Knut Bell and 'The Blue Collars'

As far as I am concerned there is one great voice of traditional country music in the Pacific Northwest. That voice belongs to Knut Bell. I first met Knut in 2003 and was struck by how much we had in common: Both of us are very proud of our Northwest Scandinavian heritage. Both us grew up learning the folk songs of the region. Both of us have a high regard for real country music as played by Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Horton and Johnny Cash. Both of us have a deep love for a Pacific Northwest that barely exists anymore; an area that belonged to the hard working people who shaped the region. I have always considered Knut to be a kindred spirit.

Knut grew up in Skagit County, easily one of the most beautiful places in Western Washington. It has shaped his songs and stories. Knut has a thunderous deep voice and writes great songs that resonate with anyone who takes the time to listen. He has just released a new record, "Wicked, Ornery, Mean, and Nasty." It is his best yet. I never had the pleasure of playing lead guitar for him back in Seattle... The timing was never right. This year Knut and I got back in touch and arranged for him to come to Nashville, play a couple shows and conduct some business. Knut brought his excellent drummer, Lewis Warren, who has drummed with me on many projects back in Seattle and is a great friend. Knut and Lew stayed for a week back in early April and the trip was successful to the point that he is coming back for a another show and a couple of sessions and business meetings this week. So! If you missed Knut last time through, you can see him at Derek Hoke's Two Dollar Tuesday at The 5 Spot, May 31st.

Knut Bell is completely worthy of any hype praised on him. I cannot express to y'all what a pleasure it is to play with him and his huge voice. - Grant Johnson

As far as I am concerned there is one great voice of traditional country music in the Pacific Northwest. That voice belongs to Knut Bell. I first met Knut in 2003 and was struck by how much we had in common: Both of us are very proud of our Northwest Scandinavian heritage. Both us grew up learning the folk songs of the region. Both of us have a high regard for real country music as played by Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Horton and Johnny Cash. Both of us have a deep love for a Pacific Northwest that barely exists anymore; an area that belonged to the hard working people who shaped the region. I have always considered Knut to be a kindred spirit.

Knut grew up in Skagit County, easily one of the most beautiful places in Western Washington. It has shaped his songs and stories. Knut has a thunderous deep voice and writes great songs that resonate with anyone who takes the time to listen. He has just released a new record, "Wicked, Ornery, Mean, and Nasty." It is his best yet. I never had the pleasure of playing lead guitar for him back in Seattle... The timing was never right. This year Knut and I got back in touch and arranged for him to come to Nashville, play a couple shows and conduct some business. Knut brought his excellent drummer, Lewis Warren, who has drummed with me on many projects back in Seattle and is a great friend. Knut and Lew stayed for a week back in early April and the trip was successful to the point that he is coming back for a another show and a couple of sessions and business meetings this week. So! If you missed Knut last time through, you can see him at Derek Hoke's Two Dollar Tuesday at The 5 Spot, May 31st.

Knut Bell is completely worthy of any hype praised on him. I cannot express to y'all what a pleasure it is to play with him and his huge voice. - Grant Johnson

There is no better country dance band than Knut Bell and the Blue Collars. They are great at keeping the crowd up and moving. From the first note to the last of their set they have a plan; play a mix of tunes that never bores, always entertains.

Just as I got there I saw the lead guitarist Grady step up on stage and start to tune up, I rarely say anything to an artist and especially not when they are at work.

Grady and I had exchanged messages on Facebook and he had extended me an invite to this show. I walked up and introduced myself, he is a great guy and is fast turning into one of my favorite musicians.

Knut has a larger than life stage presence and knows how to direct a great show. Last night he had dyed his goatee and massive sideburns neon green, he also had a a green feather boa tied around his cowboy hat. Nobody can say he doesn't have any fun. He gets the crowd up and dancing right away. His show modulates; weasel-grasping ballads morph into happy-feet hip-shakers.

