So as I mentioned earlier in the year, JJ Lawhorn is an up and coming country artist. Well, here lately he has been doing a lot with Colt Ford and on his own. From being on Drop Zone TV to cutting not one but two tracks with Colt this year and one of his own. October 9th was the debut of the music video for “Answer To No One”. By the looks of it, this video and song are going to be a hit. Look for more from Lawhorn and Ford this year and into next year. Also check out the “Declaration of Independence” album from Ford. It’s one of the best Colt Ford albums I have ever heard!
Photo courtesy of http://www.facebook.com/briandavislive
So I came across this CD last week while I was looking for new things to listen to. I wanted to hear something new from Brian Davis, being a fan of his since around last summer. Listening to all of his other stuff like “Pull Up A Tailgate”, “Summer Back” and “Talk A Little While On My Tailgate”, this fills that void that I have missed when it comes to BD and his music. With that being said, lets get into this review.
So I first listened to the preview that BD put on Youtube.
After listening to this, I immediately started searching for Under The Influence. Just listening to the preview I knew I was going to like this CD. It’s rare that I go out and buy a CD, let alone a digital CD, but I am 100% happy with this purchase. Brian Davis didn’t let me down one bit.
So, as soon as you put this CD in, you are introduced to a riff that got a little bit of grit to it. Reminded me of the beginning of an Eric Church song. It had that rock influence to it. Funny thing is, the first song on the CD is the title track, Under The Influence. A few tracks later you come across what sounds like BD singing a Capella. This song is called, “Lights of My Hometown” , written by both Brian Davis and Brantley Gilbert, this song hit home for me. Not because of the obvious reasons, “Lights Of My Hometown” but for the very last verse. “How bout a flash light on a gravestone, let your best friend know that he aint alone, go on pop a top pour a little out, let him know that your still thinking about him….” For some reason, this verse makes me realize that the slower pace of life is always worth more than living life at seventy miles per hour.
The next song that stuck out in my mind was the song “County Line Crossers”. It had that kick, that heavy guitar riff, lyrics that describe summer time in the small towns all across those the United States. Its a song that I can see people listening to during the summer time.
So a few tracks later, you come across another song that BD wrote with Brantley Gilbert called “Hurt Like Hell Yea”. I first heard this song in August of 2011 when I saw BD open up for Brantley at the 9:30 Club in D.C. And back then I knew this was going to be one of those hits. One of those “kick ass songs” and I was right. With lyrics like, “This is gonna hurt like hell, gonna leave a scar, wish I hadn’t done this tonight, tomorrow morning when I wake up,” This song fits any boy from the south that typically doesn’t start the fight but finishes it every time.
To round out the track, and to bring the CD to a close is a song that slows down the pace. It sets up for a perfect ending in my eyes. The song is called “Against The World”, and I have to say, this is one of my favorite songs on the CD, and it closes it out really well. This is going to be that song that every female, who listens to Brian Davis, is going to love.
In closing, I spent $8.99 on Amazon to get a CD DIGITALLY, something that I normally don’t do, and I am so glad that I did. Brian Davis’ Under The Influence is a MUST buy. It’s probably one of the better CD’s out right now. He is right up there with Thomas Rhett, Kip Moore, Florida-Georgia Line, JJ Lawhorn and the other up and coming artists out there. So, I’m giving this CD a 4.5/5, because this is dang near perfect.
For more information on Brian Davis go to his official page:
http://www.briandavislive.com/index.php
His Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Brian-Davis-Live
His Twitter:
https://twitter.com/BRIANDAVISLIVE
Before you go any further into reading this review, I want everyone to know that I like Ben Wells as a singer. I think that he has an awesome voice. When I first listened to him, the first song I had heard was “Valdosta Rain” which I absolutely love.
