The Big Gun Show

MO PITTLE: GET TO KNOW HIM AND HIS TOP FIVE RECORDS

Today on the podcast we have Mo Pittle.  He picked these five records: 
GREATEST HITS VOL 1 - EAGLES
MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK - BLUES BROTHERS
REAL TO REEL - ROGER CLYNE AND THE PEACEMAKERS
1984 - VAN HALEN
LEGEND - BOB MARLEY
He’s the owner of Jewboy Burgers here in Austin, Texas.  The Jewboy Burger website state, “born in Cleveland with ties to Philadelphia and Washington, DC was raised in El Paso, Texas. Not the first place you’d expect to find Jews, but they’re there. Growing up among the Homeboys, he became affectionately known as “El JewBoy.”  By trade, Mo is a copywriter and he told me, and I quote, “I like to be around cheeseburgers and nice people.” 
I would like to mention that there are no advertisements in this podcast.  I have a truckload of fun doing this but it takes at least 20 hours to research, listen, record, edit, and produce each episode.  If you are willing to help, you can support on my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/MyTopFiveRecords/membership.  Every dollar helps!

SLAID CLEAVES: GET TO KNOW HIM AND HIS TOP FIVE RECORDS

Today you have the pleasure of learning more about Slade Cleaves.  He picked these five records:
 
SWORDFISHTROMBONES – TOM WAITS
NEBRASKA - BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS RECORDINGS - WOODY GUTHRIE
MISSION OF THE CROSSROADS PALMS - STEVE FORBERT
DEAR DANGER- BILLY HARVEY
 
Joseph Hudak of Rolling Stone Country calls Cleaves “a master storyteller, one influenced not by the shine of pop-culture but by the dirt of real life.”
 
While he released a handful of recordings during the early '90s, he gained significant notice with No Angel Knows, which was released on Rounder's Philo subsidiary in 1997. Joined by former Lucinda Williams guitarist and producer Gurf Morlix, and combined his interest in folk songs, early rock and roll, and traditional country music into an amalgamation of styles becoming known at that time as Americana.
After reading in Rolling Stone about Bruce Springsteen's inspirations for the Nebraska album, he climbed into his parents' attic to rediscover the treasure trove of albums which he recalled hearing as a child – Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Chuck Berry - and which became his guide to becoming a stellar songwriter.
After signing with Jimmy LaFave's Music Road Records, he issued Everything You Love Will Be Taken Away (2009, featuring liner notes from fan Stephen King), the two-disc Sorrow & Smoke: Live at the Horseshoe Lounge (2011), and Still Fighting the War (2013), produced by beloved Austin guitarist Scrappy Jud Newcomb. The album was praised as "one of the year's best albums" by American Songwriter and "carefully crafted, . . . songs about the struggles of the heart in hard times" by the Wall Street Journal. The New York Daily News called his music "a treasure hidden in plain sight," while the Austin Chronicle declared, "there are few contemporaries that compare. He's become a master craftsman on the order of Guy Clark and John Prine."
I would like to mention that there are no advertisements in this podcast.  I have a truckload of fun doing this but it takes at least 20 hours to research, listen, record, edit, and produce each episode.  If you are willing to help, you can support on my Patreon which is https://www.patreon.com/MyTopFiveRecords
Close your eyes.  You’ve got your top 5 records on your iPhone and you are doing chores around your house.  What 5 records do you have?
www.slaid.com 

CHUCK PROPHET: GET TO KNOW HIM AND HIS TOP FIVE RECORDS

Want to understand your musical heroes better?  Search no more. This is the place!
Hear what Chuck says about how Dusty Springfield "Dustifies" things and how Alejandro Escovedo defines punk music.  He's had a stellar career and has had his compositions and co-writes recorded by many artists including Alejandro Escovedo, Bruce Springsteen, Heart, Peter Wolf, Kim Richey, Arc Angels, Micky & the Motorcars, Chris Knight and Kelly Willis.
I would like to mention that there are no advertisements in this podcast.  I have a truckload of fun doing this but it takes at least 20 hours to research, listen, record, edit, and produce each episode.  If you are willing to help, you can support on my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/MyTopFiveRecords 
Here is Chuck's website if you want to sign up for his newsletter or find out where he is playing: http://chuckprophet.com
 