The Blue Collars are Kinny on Steel, Grady on Lead, Jim on Bass and Lewis on Drums. Knut sings all the vocals and plays acoustic guitar. They play marvelous country music that will put a smile on your face and get your foot a tapping

Last night Grady was ON... he was throwing down his best stuff. I love all the music Knut plays and I particularly like the kick-ass rocking tunes. Grady handles both with skill and creativity, but he shines when the tunes are cooking. Last night his fingers were busy making magic. I got up close to watch, he was having a blast; happy musician, happy me.

Kinny and him were trading the usual great lines; the steely complimenting the solid body perfectly. The bass and drums provide the solid bottom and Knut's low velvety voice makes for a great sound. I was grooving and the memory of today's work just melted away.

Carmen Ghia - Live Seattle: Music in the Clubs

There is no better country dance band than Knut Bell and the Blue Collars. They are great at keeping the crowd up and moving. From the first note to the last of their set they have a plan; play a mix of tunes that never bores, always entertains.

Just as I got there I saw the lead guitarist Grady step up on stage and start to tune up, I rarely say anything to an artist and especially not when they are at work.

Grady and I had exchanged messages on Facebook and he had extended me an invite to this show. I walked up and introduced myself, he is a great guy and is fast turning into one of my favorite musicians.

Knut has a larger than life stage presence and knows how to direct a great show. Last night he had dyed his goatee and massive sideburns neon green, he also had a a green feather boa tied around his cowboy hat. Nobody can say he doesn't have any fun. He gets the crowd up and dancing right away. His show modulates; weasel-grasping ballads morph into happy-feet hip-shakers.

The Blue Collars are Kinny on Steel, Grady on Lead, Jim on Bass and Lewis on Drums. Knut sings all the vocals and plays acoustic guitar. They play marvelous country music that will put a smile on your face and get your foot a tapping

Last night Grady was ON... he was throwing down his best stuff. I love all the music Knut plays and I particularly like the kick-ass rocking tunes. Grady handles both with skill and creativity, but he shines when the tunes are cooking. Last night his fingers were busy making magic. I got up close to watch, he was having a blast; happy musician, happy me.

Kinny and him were trading the usual great lines; the steely complimenting the solid body perfectly. The bass and drums provide the solid bottom and Knut's low velvety voice makes for a great sound. I was grooving and the memory of today's work just melted away.

Carmen Ghia - Live Seattle: Music in the Clubs

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Knut Bell & The Blue Collars

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Wednesday, Nov 24 2010
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Seasoned country musician Knut Bellhas plenty to be thankful for, and he’s the first to admit it. After a hellish few years battling a staggering assortment of personal demons, both chemical and spiritual, the Skagit County native began a road to recovery and has arrived in a remarkable place of peace, but still armed with no shortage of badass showmanship on stage. This weekend’s Thanksgiving shows at the Little Red Hen will no doubt be spilling over with a collective sense of euphoric gratitude—both from Bell and the Hen’s salty and spirited regulars who will be dancing away any tryptophanic effects from the day’s feast.

HANNAH LEVIN
- Seattle Weekly

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Knut Bell & The Blue Collars

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Comments
Wednesday, Nov 24 2010
?


Related Content
Knut Bell & The Blue CollarsDecember 28, 2011
Skagit Valley's Favorite Son Knut Bell Brings the Country Swing, Saturday Night at The Little Red HenJune 6, 2011
Knut Bell & The Blue CollarsDecember 29, 2010
The Short List: The Week's Recommended ShowsNovember 24, 2010
Bottomfeeder: Bogart's Isn't Three Drinks BehindAugust 3, 2011
More About
Knut Bell
Concerts and Tours
Arts, Entertainment, and Media
Like this Story?
Sign up for the Events Newsletter: What's happening in town? From underground club nights to the biggest outdoor festivals, our top picks for the week's best events will always keep you in on the action.
enter email

Seasoned country musician Knut Bellhas plenty to be thankful for, and he’s the first to admit it. After a hellish few years battling a staggering assortment of personal demons, both chemical and spiritual, the Skagit County native began a road to recovery and has arrived in a remarkable place of peace, but still armed with no shortage of badass showmanship on stage. This weekend’s Thanksgiving shows at the Little Red Hen will no doubt be spilling over with a collective sense of euphoric gratitude—both from Bell and the Hen’s salty and spirited regulars who will be dancing away any tryptophanic effects from the day’s feast.

