elam mcknight & Keith Carter
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elam mcknight & Keith Carter

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The best kept secret in music

Press


"Legendary Sunshine Sonny Payne Endorsement"

"Everyday I do my King Biscuit Time Show I hear,see and meet new faces in the blues field. I don't like to single any one person out, but in this case there is no way for me to skip one of the most important and up and coming guitar and harmonica duos that will make you sit up and take notice. His name is Elam McKnight and joining him from Great Britain Mr. Keith Carter"
---Sunshine Sonny Payne, Host King Biscuit Time
- King Biscuit Time Radio


"Andria Lisle"

"The best new acoustic blues duo on the scene"
Andria Lisle - Music Critic (Memphis Flyer, Mojo, Living Blues) Author WAKING UP IN MEMPHIS


"Roots Music Report"

"Blues rock all the way. Elam McKnight's song writing talent is more than evident and takes this CD release to the room of fine listening. sings with everything he has to offer. Blues never felt so good. (4 out of 5 stars)"
Roots Music Report www.rootsmusicreport.com
(Reached #10 on the Roots Blues Chart)

- Roots Music Report


"Blues Matters (UK)"

"This first album contains a real mix of styles and McKnight describes the overall sound as "Roots Blues". Opening track "Braid MY Hair" is a Delta stomper reminiscent of Elmore James/Hound Dog Taylor with excellent slide guitar from Elam and wailing harp from Zack Reynolds. The other Delta blues here is a versionof Robert Johnson's "Terraplane Blues" which boogies along at a furious pace and with the help of more sterling harp work and much whooping and hollering builds to an exciting climax. There are three Hill Country Groove/Stomps on which Elam is backed by various Burnsides. As you would expect, there is not too much finesse on these sides but they don't half rollick along - raw and exciting, particularly "Three Legged Dog". And now for something completely different - "Sugar Cane" is a tasty slice of Stax style soul complete with groovy backing vocals and a slinky, greasy piano solo from Ronnie Godfrey. There are only two covers on this album and the second of these is an acoustic version of "Devil Got Religion" which gets a rootsy/traditional treatment. Would you believe that in the middle of all this there is a killer Chuck Berry groove, "Only Game In Town", featuring searing slide guitar and thumping "Jerry Lee" piano riff. This is an album packed with good vibes and feeling, raw and passionate. Catch Elam now before a big label signs him up and smoothes him out too much……Dave Drury BLUES MATTERS THE MOST READ BLUES MAGAZINE IN THE UK (GREAT BRITAIN) - Blues Matters


"Max Haymes"

“Keith Carter is a fine sensitive harp player recalling the low down and swinging East Coast piedmont style ala Sonny Terry, Buddy Moss and Jordan Webb and moans with the best of them! Keith listens and plays with his fellow musicians like a true Rural Blues man, a rare quality indeed in today’s climate of blasting extended electric guitar solos."
Mississippi Max Haymes, Blues Historian
Lancaster, England
- Author of I Believe I’ll Dust My Broom, African American Women’s Blues from the Deep South & Origin


"Malcolm Hare"

“While there have been many harmonica players through the club over the past 8 years, Mr. Carter’s strict adherence to the traditional acoustic styles of the blues stands out. It is a continuation of a traditional music form that unfortunately is dying out. His playing is not only entertainment, but a source of education in the history of the Blues.”

Malcolm Hare is one of the owners of the Bourbon Street Blues and Boogie Bar, voted the 2000 “International Blues Club of the Year” by the National Blues Foundation in Memphis, Tennessee.
- Bourbon Street Blues and Boogie Bar, voted the 2000 “International Blues Club of the Year” by the Na


"Music City Blues Review (Nashville,TN)"

Every once in a while, we get a CD by someone who is not nationally-renowned, but really SHOULD be! Elam McKNight's debut falls in that category. This young west Tennessee Native(Yorkville, to be exact) certainly has a knack for the deep, Delta blues sound, through both his singing and terrific guitar playing. Add to that his uncanny writing abilities, penning all but two of the cuts presented here, and he is a true "triple threat." Plus, he is backed by some of the best musicians on the planet, namely Hypnotic Casey Lutton on guitar, Ronnie Godfrey on keys, Zach Reynolds on harp, Steve Johnson and Cedric Burnside on drums, and Michael Thorn and Garry Burnside on bass. There is a bit of everything for everybody presented here. There is straight blues, the best of which are the traditional "Devil Got Religion," (with some great harp work) and "Bob Zarecor Blues", an ode to his grandfather who was a dairy farmer for 50 years. The "Hill Country" sounds of the Burnsides is well-represented as well, with rollicking, electrified versions of "Three Legged Dog", "Miss Maureen", and "Crying Shame." You would swear you were in a Clarksdale juke joint while listening to these! We had three favorites, though-a soulful vocal on "Sugar Cane" sounds as if it stepped right out of the STAX studio, complete with great background harmonies, and a stunning solo by Hypnotic Casey. "Braid My Hair" is a slide-guitar filled rocking request by Elam for his woman to come back home. It follows in the hallowed footsteps of great shuffles by Elmore James and Hound Dog Taylor. The hands-down tour de force has to the raucous Chuck Berry-meets-the-juke-joint in "Only Game in Town", where Elam rocks and rolls through a story of card-playing and pool shooting vices. Ronnie Godfrey's piano is simply incredible on this one. For someone who wants a varied taste of blues from a young man destined for blues stardom, check out Elam McKnight and "Braid My Hair." And, as always...ENJOY!

