Elizabeth Cook
Wild as a dandelion, free spirit Elizabeth Cook belongs in a musical category all her own.
And in that, she’s a shining star. Elizabeth Cook headlines Song of the Mountains on Saturday, April 6 at the historic Lincoln Theatre in Marion, Virginia. Former Lewis Family funnyman and banjo player Little Roy with longtime musical partner Lizzy welcome fiddler Hunter Berry.
Quite a lineup. But then, that’s Song of the Mountains circa today. Hosted by the show’s founder, Tim White, Song of the Mountains morphed from a bluegrass and mountain music program to a wide-open platform for just plain stellar music. Cook certainly qualifies. She excels in realms of country as well as rock and electrified folk. Adorned with a distinctive voice and a stout radar for memorable songs, Cook makes music that does not fade away with the night.
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If You Go
What: Song of the Mountains
Who: Elizabeth Cook and Little Roy & Lizzy featuring Hunter Berry
When: Saturday, April 6 at 7 p.m.
Where: Lincoln Theatre, 117 E. Main St., Marion, Va.
Admission: $40-$55
Info: 276-783-6092
Web, audio and video: www.elizabeth-cook.com
JP Parsons
Elizabethton, Tennessee, birthed the beloved Doe River covered bridge and it birthed one JP Parsons, a propagator of fine music. One crosses the water; the other crosses boundaries.
How could someone so talented as JP Parsons be heard for free? No charge tabbed, Parsons embarks upon The Corner in downtown Bristol on Friday, April 5.
Parsons explores ideas through lyrics of songs from his own creation. Missing a loved one? Find it in a song from JP Parsons. Considering the plight of humankind among the ranks of the defiled or downtrodden? Look within the fruitful catalog of longtime Bristol resident JP Parsons. Or, hey, for those in wait of a song that’s fun, JP Parsons’ songs can ring that register, too.
If You Go
Who: JP Parsons
When: Friday, April 5 at 8 p.m.
Where: The Corner, 501 State St., Bristol, Va.
Admission: Free
Info: 276-285-2160
Web, audio and video: www.facebook.com/JPParsonsMusic
Bill Clifton at the Carter Fold
A.P. Carter died in 1960. Quite few are those who can say they knew and had befriended the patriarch of the pioneering Carter Family.
Bill Clifton ranks among those precious few. Clifton, who will turn 93 tomorrow, will earn a tribute paid to him and his music on Saturday, April 6 at The Carter Family Fold in Hiltons, Virginia. Elizabethton’s JP Mathes and Fiddling Leona along with a bevy of friends headline the night of music.
But oh, there’s Bill Clifton. Exposure to Richmond’s Old Dominion Barn Dance led Marylander Clifton to his musical love. He then studied songs from such rural acoustic masters as brothers J.E. and Wade Mainer, A.P. Carter, Bradley Kincaid and more. Applied to bluegrass, Clifton helped broaden the appeal of bluegrass overseas, particularly in England. Since the late 1970s, he has resided in Mendota, Virginia, within the pulse of the music he so loves.
If You Go
Who: JP Mathes & Fiddling Leona and Friends and an opening tribute to Bill Clifton
When: Saturday, April 6 at 7:15 p.m.
Where: The Carter Family Fold, 3449 A.P. Carter Hwy., Hiltons, Va.
Admission: $11 ages 12 and older, $3 ages 6 to 11, free for kids ages 5 and younger
Info: 276-594-0676
Web, audio and video: https://carterfamilyfold.org
Music Notes
Blues-tinged rock ’n’ roll royalty graced Johnson City on Monday night.
Since 1969, ZZ Top has reigned as not only the greatest trio in rock history but certainly one of rock’s most seminal of bands in its entire existence. Justifiably, ZZ Top sold out ETSU’s Martin Center for the Arts in Johnson City.
“ZZ Top is in the house tonight,” said Billy Gibbons, ZZ Top’s long-bearded co-founding lead singer and guitarist. We were talking backstage. We’ve been coming to you guys for five decades.”
Gibbons led sharp dressed ZZ Top through 16 songs in 90 minutes of raw-boned rock. Fellow co-founder Frank Beard kept impeccable time on drums. Elwood Francis, who stepped in when original member Dusty Hill died in 2021, entertained like a well-seasoned pro.
Three chop-topped hot rods took to the stage with a propulsive “Got Me Under Pressure.” As if on a backstretch of blacktop, ZZ Top ignited their love of the blues within such burners as Sam and Dave’s “I Thank You” and their own scintillating “Waitin’ for the Bus” and “Jesus Just Left Chicago.”
While their buses idled out back, ZZ Top burned octane from the stage of the outstanding Martin Center. Oh, and they even revived “Sixteen Tons.” Fair to say, though, that Bristol’s Tennessee Ernie Ford never rocked his classic as did Billy Gibbons, who played the song on Jeff Beck’s gleaming white Fender Strat.
Have mercy. That’s ZZ Top, merciless purveyors of rock ’n’ blues cool. Still, after all these years.
Download
John Lee Hooker helms this week’s free MP3 download. Drop a needle on https://archive.org/details/78_boogie-chillun_john-lee-hooker-j-l-hooker_gbia0062492b. Find Hooker’s highly influential “Boogie Chillun.” Catch the intro. ZZ Top adapted it to their classic, “La Grange.”