HANNAH LEVIN
- Seattle Weekly

Album Review: George Peden

Question: What do you get if you take your recording ambition to Texas, hook up with a stellar and proven band, call on a known producer, and centre the album on classic and original tunes?

Knut Bell and Wicked, Ornry, Mean and Nasty is your answer.

Sitting ever so comfortably in a post Waylon slipstream, this singer and talented songwriter returns with his fifth album. Out now on Marlingspike Music, the 12-track jukebox is a real good listen.

Produced by Derailers lead man Brian Hofeldt, the album is a steady mix of keen guitar, steel, and fiddle. With names like Redd Volkaert (guitar), Hayden Vitera (fiddle)) Mike Daily (pedal steel) and Scotty Matthews (drums) on board, the sound is gutsy, real and driven. Add Bell’s barroom growl and it’s Saturday night country.

Bell, a former fisherman who turned from tuna to twang, has penned eight tracks here. Cuts like the peppy “Skagit Days, “with its tale of rural hospitality and daily life, is a primer to an album radio needs to play.

Other cuts that please include the cheeky “Haybales”, a telling tale of the dangers of roadside curvy distractions, the remembered classic “Lost Highway” and “An American Man” with rightful homage to Johnny Cash, a knockout Hofeldt tune.

This album hinges on an authentic thread of honest and image-driven country. The playing is superb. The voice comes honed from an awareness of what’s being sung. And, given the liner sleeve revelations, that of demons and addictions, the title track takes on significant meaning.

“Wicked ornry mean and nasty; them’s the words that summarize / Some things sweeten up with age and some grow bitter over time. / Some things are and always will be. / Some things are all just in your mind.”
- Nuts About Country

Album Review: George Peden

Question: What do you get if you take your recording ambition to Texas, hook up with a stellar and proven band, call on a known producer, and centre the album on classic and original tunes?

Knut Bell and Wicked, Ornry, Mean and Nasty is your answer.

Sitting ever so comfortably in a post Waylon slipstream, this singer and talented songwriter returns with his fifth album. Out now on Marlingspike Music, the 12-track jukebox is a real good listen.

Produced by Derailers lead man Brian Hofeldt, the album is a steady mix of keen guitar, steel, and fiddle. With names like Redd Volkaert (guitar), Hayden Vitera (fiddle)) Mike Daily (pedal steel) and Scotty Matthews (drums) on board, the sound is gutsy, real and driven. Add Bell’s barroom growl and it’s Saturday night country.

Bell, a former fisherman who turned from tuna to twang, has penned eight tracks here. Cuts like the peppy “Skagit Days, “with its tale of rural hospitality and daily life, is a primer to an album radio needs to play.

Other cuts that please include the cheeky “Haybales”, a telling tale of the dangers of roadside curvy distractions, the remembered classic “Lost Highway” and “An American Man” with rightful homage to Johnny Cash, a knockout Hofeldt tune.

This album hinges on an authentic thread of honest and image-driven country. The playing is superb. The voice comes honed from an awareness of what’s being sung. And, given the liner sleeve revelations, that of demons and addictions, the title track takes on significant meaning.

“Wicked ornry mean and nasty; them’s the words that summarize / Some things sweeten up with age and some grow bitter over time. / Some things are and always will be. / Some things are all just in your mind.”
- Nuts About Country

The big man from Skagit County has the kind of deep, burly voice that's perfect for truck-driving songs and Johnny Cash covers (both of which he might do in abundance when playing live). Most of the songs here are Knut originals with some notable Cash, Waylon and Haggard influences. Recorded in Austin a couple years back with some first-rate Austin pickers, it's now finally being released, and it's by far his best set yet of straight-up blue-collar country with the sound ranging from rockabilly and western swing to outlaw country-rock and barroom honky tonk.

Don Yates - Don Yates

The title of this disc accurately describes Knut Bell’s music - a mix of honky-tonk and hillbilly country with a solid dose of rockabilly to liven things up. Nine of the tracks were written by Bell, whose booming deep voice instantly reminded me one of the all-time greats, Sleepy LaBeef. He writes about drinkin’, semi-trucks, women, cheatin’, honkytonks, and being lonesome - the staples of great country songs.
 
