North Mississippi Allstars - Keys To The Kingdom - Dingwalls show in May

The North Mississippi Allstars are playing Dingwalls on the 11th May. Around that time they're releasing a new album celebrating Cody and Luther's late father Jim Dickinson:

North Mississippi Allstars are proud to announce that their new record, Keys To The Kingdom, (Songs of the South/True North Records), will be released in the UK on May 23, 2011. The album was recorded in the spring of 2010 at the Dickinson family's legendary Zebra Ranch Studio in Coldwater, MS., produced by the band and features guests Mavis Staples, Ry Cooder, Spooner Oldham, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Gordie Johnson and Motown Funk Brother Jack Ashford. The album was recorded after an emotional year during which guitarist/vocalist Luther Dickinson and his drummer brother Cody's father, Memphis music legend, Jim Dickinson, passed away. During that same year, Luther and his wife welcomed a daughter into the world. Keys To The Kingdom is a song cycle, a celebratory declaration of life in the face of death as well as a musical interpretation of this unique experience with the cycle of life, written and recorded honestly, fast and raw.

Jim had always told Cody and Luther, "You need to be playing music together. You are better together than you will ever be apart." Coincidentally, the Dickinson brothers were not together when Jim passed. At that moment, they were both off on their own, Luther with The Black Crowes and Cody with the Hill Country Revue. So they came together at Zebra Ranch, where they had spent countless hours together with their dad, to create a record that could help them cope with the loss, and, at the same time, rejoice in his honor. The first line of Jim's self-written eulogy was, "I refuse to celebrate death." Luther, Cody and bassist Chris Chew took heed and aimed to celebrate life instead; and the songs for the new record, Keys to the Kingdom came pouring out of their souls.

"As is our family's tradition, we gathered in our homemade studio and recorded," Luther says. "We carried on as we've been taught and dealt the only way we know, by making music. Our dad used to say that production-in-absentia is the highest form of production. The credits read: 'Produced for Jim Dickinson.' Keys To The Kingdom is definitely our finest collaboration."

Jim always advised in a very no-nonsense way, "Play every note as if it's your last because one of them will be," and that's just what NMA set out to do on Keys To The Kingdom. The results are powerfully played and deeply visceral as the best blues music is - spiritual without being god fearing, heavy without being depressing.

"In the end," Luther says, "We recorded our best country blues and Mississippi rock 'n roll record yet -- as if our lives depended on it." Ten years after the release of their debut album, Shake Hands with Shorty, Chew sums it up: "This is grown folks music."

The track listing for Keys To The Kingdom is:

1. This A'Way

2. Jumpercable Blues

3. The Meeting

4. How I Wish My Train Would Come

5. Hear The Hills

6. Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again

7. Let It Roll

8. Ain't No Grave

9. Ol' Cannonball

10. New Orleans Walkin' Dead

11. Ain't None O' Mine

12. Jellyrollin' All Over Heaven

Sandy Salisbury - Rev-Ola vinyl release

Last week I was very pleased to receive a copy of Sandy by Sandy Salisbury on vinyl. A lovely piece of work both as an artefact and in its content. It's certainly true to say it's a reissue though perhaps truer to say in this case it's a re-imagining. Sandy was a proposed 1969 release on Gary Usher's short-lived Together label. It never appeared and has only really been around in the last decade on CDs on Poptones and then Rev-Ola. 


Sandy Salisbury worked extensively with Curt Boettcher; they're both icons of sunshine pop. He was in The Ballroom, The Millenium, and Sagittarius. Boettcher produces and plays on this album. The list of players is certainly distinguished; apart from Usher, credited for moog, there's Lee Mallory from The Millenium, Jerry Scheff, Red Rhodes, and Waddy Watchel. It's an exceptionally poppy album diminished not a jot by a decided lack of those psychedelic elements that saturated other contemporary projects drawn from this well 


Mainly consisting of Salisbury compositions and co-writes, it kicks off with ' I Just Don't Know How To Say Goodbye', a submission to John Barry as the Midnight Cowboy theme song and under serious consideration for a while. As that brackets it with 'Lay Lady Lay' and 'Everybody's Talkin'" you can tell we're dealing with quality here. A touch of country in there, and more so in 'The Hills Of Vermont'; Salisbury is published by Acuff-Rose. Then a Beach Boys cover 'With Me Tonight' and a nice reading of The Fleetwoods' 'Come Softly'. 


This album comes from Rev-Ola in its latest incarnation which is as part of the Glasgow-based PoppyDisc (POPPLP009). It's due for release on Monday and if you can find a copy you should snap it up. 

Bucketfull Of Brains #77 available next week - order now

Issue number 77 is currently with the printers and we're expecting it around the middle of next week. There's a pretty intriguing mixture of content as ever.

DWIGHT TWILLEY provides the cover story. Terry Hermon has been his biggest fan for more years than he'd care to admit to and they have a long exchange about many many matters.

