JD McPherson - Signs & Signifiers (2012)

Rocker J. D. McPherson has said that he doesn't like any music after 1958 and he backs that statement up on his debut album, Signs & Signifiers, released back in 2012. The singer/guitarist embraces old time rock 'n roll pumped up by equal amounts of rockabilly and R & B, and he's also a songwriter who can take credit for co-writing ten of the twelve songs on the album.

While Brian Setzer and some others who have fashioned nice careers mining the early days of rock often come across as if they're parodying the sub-genre McPherson's work is as authentic as anything its founding fathers created all those years ago. His music is edgier than that of his idol, Buddy Holly, and his singing is just as invigorating as any of the classic shouters of the '50s.

Signs & Signifiers was originally issued in 2010 and re-released two years later to a much larger audience on Rounder Records. The album's single and opening track, "North Side Gal," received some nice radio airplay.

Since then, McPherson has released three other albums and one EP, the last one a Christmas record in 2018.

On Signs & Signifiers McPherson is helped along the way by acoustic bassist and producer Jimmy Sutton who is an acclaimed Chicago musician with an established reputation for getting the most out of artists who admire the music from rock's formative years. Engineer Alex Hall - another lover of 50s rock - supplied all of the keyboard and drum work. To keep it real the trio recorded every track on 1/4 inch analog tape at Sutton's home studio.

McPherson is a former art teacher who earned a masters degree from Tulsa University in something called open media after his undergrad work in experimental film was completed at the University of Oklahoma. Despite the two degrees in visual media his first love has always been music.

You can learn more about Mcpherson on his official website.

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