6th album release Empty Frame Of Reference . This 12 song album is yet another example of Eric's incredible gift of solid, smart songwriting. Though filled with thought-provoking, heartfelt and clever lyrics, the music is infectiously catchy. Leaving the listener with his melodies stuck in their head long after the music is over. His recognizable, warm, yet edgy, strong voice creates the common thread running through this musical journey. Eric writes from the heart. The listener feels the connection. Empty Frame Of Reference is another door opened to the creative mind of Eric Stuart.  (less)

Operational Index And Reference Guide'.  (less)

(double bass), some of the most highly regarded recording artists and musicians in traditional American country music, Bluegrass and beyond. The album includes ten previously unrecorded songs. "Sulphur to Sugarcane" and "The Crooked Line", were co-written with T Bone Burnett while, "I Felt The Chill" marks Costello's second recorded songwriting collaboration with Loretta Lynn. Costello revisits two songs from his catalogue in string band style. Both songs were originally written for Johnny Cash. "Hidden Shame" was indeed included on Cash's album, "Boom Chicka Boom". The album title makes reference to "The Secret Songs", Costello's unfinished commission for the Royal Danish Opera about the life of Hans Chr...  (less)

and the "Jingle Bells" instrumental benefits from an injection of rockabilly twang (as does Paisley's revival of Buck Owens's "Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy"). Among the original material that distinguishes the collection, "Penguin, James Penguin" is like "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" for the higher-tech generation, as Santa enlists a "secret-agent bird" to keep computerized tabs on who deserves what. "Born on Christmas Day" features a tape of a song Paisley wrote and initially recorded when he was 13, then segues into the artist today on the same tune. The album closes with a slam at political correctness on "Kung Pao Buckaroo Holiday," with the Kung Pao Buckaroos (a.k.a. George Jones, Bill Anderson, and "...  (less)

road crew, if "The Load Out," a love song to his roadies, is to be believed. Browne is much more blithe here than in his earlier outings. But Empty also represents a fleeting lighthearted moment for the singer-cum-poet whose concerns became more political than personal after its appearance. Beneath its flippant surface, this disc is a look at the lengths Browne and his friends went to avoid facing the demands of the touring life. What with the frequent drug references, misogynistic references to on-the-fly pairings with women, and the sobering line in the title track--"I look around for the friends I used to pull me through / Looking into their eyes, I see them running, too"--one realizes that Browne was much more comfortable on the road than off...  (less)

southern influences, including country, the blues, New Orleans jazz, and even gospel, creating a sound that was distinctly theirs. Decade of Hits is a great catalog of the Allman's at their guitar wielding best. The sweet, infectious harmonies on the instrumental "Jessica" have become a classic reference point in themselves. Next to the tragedies that plagued them--two motorcycle deaths, heroin addiction--the Allman's are probably best known for the heroic "Ramblin' Man." Written and sung by the now legendary Dickey Betts, the song contained everything that made the band great: intricate guitar harmonies, a strong melody, and just enough twang to keep the thing tight. Decade also contains Allman staples "Melissa," "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed," a...  (less)

tunneled beneath an orchestra of guitar, banjo, keyboards, and strings. More definitive than ever, the rhythm and percussion complement Beam's voice, a lulling, almost eerie tone that occasionally recalls John Lennon's early solo work, especially on delicate tracks like the bluesy "Wolves (Songs of the Shepherd's Dog" and "Carousel," with its veiled references to Iraq. Those raised on the lo-fi routine of Beam's earlier work will find rawness and sanctity in the more upbeat selections: The CSN folk-rock of "House by the Sea" and "Boy with a Coin" and the atmospheric beauty of "Pagan Angel and a Borrowed Car" and Shepherd's best song, "Lovesong of the Buzzard." With an organ swirling about and a slide guitar adding gentle flourishes, Beam concede...  (less)