Elana James of the Hot Club of Cowtown on What Makes Bob Holler
Kansas City native Elana James has been singing and fiddling with western swing trio the Hot Club of Cowtown for more than 15 years. In that time, the Austin-based group has recorded numerous albums, including the boisterous live album Continental Stomp, as well as a recent selection of Bob Wills’ tunes, What Makes Bob Holler. This is to say nothing of the band’s amazing string of opening slots for such musical legends as Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, and Asleep at the Wheel.
Their performance at Knuckleheads Friday night sees them opening for yet another legend, country musician Ray Price. It’s a fortuitous pairing; both acts just happened to be routing through Kansas City at the same time. It’s also an intriguing bit of synchronicity, because James played fiddle on the Last of the Breed album that Price recorded with Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard.
We spoke with James by phone about the band’s new album and what the Hot Club of Cowtown brings to Wills’ music.
