Turnpike Troubadours appreciation thread

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

On 10/31/2018 at 6:47 PM, Kennythetiger said:

Several weeks ago Miranda and Evan announced their break-up, and we had tickets to see them play in northeastern Nebraska a couple of weeks later.  One by one TT was canceling their shows, each day, one by one.  We checked websites before leaving on our six-hour drive.  Show is still on.  Get there and there's a big sign on the door that the show was canceled.  

Oh well.  I wish they would have just issued a blanket cancellation like this one, instead of canceling each show the afternoon of.  I wish him the best, and hope he gets his shit figured out.  

They played a bunch of shows after that seemingly fine.

 

My guess is Felker had a full blown breakdown, which isn’t that surprising all things considered.  He went from relative unknown to tabloid fodder overnight all while nuking his marriage and then getting dumped by the new chick.  Probably some self medicating thrown into the mix, and eventually it’s going to hit a wall.  Hope he gets his shit straight.

[PantsTent 2,002]

The show tonight was awesome and the band was on point.  Felker was smart enough to lay low on Oklahoma talk.  He said he'd skip a story about where he grew up before one song and when he introduced the band he quietly said "Norman".  But between the encore the bass player sings a song and says "you guys see any good football games today?" It drew mostly boo's and I held middle finger up the whole song.  Fuck that guy. ou still sucks.

 

[4th&Five 41,511]

Fiddle player did horns down multiple times Friday. Still a really good show. 

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

On 12/1/2018 at 11:50 PM, PantsTent said:

The show tonight was awesome and the band was on point.  Felker was smart enough to lay low on Oklahoma talk.  He said he'd skip a story about where he grew up before one song and when he introduced the band he quietly said "Norman".  But between the encore the bass player sings a song and says "you guys see any good football games today?" It drew mostly boo's and I held middle finger up the whole song.  Fuck that guy. ou still sucks.

 

RC is the shit.  We drank beer with them before a show in Des Moines years ago.  The guitar player (Ryan Engleman) and fiddle player (Kyle Nix) were awesome too.  Felker seemed distracted (he was trying to find something they didn't sell at the bar), and the drummer wasn't there.  Back when they were a 5 piece.  It was right about the time they were branching out of Texoma, and they were just floored that people in a bar 7 hours from home knew who they were.

But I suppose you were still a little salty on Saturday night.

[PantsTent 2,002]

1 hour ago, Al_4_ISU said:

RC is the shit.  We drank beer with them before a show in Des Moines years ago.  The guitar player (Ryan Engleman) and fiddle player (Kyle Nix) were awesome too.  Felker seemed distracted (he was trying to find something they didn't sell at the bar), and the drummer wasn't there.  Back when they were a 5 piece.  It was right about the time they were branching out of Texoma, and they were just floored that people in a bar 7 hours from home knew who they were.

But I suppose you were still a little salty on Saturday night.

Yes, salty and drunk for the 2nd time that day! 

 

[oSuJeff97 3,435]

On 12/1/2018 at 11:50 PM, PantsTent said:

The show tonight was awesome and the band was on point.  Felker was smart enough to lay low on Oklahoma talk.  He said he'd skip a story about where he grew up before one song and when he introduced the band he quietly said "Norman".  But between the encore the bass player sings a song and says "you guys see any good football games today?" It drew mostly boo's and I held middle finger up the whole song.  Fuck that guy. ou still sucks.

 

I was at the show too.  

I mean... you know he was just having some fun, right? None of the guys in the band are from Norman.  They are all from SE Oklahoma and they got their start playing in Stillwater and Tulsa. I'm pretty sure a few of them spent at least some time as students at OSU... so it's not like they are all OU fans. Evan was just having some fun fucking with the crowd.

But agreed that OU does indeed still suck.

[PantsTent 2,002]

3 hours ago, oSuJeff97 said:

I was at the show too.  

I mean... you know he was just having some fun, right? None of the guys in the band are from Norman.  They are all from SE Oklahoma and they got their start playing in Stillwater and Tulsa. I'm pretty sure a few of them spent at least some time as students at OSU... so it's not like they are all OU fans. Evan was just having some fun fucking with the crowd.

But agreed that OU does indeed still suck.

Yes, I know. See previous post about being drunk for the 2nd time in one day.

[Litig8r 414]

Bump TT is headed to Key West for Mile Zero fest.  Best music show outside of Steamboat

 

[Kennythetiger 9,375]

Good deal.  Hope Evan got his shit together.

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

51 minutes ago, Kennythetiger said:

Good deal.  Hope Evan got his shit together.

Seems like it, based on video from recent shows.

[Alvin89 108]

Turnpike is booked for Rodeo Houston. Should be interesting. 

[4th&Five 41,511]

Playing Whitewater with REK this summer. 

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

They just canceled 3 shows.  Rumor is everyone but Felker was there.

Hes a brilliant songwriter, but it's hard not to think that he's going to get kicked out real fucking quick.  RC Edwards has written some really good songs.  Maybe he'll take the reins.  I could go watch that band play covers and not get sick of it.

