Depression – When The Sun Goes Down Series Amazon
7Ry Cooder Denomination Blues Into The Purple Valley Amazon
8Washington Phillips Denomination Blues Bob Dylan Presents: Radio Radio, Theme Time Radio Hour, Vol. 1 Amazon
9Arizona Dranes God's Got A Crown He Is My Story: The Sanctified Soul Of Arizona Dranes Amazon
10Elvis Presley Swing Down Sweet Chariot His Hand In Mine Amazon
11Fern Jones By And By The Glory Road Amazon
12Dave Van Ronk That'll Never Happen No More Sunday Street Amazon
13Ramblin' Jack Elliott Dark As A Dungeon Best Of The Vanguard Years Amazon
14Emmett Miller That's The Good Old Sunny South Minstrel Man From Georgia Amazon
15Emmett Miller & His Georgia Crackers Lovesick Blues Minstrel Man From Georgia Amazon
16Hazel Dickens & Alice Gerrard Coal Miner Blues Classic Mountain Songs from Smithsonian Folkways Amazon
17Riley Puckett And Ted Hawkins Hawkins Rag Serenade The Mountains: Early Old Time Music On Record, [Disc 3] Amazon
18Darby & Tarlton Lonesome Frisco Line Lonesome Whistle – An Anthology Of American Railroad Song Amazon
19Lead Belly Black Betty Lead Belly's Last Sessions Amazon
20Odetta Shame And Scandal Sings Ballads And Blues Amazon
21Harry Belafonte Mama, Look at Boo Boo Harry Belafonte: Greatest Hits Amazon
22Harley Allen & Dierks Bentley I Don't Believe You've Met My Baby Livin', Lovin', Losin': Songs Of The Louvin Brothers Amazon
23The Louvin Brothers Gonna Lay Down My Old Guitar Close Harmony [Disc 5] Amazon
24The Louvin Brothers Keep Watching The Sky Close Harmony [Disc 8] Amazon
25Bonnie Guitar Dark Moon Hard to Find 45s On CD: Pop & Country Classics Amazon
26Skeeter Davis The One You Slip Around With The Essential Skeeter Davis Amazon
27Wanda Jackson Savin' My Love Rockin' With Wanda [US Bonus Tracks] Amazon
28Webb Pierce I Ain't Never 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: Best Of Webb Pierce Amazon
29The Allen Brothers Skipping and Flying Lead Kindly Light Amazon
30Bascom Lamar Lunsford Kidder Cole The Cornshucker's Frolic Vol. 1: Downhome Music And Entertainment From The American Countryside Amazon
31The Weavers Bring Me Li'l Water Sylvia Dust Bowl Blues: Essential American Folk [Disc 2] Amazon
32Little Jimmy Dickens I'm In Love Up To My Ears Country Boy [Disc 1] Amazon
33Rosie Flores & The Jordanaires I Ain't Never Caught in the Webb Amazon
34Dale Watson & The Jordanaires In The Jailhouse Now Caught In the Webb Amazon
35Los Indios Tabajaras Maria Elena Nipper's Greatest Hits: The 60's, Vol. 1 Amazon

Back to Bakersfield

Back To Bakersfield
Back To Bakersfield

Deeper Roots heads down the long hot stretch of 99 to California’s Central Valley to visit the country sound that blew in from every direction…starting with the Dust Bowl. Bakersfield was a first step, a way station, for migrant workers coming into California to escape hard times in the Midwest; their treatment by the small minds of fearful communities being little different than those migrants we think of today. “In the years following World War II, Bakersfield had plentiful honky-tonks including the soon-to-be-famous Blackboard Cafe. People drank, danced, and even fought to Western swing music.” The sound of Nashville began to become watered down, losing its appeal to some who thought it had lost a reverence for the heart and soul of working class Country. We’ll hear from Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, Wynn Stewart, Tommy Collins, and Billy Mize and tip our cap to a great book on the subject of the Bakersfield sound and the history of Country Music: Workin’ Man Blues written by local author and Central Valley native, Gerald Haslam.

