Junior Brown’s inimitable brand of country music fuses western swing with the blues, rockabilly, bluegrass and rock ’n’ roll. A guitarist and lap steel player of the highest order, he and his luthier Michael Stevens developed his signature double-necked instrument, the “guit-steel,” in the mid-’80s, when it became too cumbersome to switch cables between his lap steel and guitar. Brown’s list of collaborators spans nearly five decades and includes time spent playing with Asleep at the Wheel, on duets with Ralph Stanley and Hank Thompson, as well as collaborations with George Jones, Doc Watson, Leona Williams, Ray Price and many others. Don’t miss what will be a hard-hitting return to SMF, Brown’s first since his 2011 debut alongside The Flatlanders.

 

Since its beginnings in the late 1990s, Hot Club of Cowtown has been known for jaw-dropping virtuosity and unforgettable live shows. The band has toured extensively worldwide for over 20 years, both on its own and with artists including Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Gatemouth Brown, The Avett Brothers and Dan Hicks, and appeared at SMF in 2015 for a run of six shows alongside Asleep at the Wheel. Praised by The Times (UK) for its “down-home melodies and exuberant improvisation” the Hot Club of Cowtown straddles a line between country music and swing.