Anders Osborne performed last night at the Duck Room to a packed crowd, with St. Louis-based Five and Dimers opening.

Thousands of music fans made their way to the "land of the delta blues" last weekend for the annual Beale Street Music Festival. This was my fifth time attending the long-running fest, part of the city's month-long Memphis in May celebration in Tom Lee Park on the banks of the Mississippi River.

Justin Townes Earle
Nothing's Gonna Change the Way You Feel About Me Now
Bloodshot

That Justin Townes Earle would begin his career in the shadow of other great songwriters was unavoidable; after all, his father is Steve Earle, and he carries the name of late Texas songwriter Townes Van Zandt.

With 50 years in the music business, Andre Williams does not disappoint. The documentary "Agile, Mobile, Hostile: A Year with Andre Williams" was screened before the show and only made one wonder what kind of show was about to happen.

For a dynamite soul ensemble, combine tight horns, funky rhythms and show-stopping vocals. Add a modern pop twist and you’ve got the explosive sounds of the Right Now.

Though he can tear up a juke joint every time he plugs in his Stratocaster, the true power and subtlety of Lloyd Jones' blues shines through when he's sitting down with just a microphone and an acoustic guitar.

Blues guitarist Anthony Gomes performed at the Duck Room this past Friday.

Mixing jazz, blues and a big shot of old style rock 'n' roll into a fierce cocktail, JD McPherson pushes time backward with his swinging analog grooves.

Ten years after trading in his gloves for a guitar, former Mid-South division middleweight champion, Tupelo, Miss. native Paul Thorn was offered a record contract and began his career as a touring musician. Specializing in raw and honest Southern rock and blues, Thorn has a penchant for translating his personal experiences into easily relatable tales that come from the heart.

St. Louis music fans showed true dedication last night as heavy rain, hail, lightning and damaging winds couldn't keep a solid crowd away from the Old Rock House to see legendary Texas-based singer and songwriter Ray Wylie Hubbard.

Everybody's favorite rock duo, the Black keys, took the stage to a storm of applause. Guitarist Dan Auerbach approached the mic and gave everyone a short and sweet apology for running late. Then Patrick Carney got right to the point and started wailing on his drums.

Ray Wylie Hubbard's latest record, "The Grifter's Hymnal," has been in constant rotation in my truck for the past week. Living with it as I did, many questions arose, and I was lucky enough to be able to run them by the esteemed Mr. Hubbard recently via phone from his front porch in Texas.

Blame belated Tax Day, the Cardinals home game or Willie Nelson's set at the Pageant for the small crowd at the Old Rock House for Los Angeles garage punk/bluesman Hanni El Khatib.

In the Black Rep production of "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom," the cancers of racial inequality and overt cruelty are laid bare with a finessed, punch-to–the-gut impact, one that left me with a renewed sense of outrage for a brand of casual racism that must never, ever be tolerated again.

Kentucky Knife Fight offers up a sound full of razor-edged riffs, incendiary rhythms and enough darkly hopeless love stories to entertain even the most heartless bastards among us. Oh, and don't forget the harmonica.

The North Mississippi Allstars are the last of a dying breed.

Janiva Magness has made quite the name for herself these past 15 years as a soulful blues singer of precision and power. As such, one would not expect songs written by the likes of Matthew Sweet, Paul Thorn or Ray Wylie Hubbard to be on her radar.

Last night's performances by Lydia Loveless, Rum Drum Ramblers and the Hackensaw Boys at the Duck Room were undoubtedly among the best I have seen in a while.

When it comes to hot acoustic guitar picking, soaked in blues and country traditions, George Worthmore is one of the finest around.

From the first notes of Davina and the Vagabonds' debut album, "Black Cloud," the listener can feel something special boiling in this five-piece band's veins.

Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears returned to a packed Off Broadway last night for a KDHX-welcomed show full of heavy riffs and funky grooves.

Aside from Christmas, no religious or patriotic holiday has any kind of notable soundtrack. But then there's Carnival, aka Carnivale, or Mardi Gras.

Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears play upbeat blues injected with influences that include soul, punk and rock 'n' roll. Hailing from Austin (though now living in Montreal), Joe Lewis' dynamic vocals and heavy guitar licks provide the lead for a turbo-charged ensemble of horns and percussion.

Hacienda, an impressively-bearded four-piece family band from San Antonio, opened for Heartless Bastards last night at the Firebird. While the bands aren't labelmates, their styles are somewhat similar and make for a well-paired touring team.

Charlie Parr is a Duluth-based country blues musician, a juxtaposition of location and genre which is only surprising if you haven't heard of Bob Dylan.