'Copper & Glass' Music Album

Copper & Glass, the soulful country/rock band from the Central Valley of California, is the first band I've heard in years that easily moves into the territory of Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Allman Brothers Band.

After checking out most of America over many years, it's ironic that I stumbled onto Copper & Glass, a highly-commercial band with an authentic Southern Rock vibe, smack-dab in the middle of California.

This new group features tight musicianship, hit songwriting, and sharp creative energy.  Each band member is a Central Valley native, born and bred.

These dudes are not self-flaunting lip-glossed metrosexuals from Hollywood, though they are very marketable.  They just kick ass and totally rock.

They're not afraid of a little dirt under their nails, and they're damn proud to be from the country music center of California in the tradition of Merle Haggard and Buck Owens.

The guys from Copper & Glass have smelled a lot of diesel, stared at enough agricultural crops, and lived through too many Central Valley hard times to be anything but real.

They live it, know it well, and express it uniquely, which the video below makes apparent.

With a self-titled debut album being released this month, the Billboard charts await this California band.

Based in Fresno, Copper & Glass is a musical quintet comprised of:

• JC Babb - Lead Vocals, Guitar
• Mike Morris - Pedal Steel, Mandolin, Keyboards, Guitar
• Cory Dobbins - Drums
• Erik Escovedo - Bass
• Taylor Hollman - Lead Guitar, Mandolin

Because many folks elsewhere don't associate any style of Country music with California, I decided to simply find out how each band member felt about his home state just to reinforce the point.

"We are all natives of California, and being from the Central Valley comes with a certain kind of pride in ownership that outsiders have trouble understanding and insiders often have a hard time expressing in an accessible way," said lead singer JC Babb, 31.  "There is something genuine and compelling about the relationship we have with this place."

Bassist Erik Escovedo, 30, declared there are only two places he'll ever want to live: "Here in California, and There in California."

"California is a place where, a long time ago, the land was rich with gold, you know, that's just a mineral," said lead guitarist and mandolin player Taylor Hollman, 18, raised in the farm community of Madera Ranchos.  "We now live in a land where the real gold lives inside the hearts of its people."

"I love that, in just a couple minutes, it seems like I can go anywhere. Between Yosemite and Monterey, it's like I've traveled the whole world," said pedal steel player and keyboardist Mike Morris, 33.  "That's what California means to me. I have access to as much of the world as I'll ever really need to see."

"California, the sacred land where others came from ages past," added drummer and resident philosopher Corey Dobbins, 34.

Front man JC Babb mentioned his 83-year old grandfather, who came to California as a teenager to pick Central Valley fruit, as well as other family members who had migrated to Madera for economic opportunities.

"I am a man whose lineage can be found in the very soil under my feet," said Babb.  "That makes California part of me in every sense, and me as much a part of it."

Cool, smart and talented musicians with a lot of soul.  Do I smell platinum? 

L.A. and Nashville, take a listen to THESE guys.

How's the songwriting?  Phenomenal.

In fact, the album's title track, "Copper And Glass," should make Bob Dylan jealous.  I certainly am.  WOW.

In between playing numerous dates across California, Copper & Glass finished recording their self-titled debut album to be released October 20.

The band is headed overseas in December for several British performances and press interviews before returning home to play more U.S. dates.

Their first official video is in production, so watch the following teaser video for the album's lead single, "Clear Black Skies."

Visit the official Copper & Glass website for more info on TV appearances and an album release party, and listen to their album on ReverbNation.

Copper & Glass | Clear Black Skies