Rainy Day Records: Rainy Day Artists

Ms. Carolyn Ann "Gus" Hardin, the freewheeling, spirited, whisky-voiced singer, whose mixture of Blues, Rock, Gospel and Country typified the "Tulsa Sound" of the 1970's was killed in a tragic automobile accident in 1996. In the early 1980's, Gus signed a recording contract with RCA RECORDS in Nashville, where her soulful vocals were captured on three albums. In 1984, Gus was named "Best New Country Vocalist" by the Academy of Country Music. This album presents Gus and her music on Compact Disc for the first time and contains FIVE NEW RELEASES she had previously recorded at "Sound City" and also features the background vocals of Tulsa's Betsy Smittle, GARTH BROOKS' sister. The album provides all of Gus Hardin's loyal fans the opportunity to preserve her voice for posterity on Compact Disc, as well as to expose a whole new generation of music fans to her incredible talent for the first time.

Take the Telecaster Bakersfield sound popularized by Buck Owens, Merle Haggard and Dwight Yoakam; throw in the traditional sound of Ray Price, the outlaw image of Willie and Waylon, and then add some Bad-Boy Southern Rock, Elvis Rock-a-Billy and the Mavericks. This debut album was produced by Multi-Platinum and Grammy Award winning Producer and Engineer Dusty Wakeman.

Kina Lankford is a small town girl with big city dreams and talent as big as Texas. In today’s world, many of Country Music’s biggest stars have never even seen a cow, but Kina was born and raised near the legendary cow town of Abilene, and those West Texas roots have influenced both her and her music. Kina’s music is an interesting mix of traditional country style, with a modern country edge, and brilliant songwriting.

Kina is also an experienced relief carver of Mesquite and Cedar. She inherited her “Woodworking Gene” from her father Terry, and she often works as a woodcarver at her father’s renowned woodshop and high-end custom furniture store Lankford’s Mesquite Products in Abilene. Kina combines the woodworking she learned as a child growing up in her father’s woodshop, with a Degree in Fine Art from Abilene Christian University, to create beautiful, unique and original works of “Wood Art” and custom-made furniture. These unusual artistic and creative skills are also evident in her music and her songwriting. Her original songs are expertly crafted and chiseled from hard, West Texas wood and the grit and dust of an old worn out pair of boots.

Copenhagen Kisses is Kina’s debut album release, and it introduces her as a unique young recording artist with a classic country voice and incredible talent, as well as a songwriter with vision and insight beyond her years. This debut album was produced by Tommy Detamore, one of the finest producers in today’s Texas Music Scene, and it also features two duets with Kina’s friend and fellow Abilene Christian graduate, Aaron Watson, another young rising star in Country Music.

The Panhandlers combine a fresh new blend of Traditional Country, Modern Country, Rock and Americana, similar to the styles of Cross Canadian Ragweed and Steve Earle, with great original material that is a lot of fun and doesn't take itself too seriously.
Anybody who has ever been in and out of love will want to hear "Crazy Stupid Bitch".

In 1996, legendary record producer Rick Rubin recorded the Johnny Cash album entitled Unchained at Sound City Recording Studios in Los Angeles, a subsidiary of Sound City Entertainment Group, which is also the parent company of Rainy Day Records. Music legend Carl Perkins performed on this album, and he passed away less than six months after its completion. The album featured an unusual cast of mixed-genre music greats including Tom Petty, Mike Campbell, Howie Epstein, Benmont Tench, Michael "Flea" Balzary, Marty Stuart, Lindsey Buckingham and Mick Fleetwood.

After Country Music Radio refused to give the album any Air-Play, because according to them, it was NOT a Country Music Album; the album went on to win the Grammy Award for "Best Country Album" in 1997, sending Nashville's Music Row into a year of embarrassment. The Grammy win prompted Rick Rubin and Johnny Cash to buy a full page ad in USA Today in which Johnny Cash "thanked Country Music for all of its support" by saluting them with his middle finger. This now famous story and newspaper ad was the inspiration for the song and album entitled Where the Hell is Johnny Cash? If you think Johnny Cash was one of the last of the true music legends, you have to own this album by The Panhandlers.