No.Artist Title Album Buy
1Merle Haggard Workin' Man Blues Capitol Collector's Series Amazon
2Hank Thompson Waiting In The Lobby Of Your Heart Most Of All Amazon
3Slim Whitman Song Of The Old Water Wheel Vintage Collections Amazon
4Billy Barton Blues in the Blue of Night The Other Side of Bakersfield, Vol. 1; 1950s & 60s Boppers and Rockers from 'Nashville West' Amazon
5Fuzzy Owen Arkie's Got Her Shoes On The Other Side of Bakersfield, Vol. 1; 1950s & 60s Boppers and Rockers from 'Nashville West' Amazon
6Tommy Collins Untied The Other Side of Bakersfield, Vol. 1; 1950s & 60s Boppers and Rockers from 'Nashville West' Amazon
7Tommy Collins You Better Not Do That Hillbilly Fever: Vol. 4 – Heroes Of Country Music – Vol. 4: Legends Of The West Coast Amazon
8Tommy Collins Ernest Tubb 78s One More Record Please Amazon
9Billy Mize Solid Sender The Other Side of Bakersfield, Vol. 1; 1950s & 60s Boppers and Rockers from 'Nashville West' Amazon
10Bonnie Blue Bell & Leon Reach & Chic Adams Band Let's Go The Other Side of Bakersfield, Vol. 1; 1950s & 60s Boppers and Rockers from 'Nashville West' Amazon
11Bill Woods Go Crazy Man The Other Side of Bakersfield, Vol. 1; 1950s & 60s Boppers and Rockers from 'Nashville West' Amazon
12Buck Owens Hot Dog (with Danny Dedmon) The Other Side of Bakersfield, Vol. 1; 1950s & 60s Boppers and Rockers from 'Nashville West' Amazon
13Buck Owens Take Me Back Again Buck Owens Amazon
14Buck Owens Act Naturally The Buck Owens Collection (1959-1990) [Disc 1] Amazon
15Buck Owens Down, Down, Down Buck 'Em: The Music of Buck Owens (1955-1967) Amazon
16Wynn Stewart Big Big Love California Country Amazon
17Wynn Stewart Another Day, Another Dollar Come On – Gonna Shake This Shack Amazon
18Wynn Stewart You're That Someone Else Come On – Gonna Shake This Shack Amazon
19Merle Haggard The Roots Of My Raising Capitol Collector's Series Amazon
20Merle Haggard And The Strangers Today I Started Loving You Again (2006 Digital Remaster) Hag: The Best of Merle Haggard Amazon
21Merle Haggard; Ray Price; Vince Gill; Willie Nelson Heartaches by the Number Last of the Breed Disc 1 Amazon
22Jean Shepard A Dear John Letter Hillbilly Fever: Vol. 4 – Heroes Of Country Music – Vol. 4: Legends Of The West Coast Amazon
23James Burton And Ralph Mooney I'm A Lonesome Fugitive Corn Pickin' And Slick Slidin' Amazon
24Ferlin Husky Heart of Stone 1949-1950 (Warped 498F) Amazon
25Ferlin Husky Freckles and Polliwog Days Ferlin Husky Singles Amazon
26Connie Smith Ain't Had No Lovin' The Essential Connie Smith Amazon
27Dwight Yoakam & Buck Owens Streets Of Bakersfield The Best Of Classic Country 80's Amazon
28Dwight Yoakam The Sad Side of Town Tomorrow's Sounds Today Amazon
29Dwight Yoakam Guitars, Cadillacs Reprise Please Baby: The Warner Bros. Years Disc 1 Amazon
30The Blasters Blue Shadows Testament: The Complete Slash Recordings (1981-1985) (1 of 2) Amazon
31The Blasters Hey, Girl Testament: The Complete Slash Recordings (1981-1985) (2 of 2) Amazon
32The Blasters American Music Testament: The Complete Slash Recordings (1981-1985) (2 of 2) Amazon
33Dave Alvin California's Burning Dave Alvin and The Guilty Women Amazon
34Dave Alvin Out in California Interstate City Amazon
35Merle Haggard And The Strangers The Legend Of Bonnie And Clyde (2006 Digital Remaster) Hag: The Best of Merle Haggard Amazon
36Wynn Stewart Wishful Thinking Golden Age of Country Volume 2: Hard-to-Find Hits [Disc 2] Amazon
37Buck Owens The Band Keep's Playin' On Buck 'Em: The Music Of Buck Owens (1955-1967) Amazon

Fair and Warmer – KOWS May 23, 2015

Deeper Roots on KOWS
Deeper Roots on KOWS

The show kicks off with some mid-century country fiddlin’ courtesy of Curly Fox but makes a quick left turn with a set about liars, tattlers, and some straight-forward testifying from Sister Rosetta Tharpe. We’ll also be entertained with some classic roots from the Dallas String Band, Lead Belly, E. C. Ball, and a tribute set to Sam Cooke.

