BAND WATCH: Western Swing favorites The Saddle Cats have released their first CD, Herding Cats, so look for some CD release parties coming soon… The Cowlicks also have a new CD called Hey, Hey We’re the Cowlicks and a release party on Friday July 3rd at the Devil’s Canyon Brewery in Belmont… J. Byrd Hosch, the transplanted Texas songbird with an ultra-low profile is working on a CD to be released in September… Hang on to your livers because brothers Jack Spade and Jimmy Whiskey have (sort of) formed two bands: the Jack Spade Trio and (the return of the) Big Bad Wolves. It’s difficult to say if these really are two bands since the bands share members full and part-time, and after a few drinks they like to be one band again. Huh, what? Who knows? These bands may reconfigure themselves 2 or 3 times a night depending on the Jim Beam supply… Rumors of the Shut-Ins’ demise are premature. Mike Roper has been taking time off to work with Gayle Lynn and the Hired Hands, develop Cheetahs on the Moon and be a dad, but the Shut-Ins themselves are scheduled for a show in October… The Blue Diamond Fillups have arrived with their own brand of pedal to the metal rockabilly… The Jesse Jay Harris Quartet, a side project from the Rancho Deluxe guitarist, played its last show for the foreseeable future. Work of the day-job variety is taking Harris to LA. He’ll be back to the Bay Area soon with Rancho Deluxe… The Sweet ‘n’ Lo’s have reorganized from a quartet to a trio and renamed the band Li’l Anne and the Tune Wranglers… The B-Stars are glad to have released their 6-song CD which provides an excellent taste of what this four-piece is about… The Blushin’ Roulettes hail from Mendocino County with a bluesy/country acoustic mix that provides a tasty listen on their MySpace page.
