Patty Griffin American Kid (New West) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars There’s nothing like being Robert Plant’s vocal partner in the sadly short lived Band of Joy to bolster your visibility. After finishing an album and tour with Mr. Lemon Squeezer, singer/songwriter Griffin retreats to a far more intimate setting for tunes thematically built [...]

Patty Griffin American Kid (New West) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars Stream the album Patty Griffin is one of those artists who is practically incapable of putting out a disappointing album. Such artists often get taken for granted, but Griffin’s spark and spirit is such that her music demands attention and appreciation every time [...]

Patty Griffin “Ohio” (New West Records) Rating: 4 stars (out of 5) The Buckeye State has inspired its share of remarkable tunes over the years, from Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young’s politically charged “Ohio,” to Sun Kil Moon’s dreamily somber “Carry Me Ohio.” And “Ohio,” the first track to be released from Patty Griffin’s new [...]

Patty Griffin will release her seventh studio album, American Kid, on May 7. Recorded in Memphis and co-produced with singer-songwriter/Lisa Germano guitarist Craig Ross, it’s her first album for the label New West Records. Griffin says her followup to 2010′s Downtown Church was written largely to honor her late father — a high school science [...]

Things could have gone very differently for Amy Cook. We’re talking about the difference between glossily produced, mass appeal pop-rock and the stripped-down, under-the-radar, roots-pop singer-songwriter scene Cook finds herself in today. Hanging out and writing songs in L.A. right after college, without her heart set on any particular music trajectory, she walked into a [...]

In honor of the show starting its fifth season, Emmy-nominated television series Live from the Artists Den has made season one episodes available for digital download. The episodes available for purchase will feature Aimee Mann, Ani DiFranco, The Hold Steady, and Patty Griffin. To purchase the first season episodes digitally, visit The Artists Den store. [...]

It’s a bit ironic that many casual fans know of Patty Griffin through the covers of her songs done by other, more mainstream artists. After all, her own singing voice is a thing of wonder, and her own interpretations of the songs she likes are usually the definitive ones. Take, for example, “Making Pies” from her [...]

You may remember Shawn Colvin as the folksy singer-songwriter who had a few hits through the ’90s, like “Sonny Came Home” and “I Don’t Know Why.” On her latest album, All Fall Down, Colvin shows she’s still got it. The lyricist told American Songwriter about creating the record with musicians like Jakob Dylan and Alison Krauss, releasing her memoir, [...]

Robert Plant and The Band Of Joy Live From the Artist’s Den DVD (Universal) Rating: 4 1/2 out of 5 stars Former Led Zeppelin singer Plant continued the infatuation with Americana he started with 2007’s Alison Krauss collaboration by assembling an all-star group of rootsy musicians for his most recent Band of Joy. Led by [...]

Here’s the ten artists we hope to be front and center for at this year’s stacked Newport Folk Festival, which runs from July-28 and 29 – check out the full lineup here. Patty Griffin After logging two years with Robert Plant’s Band of Joy, Patty Griffin is turning her focus back toward her solo career. [...]

On November 19, PBS will air ACL Presents: Americana Music Festival, an airing of September’s Americana Music Awards, held at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. The 2011 Americana Music Awards: That Old Time Rock and Roll Robert Plant, Emmylou Harris, Gregg Allman, Alison Krauss, The Avett Brothers and The Civil Wars are among the artists who will [...]

Featuring Patty Griffin and members of Beck’s backing band, John Doe’s latest album, Keeper, is a winning platter of ’60s inspired rock with a singer-songwriter twist. In this interview, we talked to the X frontman and solo artist about songwriting, evolving as an artist, and the musicians who inspired him. “I think you have to [...]