Latest News ( Continued from page 1. )   Dave Alvin will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Americana Music Association at the organization's 23rd annual awards show on Sept. 18, at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. Others to be honored include Dwight Yoakam, Rev. Gary Davis and Shelby Lynne. II III  TAKE BACK THE NIGHT, a feminist anthem from The Dark Bob album Ekphrasis Synesthesia, was released in March. The song features Syd Straw on lead vocals, Dave Alvin on lead guitar, and X drummer DJ Bonebrake.  A video for the song is on YouTube. II III   Work is underway on Los Lobos Native Sons, a film about the longtime Los Angeles band that features former Blasters saxophonist Steve Berlin. Dave Alvin is among those interviewed for the documentary. Other musicians interviewed include Tom Waits, Linda Ronstadt, and Bonnie Raitt. The film will be released in 2025 and a trailer has been posted on YouTube. II III  Dave Alvin is featured in The Chinatown Punk Wars, a documentary on two Chinese restaurants in Los Angeles that became an integral part of the city's punk music scene in the late 1970s. Other musicians interviewed for the film include John Doe, Mike Watt, and Carla Olson. The film was broadcast in October as part of the "Artbound" television series and can be seen on YouTube by searching for the film's title. II III  Mojo Nixon, noted for his comedic songs (ELVIS IS EVERYWHERE) and larger-than-life persona, died of cardiac arrest at 66 on Feb. 7 while aboard the Outlaw Country Cruise. He, Country Dick Montana, and Dave Alvin toured as the Pleasure Barons in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The band released the Live in Las Vegas album on HighTone Records in 1993. After Mojo's death, the Knitters reunited for their first concert in nearly a decade on March 16, at the Continental Club in Austin, Texas. They performed as part of "Mojo's Final Mayhem" show during the South by Southwest music festival. II III  Sarah Brown, bassist in the Guilty Women, received a liver transplant on Jan. 18, in San Antonio, Texas. She was discharged from the hospital in late February and returned to her home in Austin. More than $26,700 was raised on the GoFundMe site to help with her medical expenses. On March 8, she wrote on the site: "I'm infinitely grateful to all that have followed my story. Your support and positive outlook, not to mention love, has charged my recovery. 'Grateful' can't possibly cover it - you've deeply affected my life." On June 8, she posted another update. "My current state is HAPPY and HEALING! There have been a few bumps, and there will be more, but I bounce back. My mobility is back, and I'm walking in my neighborhood, doing my PT, and eating healthy (when my sweet tooth is at bay.) I do get tired, and I love my naps, but depend on them less and less. Most importantly, I'm still the beneficiary of a medical miracle, and I will never, ever forget it. Nor do I forget the support you have given me in getting to the other side of a difficult time. You're the best!" II III  The FX TV show Justified is doing new TV episodes. Dave Alvin contributed music to the original show with HARLAN COUNTY LINE. When Dave Alvin was asked if he may do more music for the show, he said "The new show is set in Detroit, so if they call me, I may have to write DETROIT COUNTY LINE." II III    Jo-el Sonnier, a country and Cajun musician, died of a heart attack at 77 on Jan. 13, after a concert performance in Llano, Texas. He was a noted accordionist. He recorded SO LONG BABY GOODBYE by Dave Alvin for Come On Joe, his 1987 album. It reached No. 17 on the Billboard Country Albums chart  II III  Bill Bateman and Javier Matos of the Blue Shadows performed as a duo called "Two Lane Blacktop" in November of 2023 at the North End club in Hollywood. It's not clear if this was a one-time performance or if it's an ongoing group.    --AM 

breaking up because he was getting all the money.
     My real first job in the music business was president of the Yardbirds fan club in the late '60s. They were the best live band I've ever seen. They had a great guitarist in Jimmy Page, but they were in turmoil. I got in an accidental conversation about their management and finances and found out that they were being ripped off. The manager told them, "I discovered you, so I get all your publishing." Sure, why not 'cuz we're idiots [laughs]. Then: "I discovered you, so you have to give me all your masters rights." OK?? [laughs]. Then: "On the road, I get 50%." Giorgio Gomelsky was enormously talented and was involved in creating them, but that didn't give him the right to own them. They earned no interest in their own property. They were just given sustenance to survive on the road. I screamed at them that they were gonna break up because they were listening to the wrong people. But what did I know as a 16-year-old girl? Everything they gave away. So, I learned things early on. I was around Jeff and Jimmy quite a bit and when they told me they were breaking up, I said: "Good, you've been doing shit." They said: "What??? You're the fan club president, you shouldn't say that." [laughs]
     In the Blasters there was a big battle over publishing. It was wrong what Phil decided, but no one would stand up to him. Phil said: "I get half of Dave's writer share because it doesn't become a song until it's in my voice." Dave was his little brother, so he went along with that. Then Phil made a demand that the publishing, which would normally be shared with all the band members, Phil got two shares. That was just horrible. I tried to convince Dave that you don't have to give away your publishing. Your songs are yours. But he wouldn't buck Phil. The zeitgeist of the family as a whole was like that and only the father, Cass and Phil had say. Phil in any argument never gave concession. If you were strong enough, the best you could hope for is that he would leave it alone. It was everything but "You were right."
     The Blasters were as much Dave's songwriting as it was Phil's voice, but it existed mostly albeit on Dave's songs and that's why it still exists 30 years later. But I love the boys equally, and being female, I couldn't help but be maternal. But Dave was the smartest person I ever knew. He has a wealth of knowledge. Phil is brilliant as well, but he doesn't understand how people fit into everything.
AM: What was next for the Blasters after 1985's Hard Line album and tour?
Shelly: A year later Warner Bros. knew Dave Alvin had left the band for X and wouldn't finance a new Blasters album until they heard a three-song demo. I assured Warners that Dave would continue to write for the band. Phil said he could write songs, but he really couldn't. Nick Lowe loved the Blasters and while he was in L.A. he agreed to produce the demo, which got Warner Bros. excited.
     We scheduled four days in the studio, but Phil Alvin would not come in. Phil said: "Nick Lowe is an English weenie. We can't have English weenies producing us" [laughs]. Dave

