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Lyle Lovett's

Lyle Lovett's career disproves the notion that inspired individualism, musical brilliance, and commercial success are incompatible. The Texan famous for his large hair, his large bands and his large-hearted songs added color and humor to country radio in the 1980s, while building a fan base far beyond its confines. From collegiate hippies to seniors, Lovett's broad constituency evokes the Austin scene of the 1970s, on which he was reared.

Lovett was raised north of Houston in the unincorporated farming community known as Klein, named after Lovett’s great-great grandfather Adam Klein. He got his first guitar when he was seven years old, and his first public performance came in the second grade when he sang “Long Tall Texan” at a school talent show. Music took a back seat until Lovett arrived at Texas A&M University in 1975. The outlaw Texas music scene was in full swing, and Lovett was fascinated by its innovative blend of country, rock and blues. He honed his musicianship at informal guitar pulls and traveled to Europe where he toured and performed in small clubs.

After releasing three critically acclaimed albums under the direction of Curb/ MCA Nashville -- Lyle Lovett, Pontiac and And His Large Band, Lovett moved away from country to explore broader styles. Joshua Judges Ruth was steeped in gospel and R&B. I Love Everybody featured songs he had written as early as the 1970s, while 1996’s Grammy-winning The Road to Ensenada returned him to a mix of western swing, honky tonk, country and folk. The 1998, two-disc CD Step Inside This House was a tribute to Lovett’s early Texas songwriting influences. By the millennium, Lovett had become known for acting as well. It began in 1991 when director Robert Altman cast the singer as a detective in the film The Player. Later Altman cast him in Short Cuts, Ready to Wear and Cookie’s Fortune. He lent his composing skills to Dr. T. & The Women in 2000.

In 2003, Lovett joined forces with Lost Highway Records to release My Baby Don't Tolerate, and his new project It's Not Big It's Large harkens back to the bold band sound of his early years. Lyle Lovett's trailblazing years seem far from over.



Amy LaVere

Amy LaVere was born in a small Texas/Louisiana border town, nurtured by musical parents with a passion for traditional country. Her family moved 13 times by the time she entered high school, ultimately landing in Detroit where Amy fronted the infamous punk band Last Minute while still in her teens. From there, her musical journey became a wild ride of impetuous travels, sudden elopements, and itinerant vinyl siding sales. The early ‘90s found her in Nashville as part of the burgeoning Lower Broadway scene, where she began to play upright bass as half of the popular roots duo The Gabe & Amy Show. By 1999, she’d moved to Memphis where the city’s diverse music community quickly embraced her unique style. In early 2005, Amy released her debut album, This World Is Not My Home, on indie label Archer Records to instant national acclaim.

Two years and hundreds of gigs later, Amy went into the studio with Jim Dickinson to craft her much-anticipated new album, Anchors & Anvils. Dickinson whose celebrated work as a musician includes classic records with Ry Cooder, Aretha Franklin, The Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan, explained,  “As a producer, you take the artist out to the edge of the cliff, where they have to learn to trust you,” Dickinson explains. “And of course, you push ‘em off. A lot of them fall. But Amy has the wings to fly. In fact, I think it’s one of the best records I’ve ever made.” Today Amy LaVere looks forward to dropping Anchors & Anvils on a world where integrity can still call its own tune and true artistry stands tallest of all. “It’s an ambitious project and we definitely took some chances,” she says, “There are artists out there who can get away with being different. I’m banking on the fact that I’m gonna be one of them.”  



Jim Lauderdale

Jim Lauderdale is a multi-talented performer and songwriter, with successes in both country and bluegrass music. His roots stem from the Carolinas, yet his career has taken him all over the United States and abroad, making him an international recording artist with an ever-growing fan base.

He has hosted the Americana Music Awards for the past three years and won their first Artist of the Year and Song of the Year awards. He is among Nashville's "A" list of songwriters, with songs recorded by artists such as Patty Loveless, Dixie Chicks, Mark Chestnut, Vince Gill and George Strait. He also contributed several songs to the successful soundtrack of the film, "Pure Country." His songs continue to strike a chord with a new generation of artists including Gary Allan and Blake Shelton.

Jim's musical influences include the legendary Dr. Ralph Stanley and George Jones. These influences and his unique sense of melody and lyric help forge a sound that is truly his own. As a performer his credits include production, writing and collaborating on albums such as, "Wait 'Til Spring" with Donna the Buffalo, "Headed for the Hills” with Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter, "I Feel Like Singing Today" and the Grammy winning “Lost in the Lonesome Pines” with Ralph Stanley and The Clinch Mountain Boys.

Jim’s solo albums include “The Hummingbirds” (Dualtone 2002), “The Other Sessions” (Dualtone 2001), “Onward Through it All” (RCA 1999), “Whisper” (BNA 1997), “Persimmons” (Upstart 1996), “Every Second Counts” (Atlantic 1995), “Pretty Close to the Truth” (Atlantic 1994), and “Planet of Love” (Reprise 1991), as well as his two new releases “Country Super Hits, Volume 1” and “Bluegrass” (Yep Roc 2006).




TODD SNIDER

Keith Richards said humor was rock and roll’s greatest weapon, Bob Dylan proved it and Snider takes it to heart. For twelve years, Snider has been a satirist, class cutup and the rare artist who understands and celebrates the connections between the Stones, Dylan, Bill Hicks, John Prine, Mitch Hedberg, Kris Kristofferson, Hunter S. Thompson and Randy Newman. Snider’s records are fun even when they aren’t being funny, funny even when they’re sad, and no less truthful for the laughs. This brings us to The Devil You Know, a sparkling, smiling, snarling portrait of the doomed. Snider has a unique way of sidling up to a topic, spinning a yarn, making you chuckle amidst all the sinister stuff going down. There’s an edge to what he’s done over seven albums, and this eighth album hones that edge.

Troubadour luminaries such as Jerry Jeff Walker, John Prine, Kris Kristofferson and Billy Joe Shaver look to Snider as the next in their peculiar line. Kristofferson calls him “A true songwriter,” Walker says “Of all the young songwriters out there, I think Todd Snider is the best,” while Prine calls him “great.” With The Devil You Know, Snider has assembled a bag of songs that speak to the politics of the day without ever speaking politics, that talk to the wars being fought away from cameras or reporters and that balance truth, beauty and humor. “I’m a gypsy first and a singer second, and I always will be,” he says. Performers wander the world for a living, and the best ones do it for the rest of their lives. Todd Snider is one for the wandering.