Sid Griffin – I Want To Be the Man (My Dog Thinks I Am)
Chappell Roan – The Subway
James McMurtry — The Black Dog and The Wandering Boy
Wolf Alice – Bloom Baby Bloom
Goldpine – Space
Tyler Childers – Eatin’ Big Time
Tesky Brothers – Try a Little Tenderness
Max McNown – A Lot More Free
Hayes Carll — We’re Only Human
Chappell Roan – The Subway
I chose this song to start my picks because this song has made the national news and has been playing on mainstream CBC shows. Here is the Globe and Mail article that frames the story.
Chappell Roan’s Saskatchewan lyric lights up LGBTQ fans
Chappell Roan, centre, performs Pink Pony Club during the 67th annual Grammy Awards in February. Chris Pizzello/The Canadian Press
so what is this about??
from the article
American pop star Chappell Roan is creating excitement in an often-overlooked Canadian province, with her latest single supercharging fans in Saskatchewan’s LGBTQ community.
In Roan’s new song about post-breakup frustration, set for release late Thursday, the singer-songwriter name-drops Saskatchewan.
“I made a promise, if in four months this feeling ain’t gone … I’m movin’ to Saskatchewan,” she sings in a snippet of The Subway.
here is the video
great song, great voice, great video!
Chappell Roan – The Subway (Official Music Video)
Pretty great voice and great video!
Here are some of the comments on the Globe and Mail article
What an embarrassment to Saskatchewan!
(to be expected)
Sure, but don’t let that nasty Christian guy to play, he’s really mean!
(and the response)
The difference she is not attacking other people’s belief, she is asking for acceptance and tolerance, not espousing hate, attacking diverse groups of people. The so called Christian does not live by Christian values and thrives on hate and fear. He can play on any private land, sing to his heart’s content, as he has done on a farmer’s field. Yes he is nasty, no doubt.
Good for Chappell Roan, good for Saskatchewan!!
Wolf Alice – Bloom Baby Bloom
Wolf Alice – Bloom Baby Bloom (Official Video)
Incredible, this band started off as an acoustic duo.
The band toured throughout 2018, including dates supporting Foo Fighters during their Concrete and Gold Tour and Queens of the Stone Age as part of their Villains World Tour.[18] They also supported Liam Gallagher at his concert at Finsbury Park on 29 June 2018.[19]
In September 2018, Visions of a Life won the 2018 Mercury Prize.[20]
In February 2024, it was announced that Wolf Alice had left Dirty Hit to sign with Columbia Records. [28] In April 2025, Wolf Alice began to tease the release of new material on their social media accounts. On 15 May, the band released the single “Bloom Baby Bloom” and subsequently announced their fourth studio album The Clearing,[29] to be released on 29 August 2025.[30]
Not finding much written about a band that has been around since 2010. There is this Guardian article – a great interview from a really interesting band that seems like it is now coming into its own with a contract with Sony Music
The band aren’t just going hell for leather aesthetically. After 2021’s Blue Weekend, the foursome left indie label Dirty Hit and signed with Columbia Records, part of Sony. The move to a major means more money for spangly Lycra – but is it also a sign of prospective world domination?
‘Our peers have come and gone. We’re still here’: Wolf Alice on ambition, ageing and why new bands are struggling
The only thing that could disrupt the serenity of this scorching Wednesday lunchtime is a spin of Wolf Alice’s new single. Bloom Baby Bloom is a genre-bending rock bonanza: squealing guitars, bone-shaking bass, ostentatious drum fills, but also honky tonk piano and a dreamy pop chorus. Throughout Rowsell veers between breathy folk croon and a hair metal wail. To underline the retro vibe – and the vocal gymnastics – the video has Rowsell writhing in a sparkly, glam cut-out leotard amid a Fame-style dance troupe; in the promo images she is clad in cherry-red hot pants and matching knee-high boots.
Tyler Childers – Eatin’ Big Time
Tyler Childers – Eatin’ Big Time (Official Video)
here are snippets from NPR’s All Songs Considered which I think will have to become a regular spopt for finding great music.
