Music Makers and Soul Shakers with Steve Dawson

Tom Hambridge joins me on the show this week. Tom is a Nashville-based drummer, but also an incredibly successful songwriter and producer. Mostly known over the past couple of decades as Buddy Guy’s producer and key songwriter, Tom has had a huge hand in everything the blues legend has released since 2008’s “Skin Deep”. Their partnership has earned them multiple Grammy nominations, and they have toured the world many times over. Tom is a solo artist in his own right, releasing 8 albums under his own name over the last 30 years. Aside from his stellar work with Buddy Guy, Tom has fascinating stories about working with artists like Roy Buchanan, Chuck Berry, and Bo Diddley while he was a top-call bandleader around the Boston area. His other production credits include records for Susan Tedeschi, George Thorogood, Joe Louis Walker, Chris “Kingfish” Ingram and many more.Tom’s latest projects and tour dates can all be found at hambridgetunes.comEnjoy my conversation with Tom Hambridge!This season is brought to you by our main sponsors Larivée Guitars, Audeze, Izotope, FabFilter, and Chase Bliss. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is part 2 of my conversation with the incredible guitarist Kenny Vaughan. This episode picks up right where we left off in Part 1, and we get into some of his guitar and amp preferences, his continued work with Marty Stuart, and his session work in his Nashville years, where he has called home since the 80’s. Kenny doesn’t have a website, but he is active on social media, so you can find him there. Enjoy Part 2!This season is brought to you by our main sponsors Larivée Guitars, Audeze, Izotope, FabFilter, and Chase Bliss. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One of my absoliute favorite Nashville guitarists, Kenny Vuaghan, joins me on the show today for the first of a 2-part episode where we go deep into his stories about growing up in Colorado, his formative experiences seeing the Grateful Dead and Jimi Hendrix, taking guitar lessons as a youngster from Bill Frisell, and playing a seemingly endless string of country and rock gigs around the local area. We get into his move to Nashville in the 80’s which led to many incredible sessions and touring gigs with Patty Loveless and of course his role in Marty Stuart’s Fabulous Superlatives, a gig he’s held down for over 24 years. We also discuss the finer points of 1980’s Japan-made Strats, his pickups of choice and other nerdy guitar details.Kenny remains very active these days, continuing on a regular touring schedule with Marty Stuart, but also fronting one of my favorite bands to see around Nashville on a regular basis called The Imperial Blues Hour. Kenny doesn’t have a website, but is active on socials if you want to follow him there. Stay tuned for Part 2 a week from today!This season is brought to you by our main sponsors Larivée Guitars, Audeze, Izotope, FabFilter, and Chase Bliss. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is part 2 of my conversation with legendary engineer/producer Mark Howard. This episode picks up right where we left off, as we continue discussing sessions with Bob Dylan, Neil Young, and get into Tom Waits and Iggy Pop. Be sure to listen to Part 1 first and then dive into this one!Mark doesn’t have a website, but he is quite active on social media, so you can find him there. Enjoy Part 2!This season is brought to you by our main sponsors Larivée Guitars, Audeze, Izotope, Fabfilter, and Chase Bliss. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Season 9 kicks off with an epic 2-part conversation with engineer/producer Mark Howard. Mark has been behind the console for some of the greatest and most sonically interesting albums of the past 40 years - Emmylou Harris “Wrecking Ball”, Dylan’s “Time Out Of Mind”, Willie Nelson’s “Teatro”, Chris Whitley, Neil Young, Tom Waits, Lucinda WIlliams and many more. While he is most often associated with Daniel Lanois as his engineer, Mark has gone off on his own to become one of the most respected producers in the business. It’s quite a run for yet another kid from Hamilton, Ontario whose career kicked off creating the sonics for The Neville Brothers classic “Yellow Moon” and went on from there. We get into some of his many projects, and talk about some of the interesting locations that he and Lanois set up shop in over the years. There’s some fascinating stories here and quite a few of them I’d never heard before, even as a total music nerd. This was a hefty conversation, so it’s broken into 2 parts. Part 2 will come out 1 week from today.Mark doesn’t have a website, but he is quite active on social media, so you can find him there. Be sure to check out his 2 books and look for the new documentary film about his incredible career. Enjoy Part 1!This season is brought to you by our main sponsors Larivée Guitars, Audeze, Izotope, Fabfilter, and Chase Bliss. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A little bit about what's in store this season, and our incredible giveaway at the end of it. The season kicks off for real next week! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ken Coomer, the original drummer for Wilco and the last drummer for Uncle Tupelo, shares his captivating journey from Nashville's punk scene to producing major albums. He discusses his role in the defining alt-country sound and the challenges of auditioning for legendary bands. Ken humorously reflects on chaotic moments during his career, including spontaneous European tour opportunities. He also dives into his successful venture in producing Spanish artists, illustrating the unexpected turns in his musical journey.