Edited January 25, 2019 by Al_4_ISU

[PantsTent 2,002]

34 minutes ago, Al_4_ISU said:

They just canceled 3 shows.  Rumor is everyone but Felker was there.

Hes a brilliant songwriter, but it's hard not to think that he's going to get kicked out real fucking quick.  RC Edwards has written some really good songs.  Maybe he'll take the reins.  I could go watch that band play covers and not get sick of it.

Interesting...the first was "due to weather" where everybody but Felker was there.  Don't try to see these guys if you're in Chicago. The makeup of the makup of the original makup are now all cancelled. 

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

3 minutes ago, PantsTent said:

Interesting...the first was "due to weather" where everybody but Felker was there.  Don't try to see these guys if you're in Chicago. The makeup of the makup of the original makup are now all cancelled. 

I bought the weather excuse, but I don’t really expect anything from these guys until Felker gets his shit together.  If he ever does.

[bluto 4,912]

They're headlining a festival in dallas next month, curious to see how that plays out

[Kennythetiger 9,375]

Keeping fingers crossed that they're in Lincoln, NE tomorrow night.

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

They played a private event in Nashville last night.  If they can keep Felker wrangled and on the bus (literally and figuratively), I think they'll probably make it.  He looks healthy in the pics I saw from the show.

I saw them at the Bourbon in '16.  Great time.  They closed with RC doing "All Your Favorite Bands" by Dawes.

Edited February 13, 2019 by Al_4_ISU

[Kennythetiger 9,375]

They played, we had a great time. 5 rows from the stage. Evan has very sad eyes. Hope he finds peace soon. 

[IDIOTsavant 8,483]

On 1/25/2019 at 1:36 PM, Al_4_ISU said:

They just canceled 3 shows.  Rumor is everyone but Felker was there.

Hes a brilliant songwriter, but it's hard not to think that he's going to get kicked out real fucking quick.  RC Edwards has written some really good songs.  Maybe he'll take the reins.  I could go watch that band play covers and not get sick of it.

I just assume that if they feel the need to kick Felker out that they'll just bring John Fullbright back. Hell, I'd like to see them bring him back even with Felker.

[Ollie Slatt 289]

32 minutes ago, IDIOTsavant said:

I just assume that if they feel the need to kick Felker out that they'll just bring John Fullbright back. Hell, I'd like to see them bring him back even with Felker.

The backing band Fulbright has behind him is already pretty bad ass.  His live shows are great.  He just needs to put out some new music . . . most of the material he plays at his shows is from an album released in 2012. 

[Zepol87 9,185]

Anyone ever been to the Mardi Gras DFW thing? They will be playing this year, trying to decide if it is worth it

[IDIOTsavant 8,483]

2 minutes ago, Ollie Slatt said:

The backing band Fulbright has behind him is already pretty bad ass.  His live shows are great.  He just needs to put out some new music . . . most of the material he plays at his shows is from an album released in 2012. 

I don't disagree. Turnpike just has a bigger stage right now. There was some scuttle that they were looking at bringing him back a little over a year ago, and I believe he did sit in for a song or two when they taped at ACL. I just think he'd be their target to slide in for Felker in a pinch to keep things rolling while he works on himself.

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

Yeah, I had the same thought about bringing Fullbright back.

Can you imagine that band doing his songs?  Got damn.

[Ten Bears 2,480]

Yeah that would be awesome but I can't imagine Fullbright singing most of TT's songs though.  Or anyone else really.

[Ollie Slatt 289]

I think if you really like any band then the idea of a different singer is always problematic.  And Fulbright’s singing style is very different (much bluesier).  

That said, every time I have seen Fulbright he has sprinkled in a wide variety of covers, and he always knocks it out of the park with other people’s material.  His covers of Shotgun Wille, Tvz’s Catfish Song, and Let’s Go Get Stoned have all been particularly rad. 

[TWHOOKEM 10]

I always loved that TVZ song and was shocked when I saw JF play it once. I agree with you, his shows are truly killer these days (and they’ve been great for a long time).  I saw him sit in with Turnpike at their ACL taping on piano, and it didn’t affect the show much, but if he were the lead singer, they’d become a totally different band. 

[Archer 474]

On 2/15/2019 at 12:12 PM, Zepol87 said:

Anyone ever been to the Mardi Gras DFW thing? They will be playing this year, trying to decide if it is worth it

I went once back in the early 00s, it was fun back then. They had a N and S stage set up and rotated back and forth. If you were at the front of one show you’d end up at the back of the next one. There we lots of tits by the end of the night. 

[Archer 474]

My wife just told me Miranda announced she got married, could have helped send Evan into a relapse. 

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

4 hours ago, Archer said:

My wife just told me Miranda announced she got married, could have helped send Evan into a relapse. 

He’s insanely private but this wouldn’t surprise me.

I get the impression that she swooped in on him, and he was blown away by celeb attention.  Ditched his wife and lost his shit in the process 

[oSuJeff97 3,435]

The interesting thing is that at that ACL Live show back in December, which was the first show after initial "break" in November, Evan looked to be as carefree and happy as I've seen him on stage in a while.