With that being said, my initial thought of “Get Down” was, “I can dig this, it sounds too familiar though, but I like it.” I don’t know if it was the ”Come on y’all” or the “Pop a top…” or if it was the overall sound of the song. But it reminded me of Brantley Gilbert. A lot. From the guitar riffs to the breakdown. I’m not saying this song is terrible, all I am saying is, there could have been more originality behind it. I catch myself a lot of the times during the song waiting for the “grit” in his voice, but it never shows itself. But, I can see myself listening to this at a party or bonfire simply because it’s got that feel to it.
This is the only song that doesn’t scream, “Amazingness” to me when I listen to it. The majority of Wells’ stuff I listen to on a daily basis as a fan. So, I am going to have to give this song a C- for lack of originality. Here’s the official lyric video for the song. Check it out yourself and tell me what you think.
August 18th 2012, I had the chance to be on set with the boys from Georgia, also known as The Daniel Lee Band. They were filming a music video for their current single, “Backwoods Tobacco” featured on the Mud Digger 3 album. After a nine hour drive, two stops for gas, and what seemed like 20 pee breaks, me and the three others that decided to make the trip to little Pendergrass, Georgia, arrived. Greeted by Patrick Stevens, former guitarist for the band, things seemed to be starting off really well. I could tell that the evening was only beginning and I was in for a long night full of laughter, stories, meeting new people, and an experience like none other.
Gathered around an old garage, 60 people strong watched Daniel Lee and company rock out on the set, silently. I never knew how quiet you had to be while on set. Have you ever tried rocking out to a song silently? Just think about that for a second, “ROCK out to a song SILENTLY.” Those were the words Lyn Sengupta, director of the video, used to describe how we had to act during one of the scenes in the video. So here we are, gathered around the band, music starts to play and all you hear are people whispering the words, “We put our trucks in the mud, trust in the lord, fall for the girl in them cut off shorts….” I must admit, it was one of the most difficult things in my life. Ok, maybe slight exaggeration, but still, after a few beers in me, the last thing I wanted to do was rock out silently to one of my favorite bands while they shot their very first major music video.
After shooting the major scenes, they decided to shoot some of the more “lyric-specific” ones, which if any of you have listened to the words to the song, you can probably guess which ones those are. Two hours later, all you hear are cheers from the people gathered around Lee signaling that “its a wrap”. The Daniel Lee Band just finished shooting their first music video and the real party is about to begin. We all gathered in the garage, Ms. Lyn thanked us for coming out, told us we are more than welcome to stay, enjoy the food, have a few beers (something I had already been doing), mingle, enjoy a summer night stomping in the Georgia clay, and that’s just what we did. Someone breaks out the old six string, strums a couple chords from Tom Petty’s hit song, “Free Fallin”, and before you know it, there’s a group gathered around three people, singing the words, “She’s a good girl, loves her mama. Loves Jesus and America too.”
Georgia has to be one of the most peaceful places in the south, on the east coast, and in the country. Rain or shine. Speaking of rain, ever seen 10 grown adults go dance and sing in a downpour in the middle of the night? I have, it’s happened in Georgia before. while we passed around the “Backwoods Tobacco”.
For more information on the Daniel Lee Band, visit,
http://danielleeband.com/enterdlb.cfm
or you can go to
http://www.facebook.com/DanielLeeBand
. For booking information, please contact Rob Cain at robcain65@gmail.com. Download “Backwoods Tobacco” off iTunes or buy the entire Mud Digger 3 album a your local Best Buy or Walmart.
(SN: Since i got your attention, check out the newest song by Daniel Lee entitled “Poor Me”
)
Photo Courtesy of
https://www.zoobie.com/images/CD/661869002408.jpg
So the release of another Mud Digger album is upon on us and on this CD we have a vast array for artists from Bubba Sparxxx (known for his song “Ms. New Booty”) to JJ Lawhorn and The Daniel Lee Band, two artists who are featured on Country Underground.
As soon as you put the CD in, you are hit with a beat that alot of people have heard before. Its Lenny Cooper’s “Mud Bog Paint Job”. A parody to “Ice Cream Paint Job”. In my opinion its a pretty cool song. Truth be told about me, I’m not a big fan of the “country rap” but this song amuses me. It reminds me of a “Lonely Island” SNL parody.