But Bell has a unique perspective, as evidenced in the opening track “Donita,” a song about a woman who “ teases with her ruby red lips…” but also has “… caked-on blue eye shadow and piercings everywhere”. The song features a some nice picking from guitarist Adam Bratman.“Gizzards N’ Beer” starts off as a rocker but quickly shifts into a country anthem highlighting Bell’s preference for unwinding at the end of the work week with a healthy dose of both of these dietary staples. 
 
Bell has included plenty of tunes devoted to women and relationships. In one, the love of his life decides to move on, sparking Bell to ponder that coal trains and his baby are forever gone and all that remains is a “Good Country Song”. Another highlight is “Pour Me Another” about a man who lost his farm to the bank, which cost him his family and now the sawmill is closing because of an endangered species. No wonder he asks for another and requests “…and then pour me away”. If that doesn’t work, then Bell will make a trip to the “Local Yokel Lounge,” where “it looks like the wild West when country comes to town”. Bratman tears it up on guitar with some hot rockabilly licks.
 
The three cover tunes include a less than politically correct “Chick Inspector”, a staright remake of the Mel Tillis penned “Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love To Town” and a Johnny Cash original “So Doggone Lonesome”, which proves that Bell and the band can nail the true country style. 
 
Bell sticks to basic instrumental support with his flat-top guitar, Andrew See on bass and Steve Smith on drums along with Bratman on electric guitar. That allows listeners to focus on his rousing vocals and this batch of quality songs. I wish Bell had included a couple of more tunes of equal quality as the disc is a bit short for the CD format. All in all, a very solid recording from Mr. Bell and band, who deserve a listen if you like real down-to-earth country music with a rockabilly twist.
 
 Mark Thompson  1/9/2005 - The Phantom Tollbooth

The title of this disc accurately describes Knut Bell’s music - a mix of honky-tonk and hillbilly country with a solid dose of rockabilly to liven things up. Nine of the tracks were written by Bell, whose booming deep voice instantly reminded me one of the all-time greats, Sleepy LaBeef. He writes about drinkin’, semi-trucks, women, cheatin’, honkytonks, and being lonesome - the staples of great country songs.
 
But Bell has a unique perspective, as evidenced in the opening track “Donita,” a song about a woman who “ teases with her ruby red lips…” but also has “… caked-on blue eye shadow and piercings everywhere”. The song features a some nice picking from guitarist Adam Bratman.“Gizzards N’ Beer” starts off as a rocker but quickly shifts into a country anthem highlighting Bell’s preference for unwinding at the end of the work week with a healthy dose of both of these dietary staples. 
 
Bell has included plenty of tunes devoted to women and relationships. In one, the love of his life decides to move on, sparking Bell to ponder that coal trains and his baby are forever gone and all that remains is a “Good Country Song”. Another highlight is “Pour Me Another” about a man who lost his farm to the bank, which cost him his family and now the sawmill is closing because of an endangered species. No wonder he asks for another and requests “…and then pour me away”. If that doesn’t work, then Bell will make a trip to the “Local Yokel Lounge,” where “it looks like the wild West when country comes to town”. Bratman tears it up on guitar with some hot rockabilly licks.
 
The three cover tunes include a less than politically correct “Chick Inspector”, a staright remake of the Mel Tillis penned “Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love To Town” and a Johnny Cash original “So Doggone Lonesome”, which proves that Bell and the band can nail the true country style. 
 
Bell sticks to basic instrumental support with his flat-top guitar, Andrew See on bass and Steve Smith on drums along with Bratman on electric guitar. That allows listeners to focus on his rousing vocals and this batch of quality songs. I wish Bell had included a couple of more tunes of equal quality as the disc is a bit short for the CD format. All in all, a very solid recording from Mr. Bell and band, who deserve a listen if you like real down-to-earth country music with a rockabilly twist.
 
 Mark Thompson  1/9/2005 - The Phantom Tollbooth