      In a recent email interview, she discussed a variety of topics, including singing with The Third Mind and co-writing a song with Dave Alvin.

Tom: How did you and your fellow band members come to an agreement on the five cover songs included on The Third Mind/2 album? Was there a lot of discussion and were other songs considered?
Jesse:  Good question. Well, in a nutshell, I think Dave had a good sense of what he wanted as the main centerpiece for the album. Songs such as SALLY GO ROUND THE ROSES and GROOVIN IS EASY -- which are both long epic journeys, kind of set the sonic and structural tone (in terms of dictating what would fit nicely tucked in between them.)   When it came to the other songs, he and I had a few back-and-forths over the phone -- where he would throw out ideas and we'd discuss whether or not we felt we could do it justice.   I mean in essence, we tried to stay clear of songs that were covered ubiquitously. A LITTLE BIT OF RAIN, has been covered a bit (Karen Dalton did it), but I saw it as a nod to the first Third Mind album, since that album had a Fred Neil song too … and I liked the notion of keeping Fred Neil in the narrative and book ending the albums with him and us ;).
     Dave singing DOLPHINS and me singing A LITTLE BIT OF RAIN just made sense, as they both are like little palate cleansers to the ear -- after the giant opuses.  So yeah, by covering A LITTLE BIT OF RAIN, I felt like it was a nod to both Fred Neil, Karen Dalton and now to Dave Alvin, because I love his cover of THE DOLPHINS.
     One example of a very re-imagined cover on the record is WHY NOT YOUR BABY by Gene Clark. It's very different from the original. Dave is remarkable that way, in that he really knows how to reimagine a song and put his mark on it.
     Anyway, luckily, we were always in agreement, and honestly I felt I was there to learn and stretch.  I didn't want to feel too comfortable if that makes sense. And I just had faith in his vision.

Tom: How did you and Dave collaborate on TALL GRASS? Do you co-write it together or was it a long-distance collaboration? Were you both involved in the lyrics and music? As a side note, Dave and Fontaine Brown co-wrote a song called TALL TREES for Dave's 1998 album Blackjack David.
Jesse:  That's funny Dave's cheating on me with another "Tall Grass!!" lol ;) I'll have to ask him about that ;). We basically had a big geographic distance between us, and that distance became a template for the song.  I mean the song is about that distance. It's also about the land as a giant divining tool for the soul. But in this case a lament that the land in many places no longer represents the mythology we have built so many stories around. I mean let's face it, the Tall Grass Prairie only exists in remnants. It's more of an idea now.
     Tall grass exists, but in a fractured way.  Just like the diminished old growth forests (as another example.)  So, I'm lamenting the ecological loss-and also just singing a love song. But a love song to the land -- through the spirit of romantic love. If that makes sense?
     I wrote the main ribbon of melody and lyrics, then played it for him over the phone. We

one of my favorite records growing up. I was always aware of that version of Sally. When Dave said let's do that song, I nearly fell off my chair - full circle for me.

Tom: I interviewed Dave in 2009 after the release of the Guilty Women album. He said one way to improve as a musician was to play with other musicians. Do you think that philosophy is true with The Third Mind?
Jesse:  Yes. And especially in the case of The Third Mind, it's very much about taking chances and exploring elements you might not get to explore in other musical contexts. I mean it's 80% improvisational and I'm given lots of leeway live to play with phrasing, dynamics and arrangements -- with my vocal.
     So, you learn to listen in new ways, and you learn to pull out of bad choices quickly ;). Sometimes I veer in the wrong direction and get caught on a ledge. In these cases you hope for the happy accidents! You're definitely working the experimental side of emotion. You're definitely hoping to master shutting off conscious thoughts and learning to let go. Not that any musical performance doesn't adhere to what I'm saying. I mean at the end of the day it's just music, and a lot of people are exceptionally good at music and conjuring emotion through it. I'm kind of saying some very 101 stuff here ;) … But it's a matter of degrees … and with no fixed arrangements you are indeed more free. … Yet freedom comes at a cost, i.e., In this case, you can't "check out," you have to check in.

Tom: After The Third Mind's first live show at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass and subsequent tour of California, how do you feel the band has been playing? Have you made any changes since the first show?
Jesse:  For me it's just I started to gain confidence and truly embody the songs. As far as the band, they just got better and better. Some nights had moments that were truly transcendent.

Tom: It could be early to ask this. Has the band talked about making a third studio album?
Jesse:  I have not heard anything concrete. But I think we'd all love to, if it's a possibility. "Stay tuned" is the answer I'd give to that question.

Tom: Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions.
Jesse:  You're welcome!! Thanks for having me.                  --AM