You skip tracks and go to the second song and you are introduced to a guitar riff and beat that slows down the pace of the CD just a tad. Also if you watch Drop Zone TV you might recognize the song. Its Colt Ford featuring JJ Lawhorn with a song called “Drop Zone” . In my opinion, this is one of the better songs on the album, no, its not because its JJ, but just because I like the beat of the song and its very catchy.
Track 3 is the Lacs, “Let Your Country Hang Out”. It’s an ok song, like I said, I’m not big on the whole “country rap” genre, but there are a few songs I like. This song, sadly, and rather honestly, isn’t one of them. The first minute of the song is nothing but one and two syllable rhymes that just bore me. Maybe I have to let the song grow on me, but as of right now, not a song I’m going to be blasting going down the road, but I must admit, I do like the chorus.
That takes us to JB and The Moonshine Band. I was introduced to this band by a friend of mine. Listened to a few songs, became a fan. “More Beer For Breakfast”, track number four on the album. There really isn’t much to say about this song. It speaks for itself and for the college kid listening to it while he’s hungover heading to church on a Sunday morning, he will fully understand what JB is talking about.
The next song I’m going to highlight is JJ Lawhorn’s “Stomping Grounds”, its track number six on the Mud Digger album. I skipped number five because, well frankly, I don’t like it, its too different for me to even write about. It goes beyond “country rap”. Anyways, back to “Stomping Grounds”. This song is another one of my favorites. Something about it takes me back to my hometown. It puts me back in the hallways of my high school. Makes me relive the four years I spent with the girl I thought was going to be the one. Reminds me of the hell me and my best friend raised at those late night bonfires on Saturday night. This is another job well done by JJ Lawhorn. Another song that has the ability to go number 1.
Lucky number seven brings us to Bubba Sparxxx. A lot of people might remember his song “Ms. New Booty”, but his song “Country Boy Coolin” on the MD3 album is really good. I know I said that the whole “country rap” genre wasn’t me, but this song is something I can listen to.
“My Truck”, number eight on the MD3 album by Redneck Social Club. Eh. That’s really all I can say about it. I liked it. This song talks about, you guess it, his truck. I will say that one of my favorite lines from this song was, “My Truck…all american, nothing chinese.”
Next song is “Backwoods Tobacco” by The Daniel Lee Band. Another song that is one of my favorites on here. He pretty much talks about what everyone down south or any country boy does on a Saturday night. Talking about passing around the “Backwoods Tobacco”. As of today, (6/12/12) this one was the most downloaded song off of this CD. Daniel Lee Band continues to impress and this song doesn’t let any of their fans down.
Number 10 is “Kickin Up Mud (remix)” by The Lacs featuring Ira Dean. Being a fan of this song, its already a win in my book. Adding Ira Dean to it didn’t do anything but help it.
Track number 11 is “Lick” by Denum Jones was ok for what it is. It reminds me of a country version of “Forget You” by Ceelo Green. I think the song will grow on me the more I listen to it, just like I think alot of these songs will.
Lauren Briant is the next artist on this CD, it’s track number 12. The song is called, ” My Side Of His Story”. To be COMPLETELY honest, this song makes me think of what would happen if Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood got together and wrote a song together. It’s your mediocre, “I’m going to write a song about my ex” song. Being a guy, its ok at best. I’m sure the females that listen to the song will love it.
The last song on the CD is by a guy by the name of Big Matt. He was the “Only In America” contest winner. He won by submitting an original song to Average Joe’s Entertainment. He is/was an unsigned artist when he submitted the song. Out of all of the entries, his was chosen to be featured on this album. For someone who isn’t signed, I’m pretty sure AJE is going to sign him soon. His song, “Long Road” is pretty decent. He talks about the struggles of making it big. Overall I liked it.
