Charley Crockett - Presents Lil G.L.'s Blue Bonanza

2018 release

Lil G.L.’s Blue Bonanza pays tribute to Crockett’s busking days, with an album stocked with his own interpretations of old-school country songs and half-forgotten blues gems. Featuring 15 songs originally performed by George Jones, Ernest Tubb, T-Bone Walker, Jimmy Reed, Charles Brown, Lavelle White, Ray Charles, and others, Blue Bonanza shines a light on a modern musician with traditional roots.

It’s also the second release in his ongoing Lil G.L. series, following 2017’s Lil G.L.’s Honky Tonk Jubilee. The Lil G.L. series allows Crockett to interpret some of the songs that have shaped his own approach to writing, aligning with a number of classic crooners along the way. Years ago, Willie Nelson, Loretta Lynn, Ray Charles and George Jones all found a similar balance, mixing their own material with covers of songs by other artists.

“I love timeless songs,” says Crockett. “I’ve always believed that the more timeless songs you learn how to play, the more timeless songs you can write.” Crockett’s unique approach to American roots music — a mix of Texas blues, classic country and Cajun soul — has earned him an audience on both sides of the Atlantic. Long before he toured the country in a bus once owned by Willie Nelson, though, he cut his teeth as a street performer, busking on the corners of New Orleans and the subway cars of New York City.

It was a hands-on musical education. Surrounded by the chaotic noise of city life, Crockett learned how to project. He learned how to hold a crowd’s attention. Most importantly, he learned a long list of classic songs from the jug bands, brass players and fellow songwriters with whom he shared the street. Filled with vivid storytelling, raw honesty and rich southern heritage, those classic tunes would eventually inspire his own original music.