Whitey Morgan & the 78's, Alex Williams

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Michael Mesfoto

Whitey Morgan

If Waylon Jennings had decided to go in a hard rock direction in the latter half of the ’70s (rather than adding a disco backbeat), it may have come out sounding something like Hard Times and White Lines, the new album from Whitey Morgan & the 78's. A song cycle on the downsides of mid-life drinking, drugging and dead-end jobs, the hard country arrangements match well with Morgan’s tales of lost souls. With Alex Williams.

$28 ($25 adv.).

press release: Hard Times and White Lines is already the subject of widespread critical acclaim…

“As far as I’ve been concerned since I hit upon them a few years back, Whitey Morgan and the 78’s are a bright spot in a modern country landscape…As his profile has risen, he’s kept his nose to the grindstone, cranking out old time country music with a heavy debt to the rabble-rousers of old—your Waylons, your Willies, your Kristoffersons, and of course, your Merles. In other words, the good shit.” –Noisey

“[Morgan] comes from growing up in the blue-collar environs of Flint, Mich., and being raised around some of the hardest-hitting country and rock imaginable. And that muscle is all over the Americana veteran’s new album…” –Billboard

“For a purist like Whitey Morgan, country music is just as much tear-in-your-beer balladry as boot-scootin’ boogie.” –Rolling Stone

“In terms of songwriting precision and quality of recorded performance, Whitey Morgan has established himself as one of the primary talents in outlaw country…He pays homage to the genre’s icons while never failing to embody the spirit of outsider-ism.” –No Depression

“[‘Just Got Paid’ is] ear-grabbing and guitar heavy…a distinct spin on the guitar-fueled original. And with Morgan’s whiskey-soaked vocals and standout musical accompaniment, it’s a cover that’s bound to get the boots tapping along.” –Taste of Country

“Morgan and his band prove once again that they are among the very best among the small legion of those carrying the outlaw country banner these days.” –Glide Magazine

“Hard Times and White Lines is soaked with gorgeous pedal steel, honky-tonk licks and Morgan’s dark and dense baritone growl. On opener 'Honky Tonk Hell', Morgan offers a grim glimpse that wails as much as it kicks. It’s void of light and sees Morgan throwing brimstone onto the fire.” –Wide Open Country