 

JAIMEE HARRIS: GET TO KNOW HER AND HER TOP FIVE RECORDS

Want to understand your musical heroes better?  Search no more. This is the place!
Today’s episode of the My Top Five Records podcast features Jaimee Harris.  Born in Waco, TX, to Austin and now in Nashville, I was stoked to have her in person to do the podcast.  I loved the way that she took the time to revisit her records.  She is a songwriter’s songwriter.  My favorite thing she said was “Fiction is the super highway to the truth.”  So true!!  And as a child, she asked for a Pegasus.  A flying horse. 
 
https://www.jaimeeharris.com/
https://www.instagram.com/jaimeeharris/
https://www.facebook.com/jaimeeharrismusic
 
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PAULA NELSON: GET TO KNOW HERE AND HER TOP FIVE RECORDS

Want to understand your musical heroes better?  Search no more. This is the place!
Join me as I speak with Paula Nelson and take a peek behind her curtain.

MITCH BALLARD: GET TO KNOW HIM AND HIS TOP FIVE RECORDS

Want to understand your musical heroes better?  Search no more. This is the place!
Season two of the My Top Records podcast starts today.  We've got Mitch Ballard for your listening pleasure.  Mitch moved from Nashville to Austin a couple few years ago to start the BMI office.  This office reminds me why Austin is Austin.  Organizations like HAAM and SIMS.  No other city has such a focus on their artistic integrity.  Makes me proud to be a 7th generation Texan. 
Before Mitch opened the BMI office here in Austin, he’d been called the Swiss Army Knife of the country music business.  He started off by turning down a music scholarship to North Texas because he didn’t really want to play the trumpet anymore.  He was a tour manager for BJ Thomas for 8 years.  He owned a website building company for musicians and then an LED concert company.  Yeah, he knows the music biz.  I love podcasts like this on because I don’t really have to talk.  I threatened to trash my Encyclopedia of Country music.  What would I need that for when I can just call Mitch?
 
https://www.instagram.com/mitch_ballard/
https://www.facebook.com/mitchballard

WELDON HENSON: GET TO KNOW HIM AND HIS TOP FIVE RECORDS

Want to understand your musical heroes better?  Search no more. This is the place!
Today’s guest is Weldon Henson.  He might have the best honky tonk voice that Austin can call it’s own.  I’d describe it as a mix between Merle Haggard and Ray Benson  He plays the honky tonks in and around Austin.  In particular, a weekly gig at the Broken Spoke and monthly at Ginny’s.  When you hear him talk about his top five records, I believe that it is clear where his influences lie.    
 
http://weldonhenson.com/music/
https://www.facebook.com/weldonhensonmusic
https://www.instagram.com/weldonhenson/
https://twitter.com/weldonhenson
 

HARMONI KELLEY: GET TO KNOW HERE AND HER TOP FIVE RECORDS

Want to understand your musical heroes better?  Search no more. This is the place!
Today’s guest is Harmoni Kelley.  She spells her name H A R M O N I and we had a full on blast talking about her top five records.  Much like many of my other podcastees, Harmoni had a terrible time choosing what records we were going to talk about but we had a killer time. 
Harmoni has only played bass and she has played with the likes of Bob Schneider, Fastball and now tours stadiums with Kenny Chesney.  In our talk, she mentions how she ended up picking her top five like the way that she approaches music.  It’s so awesome when a podcastee comes to some sort of revelation.  Truly awesome. 
 
https://harmonikelley.com/
https://www.facebook.com/harmonikelleymusic
https://www.instagram.com/harmonikelley/

CHRIS "THE WHIPPER" LAYTON TOP FIVE RECORDS

It is another honor and privilege to have today’s guest on My Top Five Records podcast.  Chris “the Whipper” Layton was one half of Stevie Ray Vaughn’s Rhythm section Double trouble.  The way he picked his top five records was super cool.  Not only did he play with Stevie but he and Double Trouble also joined forces with The Arc Angels and Storyville.
 