Two of today’s finest records were born in Appalachia: Roots superstar Tyler Childers’ downright angry Snipe Hunter and Indigo De Souza’s triumphant Precipice.
here are the albums they didn’t have time to discuss
Six more albums we wish we had time to discuss on the podcast:
💿 Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist, Alfredo 2
💿 Tyler, The Creator, DON’T TAP THE GLASS
💿 Cory Hanson, I Love People
💿 quinnie, paper doll
💿 Unspoken Tradition, Resilience
💿 MC Yallah & Debmaster, Gaudencia
Our hosts share the backstories and best songs from the following albums:
You have to listen to the episode to hear what they have to say about Tyler Childers
💿 Tyler Childers, Snipe Hunter (Stream)
- Recommended If You Like: Zach Bryan, Jason Isbell
and from Wikipedia
Childers released his seventh studio album, Snipe Hunter, on July 25, 2025, where he blended Appalachian music, experimental rock, psychedelia, and gospel music. In the album, he explored themes such as death, faith, personal myth, and regional identity.[35]
he has been nominated for Grammys since 2020 in a growing number of categories
2020 | Best Country Solo Performance | “All Your’n” | Nominated | [50] |
| 2022 | Best Folk Album | Long Violent History | Nominated | [51] |
| 2024 | Best Country Solo Performance | “In Your Love“ | Nominated | |
| Best Country Song | Nominated | |||
| Best Music Video | Nominated | |||
| Best Country Album | Rustin’ in the Rain | Nominated | ||
| Best Americana Performance |
Max McNown – A Lot More Free
Max Winter McNown[1] (born 20 July, 2001), is an American singer-songwriter from Bend, Oregon,[2][3] based in Nashville, Tennessee. He is best known for his 2023 single “A Lot More Free“.
While McNown and his collaborators completed writing the hit-to-be in that session, slow-burning success from his summer 2023 ballad “A Lot More Free” allowed his team more time to build momentum. The prior bittersweet acoustic single — and title track to his debut EP released at the same time — gained traction in fall 2024, entering the top 30 on Hot Country Songs. It has more recently crossed over to alternative and pop formats, reaching a No. 8 high on Adult Pop Airplay.
He is coming to the Bronson Center on October 6.
here is a common trend, written here in an album review (DWBelcherWorks)
Hailing from Oregon, McNown moved to Southern California and was busking whenever videos of him gained momentum on TikTok. Utilizing that momentum, his debut single “A Lot More Free” gained popularity and McNown has garnered a following as one of the new age of Country artists who found their success on apps like TikTok instead of the more traditional methods.
One article inspired my five choices for this week. Goldmine Magazine had a nice little article on : https://www.goldminemag.com/articles/20-unique-and-diverse-americana-albums-you-ought-to-know-/
Sid Griffin –“ I Want To Be the Man (My Dog Thinks I Am)” – Journey From Grape to Raisin
Sid Griffin is an American singer and author who lives in London, England. He led a great band in the 80’s, The Long Ryders.
He founded the Coal Porters group in the 1990s.
He later moved to the UK where he continued to perform and record . He also wrote for various music publications and is the author of volumes on Bob Dylan, Gram Parsons and bluegrass music.
Journey From Grape to Raisin is his latest release. https://americana-uk.com/sid-griffin-the-journey-from-grape-to-raisin
James McMurtry – ’‘The Black Dog and The Wandering Boy’’ – S/T
James McMurtry is a 63 year old singer based in Texas. He is the son of celebrated novelist Larry McMurtry. James McMurtry’s stepmother revealed to him that his father, Larry, experienced hallucinations of a black dog and a wandering boy during his dementia which he used for the basis of this selection. https://americanahighways.org/2025/06/19/review-on-the-black-dog-and-the-wandering-boy-james-mcmurtry-has-nothing-to-fear/
Goldpine – Space – “Three”
Husband and wife Benjamin and Kassie Wilson are Goldpine. They have been writing and performing for over a decade and have released 3 albums. https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2025/jun/12/theyre-going-to-feel-like-they-read-our-diary-amer/
The chosen song contains absolutely wonderful vocals.
Teskey Brothers – “ Try a Little Tenderness” – Live at The Hammersmith Apollo
The Teskey Brothers are a Melbourne blues rock band who since 2019 have been an incredibly popular in their native Australia. https://headlinerhub.com/the-teskey-brothers-on-their-timeless-sound.html
As a first on the Old Fellas podcast, we have a song taken from a live album! The Teskey Brothers have covered the classic Try a Little Tenderness. Possibly the most famous version of this song is Otis Redding’s
It certainly serves as the template for their version.
Hayes Carll – “We’re Only Human” – You Get It All
Hayes Carll hails from of Houston, Texas. He has written songs that have been covered by a wide range of artists, including Kenny Chesney, Curtis Stigers, Lee Ann Womack, Kelly Willis, and Brothers Osborne. His last album came out in 2021 from which this selection is taken. https://www.uncut.co.uk/reviews/album/hayes-carll-you-get-it-all-134849/
There are shades of Steve Earle and John Prine in Hayes music.
Whole-Hearted 