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Heybale!
Hill Country BBQ, New York, NY
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Gary Claxton
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After hearing this group in an outdoor location in Austin, the decision to hear them with decent acoustics a couple miles from home was uncomplicated. Here's one of the most accomplished, professional country bands on the planet, playing in a basement in New York City to a couple hundred people. Unbelievable.
Earl Poole Ball's impeccable credentials include 20 years with Johnny Cash and his work with the Byrds on Sweetheart of the Rodeo. His honky tonk piano defines the sound, and he played (and sang) an awe-inspiring set. Fellow veteran Redd Volkaert, who's been playing with Merle Haggard since '97, may well be the best guitar player alive today, no lie. Willie Nelson can certainly deliver a song, but Heybale! lead singer Gary Claxton sounds like Willie if Willie could sing.
This group's ability to leave space, to back off, to let any member take lead, is a particularly impressive asset. Volkaert and Ball may not be household names outside the music community, but that's because there are no hotshots here, there's a five-man act with a five-deep bench, and every solo is exquisite.
—Suzanne Cadgene
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