- Music City Blues (the Crows)


"REVIEW OF LAST COUNTRY STORE"

Here is what Roger Stolle of Clarksdale,MS has to say about Elam McKnight and Keith Carter's "The Last Country Store" Release Date May 7,2005

“Their newest CD captures much of that excitement and sense of discovery. Fittingly, "The Last Country Store" owes as much of its sound to the bright, rolling hills of Tennessee as it does the dark,flat fields of the Mississippi Delta. Much of the CD centers around bad love and moving on, mixing traditional blues themes with touches of gospel and country roots. And there are many highpoints. For fans of Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, there are numerous guitar/harmonica duo numbers. For fans of updated blues and even Americana music, there are a handful of more orchestrated, band cuts somewhat in the vein of Chris Whitley or maybe even John Mellencamp. The Last Country Store" is more heartfelt and unvarnished than many of today's slicker, big studio releases. That's not to say that the production standards aren't high. They are. But the energy level and spontaneous feel of the album is certainly boosted by the "future primitive" approach that Jimbo Mathus' studio employs. In the end, the CD accurately portrays an up-and-coming blues duo worth watching. Check it out.” ---Roger Stolle---Cat Head Delta Blues & Folk Art---www.cathead.biz
Roger Stolle - Cat Head Records

- ROGER STOLLE-CATHEAD RECORDS


Discography

Elam McKnight (self released) Braid My Hair
Keith Carter (self released) Keith Carter

Photos

Feeling a bit camera shy

Bio

Here is what Roger Stolle of Clarksdale,MS has to say about Elam McKnight and Keith Carter's "The Last Country Store" Release Date May 7,2005

“Their newest CD captures much of that excitement and sense of discovery. Fittingly, "The Last Country Store" owes as much of its sound to the bright, rolling hills of Tennessee as it does the dark,flat fields of the Mississippi Delta. Much of the CD centers around bad love and moving on, mixing traditional blues themes with touches of gospel and country roots. And there are many highpoints. For fans of Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, there are numerous guitar/harmonica duo numbers. For fans of updated blues and even Americana music, there are a handful of more orchestrated, band cuts somewhat in the vein of Chris Whitley or maybe even John Mellencamp. The Last Country Store" is more heartfelt and unvarnished than many of today's slicker, big studio releases. That's not to say that the production standards aren't high. They are. But the energy level and spontaneous feel of the album is certainly boosted by the "future primitive" approach that Jimbo Mathus' studio employs. In the end, the CD accurately portrays an up-and-coming blues duo worth watching. Check it out.” ---Roger Stolle---Cat Head Delta Blues & Folk Art---www.cathead.biz
Roger Stolle - Cat Head Records

Elam McKnight and Keith Carter play a mobile form of blues which dates back to the days of itinerant musicians, a pack of clothes and acoustic instruments in tow, who traveled the routes of the Southeastern US to ply their talents. "Our music travels well and is suited to festivals, concert halls, large
to small venues, gas stations, parking lots, front porches, back porches, street corners, brothels, country stores, flat bed trailers, living rooms, fish fries, and goat roasts."

The two began as many things do, out of sheer desperation. Desperation in that Elam McKnight had released an album, couldn't afford a band to tour with, and needed someone to go on the road with, and fast.
Enter Keith Carter, virtuoso harmonica player from Great Britain. One might ask how the two crossed paths.
McKnight ran an add in a Nashville magazine for a harmonica player. "A musician friend of mine suggested the addition of a harmonica player, as I was in no position to feed, much less support a band. I said 'Man that's a great idea!' I put the ad out and it ran for two weeks. I got calls from drummers,
bass players, and one trombone player. Near the end of the ad’s run I was still with no harmonica player. So this guy calls me up and asks 'are you looking for a guitar player?' and out of frustration I said 'Hell no! I put an add out for a H-A-R-M-O-N-I-C-A player!' and he said 'Oh, well I know one and I
will email you his phone number' and he did which lead me too Keith." The two met, played two songs, and that was all that was needed. "There was an obvious chemistry from the first notes"

The duo hit the road together in the Summer of 2004 and played "basically wherever we could" ,working their way into several different festivals, venues, and appearances; including 4 on the King Biscuit Radio Show, Ground Zero Blues Club (owned by actor Morgan Freeman), and during the King Biscuit Festival (Helena, Arkansas) and during the Sunflower Blues Festival (Clarksdale, MS.) The two have been very busy over the last year and recorded their first album and filmed a documentary about the location site of the recording, which was an old mercantile store in the rural delta of west Tennessee a few weeks from demolition. "We had talked about recording in the store as it was one of a kind and there are not many left. I love location recording and had done some on the last album in Mississippi with the Burnsides. I mentioned the idea to someone and they said ‘you better hurry up because they are tearing it down in two weeks.' So we got it just in time as it was torn down five days after we wrapped up recording and filming."

The duo also enlisted the production skills of Grammy winning Producer/Musician Jimbo Mathus (Buddy Guy, James Mathus Knockdown Society) for the single “Going Away” which will be prominently featured on the documentary and album.

The CD and documentary is set for release in the spring/summer of 2005.

This duo has a great deal to look forward to over the coming year and both want to continue making music in the way they love it as Carter explains:

"Elam and I want to make the kind of stuff that is real, not contrived or some kind of gimmick, music that has some history behind it. We like it that we can play in front of thousands at a festival, a small crowd at a venue, or on a porch in front of five folks like we did at the Otha Turner picnic and this 'thing' we make, this sound, never loses anything in the translation.”