All tagged Charley Crockett

Favorite Albums of 2020

Last year seemed like a banner year for releases, but the buzz for 2020 albums, tours and festivals had everyone thrilled for what was to come. No one imagined that all of that would come to a screeching halt in Mid-March when a global pandemic struck. A devastating blow to the performing arts community among so many other small businesses, the education system and the healthcare community. Many musicians had just released or were nearing release dates for their music, but were left unable to tour in support of it. Some chose to delay their releases and others forged on and released albums, EPs and singles anyway. I have a great deal of respect for those that took a gamble and provided us with one of the most important things to help get us through this difficult period. The power of music has continued to bring us together when we can’t join each other like we normally would. Thankfully, social media has allowed the artists to perform livestreams or even just promote their art. It’s allowed the fans to share music and continue to discuss and analyze it. Here at the Amp, we’ve made our own individual lists of our favorite three albums this year to share with our readers. We hope that you’ve listened to some of these amazing artists and their albums, but if not, we hope that you’ll at least give them a listen and perhaps find some new favorites.

Charley Crockett: Welcome to Hard Times

If you want to know who one of the hardest working artists in music is, look no farther than Charley Crockett. In normal times, he’s out touring nonstop with his band, The Blue Drifters, and putting out albums at least twice a year. In hard times, like these, he’s put a stop to touring, but is still churning out the albums. His newest, Welcome to Hard Times, comes after his spring release of Field Recordings, a digital only release, which consisted of thirty lo-fi recordings, mainly made up of covers and deep tracks that the average listener likely hasn’t heard. Musically, Welcome to Hard Times has the signature feel of Charley’s blend of Gulf & Western.