Demon Alcohol

Demon Alcohol
Demon Alcohol

We’ve got ‘songs of the sauce’, so to speak. Our show will feature a century of America’s music with stories of moonshine, rye whiskey, bubbles in the beer, bartenders, and hangovers going as far back as 1928. But we’ve also got a Bob Wills tribute piece from a new Asleep at the Wheel release, indie rockabilly from new Austinians Tammy Lynn & Myles High, R&B truckers The Harlem Hamfats, and local favorite David Luning. Join Dave Stroud for another two hours of a century of America’s Music on KWTF, member-supported community radio for Bodega Bay and all of Sonoma County.

Deeper Roots on KOWS – February 28, 2015

Cliff "Ukulele Ike" Edwards
Cliff “Ukulele Ike” Edwards

We have yet another free form fest of roots music emanating from the bright sun of a Saturday along the Bohemian Highway, live from the KOWS studios in downtown Occidental, California. We both start and wrap up the show with Cliff “Ukulele Ike” Edwards, sharing country, blues, and new Americana in between. We’ll hear from Flaco Jimenez pair up with Dwight Yoakum, the essence of Randy Newman’s portrait of the South, western swing with Willie and Spade, and new music that fits our roots sensibilities from Steve Earle, Robert Earl Keen, Jr., and Jorma Kaukonen. Tune in for two hours of classic roots music.

Deeper Roots on KOWS – January 29, 2015

Deeper Roots on KOWS - Jan 29 2015
Deeper Roots on KOWS – Jan 29 2015

We’re sitting in for KOWS’ astrologer Matt Savinar in a show that swings with the jive to open things up and then heads down the path of tradition, New Orleans and zydeco spicing, country swing, and an assortment of gospel classics. In particular, we’ve got sets that are a precursor to our Friday and Sunday night specials about Blind Willie McTell, country swing that opens with the magical guitar work of Les Paul, and we remind everyone that Mardi Gras is just around the corner, with a set featuring Professor Longhair, Eddie Bo, and Snooks Eaglin. Join us in this special two hour ‘stand in’ show.

The Railroad Blues

Railroad Blues
Railroad Blues

The railroad is the muse for the morning here in Occidental as the show uses the theme of the railroad: the stories of those who built it, the promise of the golden sunrise that awaits at our destination, the sorrow of a love taken away by rail, and the lonesome whistle from some far away valley. As an aside, did you know that Occidental itself was once a bustling community where the train would haul off the timber and bring tourists from San Francisco and cities beyond?

Join us for the sacred and the secular, including Peter Rowan, ELVIS PRESLEY, Kevin Russell, Paul Warmack & His Gully Jumpers, Furry Lewis, and many others as we explore the genres of bluegrass, blues, folk, jazz, country, and so much more.
#rootsmusic #railroad #Americana

Deeper Roots on KOWS – December 15, 2014

Deeper Roots on KOWS 12/15
Deeper Roots on KOWS 12/15

We’ve got a special Monday episode of Deeper Roots. The show originally broadcast live from the KOWS studios in Occidental, California, opens with some Light Crust Doughboys, fires up some modern country gospel from the Watson Twins and Johnny Cash, then goes for the jugular with a collection of Baptist-flavored gospel from Moses Mason, Mother McCollum, and Madam Edna…and that just scratches the sacred surface. The show also features the secular: jump blues from Jesse Price, jazz from Lincoln Center and Willie “The Lion” Smith. Had enough? You won’t. Be sure to check it out.

Honky Tonkin’

Honky Tonkin
Honky Tonkin

This episode will look at the roots of Honky Tonk: a place where, on one side of the track you, as Roosevelt Sykes points out in “The Honeydripper”, you had the blues performer as Doctor who prescribed Blues as a cure for the Blues and on the other, you had the country sound of Moon Mullican who demanded that the beer bottles danced on the table when the band got rockin’. We’ll spend our time exploring the early sounds of Big Maceo, Albert Ammons, and Jimmy Yancey and move down yonder to the country bars where boogie woogie was also understood. The country honky tonk sounds of Merrill Moore, Bobbie Nelson, Jerry Lee Lewis, and a handful of others will get their chance to entertain. Boogie woogie came to the country and it was retooled and renamed as honky tonk.