James Carothers - Still Country, Still King: A Tribute To George Jones
In this week's episode, we're featuring a stone-cold country tribute to The Possum from Tennessee-native James Carothers: "Still Country, Still King: A Tribute To George Jones" (2018). After leaving a good job as a technican at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, and with some encouragement from his wife and two kids - the Carothers moved the homeplace to Nashville, Tennessee to allow James to pursue country music. Gigs were hard to come by in the first few months - until a chance encounter with Nancy Jones (George's fourth and final wife) at the newly opened George Jones Museum in 2015 led to a residency there. Carothers played almost two years straight there - honing his craft and making friends with like-minded Possum tragics. Amongst strong original projects - he was approached with the opportunity to record a tribute album to George Jones and jumped at the opportunity. The results are simply superb: half hits, half deeper cuts, Carothers and his team have expertly mined Jones' later material for some un-thrashed gems as well as worthy favourites. James Carothers' Jones-like howl shines on the harrowing "What Am I Doing There" and "Still Doin' Time"; the longing in "Wood & Wire" is palpable and the best cover this reviewer has ever heard of "He Stopped Loving Her Today" is not just the cherry on top: it's the jewel in the crown of a sparkling tribute album. Bloody sensational.