What’s yellow and black and shows up, without fail, every Friday the 13th? I’ll give you some hints: At each of his customary shows, he releases a new issue of his ’zine, devoted to poking and prodding country music’s luminaries. He also delivers a set of mirthful new-country classics while backed by prolific local musicians representing acts such as Ole Mossy Face and Hands Down Eugene. Need more clues? He hasn’t missed a Friday the 13th since 1998, and while his voice is … well, gritty and rough-hewn (to put it gingerly), he is regularly accompanied by some of the most mellifluously voiced young ladies to ever grace an East Nashville stage. He also has superb taste in first-initial usage. If you still don’t know who we’re talking about, you’re long overdue for a dose of
RR, courtesy of D. Striker. You can download some of his tunes at www[dot]dstriker[dot]com — including 2009’s biting “Country Star Condos” — and be sure to grab a free copy of
RR while you’re at the show. Americana songster and The 5 Spot’s Two-Dollar Tuesdays host Derek Hoke opens, along with Southern-tinted cock-rockers The Lonely H.
— D. Patrick Rodgers