On the show today is singer, songwriter, fiddle player and now producer, Maya DeVitry. Maya is an incredible musician and someone I’ve been lucky enough to be involved with in a number of projects with over the last few years. Originally from Pennsylvania, Maya is known by some for her work with her old band, The Stray Birds, and some from her more recent solo recordings and touring. She has released 4 solo albums since 2019 and the latest is an amazing album that she self-produced, called “The Only Moment” which came out late last year. She has an incredibly powerful and expressive voice and has worked hard at developing her unique delivery, along with her exceptional songwriting skills. Maya spent a good deal of time emersing herself in bluegrass music as a youngster and became an accomplished fiddle player, which led her to studying at Berklee, but while there, veered more into the world of songwriting and that has been her focus ever since. While The Stray Birds were an excellent vehicle for her to begin her career, it wasn’t until she left the band that she really came into her own as a performer and writer. It’s an interesting story and it was great to get a chance to talk to her about it, how she took the plunge into finally embracing a solo career, making her latest record, and how she’s navigating a hefty touring schedule on top of also now producing records for other artists.You can get all the latest info and her tour dates at mayadevitry.com - Enjoy my conversation with Maya DeVitry!This season is brought to you by our sponsors Larivée Guitars and Fishman AmplificationYou can join our Patreon here to get all episodes ad-free, as well as access to all early episodes.Visit us at: www.makersandshakerspodcast.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Songwriter, blues guitarist and singer Chris Smither joins me on the show today. I had the pleasure of meeting Chris and playing with him this past summer at a festival, and he really was a force of nature. He had an incredible groove between his guitar lines and his powerful foot, all brought together with a voice that has developed so much character over the years it just oozes out of him. Chris grew up in New Orleans, but as you’ll hear, doesn’t totally identify musically with his hometown. He’s spent most of his career based out of the Massachusetts area, and developed his style and sound in the folk clubs of Boston and Cambridge. His songwriting style owes as much to others from that era and scene as it does to blues songwriters like Lightnin’ Hopkins, Mississippi John Hurt and Skip James. He manages to pull something off which I think is difficult and very unique - he’s developed a style of songwriting that seems to be right out of that era of the classic folk/blues tradition, but without being even the slightest bit derivative of those artists that came before him. He wrote the songs “Love Me Like A Man” and “I Feel The Same” that became staples in Bonnie Raitt’s career and repertoire, not to mention Diana Krall also cutting “Love Me Like A Man”. His recording career began in 1971 with the album “I’m a Stranger, Too!” at which time he was label-mates with Townes Van Zandt. He’s been a prolific artist ever sonce then, with a few personal low times where he shied away from making new records. But since the 90’s he’s been extremely consistent with a new record every year or two. His latest is called “All About The Bones” and is one of his best. Chris is one of those rare artists that just seems to keep getting better, even into his 80’s. I had a great conversation with him from his home on a rare break from the road, and we had a chance to dig into all of his history and record-making process. You can keep up with Chris and all his latest news and extensive touring over at smither.com - please enjoy my conversation with Chris Smither!This season is brought to you by our sponsors Larivée Guitars and Fishman AmplificationYou can join our Patreon here to get all episodes ad-free, as well as access to all early episodesThe show’s website can be found at www.makersandshakerspodcast.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Legendary drummer Willie Cantu is on the show today, the sole surviving member of the ultimate lineup of one of the greatest ensembles of all time - Buck Owens’ Buckaroos. I’ve talked about the Buckaroos on this show a number of times - they keep coming up in discussions with various folks, and I’ll say it again that I think that mid to late 60’s lineup is as electrifying a band as any band of that era, no matter what genre. That lineup of Buck, Willie on drums, Don Rich on guitar, fiddle and vocals, Tom Brumley on steel and Doyle Holly on bass were like a finely tuned Ferrari in their heyday. They looked slick and they played and sang like no one else, anywhere. Songs like “Together Again”, “I Don’t Care”, “Open Up Your Heart”, “Sam’s Place” and so many classic albums defined the sound of Bakersfield country which was in stark contrast to the smooth sounds coming out of Nashville in those days. Their influence can be heard directly on everyone from the Beatles to CCR, Gram Parsons to Dwight Yoakam. Willie is an accomplished jazz drummer, and while he was in one of the great country bands of all time, it’s very evident that jazz is his real love. He’s from Corpus Christi, Texas, and joined the Buckaroos when he was 17 in 1964. We had an epic visit and I did have to edit it way down, even though this sucker still clocks in at about 2 hours. Maybe we’ll do a part 2 somewhere down the line! For some essential listening, be sure to check out the 2 Buck Owens live albums that feature Willie - The Carnegie Hall Concert and Live in Japan! They are both amazing documents of a band in their prime. After the Buckaroos, Willie has been involved in some very interesting jazz and improvisational music, which you can check out here. Willie doesn’t have a website and is being more selective about his gigs these days, but if you’re in Nashville, keep your ear to the ground and maybe you’ll catch him playing at a jazz club or Robert’s Western World. you never know! So now, please enjoy my conversation with Willie Cantu!This season is brought to you by our sponsors Larivée Guitars and Fishman AmplificationYou can join our Patreon here to get all episodes ad-free, as well as access to all early episodesThe show’s website can be found at www.makersandshakerspodcast.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.