The most refreshing thing about Saltlick and their music is that they are both almost impossible to describe. Is Saltlick Country? No, at least not by today's standards in Country Music. Are they Alternative Country? Sort of, but not really. Are they Roots Rock? Maybe. Are they Folk? Well, there hasn't really been any true Folk music in so long, that America's newest generations don't even know what Folk music actually is. So, what are they? They are DAMN GOOD, that's what they are! Saltlick is a unique Alternative Country, Roots Rock band from Eugene, Oregon, led by Singer/Songwriter Steve Taddei. Steve's voice sounds a little bit like Bob Dylan, his songwriting and musical style are reminiscent of the late, great Gram Parsons, and his attitude toward Country Music is a tribute to the anti-establishment attitudes of Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, David Allen Coe and Steve Earle. A Face Only A Mother Could Love is the band's debut album release, and it is a breath of fresh creative air in a world of music that has become way too scripted and stagnant beyond belief. Cows LOVE Saltlick!! And, if you understand, or want to learn, what Country Roots Rock is all about, you will eventually wear out this album, like a block of Saltlick! You must hear it!

Tracie Lynn is a rarity in country music these days, a country artist that actually grew up in the country. Born and raised in South Texas, Tracie drinks Lone Star Beer out of a longneck bottle, drives a pickup truck with a gun rack in the back, and you have to just love a Texas Girl that named her own independent record label Bird Dog Records. Girl Talk is the debut album release that garnered critical acclaim for Tracie and her music, and established an incredible following among her many fans. She combines a traditional country voice with a modern country style that is both genuine and unique at the same time. Her brilliant songwriting features witty lyrics and melodies that you just can't get out of your head, along with a creativity not found in country music in quite some time, all of which meld together to reveal Tracie's "Tongue-In-Cheek" sense of humor. Girl Talk was produced by Austin music legend Lloyd Maines along with Ray Methvin, and it provides the perfect musical backdrop to display Tracie's unique talent.

Tracie Lynn combines a traditional country voice with a modern country style that is both genuine and unique at the same time. Leave A Trail is Tracie's sophomore album release, and it picks up where Tracie left off with her debut album entitled Girl Talk. However, this new album reveals a more seasoned performer and musician, who is further establishing herself as one of Country Music's most refreshing songwriters.

Joel Melton is a Singer, Songwriter and Musician located in Austin, Texas. Joel grew up in a small southeastern Oklahoma town, where he learned about hard work, unusual characters, bootleg whiskey, rowdy hospitality, and quiet southern charm. His music reflects upon those small town memories with a slight touch of urban influences added for seasoning. His unique songs spring from random thoughts, original ideas, and sometimes-controversial topics. Round Here is Joel's most recent album release.

Uncle Joey & The Mud Puppies is a Roots Rock band led by Uncle Joey, an original and unique character that is the Alter-Ego of Singer/Songwriter/Musician Joel Melton. Take the Bad-Boy Biker Country Roots Rock of David Allen Coe, throw in the Texas Blues Rock of Steve Earle and the Folk Rock Story-Telling Balladry of Tom Waits, and then add the Outlaw Country Style of Willie, Waylon and The Boys, along with a huge dose of New Millennium Political Incorrectness for extra flavor, and what you get is a Campfire Kettle full of Mud Puppy Stew!

Lauren Ellis is a singer/songwriter and guitarist based in Los Angeles and Nashville. Known throughout the Los Angeles music scene for her brilliant and insightful songwriting, her unique voice and her exceptional skills on slide guitar, Lauren has made a name for herself as both a session musician and live performer. Now her talents are revealed on compact disc for the first time, with her debut album release entitled Push The River. Silk and Sandpaper vocals, inspired songwriting and some of the tastiest slide guitar you will ever hear, Lauren is one of the best singer/songwriters to come along in quite some time. In 1999, she received the Los Angeles Music Award for Outstanding Guitarist, and was the only woman invited to audition for The Other Ones, the Post-Garcia version of the Grateful Dead. Lauren has also previously been named Songwriter of the Year by the Los Angeles Songwriter's Association.

Dynamic, wailing, sassy female country and blues rock with an undeniable Texas flair and the ache of the Delta that will make a fan out of you from the very first song. Feels Like Family is Lauren's highly anticipated sophomore release, and it adds some new flavors to her already established talents as a songwriter and guitarist. This new album also features a ripping slide/harp duet with Tony Joe White, on Dry as a Bone.

