Grant Britt

In 1954, when he was about 14, Delbert McClinton was walloped by a celestial dose of the blues. After a day of hunting in the woods of his native Fort Worth, Texas, McClinton heard a joyful noise wafting through the trees. “There was this bar-b-que joint, a black bar-b-que joint

He could get more out of a moan than many singers could wring out of a career. Ray Charles was the voice of pain, agony set to music that bared his soul and exposed his genius to the world. Rhino Records has resurrected Charles' early years on Atlantic with

There's an old rugged wooden cross standing in a weed strewn field. A battered resonator guitar with kudzu entwined round the neck leans against it. That stark image is the outside introduction to Winston-Salem, N.C. singer/guitarist Peter May's latest release, Blues and Gospel. On

If Steve Earle wore a dress, this is what he would sound like. Chelle Rose is Appalachian tuff. You can hear her hardscrabble raisin’ in her voice. There’s enough barbed wire twang in her voice to snap a fencepost in half should it be bold enough to try and

“Me and Laurie must have played every joint in Mississippi....anything to keep away from a real job,” says Dog Days founder/guitarist/vocalist Carrie Hudson. The result of all that joint jumpin' ended up being one of the most revered darlings of the Alt country scene in the

They call it Swamp Raga. Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi came up with that name for their home recording studio in Jacksonville, Florida, but it's a fitting label for their sound as well. Bolstered by analog technology, tube amps, and vintage recording gear, the Tedeschi Trucks Band has