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Robertson County Times, TN

Saturday, 09/23/06

Strident views welcome at Americana Awards
Ryman show’s politics as diverse as musical styles

By PETER COOPER
Staff Writer

Friday night’s 5th Annual Americana Honors & Awards show at the Ryman Auditorium opened with funk and moved through folk, soul, bluegrass, jazz and country and lots of places in between.

British rock icon Elvis Costello, New Orleans soulster Allen Toussaint, Nashville songwriting great Rodney Crowell, singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash, virtuoso acoustic instrumentalist Sam Bush and deep funk band The Dynamites all took the Ryman Auditorium stage on an awards night that was every bit as diverse as a typical Grammy evening.

The politics were as diverse as the music. While contemporary country and rock stations tend to stay away from pointed political commentary, the smaller, more jagged Americana world has no trouble with strident views on any side of the fence.

James McMurtry won album of the year (Childish Things) and song of the year (“We Can’t Make It Here”) for music that attacks the American political, social and military status quo.

Charlie Daniels — whose songs include right-leaning sentiments such as “This ain’t no rag, it’s a flag, and we don’t wear it on our heads” and “You know what’s wrong with the world today? People done gone put their Bibles away” — received the Spirit of Americana Free Speech Award.

Neil Young, whose latest album includes the lyric “Let’s impeach the president for lying,” won out as artist of the year.

“Americana” is loosely defined as “American roots music based on the traditions of country,” but Friday’s show spread beyond that, encompassing territories best described as “the things that aren’t on mass-market commercial radio but deserve an airing.”

Daniels reveled in a show that featured a disparity of sounds and viewpoints. “I’m deeply honored to be recognized for freedom of speech. I exercise mine every day,” he said, before accepting an award that had previously been given to luminaries Johnny Cash, Steve Earle, Judy Collins and Kris Kristofferson. “Patriotism is not blind allegiance to any ideology or political party. Nobody is right all the time. Reasonable people will sit down and work together.”

McMurtry, the son of novelist Larry McMurtry, thanked his dad onstage for lending him a sports coat suitable for the occasion. Backstage, he noted the chance-taking aspects of Americana stations that have allowed his “We Can’t Make It Here” on the airwaves. “It’s very brave of them to play that,” he said. “Also, it’s a 7½-minute record. So they’re breaking their own mold there.”

More Americana stalwart artists reside in Nashville than in any other city, yet most awards Friday night went to musicians who reside outside Music City. Of the yearly, non-career achievement awards, only The Greencards’ emerging artist win and Kenny Vaughan’s top instrumentalist prize went to Nashville area residents.

Vaughan, who has performed and/or recorded with respected singer-songwriters, including show host Jim Lauderdale, Marty Stuart, Rodney Crowell, Lucinda Williams, Kim Richey and Patty Loveless, also received a lifetime achievement award. Vaughan is a riveting guitarist, capable of melodic flights and of acrobatic solos. He also has an unflappable stage presence that Marty Stuart found fit to remark upon.

“If Kenny were a car, he’d be a Nash Metropolitan,” Stuart said. “If he were fabric, he’d no doubt be sharkskin.” Stuart went on to call Vaughan “a genius who does most of his thinking with his heart.”

Other lifetime achievement awards went to Sugar Hill Records founder Barry Poss, producer/engineer Allen Toussaint (presented by Costello), performer and famed singer-songwriter Alejandro Esco-vedo and Nashvillians Mickey Newbury (the songwriter received the posthumous President’s Award) and Rodney Crowell.

Toussaint, a fixture in the Crescent City who has made significant marks as a songwriter, producer, piano player, arranger and recording artist, performed with Costello, who remarked on the oddity of an Americana category that’s wide enough to reach across oceans.

“I don’t know how it is an English guy got up here at the Americana awards,” he said, before talking of his love for American-born music and of the impact that Toussaint has made on American popular music.

Crowell’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting was introduced by Vince Gill, who sang a guitar/vocal version of Crowell’s “’Til I Gain Control Again.”

“I’m honored that you’ve recognized a body of work that I’ve put together over the last 30 years,” Crowell said. “I’m assuming that I have an invitation to continue, to keep trying to make it work and keep trying to make it rhyme.”

The awards are to be broadcast by Sirius and XM satellite radio stations, as well as by BBC Radio 2 in Europe and Voice of America across the world. Buddy Miller served as band leader, and he led a finale sing-along of Bob Dylan’s folk classic “Blowin’ in the Wind.”

Kieran Kane, who performed as part of a trio with Kevin Welch and Fats Kaplin, said Americana’s atypical blend of roots music struck him as quite sensible.

“It seems there’s a common thread that runs through all of this,” Kane said. “It’s organic music. It’s not processed.” •