Born and raised in a small Massachusetts mill town, Jason Myles Goss is a Singer, Songwriter and Musician located in Boston. Jason discovers his unique stories in the remnants of Small-Town USA. He writes about a world he knows all too well, one full of streetlights, wishing wells, barroom brawlers, broken roads and broken hearts. His songs are steeped in the dark and narcotic pull of late-night dreams, in those hours where everyday objects are transformed into ethereal and compelling images. Whether it is the frayed dignity of an antique jukebox, the smell of an old barbershop, or the stark and hypnotic intensity of a sleepless highway drive, Jason gathers inspiration from many sources and shapes those bits and pieces into powerful compositions. Another Ghost is Jason's highly anticipated sophomore release, and it reveals the many new dimensions of an artist whose musical style has matured beyond his years.

At an age where he is barely old enough to even get into many of the smokey bars and nightclubs where he performs, Jason Myles Goss has already shared the stage with recording artists such as Richie Havens, Ellis Paul, Martha Wainwright, Josh Ritter, Vance Gilbert, Peter Mulvey, Jess Klein, and Lori McKenna. Long Way Down is Jason's debut album release, and it reveals a bright young Singer/Songwriter whose talents and potential are unlimited, and it has garnered high praise and critical acclaim for Jason from throughout the music industry.

A long-standing member of the singer/songwriter scene in Philadelphia, Lizanne Knott has been captivating audiences throughout the Northeast and garnering attention from radio listeners in places as far away as Belgium and England. Renowned for her understated music, floating vocals and lyrical juxtapositions, her apparent depth and transcending warmth make for an inviting mix of music, which moves easily from dark poetic ballads, to soulful Jazz influenced Pop and Folk driven Rock. Perhaps most captivating is her use of poetic verse to touch on the simplest of human emotions, reminding us that while we all remain very unique as individuals, we also share many common threads in the complexities of life.

Erika Simonian is a singer and songwriter from Brooklyn, New York who also plays guitar, bass guitar, mandolin and piano. Erika's one-of-a-kind voice is a sultry blend of a smoky Alto combined with a graceful falsetto soprano. And, it is her unusual and genuine combination of talent and personality that critics have repeatedly celebrated about Erika and her music. 29 1/2 is Erika's debut album release, and it reveals her musical creativity and playful personality, as well as her skills as a songwriter.

All The Plastic Animals is Erika Simonian's sophomore album release, and it is somewhat twisted, timeless and quiet. This is the kind of album that you play low, in the middle of the night, when your awake and don't want to wake up anyone else in the house. It is in these quiet times, when you are alone in the dark, that you feel the most vibrant and potent, and it is part of the personal odyssey of life to face yourself in that stillness of the night and reflect in the quietness.

Singer/Songwriter Jennifer Daniels lives in a rustic cabin at the top of Lookout Mountain in Georgia, where her earthy folk rock is born. Jennifer's music springs from Celtic Roots but is American in every sense. It reflects a connection to the land that inhabits her songs and her soul. Her music is darkly romantic, hot and humid, sensual, haunted and gothic. It seems to have grown from some rich, dark soil. Her vocal phrasing is reminiscent of a young Joni Mitchell, but is unique in its own sense. Jennifer's distinct style and impressive songwriting transcends description and genre. Dive & Fly is Jennifer’s debut release, and it has received critical acclaim from music critics while also being embraced by the listening public with open arms.

Award winning singer/songwriter Jennifer Daniels returns with her highly anticipated sophomore release, Summer Filled Sky. From joyful pop-rock anthems like Day to Live and Welcome to Your Life to the stark realism and emotion of Tattoo and the melancholy beauty of the ballad Spiderman, Summer Filled Sky leaves no emotion untapped and no feeling unstirred.

Lauren Echo is a very talented singer and songwriter with a soulful and smoky Alto voice that is influenced by Pop, Folk and Jazz stylings. A native New Yorker, Lauren now resides in North Carolina and tours extensively along the East Coast, from Florida to New York City. Still is Lauren's debut album release, and it reveals the emotions of a strong female songwriter who is honest enough to expose her vulnerabilities while espousing themes of triumph, freedom, spirit, and dignity. Still is the kind of album that feels like your favorite pair of old worn-out jeans, and just like those jeans, they feel better every time you wear them, and you never get tired of wearing them.