First they lost Chris Stapleton, their powerhouse vocalist. Then they lost Mike Henderson, the man responsible for bringing them all together in the first place.
As this performance from Wednesday’s episode of Music City Roots makes clear, The Steeldrivers still have plenty of fire in their bellies. While it’s a little difficult to predict where they’ll end up on future releases – their first two albums bore the heavy imprint of Stapleton and Henderson not just as musicians, but also as songwriters – the band as it now exists is still capable of kicking some serous butt.
(You already have The SteelDrivers and Reckless, right? Just making sure.)
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A freelance writer and humorist with an abiding love of country music, C.M. Wilcox's cutting, clear-eyed take on the genre has drawn the attention of Country Weekly, The Washington Post, and The Tennessean in the years since this site began. He lives near Sacramento and can be reached by email at CMW (at) countrycalifornia.com.
The first two albums already feel so iconic that it’s definitely gonna take a good third one for me to fully “accept” the new lineup. But I agree – they sound great here. Who would’ve guessed from “Unbroken Ground” and “I Can’t Love You Anymore” that Gary Nichols could rasp-rock it up like this?
I really enjoyed their performance on Music City Roots and its acts like the Steeldrivers that make that show delightful at times. The vast majority of Americana branded acts that grace the stage of MCR do little for me musically but I always love their bluegrass shows and when bluegrass bands show up on the roster. I do miss Chris Stapleton though as Gary’s voice lacks the growl and authority that Chris had. It’s like trying to replace a grizzly bear with a teddy bear…
tammy continues to do well
I think I’ll enjoy them more when they come out with a new album. As it stands, I just feel like I’m listening to a bunch of covers.