Reckless Kelly
February 2010
These
are very good times for Reckless Kelly. With the release
of BULLETPROOF in 2008, the Austin-based roots rockers
known for the integrity of their musical approach, the
hard-core energy of their live shows and the fierce loyalty
of their fans turned up the intensity on their career.
The album quickly became the band’s biggest seller, hitting
the Billboard 200 and reaching the Top 25 of the magazine’s
Top Country Albums chart. It contained the band’s first
#1 on both the Texas and Americana charts, “Ragged as
the Road,” and earned it a nomination as Best Band or
Duo at the 2009 Americana Music Awards, a show that put
Reckless Kelly on stage with the country’s best at the
Ryman Auditorium. BULLETPROOF also featured “American
Blood” and “God Forsaken Town,” widely regarded songs
that link Reckless Kelly to a workingclass tradition of
socially conscious music that stretches from Woody Guthrie
to Bruce Springsteen.
The
fact that “God Forsaken Town” was written by Reckless
Kelly singer-songwriter Willy Braun with Robert Earl Keen
is symbolic of the fact that the band’s standing among
its peers has never been higher. The respect band members
have earned from everyone from Steve Earle to Kevin Welch
can be summarized by Joe Ely, who called Reckless Kelly
“my kind of band: hellraising, hard-playing, kick-ass
songwriting, feet firmly in the present, but with an amazing
knowledge of where it has all come from.”
The
fact that “God Forsaken Town” was written by Reckless
Kelly singer-songwriter Willy Braun with Robert Earl Keen
is symbolic of the fact that the band’s standing among
its peers has never been higher. The respect band members
have earned from everyone from Steve Earle to Kevin Welch
can be summarized by Joe Ely, who called Reckless Kelly
“my kind of band: hellraising, hard-playing, kick-ass
songwriting, feet firmly in the present, but with an amazing
knowledge of where it has all come from.” more