If you're digging on what we're laying down, please give us a review on iTunes.  A star for each one of your top five records (that's five stars!) would be super appreciated!  https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/my-top-five-records/id1494022573
 
https://www.facebook.com/chriswhipperlayton
https://www.instagram.com/whiptale/
 
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MIKE FLANIGIN TOP FIVE RECORDS

It is an honor and privilege to have today’s guest on My Top Five Records podcast.  Mike Flanigin is in my humble opinion the best B3 player around.  He playing consistently at CBoys with Jimmie Vaughn, at least when that Covid dude isn’t wreaking havoc on us.  Come on Covid.  Can’t you leave us alone?
 
So yeah, he plays with Jimmie.  He is also buds with Billy Gibbons and has performed with ZZ Top, Steve Miller, Eric Clapton, Robert Plant, Willie Nelson, Charlie Sexton, Doyle 2 and Bonnie Raitt to name a few.  I actually opened up for him once at our mutual friend, Tom Amiss’, annual party
 
One of my favorite stories is how he used to tour as a guitarist with a LA band and returned to Austin to join the Antone’s Nightclub house band.  That’s when he decided to change instruments and start playing the B3.  He hooked up with organ legend Big John Patton to learn the craft.  And guess what, Big John has a record in Mike’s top five.
 
In 2015 he released his debut record called The Drifter.  Rolling Stone said, “The Drifter is a road trip-worthy record that veers from punk rock to desert pop to Bible Belt Blues, it’s disparate parts glued together with the swirl and swoon of B3 organ.  This is day-driving mood music, with Flanigin creating his own version of atmospheric Americana.” 
 
And just this year, he dropped a brand new record called West Texas Blues and born out of his and Sue Foley’s Texas Blues Party that they streamed live on Facebook.  They went into the studio as a three piece.  Just Sue, Mike and Chris “Whipper” Layton of Double Trouble. 
 
I quote Flanigin saying about the record, “As much as I labored over ​The Drifter​ album, which took me three years to make, and I had a lot of different types of genres, and people, and guests, this was the exact opposite.” Flanigin said. “This was ‘Let’s go in and let’s do what we do,’ and we play the blues. That’s what we’ve been doing our whole lives.”
 
I was driving back from Houston yesterday and thought I would put it on.  Well I did and I could not turn it off for the entire ride home.  If you like the blues, you’ve got to check it out.  An All Star cast of blues legends kicking out an homage to some Texas Blues music.
 
So PLEASE people go out there and support music.  Support the artists that make you groove.  Allow those who create to keep creating.  Get out there or go online and buy Mike Flanigin’s new record.  While you’re at it, I’d recommend you pick up The Drifter as well.
 
We talked about how he knew Lazy Lester and how Texas music is for dancers.  We talked about how Billy Gibbons plays on 7 strings and how that shows in his touch AND how he knows professional card tricks.  It was like a history lesson. 
 
We had a slight technical difficulty and about 10 mintues got cut from our conversation.  It was primarily about Billy Gibbons.  We talked about Dusty has motorboat fingers and that is what makes ZZ Top ultimately unique.  He also talks about how he likes to record live in the studio and how he started singing again because Jimmie Vaughn pretty much made him when they were on tour. 
 
What also got cut was where you can find him online.  You spell Mike’s last name F L A N I G I N.  As he says, with two N’s and two I’s
 
http://www.mikeflanigin.com/
https://www.facebook.com/mikeflaniginofficial/
https://www.instagram.com/mikeflanigin/
 
If you’ve got the gumption, head over to THE BIG GUN SHOW DOT COM and check out what my band is up to these days.  You can also catch us on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube with a handle of thebiggunshowband.  Go to our website and sign up for our email newsletter so that you can get updates about our coming record called Honky Rock.
 
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