Since the release of his first album at age 19, it was clear that Willy Mason had tremendous talent. Now with a few years and more experience under his belt, Mason is back with his latest LP, Carry On. Mason’s raw talent and wisdom meld together in this album to create fusion in instrumentation paired with Mason’s vocal range, which goes from gravel-deep to soft and fragile. If you missed it, Mason made a track off the album, “Talk Me Down,” available to MAGNET readers. Also, check out the mix tape that he put together for us. Says Mason, “I had a lot of fun putting these songs together. For the full playlist I came up with of some 40-plus songs, look here.”
Willie Nelson “Hello Walls”
Great song for a lonely hotel room when the moon is full and the diesel engines and lovers next door make sleep seem so very far away. I picked this particular clip because I like seeing Willie back when he was just emerging as a singer himself. The collection of songs he’d already written is amazing, and you can see many of them here. Video
Peg Leg Sam “I Got A Home”
I first got turned on to Peg Leg Sam when my mom Jemima James was recording for Labor Records out of North Carolina. She’d come home with compilations from the label, and I ate them up. This track was one of my favorites. The philosophy and redemption in the blues is as potent for me as any religious text. Video
Bessie Jones & The Georgia Sea Island Singers “Sink ‘Em Low”
It is amazing to think what we’d have lost to time if Alan Lomax hadn’t set off in his Cadillac with a tape recorder in his trunk. Here’s one of the gems he found. Video
Nat King Cole “Nature Boy”
“The greatest thing you ever learn is just to love and be loved in return.” Great footage here of a bygone era. Video
The Four Tops “Still Waters Run Deep”
That groove could go on forever. Every time you play this, you help the universe expand and that includes the molecules in your heart. Its good for your health and the health of the world. Video
Bill Withers “Ain’t No Sunshine”
Sure you probably know this song, but seeing the band play it in this clip brings it to a whole other level. Video
The Commodores “Brick House”
Makes an ’80s boy wish for older days. Video
Jimmie Rodgers “Waiting For A Train”
Almost sounds like he learned that train whistle from the Mongolian throat singers. There are many trains in life, but we all know what it feels like to wait. Video
Stevie Wonder “Heaven Help Us All”
The best kind of political song. And the first time I saw this clip of him singing it on the Johnny Cash Show, I got tears in my eyes. Still gives me tingles every time. Video
Roger Miller “Sorry, Willie”
Hard to pick a Roger Miller song out of all of the great ones, but maybe fewer people have heard this one, and it shows the compassion and depth of storytelling he’s capable of. Of course, it’s particularly easy for me to relate and I’m a sucker for tragedy. Video
Patsy Cline “A Church, A Courtroom And Then Goodbye”
A beautiful performance. Her spirit dwarfs the others in the room in this clip—I don’t know how those boys manage to hold her stare as she sings to the man in them. Video
The Band “The Weight”
Here seen on The Last Waltz with the Staple Singers. How can you not feel the joy from this performance? ?Watch Mavis take the second verse and then lay it down. Video
Son House “Grinnin In Your Face”
Sitting singing and telling truth like a grandfather of the nation itself. “Bear this in mind, a true friend is hard to find; don’t you mind people grinning in your face.” Video
Tammy Wynette “I Don’t Wanna Play House”
Oh my god, the tragedy of this song. Tammy’s strength is so gentle and restrained but unmistakable. Simple and understated illustration of the fallout on the next generation of a family’s split. Video
True Tone Gospel Singers “Don’t Let It Be Said Too Late”
From the Pitch/Gusman Records compilation out on Fat Possum Records. Can’t beat the power of harmony. Video
John Lee Hooker “Serves Me Right To Suffer”
Hooker has probably taught me more than any other guitar man and this is a great clip I hadn’t seen before. There is nothing unnecessary in a John Lee Hooker performance. Video
Chet Atkins “Mr. Sandman”
Here’s a whole other kind of guitar playing, and the video production on this is a trip. It is virtuosic (yes, I had to look that up to be sure it was a word) but in a totally tasteful way. Style. Video
Ralph Stanley “Village Church Yard”
Beautiful a cappella mountain gospel. Stanley’s album Almost Home is beautiful and soothing through and through. Video
James Brown “Talking Loud and Saying Nothing”
Had to leave it with another good groove. Thank god for rhythm, thank god for James Brown. Peace. Video.