ROSANNE CASH recently put out a collection of interpretations of songs from her dad's list of 100 key country songs. Prof Jud Cost had a chat with her about it.

WILLIE NILE has long been a BoB hero and recently he's begun turning up in the UK regularly and releasing new records. Phil Suggitt talked to him before a show in Bedford in the autumn.

PAUL COLLINS could well be the King of Power Pop; certainly he's the commander of The Beat Army. On the back of last years King Of Power Pop album Roch Parisien heard some of what's keeping him busy.

We have more of Hugh Gulland's interview with TERRY EDWARDS plus a catch-up of his more recent activity.

Various members of THE PINK FAIRIES and THE DEVIANTS gathered in Portobello before Christmas to benefit BOSS GOODMAN. Simon Wright took the opportunity to talk to MICK FARREN, DUNCAN SANDERSON & RUSSELL HUNTER and reports on the show.

Mick Dillingham catches up with JELLE PAULUSMA once of Daryll-Ann and hears of his many doings since.

Anthony Clark tells us about the making of Love Over Money - the new record from North London's own Flamin' Groovie CHRIS WILSON.

And there's pieces on TWO WOUNDED BIRDS and A BAND CALLED MITHRAS.

Plus Dennis Dalcin's last ever visit to his garage, all the news that's fit to print and a lot of reviews.

Purchase the issue here and now, or take out a subscription (three issues) before the prices have to rise, and it'll be winging to you in a few days.

BoB #77 inclusive of postage

UK £3.35 Europe £5.00 USA & ROW £6.00

BoB 3 Issue Subscription starting with #77 inc p& p

United Kingdom £9.75 Europe £13.00 USA & ROW £16.00

Bucketfull Of Brains Shows At The Bull & Gate

Here's a quick announcement of a number of shows we're involved with over the next few weeks and months.

After a break of just over two years we're putting on shows again with Piers Miller of Stuntfox at The Bull & Gate. These will be happening regularly on the third Sunday of every month. The first is on the 20th March featuring JASON McNIFF. Then on 17th April TRENT MILLER will be playing. The rest of the year is being set up and as those shows are finalised they'll be announced. For at least the first four or five shows the opening act will be BEN FOLKE THOMAS. The good people at Club Fandango who run the pub were so impressed when he played there in February that they want him to see him there regularly.

Ben and Jason

Shows run from around 5.00 - 8.00 with opener on around 5.30 and the headliner about 6.30. There'll be Bucketfull DJs playing tunes before, after, and in-between. happily the pub serves decent beer.

Two other dates for your diary are Saturday 9th April when we'll be putting on a line-up at The Windmill, and Tuesday 24th May about which later.

Trent Miller - Welcome To Inferno Valley

Bucketfull Of Brains is very pleased to announce we'll shortly be releasing Trent Miller's new record Welcome To Inferno Valley.

The selections on the album have been recorded with The Skeleton Jive along with guest players including Benjamin Folke Thomas, Emily C. Smith, and Ruth Jacob. More details will be posted presently but among the tracks are live favourites such as 'Fear Of Flying', 'Ballad Of The Gospel Oak', and 'Whispers Of A Fool'.

Release date and full details of a launch party will be announced soon. Meanwhile Trent is playing regularly around London and beyond (check his website for more details). Specifically on Sunday 17th April he headlines a Bucketfull Of Brains/Stuntfox co-promotion at The Front Room at The Bull & Gate in Kentish Town.

Bucketfull Of Brains #77 nears publication date

Dwight Twilley

We're now very near to the publication date of the new issue. It'll be with us well before the end of the month and sets us on our target of four issues before the end of 2011.

The main cover artist is DWIGHT TWILLEY and Terry Hermon has been talking to him about what's been a very busy and creative recent period. Professor Jud Cost chatted to ROSANNE CASH about her father's list, and Mick Dillingham had a series of exchanges with JELLE PAULUSMA, once of BoB faves Daryll Ann, about what he's up to now. The forever-young WILLIE NILE met up with Phil Suggitt on one of his recent visits, and Anthony Clark gives us the low-down on CHRIS WILSON's new record. Simon Wright  converses with various DEVIANTS and PINK FAIRIES as they pay tribute to BOSS GOODMAN, and we get more fascinating stuff on TERRY EDWARDS. Plus all the usual stuff and more.

It's an interesting year coming up for Bucketfull Of Brains. Our label will shortly be releasing TRENT MILLER's new album. There are a number of live shows coming up that we're involved in. Along with a very special project still being discussed and thus still under wraps. Stay tune.

You can order copies now and they'll be dispatched on publication. Or take out a three-issue sub before the rates rise.

BoB #77

UK £3.25 Europe £4.50 USA & ROW £5.50

BoB 3 Issue Subscription starting with #77

United Kingdom £9.00 Europe £12.00 USA & ROW £15.00