Anyone who has ever been fortunate enough to have seen Raul Malo live will want this album and anyone who has never seen him live should want it even more!! Around The World comes from the man who music critic Bruce Elder (SMH) referred to as “one of the greatest voices in rock” and this album is just a testament to that compliment, of which Raul has garnered many both in his solo career and during his time with the Grammy Award winning The Mavericks. Recording the album live with the Northern Sinfonia Orchestra at the Sage Gateshead as part of the annual SummerTyne Americana Festival in 2011, Raul’s voice is showcased for all to enjoy with the sublim sounds of a full orchestra behind it, adding a whole different dimension to the songs. And what songs these are, as Raul’s flawless voice adapts to each of the tracks on this album, from his own solo material such as Lucky One and Every Little Thing About You, as well as on Dance The Night Away, the only songs featured in this set from Malo’s time fronting The Mavericks. Each song lives and breathes when Raul’s vocals are fused with the orchestra, as well as a quartet of his touring band playing along, with Michael Guerras accordion adding a Tex-Mex sound to the spectrum of strings and hornn in a combination rarely heard before. The covers on this album (selected by Malo himself as he does in most of his live shows) are where the curiosities lay. On most albums released in 2012, songs like Humperdinck’s Man Without Love, Indian Love Call and the French song “Je t’appartiens”, translated into English as the popular classic, Let It Be Me, would all seem out of place. However, it’s Raul’s interpretation and passion in his delivery of these vintage cuts that makes them seem relevant all over again. Very much like the whole album, these songs are drenched in romance and sentimentality, however they are still highly enjoyable….over and over again!! Before the night is through, the crowd was treated to rousing versions of Moonlight Kiss andGuantanamera, which is rapidly becoming a staple of the Malo live show and a regular highlight in a perfect example of an artist matching a song perfectly. The evening comes to a close with a gentle and tender rendition of the albums title track, Around The World, before the curtain falls and the fans go home. But on their way home, the crowd would be either talking about the sensational performance they just witnessed, or cuddling up to someone they love in the front seat of the car, listening to the romance in Raul’s voice by the light of the moon and the glow of radio dial. Don’t try and define Raul Malo and his music. He is not country, not jazz, not rock, not easy listening – he is nearly a genre all of his own, drawing on his strong Orbison influences and mixing them his Cuban heritage. Around The World is testament to that mixture, and when backed by the Northern Sinfonia Orchestra, becomes music for all to enjoy. This is an album to share with friends, and anyone who appreciates wonderful music will thank you for it.

This CD is the real deal. This band has a unique sound that screams Texas Country. Fantastic album!

Excellent Texas music album. Fresh new sound with an amazing voice and some even more amazing music and lyrics. I can smell the Texas windflowers on I-20 when I listen to this album.

Ever since the 90s, I've been putting together an annual list of the year's best albums. Trying to rank them is completely subjective and a little ridiculous, but whenever I question the wisdom of this absurdly herculean task, an album like this one comes along and reminds me why I make the effort. You might think that after ten albums, a film score and a handful of tracks scattered across the internet, Jenifer Jackson would have settled on one particular style. But that would be too easy. She likes to reinvent herself, so, the cd you are holding right now, her eleventh, is where she goes deeper than ever into the Americana roots she loves so much. Jenifer has always had a thing for vintage country sounds - for example, you may remember Trouble Fire, a country ballad as exquisitely sad as they get, from Jenifer's third album, Birds. Making Austin, deep in the heart of Texas, her home base, was an auspicious move that fascilliated the creation of this charming, funny, poignant, meticulously crafted collection of songs. Great songwriters never have to look far to find great musicians. The Austin-based cast of characters here have a chemistry and and unselfconsciously joyous connection to the music as direct and intense as any group Jennifer has ever assembled, to rival her first teenage band in Boston (with Paul Bryan and Jay Bellerose), and her New York band with guitar genius Oren Bloedow. So, it's no surprise that for the first time ever, Jenifer includes songs here that she's written with others. There's the deliciously aphoristic Heart with a Mind of Its Own, a classic country co-write with Dickie Lee Erwin. And Kullen Fuchs, who plays a small vanload of instruments on this, co-wrote the artfully arranged duet Paint It Gold as well as the gently visionary anthem White Medicine Cloud. And the rest of this is the Jenifer Jackson we know and love: no wasted words, no wasted notes, a voice and a vision which can be as tender as they are resolute. And fun too! The countrypolitan chamber swing of Texas Sunrise; the way the pulsing string section parts the waters for Kullen's recorder on All Around; that jaunty walk down Phil Spencer's bass into a counterintuitive chord change as In Summer begins; and the elegant handoff from cello, to accordion, to bubbly mariachi horns in On My Mind are just a small handful of the boundlessly imaginative touches here that reveal themselves with repeated listening. You are in for a real treat with this record. Alan Young New York Music Daily November 2013

Randy Rogers Band is in a class of their own! Music today has got nothing on RRB! A true class act!

Kenneth O'Meara is a Lubbock singer-songwriter through and through. God of Wind is the debut record from O'Meara. At 10 songs, he's able to dive into various storytelling songs that any country-folk fan can appreciate. It’s best when O’Meara paints the lonesome, empty highways of the plains on ballads such as “Before The Drought” and “When the Road Ends.” Country rockers “Dixie’s Daughter” and “Chicken Bones” bring more energy, but they still bring another aspect of life in West Texas.

Awesome name, even more awesome music. Certainly enjoy everything this guy puts out.

This is a great album! It's Pure Texas rock and roll. The songs are strong, feature great harmonies and guitar work. Very listenable. Very catchy, Very good.

Start to finish this is a great album. Texas music at it's finest, and it's definitely in my top 5 albums of all time. I keep it in heavy rotation and you will too!

Clay Thrash playing when I was on a tubing vacation and after checking out a few online clips, decided it was worth investing in an EP and going to see him live! He's got a good sound and stage presence and seemed like a genuinely nice guy! I think he's going to be big! Show him some love and buy this release!