Tuesday, February 07, 2006

Scott Miller, Live

Scott Miller is one of my favorite singer-songwriters. Formerly the frontman for the V-Roys, a band my brother's band used to open up for, Scott is an amazing songsmith -- particularly in the area of Appalachia, the Civil War, and other areas related to his native southern mountain upbringing.

When the V-Roys split after recording 3 albums for Steve Earle's E-Squared label, I was dismayed because I enjoyed them so much. But honestly, Scott's solo songwriting has probably stepped up a notch or two since he struck out on his own. I own and recommend everything that Miller has recorded, but where he really shines is in his live shows.

Archive.org has a great collection of his shows for streaming/download but I'm particularly fond of the one that I just found this morning -- Live at the Down Home in Johnson City, TN (May 8, 2004). It's a great show that includes all of my Miller favorites (including the greatest Train Song written in the last 20 years) as well as a few V-Roys classics. Best of all, there's some covers (Tom Waits, Leadbelly, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young) and unrecorded tracks (Mother Married a Yankee) that you won't find elsewhere. The soundboard recording quality is excellent and really captures Miller at his finest. Check it out!

1 comment:

Jake Larson said...

I'm checking out that Down Home show now. I really like the other shows on the archive. Scott Miller does in fact rock.