With that being said, this album is fairly decent. If I had to give it a score it would be 7/10. Simply because of the whole “country rap”. The three songs that I mentioned being my favorites, “Backwoods Tobacco”, “Stomping Grounds” and “Drop Zone” in my opinion are worth the price of this CD. It seems like AJE has alot of pretty good artists in their line-up and on this CD. I am really looking forward to seeing what good things come from this label. Until next time guys, “Pass around the Backwoods Tobacco”
Photo credit:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/JJ-Lawhorn/150382864985809
May 4th 2012, JJ Lawhorn took the stage at the Hat Factory in Richmond, Va. The moment he started playing his guitar, the crowd was into it. Playing songs off of his self titled EP, he rocked the stage showing Richmond, Va why he is the next best thing coming into the country music scene. Signed with Average Joe’s Entertainment, Lawhorn has two songs coming out on the upcoming “Mud Diggers 3″ album being released next Tuesday, June 12th. Country Underground got the opportunity to sit down with Lawhorn back in May at the Hat Factory to talk to him about what he has going on this year and to get a closer look at who this kid is coming out of Hanover, Va.
CU: Who were you inspirations growing up?
Lawhorn: I have alot of inspirations in music. But mainly like old school blues like Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley as well as old school country artists like Hank Sr, Earnest Tubb. A little bluegrass as well as old school outlaw country like Waylon Jennings and Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard. I’ve got a lot of different influences.
CU: When did you realize this is what you wanted to do?
Lawhorn: Ever since I was a kid, I always wanted to do this but I never thought it was possible because I just didn’t see anyway I could be introduced into it. There wasn’t any way I could get into it. I was thinking, “this probably isn’t realistic”. So I was going to be a farmer up until my junior year in high school.
CU: Being able to sit down with Colt Ford, what is it like?
Lawhorn: When you meet Colt, you realize that he’ll treat you just like kin, he is genuinely a good person. He’d sign a stack of autographs for you if you asked him to and talk to you the whole time. It’s like a dream come true being able to chill with the people I rocked out to.
CU: Opening up for all these artists like Justin Moore, Craig Campbell, Trace Adkins, how do you feel about that?
Lawhorn: I feel like, I’m just blessed because they have been putting me out in front of all these great acts. It’s a great way to start to be able to play in front of those big acts. It gives me good exposure, and a good way to get the word out.
CU: Where else are you playing at this year?
Lawhorn: Mexico with Colt Ford, Montgomery Gentry, Josh Gracin, John Michael Montgomery. Maine, New York, Cancun, pretty much all sorts of places.
CU: So what about any sort of CD release?
Lawhorn: All I can say is the album will be out later this year.
CU: Whats the one thing you are looking forward to?
Lawhorn: The one thing I am looking forward to man is to play at The Grand Ole Opry.
CU: One thing you could say to your fans right now what is it?
Lawhorn: One thing I could say to my fans? Thank you first off, without fans, you can’t do anything. Y’all make it [happen]. If there was one thing I could say to anybody it would be thank you. That and keep it real man.
Be on the lookout for JJ Lawhorn on the upcoming Mud Diggers 3 album June 12th. Also for more information about JJ Lawhorn check out
http://www.facebook.com/pages/JJ-Lawhorn/150382864985809
http://jjlawhorn.com/
I first heard of this kid back in the early part of 2011 and I have pretty much been hooked. From his cover of Garrett Hedlund’s “Chances Are” to his original songs like “Good Ole Boys Like Us”, Lawhorn a rising star in country music. Currently signed with Average Joe Entertainment, Lawhorn just released a music video for his single, “Sittin On A Tailgate”. Which in my opinion, is a really good video.
Lawhorn was discovered back in 2010 when producer, Jeremy Stover came across this young man on YouTube. Since then, its been nothing but the sky for JJ. Look for more in the future from the guy, but for now enjoy his newly released video, “Sittin On A Tailgate”
More info on booking and other music from JJ can be found at
http://jjlawhorn.com/