 

[Ten Bears 2,480]

She's dead to me.  Not that she ever was on my radar other than she doesn't suck as much as the rest of her Nashville slapdick cohorts.

 

[Dry Elbows 142]

Saw Turnpike at the HLSR last night.  Felker looked like hammered dog shit.  Zero energy until the last two songs.  They put on a good show, just lacked the energy I normally associate with seeing them live. 

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

2 hours ago, Dry Elbows said:

Saw Turnpike at the HLSR last night.  Felker looked like hammered dog shit.  Zero energy until the last two songs.  They put on a good show, just lacked the energy I normally associate with seeing them live. 

I think they were fucking terrified.

[NIUHuskies 504]

I think they are one of the bands that draw energy from the crowds. More intimate settings the better the show. So makes sense that the Houston Rodeo show would be lackluster.

[Dry Elbows 142]

Perhaps. But he looked strung the fuck out. 

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

I don’t think he’s drinking, but I also don’t think he’s really taken the time to sort himself out either.

[TWHOOKEM 10]

I was there too on Saturday. Felker often  looks kind of nervous or uneasy to me, even when I've seen them at Gruene Hall. This time it looked though, it was like he had no joy or emotion up there, just going through the motions, like he'd rather be doing something/anything else...

[Alvin89 108]

Was there on Saturday as well..The band sounded fantastic and seemed to really enjoy it but like everyone else said, Evan was nervous/terrified/strung out or something. The only emotion he showed was when his guitar had issues and needed to be swapped out. Still a pretty damn good show

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

I definitely think he isn't wired for celebrity, and that manifests through obvious nervousness/awkwardness, substance abuse, etc.  Seems that there's a really obvious conflict between the success and status they've achieved, and his level of comfort with it.  Not the first guy to be in that spot, and probably not the last.  I just hope he can get everything squared away.

[Kennythetiger 9,375]

Women.

[Kennythetiger 9,375]

I saw that they're booked again for Red Rocks.  Saw them last year with Old 97's and Charley Crockett.  Great show.

[oSuJeff97 3,435]

2 hours ago, Kennythetiger said:

I saw that they're booked again for Red Rocks.  Saw them last year with Old 97's and Charley Crockett.  Great show.

I was at that show as well.  It was amazing.  Glad they're going back.

[hullabelew 3,723]

20 hours ago, Al_4_ISU said:

I definitely think he isn't wired for celebrity, and that manifests through obvious nervousness/awkwardness, substance abuse, etc.  Seems that there's a really obvious conflict between the success and status they've achieved, and his level of comfort with it.  Not the first guy to be in that spot, and probably not the last.  I just hope he can get everything squared away.

My feeling at well.  I thought after he had done some solo shows with Rhett Miller, he could learn to relax.   

 

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

3 minutes ago, hullabelew said:

My feeling at well.  I thought after he had done some solo shows with Rhett Miller, he could learn to relax.   

 

Rhett's a guy who has it figured out as well as anyone in this business.  He's a great role model.

He's not a sober guy, but he's not a drunk.  He doesn't take himself too seriously, but he's a complete professional that cares a lot about doing his best work.  He has fun with what he does, is well respected by other songwriters, and has never really got himself caught up in any kind of extra-curricular craziness.  He's 50 and writing songs that are as good as the ones he wrote at 30.

IMO, Rhett is the guy you want to be.

[hullabelew 3,723]

I completely agree, but he completely quit drinking after he finished "The Traveler".  But he didn't really advertise it because he wasn't a drunk.  Also, about the friendliest musician one would ever meet.    I've seen Old 97's and solo Rhett, WAY too many times to count, and I've never seen him once when I thought he was too drunk to perform.  I was hoping he could take Evan under his wing.  

Decent article here.  
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/rhett-miller-the-messenger-album-sober-760216/

 

Edited March 5, 2019 by hullabelew

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

19 minutes ago, hullabelew said:

I completely agree, but he completely quit drinking after he finished "The Traveler".  But he didn't really advertise it because he wasn't a drunk.  Also, about the friendliest musician one would ever meet.    I've seen Old 97's and solo Rhett, WAY too many times to count, and I've never seen him once when I thought he was too drunk to perform.  I was hoping he could take Evan under his wing.  

Decent article here.  
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/rhett-miller-the-messenger-album-sober-760216/

 

Solid article.  I hadn't really checked in on Rhett since the "Graveyard Whistling" release and cycle (I mean, I saw them this summer - just talking from a media standpoint), so I feel mildly stupid for having not caught that.  He was still writing about drinking quite a bit, so I just made assumptions.

Edited March 5, 2019 by Al_4_ISU

[hullabelew 3,723]

Shall we?

The Turnpike Troubadours featuring Rhett Miller "…:

[Kennythetiger 9,375]

We shall.

[Ten Bears 2,480]

 

 

 

Felker not doing well at all.  Damn son, get your shit together.  Starts at the 1:04 mark or so.